GOALS BCT 400

Using Netscape COMPOSER
to Develop a HomePage for a Community Group

INFORMATION ABOUT THIS PROJECT

RATIONALE

The Community Service Project is included in BCT 400 (CAT 250) because of a basic value held by the Instructional Technology Program: technical information should be shared for the betterment of all. The program emphasizes not only the skills that should be learned but also how those skills might be applied within various disciplines and fields of work. Regardless of the field of specialization each student selects, there will be instances in which the organization will be better served by the sharing of information. You can see projects from the previous term(s) by going to:

Fall 1998 Community Service Projects
Spring 1999 Community Service Projects
Summer 1999, Community Service Projects
Fall, 1999, Community Service Projects

It is hoped that students will exit BCT 400 with the recognition that these same technical skills can be shared within their own personal environment and community. It is for this reason that this project is included in the classes. The expectation is that students will produce a product or conduct a service that will benefit one or more organization within the community in which they live. Ideally this sense of sharing within the larger community will be one of the major themes taken into their post- college lives.

BACKGROUND

Developing home pages is an important skill in many sectors of the economy; it is also becoming an integral part of "doing business" for companies, organizations, schools and individuals. In this project you will work with one or more groups to develop a homage for their organization. The average cost of having a web page designed can be hundreds, possibly thousands of dollars. Many small community groups, schools and businesses can not afford to use this technology to promote the organization. You are going to use the skills acquired in BCT 300 and BCT 400 to conceptualize, design, and then deliver a quality web site for one of these groups. This is a quite different application of the skills than developing your own homepage. Working to understand the needs of the other group and to organize to get the job done require attention to details and cooperative behavior.

The Community Service Homepage for BCT 400 will include some new features learned in this course. These include adding original .wav files and .midi files.

SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS

PART ONE: CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

This is a major portion of your grade in this class, so you need to pay attention to this project immediately. Find a local group where you are for whom you might make a homepage as a community service. Discuss possible community groups with whom you might work for this project with Dr. Price.

After selecting your group, work can begin on the development of a web site. The first step is to communicate with the contact person identified for your cooperating group. Get to know the group and the contact person before beginning your planning.

You will complete a layout of what you feel will need to be included in the web site. Tactical objectives such as content development, site look and feel, ease of use, functionality and technical requirements will need to be identified. In this aspect of the assignment, you will work closely with your organization to ensure that the web site meets all GOALS 400 requirements (see below) as well as the organization's requirements. Some students say that it has been really helpful to them to visit a lot of webpages for similar groups to get a feel for the type of pages they want or do not want!

PART TWO: DESIGN WORK

Once you have devoted time thinking about the "look", describe the general design of the page, succinctly and clearly. Send your description to the group for review and approval. Upon approval of the design and structure, you will develop a prototype. The purpose of the prototype is to identify problem areas in the design, allow for formal usability testing and refinement, and ensure that the design and underlying technology can be properly integrated.

This can be the most important aspect of the assignment; without a good "look and feel", people will not return to your site. This could be the only exposure that a visitor might have to your organization, so it is crucial to have a well made site. Visit some of your favorite web sites to get some design ideas. Use any source necessary to achieve you goal. Work closely with your organization, they might also have some good ideas on the design of the web site. Another great source is any previously published brochures, handouts, or other content. This could be used to assist in you work.

You are also required to use digital or scanned images on your web site. You will have to find a local scanner or digital camera to use for this part of your project.

BE SURE THAT THE CONTACT PERSON FOR YOUR SITE HAS SEVERAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR INPUT DURING THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS SO THAT YOU DO NOT GET TO THE END AND THEN FIND OUT THAT THE WEB PAGE DOES NOT SUIT THE GROUP.

Do not wait until the final product to work with the contact persons; involve them throughout the process.

If you decide to make a page for a local school teacher, an often selected community service group, then click here to see a link where you can visit some classroom pages.

PART THREE: PUBLISHING YOUR SITE

After your site has been presented to your organization and accepted, you will publish it on the Internet.
Your ISP should have instructions for you on how to upload this page to your site for grading.

BELOW ARE THE THINGS THAT MUST BE ON THE HOMEPAGE:

NAME, ADDRESS, DESCRIPTION of the GROUP
THEME: Some groups establish a 'theme' for their pages; if not, you are to pick an appropriate theme.
USE THEIR LOGO if they have one.
EMAIL ADDRESS for the group.
LINKS TO Other similar groups or resources related to their mission

If it is a school, be sure to include

If YOUR SELECTION IS A CLASSROOM TEACHER, BELOW ARE THE THINGS THAT MUST BE ON THE HOMEPAGE:

NAME OF THE TEACHER, THE GRADE LEVEL, and A PHOTO of the teacher ON THE PAGE.
THEME: Some teachers established a 'theme' for their pages; if not, you are to pick an appropriate theme. If the teacher gave you a list of books, a field trip, anything that will give you some ideas for a THEME, then use that theme, if they didn't specify one.
EMAIL ADDRESS FOR EACH TEACHER
A LINK TO THE HOMEPAGE FOR THE SCHOOL (if it has one)
A LINK TO THE DISTRICT'S HOMEPAGE (if it has one)
A LINK TO THE SCHOOL'S PTA page (if it has one)
A set of at least five links to 'activities for kids and parents'
A set of at least two links to local resources for kids and parents
A set of at least two links to homepages appropriate for this age group

Click here to see a check list of some of the things that you might put on the page, if the teacher has provided the appropriate information.

CRITERIA FOR DEVELOPING YOUR COMMUNITY SERVICE HOMEPAGE

These things are required for our class:

Music from the Net
Animation
Photos - put at least five photos on this product.
Recorded Voice - include a .wav file that contains original voice recorded. Keep them short, between 30 and 180 seconds long!
At least five Icons or Images from the Internet
A least 6 digital images or scanned images
A Background Gif or Jpg for all of the Pages
At Least ten Hypertext Links to External URL Sites
At least five content pages included in your web site
Page Back or Back to Home Page Icons on all pages
Text Colors: Normal Text, Normal Link, Active Link, and Visited Text
At least one organizational email link for the group.
Background of organization
Services and offerings
Overall design
Overall creativity
Includes an appropriate .wav file
Includes an appropriate original .wav file
Includes an appropriate .midi file
Remember to Follow the UA Web Policy and Guidelines
Somewhere on the page be sure to include the following statement:

This page was prepared by students enrolled in an undergraduate class at The University of Alabama as part of a Community Service requirement for all Instructional Technology Courses."

Important:

When you are saving ALL your files (sounds, webpages, images, etc.), DO NOT USE SPACES OR SYMBOLS IN YOUR FILENAMES. Get used to use inly lowercase letters, that way you keep consistent with all filenames. Many ISPs, including BAMA, are case sensitive, so there is a difference between uppercase and lowercase letters. If you use spaces your files will NOT come up when viewed online. A similar thing happens if the computer is trying to look for a name that has a different latter case, those files will not appear. BE CONSISTENT: NO SPACES, USE ONLY LOWERCASE.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

Your product may receive all of the possible points, but you cannot get credit for this assignment until you have "published" the Community Service Homepage on the net

HOW TO TURN IN THE PRODUCT

Once you have published the page, send an email to the Assignment mailbox:
goals400@bamaed.ua.edu

In the SUBJECT of the Email include what the assignment is: Community Service Project

In the BODY of the email include: Name of Group or Individual (like classroom teacher) who participated . The location where the Community Page is posted..

If you need any assistance or clarification, see or send email to your professor.

BE SURE TO:

have the company, group or teacher with whom you worked write a "snail mail", real, old-fashioned letter on letterhead (SEE ADDITIONAL NOTE BELOW if they do not have letterhead), addressed to:

Dr. Barrie Jo Price, Professor

Instructional Technology Program

PO Box 870302

The University of Alabama

Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35487-0302

In this letter, have them tell how well you did, if this was helpful to them and if they support this Community Service aspect of our technology program here at UA. Also they can, if they wish, include any other kinds of technical assistance (other than buying hardware!) that they might need, in case, in the future, we have other service activities for which we need partners. Be sure they comment in particular about what you did for them as part of this course and their feelings about the community service requirement.
Also have them complete and attach the following form to the letter. Click here to get a Word copy of the form. Just download it and print it. The form can also be seen below after the grading criteria.

GRADING CRITERIA

POSSIBLE POINTS: 150 for the team

Dr. Price GRADES: 120 of the 150 points
THE GROUP or TEACHER WITH WHOM YOU WORK GRADES: 30 of the 150 points

WHAT THE TEACHING TEAM GRADES: 120 of the 150 points

REQUIRED INFORMATION	POINT VALUE
Five Icons	5 points (1 points each)
Six digital or scanned Pictures/Images	18 points (3 points each)
A Background Gif or Jpg on all pages	5 points
At Least Ten Hypertext Links to External URL Sites	5 points
Organization's email address	5 points
Page Back or Back to Home Page Icon on all pages	5 points
Text Colors (Normal Text, Normal Link, Active Link, and Visited Text)	2 points
At least five content pages	15 points (3 points per page)
Background of organization	5 points
Services and offerings	5 points
Overall design	15 points
Overall creativity	15 points
Includes an appropriate .wav file	5 points
Includes an appropriate original .wav file	5 points
Includes an appropriate .midi file	5 points
Remember to Follow the UA Web Policy and Guidelines	3 points
Somewhere on the page be sure to include the following statement: This page was prepared by students enrolled in an undergraduate class at The University of Alabama as part of a Community Service requirement for all Instructional Technology Courses."	2 points

TOTAL POINTS	120

WHAT THE GROUP WITH WHOM YOU WORK GRADES: 30 of the 150 points

INSTRUCTIONS for this part of the grading (30/150):

Print off the following form or make one similar to it. Click here to get a Word form that you can print.
Show it to the group when you start the project, explaining that, at the conclusion of the product for them, they will have to write the letter described above and fill out one of the forms shown below. Have them enclose the form with their letter. (If you want to be particularly helpful, you can also provide them a stamped envelope already addressed to Dr. Price!).

BJP: You can have the group fax the form to 205-333-8288, if speed is important (as in graduation deadines). You need to be sure that the group understands that, without their grade on the 30 points, the maximum you can get on this project is 120/150. BE SURE THEY KNOW THAT THIS NEEDS TO BE MAILED OR FAXED. You, too, need to realize that you have to allow for this aspect in having your work graded. If you publish your Community Service Page the week of graduation, for example, your group or teacher's part of the grade may not arrive in time to be included. DO THIS PROJECT EARLY!

Community Service Project GOALS 400 The University of Alabama Instructional Technology Program	Attach to your letter & Mail to: Dr. Barrie Jo Price, Professor Instructional Technology Program PO Box 870302 Tuscaloosa, Al 354870-0302
Student's Name:: _____________	Student's Email:: _____________________________ Date Page was Turned for grading: ____________________________
NAME OF COMMUNITY GROUP/COMPANY or Classroom Teacher: ______________________________ ______________________________	MAILING ADDRESS OF GROUP or PERSON SERVED by this project:: (Street) ____________________ (City/State) _________________ (ZipCode) __________________ Phone ( ) _________________
Name Person Completing the Form: _____________________________ Title: ________________________	(Signature) ____________________ (Date) ________________________
Briefly describe how the product developed by this student) meets your needs and helps your organization.	The Instructional Technology program feels strongly about the importance of community service projects for U of Alabama students. Do you have any other ideas for community service projects for these classes to consider?
Give evidence of how the student (team) shared knowledge of technology appropriately, willingly and openly by including one or two brief examples.	Would you like to participate in other community service activities with UA students? Do you have other groups you would like to suggest we contact for participating in such programs?
Other Comments:	Points you wish to assign to this team for this project: (out of 30 possible)

If you have any questions send email to Dr. Price

ADDITIONAL NOTE about letter and Letterhead: If you work with a group such as scouts, senior citizen center, or volunteer group, and the group does not have a letter head, you can earn 10 bonus points by designing letterhead for them on WORD. You can print them several pieces of it AND show them how to print more when they want. If you do this, have them include that in their letter about your work and contact the about the bonus points.

You are to use Netscape Composer. To review a tutorial on the use of Composer visit the BCT 300 course tutorial. In previous semesters other tools (such as GOMER) have been used, but each term the competencies change for the BCT sequence. This year's competencies require you to use NETSCAPE COMPOSER for BCT 400 (CAT 250).