MBI 699.W Internet Teaching of Microbiology

Principles

• Layout and color choices are very important
  • Layout needs to take into consideration how the human mind works
    • There are basically three modes of web page layout in use today:
      • Tables can be used to arrange combinations of images and text in stable (as in ... they don't move around on the page) useful arrays
      • Frames - can also be used to arrange combinations of images and text in stable useful arrays, and are most useful for simultaneous display of more than one type of information
      • Imagemaps - can be used to provide link arrays that are "parts" of images ... client-side imagemaps are much easier to generate than server-side imagemaps, and the new browsers can interpret them just fine
    • People in "western" culture start at the top of the page and read from left to right ... so think of a diagonal from top left to bottom right as you design your pages
    • A page that is too busy will distract, not attract and inform ... unfortunately this is currently the norm for many web pages (as they attempt to be all things to all people) especially for commercial web sites:
      • The Washington Post, CNN and Freeware web sites are a good examples of this unfortunate trend
      • Many companies have recently improved their web sites and moved towards more approachable designs
  • Color choices should be useful, pleasing (this is a relative term, you know!) and visible to everyone ... remember, millions of people are color blind (lask of red-green distinction is the most common form)
• Visual and aural contact is very helpful, but should be confined to situations in which it actually fosters engagement and learning, and must either be copyright-free or you must obtain permission for use from the copyright holder
  • Graphic images can be downloaded from numerous sites on the web, including Graphics for Teachers
  • Sound files can be downloaded from various sites on the web, including
• Navigation aids are needed to make the site easy to use ... it is very important that your users not get "lost in space"
  • A good approach is to display a navigation bar with buttons that activate links that appears at the same location on every page of the site
  • If you decide to place your navigation bar at the bottom of the page, be sure to include a button that takes the user back to the top of the page
  • Another approach is to use frames with navigation buttons in a frame that is always visible to the user ... one disadvantage to this is the continuous use of screen space by the buttons
• Interactivity is possible via email and/or forms

Advantages

• Class materials, including the syllabus, lecture outlines, study guides, images, etc. used during class presentations, are available to students on a 24-hour basis
• Cross-platform useability is a key feature of the web and is very attractive in today's computing world
• Reduces stress on students to have notes readily available
  • Some students relax and actually pay attention to concepts as they build during presentations
  • Unfortunately, some students get "lazy" and pay less attention because they know the core information is available outside the classroom
• Provides access to multiple prespectives and additional information ... the structure and function of the internet, especially the web, seems to foster students' appreciation that there is more than one opinion and that there is more than one way to say something
• Video and audio clips are possible, and highly desirable, but more difficult than text because they must be generated ... and not everyone is an artist or a musician
• Browsers (Internet Explorer, Netscape Communicator) are free, and can be used as presentation tools

Pitfalls

• Cost of equipment and software
  • One needs to purchase the scanner, digital camera, digital projector, compouter(s) and monitor(s) ... which can be a budgetary problem
  • Some HTML editors (Netscape Composer, BBEdit Lite, etc.) are available free, and some are available for 30-day free trials (Claris HomePage), but most (Adobe PageMill, Adobe GoLive, HomeSite, etc.) must be purchased in the end
  • Some programs for creating, optimizing and editing images (GIF Builder), video (QuickTime) or sounds are free (especially as tryouts), but others (Adobe Photoshop, Adove PhotoDeluxe) must be purchased (either alone or as parts of scanner or digital camera packages, etc.) and are generally pricier than HTML editors
• Technical skills needed for:
  • Generating and maintaining web sites
    • The learning curve for HTML editors much is less steep than it used to be, but that for image, video and sound editors is still rather steep
    • Both generation and maintenance of web pages (and web sites) can be time-consuming
      • Concept-mapping and intelligent approaches to layout are very important in development of web pages and web sites
      • Web sites need continual maintenance, especially if they include links to other sites (which tend to change rapidly)
  • Using equipment and software
    • Anyone who can use a computer can set up a web site with a bit of effort
    • Classroom use of equipment can be challenging, depending upon the level of sophistication one desires or needs
• Dependability of equipment (yours and the internet service providers)
• Thinking that this approach is far better than conventional ones
  • There is little doubt that this approach is more fun (for both the creator and the learner) than conventional presentation of information
  • However, there is no firm evidence that using computers and the internet to convey information actually enhances learning ... that is still a function of the learner's mind

Example links utilized on this page are intented to be illustrative only and should not be construed as promoting these organizations or companies or their products.