MAHARA

Our school has gained pilot access to MAHARA e-portfolio in collaboration with ΙΤΥΕ Diofantos and Danube University Krems, Austria in the framework of the extended implementation of the European research program Erasmus+ KA3 ATS2020 in 10 European educational systems.

In Te Reo Māori, "mahara" means "to think, thinking, thought". In Arabic, "Mahara" stands for "exceptional skill (above and beyond the average)" and in Shona, "Mahara" means "free" / "for free".

Mahara e-portfolio is a dynamic digital work space where students can conceive knowledge and their own ideas, have access to their assignments, share knowledge, set goals, ask for feedback and display their knowledge and achievements.

• It is an open resource web platform
• It supports the incorporation of cooperation, communication and creation tools (web 2.0)
• It can “cooperate” with Moodle
• It allows users to participate in fora, to form groups and pages within the groups thus registering the users’ cycle of learning and allowing them to display their achievements.
• It is different from other LMS’s in that it allows for a personal learning environment
• It is student centered because it is the students who control WHAT, WITH WHOM and WHEN they will share the data in their portfolio.

Mahara e-portfolio is supported by the Austrian Danube University Krems. It was developed in the framework of the European pilot program ATS2020 (Assessment of transversal skills for the evaluation and development of transversal student skills. The term refers to a set of key skills vital to the success of students at school and in higher education.