An educational portal is a specially designed website that provides a number of educational services. The term portal has historically been used to describe a port or location of multiple loading and unloading activities. It is now more widely used to describe an all-in-one website that includes public and private sections, data submission and retrieval tools, personalized content, and often links or connections to education-related systems or services.
Some areas of an educational website or portal may require a password.
The ability to provide personalized, user-specific content is critical to the core functionality of an educational portal. The technology needed to support this type of website structure became widely available in the mid-1990s, with the advent of user management functionality as part of a web server. There are two ways to deliver this content: a series of template forms or through a content management solution.
An educational portal is a specially designed website that provides a number of educational services.
A public website typically provides a variety of general information about the school, programs, course, history, and admissions. Users are encouraged to consult the website rather than contact the school directly for general information. The content manager is responsible for reviewing and publishing content that is accurate, relevant, and easy to find.
Registered students receive a unique username and password to log in to the private area of the site. Personalized content is provided here, based on a database or similar tool that contains student data. For example, students can log in to their school’s education portal and view their current courses, program of study, fees, and other relevant information. The depth and breadth of information provided varies widely and is often linked to the architecture of the school system.
The creation and maintenance of an information portal is a new technological development and has resulted in the creation of new jobs and careers. There are two areas of skills that are needed to form an educational portal: information systems and content management. This type of site requires a dedicated web server, which can support both public and private sections. There should be a mechanism or program to handle requests for user IDs and passwords, as well as the ability to remind users of their passwords or allow them to reset their password.
In addition to basic user administration, the private section of the site often has a connection to the student’s system or data on that system. This information requires additional security to protect student privacy and prevent unauthorized access. A specially trained infrastructure and security team is required to set up and maintain these tools.
Content management refers to all texts, images, files and data provided to users through the educational portal. In many organizations, a site administrator signs in to the site with their unique account information and has the ability to maintain or add content to sites, both public and private. This role is critical to keeping the site functional and meeting user needs.
