Syllabus

COURSE DESCRIPTION | LEARNING OBJECTIVES | COURSE DETAILS | COMMUNICATION
TESTING | SITE MANAGEMENT | GRADING | SCHEDULE OF ASSIGNMENTS

Natomas Educational Center

CISW 307 / ARTNM 401
Course Codes:
20599 / 21169

Introduction to Web Page Development and Design

Spring 2007

January 29 – May 23, 2007

This syllabus covers the full 16-week semester and is divided into two sections.
Please read carefully to understand the structure and division of the class.

COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course covers the strategies for the development and design of web sites. Using an industry standard web authoring tool, this course integrates both artistic and technical concepts. Topics include assembling, designing and publishing web pages using strategies, principles and processes universally practiced by the professionals in this field. The course, in combination with CISW 307/ARTNM 401, may be taken four times for credit on a different software package or version.

The course is divided into two sections to provide expert instruction delivered by professors of the Computer Science as well as the Art/New Media Departments. The first section of the class will introduce Dreamweaver, an industry standard web authoring tool. Students will learn how to navigate the application, build and link web pages, create web sites and understand basic web development concepts. The second section will introduce color and design theory, special web design considerations as well as advanced Dreamweaver features.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of the course, the student will be able to:

• Assemble basic web pages and web sites
• Design basic web pages and web sites incorporating design principles
• Evaluate content needs for a particular audience
• Integrate design processes in web projects
• Construct web pages using a web authoring tool
• Combine both development and design concepts
• Critique existing web sites
• Organize the navigation flow of web pages

COURSE DETAILS
Presentation/Communication: This is an online class; communication is primarily through email and discussion boards. You may visit me during my office hours for help. The best way to get help is to ask your fellow students in Blackboard under the discussion board named "Help".

Laboratory Hours & Assistance: Students may obtain lab assistance during non-class hours in the lab located at the American River College Campus in room 152. Be sure to check with the lab for available hours. Lab assistance does not include tutoring. Please remember that the Business 152 lab is for CSIT coursework only. Section “A” has Dreamweaver loaded.

Reading:
1st 8 weeks: Please follow the attached schedule and have the appropriate chapter read prior to the start of the homework. It is assumed that the chapter reading includes working through the chapter examples.
2nd 8 weeks : The second section is taught through a web site that holds all the materials. A Dreamweaver book and the help menu within the application should be used in addition. Each assignment covers a topic that requires the reading and studying of text specified each week by the instructor.

External Links: Please check in Blackboard for additional sites to help you with this class.

Software: The software we are using is Dreamweaver 8. If you do not have this software it is available in the Learning Resource Center at the Natomas Center, and the Computer Lab, Room 152 on the main ARC campus. You may also download a 30-day free trial of Dreamweaver 8 from http://www.adobe.com/products/dreamweaver/. If you plan on downloading a trial copy please keep in mind that after the 30 day trial ends you need to have access to Dreamweaver 8 immediately, so please plan accordingly.

The Server: We have a server at ARC to upload all of our work to. The address for our server is http://cis.arc.losrios.edu . Do not upload (Put) to the server until all of your pages are working properly.
Uploading (Putting) using a dial-up modem will take time and some students report problems, be prepared for this. All assignments in this class will be graded from your web site unless otherwise instructed. You will begin by making a Home Page called “index.html” (A screen shot for your site structure is available in Blackboard under Assignments). The rest of your class site will linked from this page. If you do not make this first page (home page/index page), the rest of your assignments cannot be graded. That means you need to have the project linked, completed and working by the due date announced OR you will be graded accordingly.

About Assignments: Assignments are due each week on Saturday by 11:59 pm.
Assignment work includes:

• Reading required text book or web pages or other resources provided by the instructor.
• Practicing and learning the concepts introduced.
• Participating in the Discussion Board by either asking or answering a question related to the assignment and the new concept .
  (questions like "when is the assignment due are valuable but will not be counted as gradable participation)

Work will be accepted late (unless otherwise stated) but is marked down 10 points. You will have up to the next web site check to turn in late work. After that date you will receive NO POINTS for that portion unless special arrangements have been made with the instructor. Students are expected to do their own work. You may discuss assignments and problems with other students. However, once you have talked things over, do your own work. Copying is not permitted and penalties for doing so will be severe for all parties involved.

Policy on Cheating: As noted in the ARC Information on Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty document, "All students enrolling at American River College assume an obligation to abide by all College regulations. These regulations are described in the Los Rios Community College District Board of Trustee Policies, Section 2400 Student Rights and Responsibilities/2440 Standards of Conduct and Due Process."** If it is determined by the instructor that a student has stolen or passed off the ideas or document files (assignments or tests) of another as their own, they will be subject to strict disciplinary actions and penalties. These actions and penalties may include the following: "suspension by a college administrator or designee (E.C. 7603 1) from one or more classes for a period of up to 10 days of instruction; 2) one or more classes for the remainder of the school term; or 3) all classes and activities of the community college for one or more terms."**

Attendance/Participation Policy: In a traditional class, a student can be dropped from the course if his/her absences equal one more than the number of times a class meets in a week. Because this class does not meet face-to-face after the orientation, but includes assignments which must be turned in weekly, I will base attendance on whether I receive assignments from a student within a 2-week period. If I do not receive assignments (or any communication, e.g., email or voice mail) during a 2-week period, a student may be dropped from the class. If you must drop the class for any reason, it is the student’s responsibility to drop the class. Otherwise, you will receive an F for the class.

COMMUNICATION
Email: Emails will be sent at least once a week with reminders, clarifications and updates. It is important that you read this carefully and frequently. You are responsible for all email received. We suggest strongly on any email you send to me you cc yourself and always have a copy to refer to. All emails sent to me must have the following in the subject line: Course Number (CISW 307 or ARTNM 401) TOPIC (assignment #1) Last Name

Response Time:
Leslie Reeves (1st eight week module) will be checking my email during the day at least twice a day. I try to respond to your questions within 24 hours. Grades are usually posted within one week from the due date of the assignment.

Julia Ruess (2nd nine week module) will be checking my email once a day. I try to respond to your questions within 24 hours. Grades are usually posted within one week from the due date of the assignment.

Discussion Forum: This is where you get HELP and give HELP! There are two discussion boards; Chit Chat (not required) and Help (which is required). If you do not get the help (within a 24 hour time frame from posting your question in the discussion board) then please email the instructor. The HELP board will be broken down according to the assignment number. You must participate with at least one post each week. This is worth 60 points (full semester).

TESTING
There will be a midterm project, at the end of the first eight weeks, which will be comprehensive. The midterm will be based on the text and familiarity with features and commands that have been covered.

There will be an extensive final project that requires you to use all your skills learned throughout the course. You will have a ten day period to complete the final project.

SITE MANAGEMENT
At assignment #3 there will be a guide for the basic site structure. You will continue to build on this. For this class we will be making many web sites that could stand alone but we will keep them together. Our index page will tie these all together and this is the only "index.html" page you will have at the root of the public directory. It is important to understand site management which will be explained at the first class meeting and again is explained in course Assignment #2.

Index page – Contents on the index page will include: Your name (as a banner/heading -image), course name, Spring 2007, and a working email address (see Creating Email Links in your textbook, pgs. 90-93). You will also have to create two text buttons (images) named: All About Me and Assignments.
An example will be provided in the assignment area for you to get a visual clue as to what is expected.

GRADING:
The final grade for this course will be based on the following components:

          1st 8 Weeks

          2nd 8 Weeks

Final grade is determined based on points earned. 90 - 100% of total point value A, 80 - 89% B, 70 - 79% C, 60 - 69% D, under 60% F

SCHEDULE OF ASSIGNMENTS
A more detailed explanation will be found in Blackboard under the Assignments button. You will be developing one main site ("all about me") during the semester from activities/instructions from the instructor on Blackboard. The chapter material from the textbook will not be included in this site.

As your knowledge increases with each chapter you will continue to improve your "all about me" site - due dates will also be announced in assignment area.

Below is a guide for the chapters, point value and due dates for this class. Again, more detailed information will be in Blackboard under the Assignments button.

The instructors reserves the right to change the assignments
and their point value at any time with minimal notice.

Assignments 1st half
See Assignment directions and details on Blackboard!
You will develop a web site that will be uploaded to ARC’s student server – http://cis.arc.losrios.edu. As your knowledge increases with each chapter, you will continue to add and improve your web site.

Subject line on all emails must be: CISW 307 - Topic - Last Name
YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY CHANGES MADE TO THE ASSIGNMENT SCHEDULE AND/OR SCHEDULE.

Assignments 2nd half
See Assignment directions and details on Blackboard!
Assignments will be made accessible through Blackboard and my web site http://ic.arc.losrios.edu/~ruessj when the starting date approaches. Certain changes might be implemented throughout the course. Check the web site for the most updated version.

Subject line on all emails must be: ARTNM 401- Topic - Last Name
YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY CHANGES MADE TO THE ASSIGNMENT SCHEDULE AND/OR SCHEDULE.