Reading Area Community College

WEB 210 Layout& Functional Web Design Course Syllabus

Instructor:                              Mr. Curt Minich

Office Phone Number:         (610) 374-4031, ext. 202

Email:                                     

Office Hours:                         before and after class and by appointment

Course Number & Title:     WEB 210, Layout & Functional Web Design

Prerequisites:                        WEB 115 or permission of the instructor

Credit Hours:                         3.0

Course Description:

This course is designed to give students experience structuring and organizing a successful web site. Students will learn how to effectively plan a site by evaluating its audience, defining the site's goals, examine competitors' sites, & establish a relevant site structure & navigational layout. The student will identify usability and accessibility issues including those relating to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and apply strategies to meet those requirements. Students will also study issues of contemporary web design aesthetics including navigation, visual design, page layout, typography, and color. After developing a paper-based prototype of a site, the student will use Macromedia Dreamweaver to build a web site based on these functional and layout best practices to enhance the user experience. The student will effectively use templates and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) in the resulting web site.

Class Location:                   Penn Hall, Room 113

Meeting Time:                     Tuesday & Thursday, 4:00 p..m. - 5:55 p..m.; Summer Term 2004

Required Text:  

Principles of Web Design, 2nd edition by Joel Sklar (Course Technology)
Designing Web Usability:The Practice of Simplicity by Jakob Nielson
Web Style Guide: Basic Design Principles for Creating Web Sites by Patrick J. Lynch & Sarah Horton. Text is online at www.webstyleguide.com
(optional) Don't Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability by Steve Krug
(optional) Accessible Web Sites by Jim Thatcher et al.

Disks:

You will need a few floppy disks or CD-R's to submit assignments to the instructor.

Internet Access:

You may be expected to communicate with the professor and/or classmates via email. You should check your email frequently since the professor may make important class announcements via email. You will also be expected to regularly visit the class Web site at http://minich.com/education/racc/web210 for announcements, lecture notes, and assignment information.

Methods:

Web design projects and assignments must be completed outside of class. You will have to spend a significant amount of time in the computer lab completing the assignments. Although, if you have a PC at home, you may be able to complete much of the work there if you have Dreamweaver and/or Fireworks.

Most exercises and assignments will be taken from the text, supplied handouts, or Internet resources. Students are liable for any class work or class announcement such as exams, due dates, assignments, and lecture material. It is the student’s responsibility to inform the instructor in advance of any inability to take tests or to meet due dates. Late assignments may not be accepted and, if they are, will incur a severe penalty. Students should make every opportunity to have questions answered either during class lectures. There will be a comprehensive final exam.

Most assignments will be returned during class. Keep all assignments returned to you. The instructor will not change a grade without seeing your graded paper. Also, keep all assignment files on your backup floppy disk and/or CD.

Grading:

The make up of the final grade will be approximately as follows: 35% Exams, 15% Homework & Quizzes, and 50% Web Design Assignments. All projects assigned for completion outside of class are intended to aid the student’s understanding of the chapter content. Students guilty of cheating on a test, project, or homework assignment will receive a zero for that grade. There may be a fair number of quizzes administered at the beginning or end of a number of classes. Students who are not present for a quiz will receive a zero. The quizzes are meant to reinforce concepts illustrated in class. Often, students find that the quizzes help boost their grade as well. The grading scale is A, A-: 90 - 100%, B-, B, B+: 80 - 90%, C-, C, C+: 70 - 80%, D-, D, D+: 60 - 70%, and F below 60%. Note that you cannot pass the course if you don’t turn in any projects or if your exam average is below 50%.

Academic Integrity Statement:

All work submitted (projects, tests, quizzes, homework assignments) must be your own and not copied in whole or in part from another student or textbook. In addition, all material that is not your own (ideas or words) in papers must be properly cited. If you are not sure how to cite material in your own work, see your instructor. It is your responsibility to avoid plagiarism. Failure to comply with this rule could result in a failing grade and disciplinary procedures.

Make-Up Opportunities:

Students are expected to make-up all work that they miss. Make-up exams and tests will be given only for emergency circumstances. The instructor reserves the right to make a decision in all such cases. If an emergency does arise, see the instructor as soon as possible before the test or exam in order to arrange for a make-up.

Class Attendance Policy:

Class attendance is mandatory and will be recorded by the instructor. Students will receive a zero for any unannounced quizzes missed for whatever reason. Quizzes missed due to absence or leaving a class early cannot be made up. Handouts will only be distributed once. Should an emergency arise, notification must be given to the instructor within 24 hours of the class period missed.

Tentative Assignment & Exam Schedule:     

See the course home page at http://www.minich.com/education/racc/web210

Performance Objectives & Competencies:

See the list of objectives & competencies at http://www.minich.com/education/racc/web/WEB_210_Layout_Design_individual.pdf