This article examines the teaching of a multimodal pedagogy in an online technical communication classroom. Based on the results of an e-portfolio assessment, the authors argue that multimodality can be taught successfully in the online environment if the instructor carefully plans and scaffolds each assignment. Specifically, they argue for an increased emphasis within the technical communication classroom on teaching the e-portfolio as a genre that not only exemplifies students’ multimodal literacies but also establishes their identities as technical communicators in the 21st century. This article provides a model for teaching multimodal composition in the online technical communication classroom and calls for more scholarship on teaching the e-portfolio in the digital environment.

This article highlights the creation of professional electronic portfolios (eportfolios) in an upper-division technical writing course (Writing for Interactive Media) so that students can profile their work. This application emphasizes the professional aspect of eportfolios in order to help students develop multiple literacies as they transition into the job market. The author proposes administering a four-part assignment series that leads to the production of a professional eportfolio: (a) proposal, (b) design document, (c) script, and (d) professional eportfolio. Following each assignment, she discusses its limitations and assessment criteria.