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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "CS 130-4"
COURSE NAME: "Web Design I"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2014
SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Stefano Gazziano
EMAIL: [email protected]
 HOURS: MW 6:00 PM 7:15 PM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES:
OFFICE HOURS:
COURSE DESCRIPTION:

The course provides students with the technical knowledge and skills required to design and build professional web sites using HTML5 and HTML Editors, Web editors, and CSS

The textbook web site should provide a clear idea of what the course will be:   http://shop.oreilly.com/product/9780596159924.do

You can also have a look at the Web Design I Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Web-Design-at-John-Cabot-University/340181989422705?ref=hl   

and at the JCU CS130 page with student portfolios: http://computerscience.johncabot.edu  . At the end of the course you will be confident in developing web sites as those linked.
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:

1       Introduction: history and essential standards of the World Wide Web. How the Web works. References online: the W3C tutorial and other reference material.

2       Tools for Web design: Web editors, HTML Editors, Web publishing.

3       Web building primer. What is hypertext, a basic web page. Building blocks of a web page, adding colours, images, and links; HTML5 writing standards.

4       Usability and the art of Web design. Fonts, colours, cascade style sheets, page layout. Role, goal, target and audience of a web site.

5       Layouts' strategies: (frozen, liquid, jello). HTML5 forms and tables.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:

On completion of the course students should be able to

1.      Write web pages using HTML directly or in combination with a HTML or Web editor.

2.      Make web pages available on the web using file upload programs.

3.      Use Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) to make web content attractive and comfortable to update.

4.      Implement current coding standards, design and usability

5.      Demonstrate principles of good file and directory management, in the context of Web applications.
TEXTBOOK:
Book TitleAuthorPublisherISBN numberLibrary Call NumberCommentsFormatLocal BookstoreOnline Purchase
Head First HTML and CSS 2nd Edition Elisabeth Robson & Eric Freeman O'Reilly978-0-596-15990-0  a pdf version of the book is downloadable at: http://it-ebooks.info/book/921/   
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
Book TitleAuthorPublisherISBN numberLibrary Call NumberComments
W3Schools HTML & CSS Tutorials W3School W3Schooln.a.  Online tutorials on HTML and CSS http://www.w3schools.com/html/ http://www.w3schools.com/css/
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
AssignmentGuidelinesWeight
Attendance and class assignments Class assignments are used to encourage students to continuously study throughout the course. Assignments will either require to answer a set of theoretical questions or to solve practical exercises where a given web page must be modified by applying the latest features learnt in class. 30
PortfolioThe Portofolio will require the student to develop a web site in two steps (tasks):The first task must be ready for the midterm exam and the second one for the final exam.The design features and aesthetic quality of the web pages in the portofolio are expected to increase progressively throughout the course. The weigh of the two tasks is 20% for the first task (midterm) and 50% for the second task (final). Students will include in their work a written report where they analyze and justify their design-implementation choices (coding, color scheme, navigational features, information organization, etc.).The grade will be based upon the following: Coding ability, Page design and structure, Content design, Site design. 70

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the course
BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.
CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.
DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.
FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Attendance is mandatory as all lessons will be held in the computer laboratory and will be a combination of theory and practice. Students spending most of the class time using smart-phones or the like will be marked absent. 
ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.
STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.
SCHEDULE

Week

Topic

Assignments

1

Introduction to the internet: the language of the web.

How the web works: web servers and web browsers

HTML; a simple html page;

 

2

Adding hyperlinks

Structure of a web page.

File organization

Assignment 1

3

Inserting images into html documents: dimensions; captions; size; types; labelling

Using images as links: thumbnails; image editing

4

Attributes, colours and fonts

Assignment 2

5

CSS and style

6

CSS and HTML practice

 

7

Project proposals
brainstorming and planning

 

8

Tables

 Project Proposals

9

Box model

10

Advanced Web construction- divs and spans

11

Practice of advanced construction

12

W3C standards and validators

 Assignment 3

13

Usability

14

Final projects

 Final Projects