Your home page

Develop your home page as you would an abstract, executive summary, or "elevator speech." Based on the key points gleaned from sections you have developed in the portfolio AND based on the standards sought by a reviewer, summarize your highlights. Thus, above all else, what do you want someone else to know about the course you teach? Tip: develop this page last so that it clearly explains the content provided in the other parts of the already developed pages.

How should you develop your home page?

Since this is the first section your reader will see, it should be clear, succinct, yet comprehensive. Make it inviting: use graphics, effective organization, a clear title, and design to highlight your "news." Consider Including a summary of the most important points expressed in each section or select a few areas you wish to highlight, emphasizing the points you know will be of particular interest to the context of use that the portfolio targets.

1. Use headings (to highlight your points) like the ones on this page.
2. Include a graphic. This could be a photo of yourself, your subject matter, or research, i.e., something that creates visual interest.

Most important is the content. This is your narrative (1-page summary) of your credentials; select 3-4 topics to present in this section (remember you can include links to the pages that provide more detail); you need not summarize every part of the portfolio, only those areas you want to highlight. Thus, if you were to print this page as a summary of your credentials (and your reviewer may want you to do so), what must it include? Is it self-contained (without relying on the other pages)? Does it convey the most important points about you, your teaching, or other areas of scholarship?

What else should you consider?

Modify the appearance of your pages (and your entire site) so that they reflect your personal preferences. See Editing Portfolio Appearance to learn more about how to personalize the look of your portfolio. Optional items include the following:

- a personal photo or graphic that represents a key interest
- a video (see, for example, a video email that introduces yourself to your e-folio reader)
- a link or gadget to another web page such as your online journal, etc.

Tips

- Write the highlights page last since it summarizes your portfolio. After all, how can you summarize something you have not yet written?
- Label each item carefully (such as graphics, attachments, and other artifacts) so the reader knows what he/she is viewing.
- Demonstrate your best writing skills. If the overview presents a positive, professional beginning, the reader's first impression of you will also be positive.
- Ask a colleague to review it for you for suggestions on improvement.
- See Resources for more help on how to organize and design your portfolio.
- Print the page using the "Print Page" tool located at the bottom of the page, which will allow you to create a PDF of each page. Some contexts may require hard copies, which can easily be created from your pages. Of course, you can always copy and paste sections of your portfolio into Word documents as well, including faculty progress reports.

Teaching Portfolio Template by Cindy Raisor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License. Some content has been modified from the TAMU Center for Teaching Excellence resources on teaching portfolios.

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