[Year 12 IT Apps] Unit 3 Outcome 1

Wed Feb 9 15:48:51 EST 2011

Laura

The assessment guide and various supporting documentation from the VCAA 
web site gives you a list of skills that the students need to 
demonstrate as far as web development goes. 
*_http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/vce/studies/infotech/itapplications3-4.html_*

Web Authoring Software Tools 
(_*http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/vcaa/correspondence/bulletins/2010/July/vce_study.html*_) 

*Web authoring software*

    * cascading style sheet
    * edit and format content
    * links (relative and absolute links, internal and external links)
    * navigation
    * buttons
    * screen layout
    * tagging (metadata tags, alt tags)
    * forms
    * incorporate images/sound

The students need to provide a *prototype web site* that shows the 
*possible function* of the web site, but you do not have to create a 
wiki, blog, forum from scratch. We don't have TIME! But the kids need to 
have a thorough understanding of what each of the tools are listed on 
the VCAA web site:

    * blogs
    * chat rooms
    * forums
    * social networking
    * wikis.

Part of the understanding would be the strengths and weaknesses of each 
online community tool AND where each could be appropriately used within 
a web site. ie. you wouldn't use a blog to broadcast sensitive 
information to a community, you might use a closed chat forum.

For example; page 64 and 66 of the study design gives a good example of 
what the students need to do.
"*web site should demonstrate navigation options, the user interface and 
the overall functionality. All included features (eg. wiki, blog, 
forum)do not have to be fully functional.*" (pg 65 of ITA Study Design)

If I was teaching this (currently on leave), I would use the "World 
Platypus Society" Case Study provided on page 65 of study design and 
work it into a Practice SAC for the kids (copy and paste from electronic 
copy and develop it into something the kids could work through). You 
would have to provide the students with some images and text that they 
could use for the practice SAC.

The students would produce a web site of upto 5-6 functioning pages 
(what do others think?)  that would clearly show how navigation would 
work (of course using features of the software, CSS, templates or 
whatever to show efficient use of software), user interface (use of 
layout) and show (as a prototype would) WHERE a wiki, blog or forum 
might be used. Part of the knowledge skills is that students need to 
show their understanding of these tools, so the prototype site wouldn't 
have EVERY tool that online communities use, but maybe one or two that 
would SUIT THEIR NEEDS. How would the kids show that they have a wiki on 
the site? Perhaps a link to a screen dump of a wiki site and an 
explanation of how a wiki would suit the needs of the World Platapus 
Society. But I wouldn't expect that they develop a wiki, or register one 
in PBworks. Class activities might have the kids using one, but this 
would be a task to increase their understanding of the online community 
tool.

The purpose of a prototype is to demonstrate what the solution *could 
be* given TIME and RESOURCES. There shouldn't be any "under 
construction" but rather an explanation of why this page in the web site 
isn't functional. ie. This is where the blog would go, I would recommend 
something similar to what is on the World Llama Society web site as it 
would meet the needs of the organisation in the following way ....

When you are marking the protoype web site you should be able to move 
through the web site without error even though there are areas that 
clearly would be developed if it was a real web site. Often web 
designers use this technique of a prototype web site to secure a job 
contract. Showing just enough to whet the appetite of the company they 
are presenting to, but not too much that they are using all of their 
resources to produce something that doesn't generate cash flow.

As a VCE teacher, you really need to nut through the Study Design, 
Assessment Guide and ALL of the various literature on the VCAA web site. 
Writing a practice SAC is hard, but as you and the kids work through it, 
it will increase your understanding of the study design and your 
understanding of both the knowledge and skills that the students need to 
demonstrate.

Good luck, I hope that this blether has been helpful (waiting on baby 
arriving and I am bored).

Regards

Margaret Lawson

Currently on leave in 2011 from
St. Michael's Grammar School
mlawson at stmichaels.vic.edu.au

ITA list goes to my home address so that I can control my school inbox ....

On 9/02/2011 12:39 PM, Laura Fihelly wrote:
>
> Hi there, I am completely new to IT Applications and have moved from 
> Brisbane, so I don't have much knowledge about the subject. I know 
> that for the first outcome in unit 3 students have to create a 
> prototype website based around an online community. My question is, do 
> students use (in my case Dreamweaver) to actually create the website 
> and actually create a type of online community like a forum. If so 
> does anyone have any resources as to how students actually do this? Or 
> do they find an image of a forum, wiki etc and use a program like 
> photoshop to edit it and insert it as an image in their site?
>
> My students have a good understanding of creating websites but to 
> create the forum they (and myself) are a little unsure of how to do it.
>
> Thanks for your help J
>
> Laura Fihelly
>
> Teacher of Business Management & Information Technologies
>
> Catholic Regional College Sydenham
>
> 380 Sydenham Road
>
> Sydenham 3037
>
> email: fihl at crcsydenham.net <mailto:principal at crcsydenham.net>
>
> web: www.crcsydenham.net <http://www.crcsydenham.net>
>
>
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-- 
Margaret Lawson

Konstant Kaos Designs

ABN 50 523 597 927

26 Nash Street
Northcote 3070
Victoria Australia
M: 0407 896309
P: 9489 6309

margaret.lawson at konstantkaos.net

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