My Journey Creating an ePortfolio: From Panic to Progress

Hearing the words “you must create an ePortfolio” was enough to send panic through my brain!  My mind started spinning in 100 directions at once, trying to figure out what I needed and how I could get there.  Once I had a moment to stop and really think about it, I was able to make a plan.  I started with a paper and pen and began sketching out what I wanted.  I knew I had some items to include from my previous class, 5302 and had to figure out how to incorporate them. I knew I should take risks, take action, and keep going until I felt more confident.  I had started with a Google drive and quickly realized this platform would not work for me.  It is not user friendly and it doesn’t come off as polished and professional as I like.   In my line of work, I have learned everything needs to be the best you can make it, at all times. I knew I had to hold myself accountable, and just keep going.  After doing a little research, I decided that Webador would be the best for me.  It was user friendly form the beginning, with built in templates that you I could customize to my liking.  I knew I had to design, edit and be able to share, but I also wanted it to be simple yet enticing at the same time.  Little did I know I would be trying to combine learning with storytelling just to keep things interesting!

After sketching out what I was looking for, I began to build my blog.  I know it is essential to get noticed although it took a little while to understand how to actually grow my online presence.  I started with the Home page and included things I thought might catch someone’s attention.  My first problem was putting the same information on the screen that I pictured in my mind.  Try, try and try again came up more often that I would like to admit!  Graduate Medical Education (GME)is a little different than K-12 education and I wanted to make sure people knew the highlights.  I felt it was important to let folks know who I was and what I was about.  Next, I moved over to the learning page.  This is where I’d like to house all of the work I create so others will be allowed to view it.  I want the pages to be clean and flowing, all while maintaining the theme of GME.  To start with, I included the assignments from 5302 and will continue to add as I move forward.  While looking around at other pages I decided I needed a FAQ page.  I feel that people will have more questions about GME and I would like to be able to provide as much information as possible.  I’d like folks who visit my page to leave with a little more knowledge than they came with.

There have been frustrations along the way for sure!  In my mind, I want something a certain way and I am not always able to make that happen on the page.  I’ve had to watch YouTube videos and even asked my teenager for help, but at the end of the day, you do what you need to do to get the job done.  Without doubt, I do think this will be a work in progress.   I already feel the need to change some of the things on my page and I’ve only had it a week!!  I think the ePortfolio will continue to change and evolve as I go through this program.  I am looking forward to working on it and seeing what I can come up with.  I’m beginning to have a greater appreciation for digital content creation and design. How can you not!   I’m dreading the critics, but I know they are necessary and that’s how I will learn.  Mistakes are great teachers, and I can’t expect success overnight. I know this is true, but I am going to be hard pressed to remember for my own sanity!  For my own good at least!  I’m going to try and write with the reader in mind.  I don’t want to be boring or come of as if I know it all.  I just want to give as much information as I can and get as much, if not more, in return. Learners who take ownership of their eportfolios will find they can use them as a secret weapon for personal development. OneFile’s eportfolio has built-in feature for recording Continuing Professional Development, as well as recording all achievements throughout students’ careers – both of which can be powerful tools for acing interviews for jobs and training.  

APA Style:
OneFile. (n.d.). 6 ways eportfolios benefit students. Retrieved June 13, 2025, from https://onefile.co.uk/explore/6-ways-eportfolios-benefit-students/