Create ePortfolios with the Amazing Acrobat 9

Link via Adobe Education Leaders

The New Acrobat 9 ePortfolio

Think of the PDF portfolio as an electronic wrapper that can house all types of files. Acrobat 8 introduced this concept with PDF Packages. Now with the introduction of powerful rich media support and Flash, Adobe has renamed these packages portfolios to reflect their unique capabilities. Files can be organized into logical collections and linked together in a way that makes it easy to navigate, find, and interact with the contents in a variety of useful and creative ways. What’s even better is that all of this can be shared with anyone using the free Adobe Reader 9. Anyone on any platform can interact, participate, and save changes. (I would clarify what “participate” means here.)

If your portfolios contain eLearning units or administrative meeting packets, then integrating interactive worksheets and forms add real functionality. Acrobat 9 has powerful form recognition and workflow tools that make creating, distributing, and collecting data simple. You can use the free Acrobat.com service to host your forms and data or you can choose to manage your data in-house using shared folders or FTP. You can collaborate in real time or asynchronously. Either way, all participants and users can interact with your portfolios in the way you design. The possibilities are enormous. Here are a few ideas:

* New teacher orientation and welcome portfolios
* Board of Education meeting portfolios
* Professional development portfolios
* Teacher lesson unit portfolios
* Student eLearning portfolios
* Student end-of–year archival portfolios
* Club activity portfolios
* Instructional portfolios
* Lesson plan portfolios
* Best practices archive portfolios
* Evaluative portfolios for staff
* Reflective professional portfolios
* CV and resume portfolios
* Student growth portfolios
* Presentation portfolios
* Assessment portfolios

In this article I have only scratched the surface describing the potential of Acrobat 9 in education and eLearning for schools, colleges, and professionals. From pre-service preparation at schools of education to development of effective communications skills for learners of all ages, Acrobat 9 delivers a unmatched set of versatile tools.

Acrobat 9 Professional Extended is available at an academic discount price of $215.