EPortfolio Guide to Electronic Submission for National Board Initial, Retake, and Renewal Candidates 1

ePortfolio

Guide to Electronic Submission

for National Board

Initial, Retake, and Renewal Candidates

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Benefits of Electronic Submissions

• Elimination of shipping costs

• Extended portfolio deadline

• Opportunity to use spring lessons

• More efficient, secure delivery system

• Reduced risk of making packaging and formatting errors

Features to Facilitate Online Submissions

• Tutorial guides for uploading submissions

• Temporary storing features to upload and remove draft documents and videos until submission or submission deadline

• Automated process for transcoding most video files

• Tracking capabilities to monitor progress

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Getting Started

• System is available from April 1 to May 16.

• Follow Portfolio Instructions: Parts 1 and 2 for your certificate area.

• Obtain your voucher code(s) to access the system.

• Register and enter your voucher code(s) to submit your evidence online.

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Obtaining Voucher Code• Make sure your account is paid in full.

• First time candidates: Make sure eligibility prerequisites are met.

• You will be e-mailed a voucher code, or set of codes, to use for access to the ePortfolio system.

• Update My Profile with preferred e-mail address.

• Add [email protected] to your safe sender list to ensure receipt of codes and notifications.

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To Register and Use ePortfolio System

1. Access the National Board website:

www.nbpts.org/eportfolio.

2. Click the link to the ePortfolio system.

3. Click “Register” in the top navigation of the ePortolio website.

4. Follow instructions to create an account.

5. Enter your voucher code(s) in the text box.

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Making Changes• Refer to Guide to National Board Certification for

specific instructions regarding product, certificate, or entry changes.

• If you make changes after you’ve obtained your voucher code(s), these codes will be invalidated; you will be e-mailed new voucher code(s).

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Making Changes (cont.)• If you have already registered using the invalidated

voucher code(s), the entry information for those codes will be removed from your account.

• Click on “Register” link, sign in using your registration information, and add the new voucher code(s) you receive.

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Online Video Trainings

The NBPTS website has online videos for step-by-step instructions for the following:

• Registration

• Uploading evidence such as scanned documents

• Portfolio submissions

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Submissions to ePortfolio

• Initial Candidates: Submit portfolio Entries 1-4 for your selected certificate area.

• Retake Candidates: Submit only evidence for entries you have selected to retake.

• Renewal Candidates: Submit evidence for Components 1-3 and reflection.

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System Specifics—Computer

• Use Windows XP or later; Internet Explorer 8.0 or higher or Firefox 4 or later

Or

• Use Mac, OS X v10.6; Safari 5 or later

• Internet Connection should be high speed.

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System Specifics —Software

• Adobe Flash Player 10.1 or higher

• Adobe Reader 10.1.3 or later (version 9.5—

as an alternative

• Microsoft Word 1997-2003 or later, or

OpenOffice 3

• Adobe Flash Player or Reader Free—

http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer

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Sample Submission forAYA-ELA: Entry One

Analysis of Student Growth in Reading and Writing--4 Files

1. Contextual Information Sheet(s)

2. Written Commentary (13 pages)

3. Student A Packet

4. Student B Packet

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Sample Submission for AYA-ELA: Entry 2

Instructional Analysis: Whole-Class Discussion--Submit 5 files



3. Entry 2 Classroom Layout Form

4. Video recording (15 minutes)

5. Instructional Materials

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Instructional Analysis: Small Groups—Submit 5 files



3. Entry 3 Classroom Layout Form

4. Video recording (15 minutes)

5. Instructional Materials

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Documented Accomplishments;

Contributions to Student Learning—4 files


2. Description and analysis (10 pages for up to 8

accomplishments)

3. Documentation (16 pages)

4. Reflection (2 pages)

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Cover Sheets and Forms Submit Cover Sheets & Forms in the Portfolio

Instructions: Part II that…

• Require you to enter information about the evidence you are submitting.

• Include prompts you must respond to on a separate sheet of paper.

• Identify the evidence attached.(You my submit these as PDF files. If you scan these as graphic files, you

may insert them into word processing files.)

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Written Commentaries & Reflections

Submit Written Commentaries and Reflections by…

• Following format specifications found in the Portfolio Instructions (font size, margins, number of pages)

• Using Microsoft Word, Open Office, or PDF files.

• Adhering to guidelines for merging PDF files.

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Submission of Video Recordings

• Adhere to format specifications in Portfolio Instructions.

• Submit as an flv, asf, qt, mov, mpg, mpeg, avi, wmv,mp4, or m4v file.

• If your video consists of multiple segments, submit only the segment(s) allowed for your entry for scoring.

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Resources for Video FormatsRefer to “Recommended Video Formats and Settings” about the following:

•Video file type

•Common file extensions

•Video codecs

•Media player support

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Submitting Videos

•Video files might take as long as one hour to upload and appear as “Ready.”

•See “Recommended Media Format” about the following: file size, resolution, frame rotation, frame rate, pixels, deinterlace, and keyframes.

•Refer to NB video exporting guides for Windows Movie Maker, iPhoto, and iMovie.

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Submitting Videos (cont.)

• The ePortfolio system has a 500- megabytes file size limit for each uploaded file.

• There is no limit for the number of MB uploaded for an entire portfolio.

• Compress larger video files before submission. Refer to “Video Conversion and Compression Guides for Window Users and Mac OS X Users.”

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Submissions of Other Types of Evidence

• Artifacts, evidence, and cover sheets are gathered as hardcopy and electronic files.

• Submit as Microsoft Word, Open Office, or PDF files.

• To scan documents, use a stand-alone scanner or an all-in-one printer/scanner/copier/fax machine.

• Insert graphic files into a word processing document prior to uploading materials in ePortfolio.

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Electronic Submission at a Glance

• This document, found at www.nbpts.org, lists the evidence to submit electronically for each certificate area.

• It also lists cover sheets and forms from the Portfolio Instructions: Part 2 that no longer need to be submitted.

• A chart with submission details for renewal is also available.

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To Submit Your Materials (per entry)

1. Access www.nbpts.org

2. Click the link to the ePortfolio system and log in.

3. Click “Start.” Follow prompts to upload.

4. Mark “Ready to Submit.” (Watch the progress bar that indicates completion.)

5. Click “Submit Portfolio Entry for Scoring.”

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NB Documents: ePortfolio Help

On the National Board Website:

•Copying Your Video File from a DVD and Converting It for Submission

•Scanning and Submitting Hard-copy Evidence

•Submitting Evidence in PDF Format

•Troubleshooting Tips

•Most Frequently Asked Questions

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Additional ePortfolio HelpOn the National Board Website (cont.)

•Tips for Mac Users and Microsoft Word Users

•Recommended Video Formats and Settings

•Video Compression Guide for MAC and PC Users

Also

•Many graphics, pictures, charts, illustrations to create technological procedures

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ePortfolio Troubleshooting Tips

Information regarding (1) symptoms, (2) likely causes, (3) what to do, and (4) where to find more information is available for the following:

•Uploading files:

Network Speed

File Size

File Format

•Submitting Files

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Confirmation of Submissions• Try to submit by May 1 to allow extra time for any

possible problems (deadline: May 16).

• You will receive an e-mail confirmation for each entry you submit indicating successful submission for scoring.

• After the submission deadline, if you have materials in the ePortfolio system that have not been submitted, all uploaded materials (even if incomplete) will be submitted for scoring as is.

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Extra Help with Submissions

• ePortfolio system--online help and online training-- www.nbpts.org/eportfolio.

• Customer Support--1-800-22-TEACH Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM CST

• Guide to Electronic Submission

• Electronic Submission at a Glance: Information

by Assessment

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Additional SC Contacts

•[email protected]

•Virginia Bartels: [email protected] (Program Facilitator for NB endeavors at CERRA)

•www.cerra.org: National Board Link

•nbsupport.blogspot.com: Jenna Hallman’s NB blog

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