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Instructional Uses of the World Wide Web: Exemplars and Precautions
by Paul G. Shotsberger, Educational Technology, April 1996
Reviewed by Meg Turner
From classroom projects to providing courses online, increasing numbers
of instruction-related sites are finding their place on the World Wide
Web. Shotsberger takes us to some notable sites and then suggests design
tenets for optimal web use.
Sites That Reinforce Instruction
(Archival)
The World
Lecture Hall, University of Texas at Austin, was at the top of this
author's list for "one-stop shopping" for instructional sites. It contains
links to pages created by faculty worldwide who are using the Web to deliver
class materials. Upon arrival, professors are invited to add their own
curriculum pages via forms, much like the course template created for NCSU
professors.
In an interesting look at a computer-assisted
writing class , one can visit a student online forum called "InterChanges"
and read real-time student conversations relating to topics posed by their
professor. (I could see using "InterChanges" with fifth graders as a motivator
for learning word processing or e-mail)
The author takes us from innovative instructional and written content
to sites which offer stunning images! The Renaissance
and Baroque Architecture site contains jpegs created from an instructor's
trips to Europe.
The Taxonomy of
Flowering Plants provides some beautiful
flora. Both sites feature rich, high quality images, although the flora
images are often too large to wait for on a 28.8 modem, unless you are
a devoted botanist! Thumbnails (reduced versions) load first on the Renaissance
site and the user has the option of clicking to view the larger size image.
Check out the Educational
Policy Advocacy site at Illinois State University for an example of
a site which incorporates a Power Point Slide Show and JavaScript to grab
the user. Pull-down go menus add to the appeal of this well-designed site
(which begins to look suspiciously adolescent when you end up on a page
that defines you as a dweeb.)
It turns out that one of the "dweebs" is actually a picture of the professor
who has created the course and web site!
Virtual or Simulation
Sites
While the instructional sites mentioned above exhibit quality content and
design, virtual or simulation sites offer more than supplementary instruction.The
Virtual Hospital's radiology department provides new
learning experiences for students in the way of a 3D Gallery (which
loads fairly quickly) and links to multimedia textbooks.
Shotsberger concludes his survey with a distance
education site at the University of Pennsylvania and another in England,
though obviously, many more distance learning sites have cropped up since
this article was written.
In less than a year since the article was written, one can find many
examples of exemplary sites. Yet, when we visit the above links, we find
they illustrate many of the principals one looks for in a well-designed
web site.
Ingredients of Good Design
limit links -- too many links often result in the user skipping
over them as they scan the article, especially when links are embedded
in paragraphs.
limit page length -- avoid extensive scrolling and longer load time;
better to have many short pages, with few links, than long pages with many
links.
keep layout consistent -- orient the user by designing menus, paragraphs
and lists with a similar look and feel.
include a header -- each page should be able to stand alone; add
reduced logo and contact info on each.
optimize navigability -- include user options on each page in the
same place; viewers should be able to get around your site easily.
don't reinvent the wheel -- consider the value to the user before
you actually publish it on the web.
resist blinking text, tiled backgrounds and animated gifs -- they
add to download time and can sometimes detract from content.
check your links often -- outdated or messages such as "URL not
found" can be quite frustrating for the user.
provide proper notice when necessary -- warn users of large gifs,
sound or movie files; let users know of restricted sites ahead of time.
minimize download time -- consider your audience's connection speed;
reduce or eliminate images if necessary; use repeating images when possible;
provide text over image links.
showcase student projects -- student work should be prominately
displayed, not buried in among your pages.
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