Browsing Ojibwe translation

166.

Introduction

167.

Welcome to the *Mahara manual*. This manual is designed to provide documentation for people who use Mahara on a day-to-day basis. It covers the functionalities of Mahara to provide you with information about what you see on the screen.

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Without further ado, let's begin!

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What is Mahara?

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If you're wondering what Mahara or an ePortfolio is, why you might want one and what it can do for you, then read on. You're about to find out.

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At the most basic level, Mahara is two things: an `ePortfolio <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eportfolio>`_ and a `social networking <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_network>`_ system combined. An ePortfolio is a system in which students can record 'evidence of lifelong learning' -- such as essays, artwork or other such things they produce that can be stored digitally. Such things are known as *artefacts* in Mahara. Social networking systems give a way for people to interact with their friends and create their own online communities.

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But Mahara is much more than just a place to store files. Mahara also includes blogging, a résumé builder, and web services to integrate with other platforms.

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Here's a short video by `Domi Sinclair <https://twitter.com/Domi_Sinclair>`_, formerly at `University College London <https://ucl.ac.uk/>`_. She explains what Mahara (called 'MyPortfolio' at UCL) is and for what it can be used.

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Using a metaphor

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It often helps to use a metaphor to explain a new concept. There are many metaphors used for portfolios. Here are two of them to give you an idea of how you could explain portfolios to your learners.