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Successful distance education courses increasingly include web presentations. As distance education has progressed from correspondence courses to multimedia course delivery, so delivery design must progress from simply converting paper documents to web pages, to recognizing and incorporating the unique properties of web design. Appropriate, attractive visuals enhance the distance education experience for everyone. The visual learners' learning style is stimulated.
Many educators who are completely comfortable with text are image-phobic -- challenged to simply scan or import digital photos -- and lacking the skills to manipulate these images and make them truly valuable in their online lessons. The objective of this lesson is to increase the comfort level of web designers when using images. This lesson assumes a basic understanding of document file formats and will build upon the user's familiarity with document and projection software.
Audience
This lesson is specifically designed for K-12 faculty with limited experience in web construction. It will provide basic instruction in building online web lessons which can be used to replace conventional classroom instruction. As educators create online web lessons they will be able to incorporate other technologies such as chat and email to develop true distance education lessons for use when traditional class time is interrupted.
Distance Education Lesson Overview
The objective of this lesson is to provide basic instruction in enhancing online web lessons through the manipulation and collection of image files. The lesson design follows a progression from lower to higher order thinking as the student progresses from being introduced to the fundamental knowledge of web and image characteristics, to performing basic editing skills, to observing and evaluating other websites to a discussion of the role of visuals in enhancing course delivery. The following describes the various parts of the lesson that build on each other and so are best completed in the order presented.
| 1 |
Self-assessment quiz |
Pretest before starting the lesson |
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| 2 |
Web lesson |
Essentials of Image Editing |
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- Basic image concepts
- Web characteristics affecting images for online use and their file formats
- Screen characteristics fundamental to organizing your "canvas"
- Controlling download time
- A step-by-step skills workshop
- Summary
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| 3 |
Skills assessment exercises |
Manipulating images to reinforce new skills (Participants will be emailed two images for editing. Kindly return by email when completed ) |
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| 4 |
Online Lesson Preparation |
Prepare for the online lesson by critiquing the use of images on three websites. |
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| 5 |
Online Lesson delivered via audio bridge on
January 11 at 8 p.m. |
Discuss web site evaluations and image sources. Examine the role visuals play in creating "sticky websites." |
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Feedback form |
Participants are encouraged to offer suggestions for improving this lesson. |
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| See the Assignments page for complete assignment details..
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