Welcome to Melanie's e Portfolio "How to Make a Dictionary"!

University Bielefeld
English Department of Linguistics and Literature
British and American Studies M.Ed.
Seminars: How to Make a Dictionary (Tuesday 8-10)
Introduction to Linguistics (Thursday 8-10)
Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Daffyd Gibbon
Portfolio by: Melanie Zahn, Mat.No. 1666313
Winter semester 2006/ 2007




Welcome to Melanie's e-Portfolio!






What is..., actually ???


What is a website ?

A website is a collection of web pages and hypertexts that one finds on the
World Wide Web, a global hypermedia information space that is available via the Internet.
A website is normally written in HTML (Hyper Text Mark-up Language) which is a language used for the creation of online pages.
The pages of a website are accessible from a homepage whose hierarchical structure is organised by hyperlinks which navigate the reader through the different elements of the online document.
Most of the websites can be accessed by everybody, but there are still some online documents that require a subscription before releasing their content.




How do you make a website ?

There are several ways to make a website.
You can use a software like blogg.de and create your own weblog or you can upload HTML files and use the websites of the university or any other web service provider.
If you have a DSL line you can also save HTML files and get your own server.




What is a hypertext ?

A hypertext is a special kind of text that is linked to other written docuA hypertext is a special kind of text that is linked to other written documents.
The prefix hyper- is Greek and means over or beyond. It signifies the overcoming of the linear constraint of a text.
In computing an online hypertext contains hyperlinks that can be defined as cross-references that relate to other documents.
The largest hypertext in the world is the World Wide Web. But even (electronical) dictionaries and encyclopaedias can be defined as hypertexts, because they contain a network of information and documents.




What is a text ?

The definition of the term text is very large and depends much on the respective scientific discipline that is working therewith.
In computer-based terminology, the term text refers to a unit of information (data) that consists of graphemes or symbols.
In language, text means a complex construction that contains words and (coherent) sentences.
In linguistics it describes a communicative act and includes either spoken and written language.

Some examples of texts and written documents are:
- books
- novels
- (technical) handbooks
- online texts
- dictionaries




What is an electronic portfolio and why is it an important means of work ?

In education a portfolio is used to document the learner’s personal collection of information that helps him to structure and to improve his learning achievements.
The progress in technology has led to the development of digital or electronic portfolios that enable the learner to demonstrate his educational skills and his individual development.
A public e-portfolio is a learning aid that is primarily addressed to the learner himself, to his tutor and to other pupils or students who are interested in the subject.
It helps the learner to get prepared for eventual quizzes or class tests and to improve the learner’s interchange with his tutor or lecturer and other students.




What should a portfolio contain and how are these components defined ?

There is a variety of possibilities to form a portfolio. Some portfolios consist of learning logs whereas others contain an extended collection of achievement evidence.
A portfolio should generally contain all important information of the subject, the contents discussed in class and of the documents added in addition.




Please have also a look at A Note on Learner Portfolios by Prof. Dr. Dayfdd Gibbon, a lecturer at the Faculty of Linguistics and Literature at University of Bielefeld:


A Note on Learner Portfolios
Dafydd Gibbon (2004-12-16)

Background
The term "portfolio" has a complex set of meanings: the artist's portfolio (a collection of works
produced by an artist in order to illustrate his works), the investment portfolio (a collection of
documents of financial investments, such as shares), or simply a job description (there is even a term "Minister without Portfolio"). Note: check the meanings in dictionaries and by web research, and include them, with this document, in your portfolio.

Definition
A portfolio is a collection of concrete learning outcomes produced during a learning experience. This learning experience may be autonomous and self-motivated, or coupled with institutional teaching procedures. In fact it may be both, a characteristic of university level learning experiences. The length of the learning process may be a task, a lesson, a course unit, a course, a curricular module, an entire curriculum, or indeed whatever results from an ongoing life-long learning process. The concrete learning outcomes are produced by a learner, such as experiment reports, reports on scientific literature, demonstrations, multimedia documents, interviews, exercises on specific skills, tests - in fact, any product which demonstrates a learning outcome.

Function
A portfolio has two main functions:
1. A portfolio can be used for many kinds of assessment of learning outcomes, including
1. self-assessment, assessment by peers, assessment by teachers, assessment by employers and potential employers,
2. diagnostic assessment, proficiency assessment, achievement assessment, qualification assessment.
2. A portfolio can function as a reference document for providing basic input to later learning
stages and to preparation for specific tasks, including preparation for examinations.

Characterisation
It is almost self-contradictory to define an outline for a portfolio. The following is intended as a systematic suggestion, bearing in mind that the general idea is for the portfolio to be useful for reference and demonstrating achievements, and that more informal types are possible.
• Table of Contents
• Introduction: brief summary of contents
• Chronological organisation by course topics, and for each unit
• statement of goals,
• summary of content,
• examples (text, images, graphics, audio, video),
• exercises, reports, homework,
• tests,
• results (successes, problems, interesting aspects, relevance),
• personal evaluation in respect of what has been learned.
• Overview, conclusion, and overall evaluation.
• Glossary of technical terms.
• Bibliography of recommended and used literature, including websites.
The portfolio should be in electronic format, and archived on CD, DVD or other storage media. For easy consultation and access, the component documents can be linked to a hypertext index.

Conclusion
The ideas sketched here are intended as a rough guide to the creation of one kind of learner
portfolio. Other forms, such as learner diaries, and combinations of different types, are possible.
The test of a good portfolio is whether it fulfils the objectives of permitting adequate assessment and providing useful reference material.

posted by Melanie Zahn @ 5:47 AM