Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
hension, application, and analysis of content is synthesized into a working, live
Web portfolio available to all on the Internet. The parts are connected to form
a communication that has many messages and plenty of content to illustrate and
reinforce those messages. The messages in the Web portfolio that are meant to
persuade the user into acting favorably. If the parts are not synthesized
effectively, the wrong messages are communicated. An example of this might
be the user assumes the Web portfolio author has bad technical skills because
the Web portfolio does not perform properly from the user's point of view. Bad
performance sends a nonverbal or non content message that may influence the
user in a negative fashion. Thus, retarding the possibility of a work for hire
opportunity and contributing to the tarnishing of a positive public appearance.
The Web portfolio must be managed in order to keep it running efficiently.
When efficiency halts, user perception and confidence become damaged.
Evaluation is concerned with the ability to judge the value of Web portfolio
assets (artwork, reports, letters, journals, photos) for the given purpose and
audience. The purpose of the Web portfolio is to persuade the user. The
audience is made of a population of users who have interest in the Web portfolio
for entertainment, information, or commerce reasons. Maybe the user wants to
hire the creator of the Web portfolio for a work assignment. Judgments made
on content inclusion, message, and overall design are to be based on definite
criteria that needs to be addressed when creating a Web portfolio. These may
be internal criteria which include personal artifacts thought of as important and
valuable. And it will include external criteria which focus on relevance to the
purpose of getting work for hire and promoting a positive professional
appearance to the world and the local communities that we occupy. A concrete
example of this would be the Web portfolio of a kindergarten school teacher.
He or she must determine the appropriate content of her Web portfolio, without
sacrificing personal identity and without compromising her professional ap-
pearance or position as an educator within a community. Learning outcomes in
this area are highest in the cognitive hierarchy because they contain elements of
all the other categories, plus conscious value judgments about the Web
portfolio based on clearly defined criterion dictated by personal values, societal
norms, and professional standards. The Web portfolio creator/owner must be
able to predict the perceptions that the Web portfolio will illicit. And, he or she
must be prepared to defend or argue the intellectual and professional value of
the Web portfolio, the credibility of the work sources, and subject matter of the
content. The Web portfolio author must continually evaluate the standards of
the times, ethically, legally, and professionally in order to appraise the compli-
