syllabus

1. Course Overview:

This course is the second of two linked courses that focus on digital content planning, creation, management and deployment.

Throughout the course, we will explore four major topics:

• Hypertext theory
• Storytelling
• Readability
• Applicable technologies

The course builds upon the work from Winter Quarter as students begin creating content that meets plans already developed. This course continues a user-centered approach to web site design and content development. That is, we start with the user's needs and make rhetorical and design choices from that point of view.

The focus is on creating original content, although we will examine issues involved in repurposing existing content. You will hone storytelling skills; integrate visuals, sound and text into meaningful forms; and understand theory underlying the storyteller's choices. We will explore the emergence of digital media story-telling techniques, as well as ethical and technical challenges these tools present to media and society

We will discuss how rhetoric addresses the strategic language choices we make when communicating with others. Rhetorical principles come to play in how categories, pages, and links are named. Text elements such as lists, subheads and callouts can be considered rhetorical figures in design.

We will also explore issues relating to readability and how those issues differ when prose is displayed on a screen instead of being printed on paper.

This course requires intermediate computer literacy and familiarity with Dreamweaver and Photoshop.

Student Learning Outcomes:

• Understand how hypertext differs from linear storytelling
• Understand the responsibilities of writer and editor
• Describe how content decisions affect web site goals
• Describe the different types of hyperlinks used on web sites
• Organize text for effective reading on screen
• Understand techniques that allow text to also be optimized for print readability
• Understand components of and importance of style guides
• Learn project management skills needed to manage assets, allocate resources, and meet deadlines
• Identify when and how to use non-textual content to communicate ideas, concepts and stories