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How Tangled a Web to Weave?
Levels of sophistication (and headache) in teaching with the web

Teaching Resource Center January Workshop
 January 15, 1996
University of Virginia

Kirk Martini
Assistant Professor of Architecture and Civil Engineering


Summary of Presentation Links

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Copyright © Kirk Martini, 1996
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Overview
Fitting the web into the teaching media toolbox

Communication media in teaching
Production, content, and distribution

How the web works
Like television with a million channels

Using the web
A four-step program

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Toolbox of teaching media
Media for information flow among teachers, students, and the world

Typical tools for teachers
  • Chalk
  • Talk
  • Books
  • Readers
  • Xerox handouts
  • Transparencies
  • 35mm slides
  • Video tape
  • Audio tape
  • CD ROM
  • e-mail
  • News groups

    Typical tools for students
  • Handwritten problem sets
  • Drawings
  • Models
  • Talk
  • Electronic file transfer
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    Properties of communication media
    Choosing the right tool for the job

    Content
  • The expression of ideas

    Production
  • Making materials

    Distribution
  • Information channels
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    Content
    The expression of ideas

    Symbols
  • Text, Equations, Tables

    Graphics
  • Still
  • Photographs, Diagrams, Graphs
  • Moving
  • Video, Animation

    • Sound
  • Speech, Music
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    Production
    Issues in making information

    Equipment
  • Can teachers produce?
  • Can students produce?

    Lead time
  • Long preparation?

    Revisions
  • Easily updated?

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    Distribution
    Access and channels

    Access
  • Who, when, where, how

    Channels
  • Dispatch
  • Collection
  • Group Exchange
  • Moderated Interaction
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    Dispatch
    Teacher sends, students receive

  • Talk, Chalk, Handouts, Slides, Transparencies, Video Marked papers, E-mail
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    Collection
    Students send, teacher receives

  • Typed papers, Blue books, Problem sets, Computer files, E-mail
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    Group Exchange
    Individuals send, all receive

  • Talk, News group, e-mail.
  • Difficult with physical media for large groups.
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    Moderated Interaction
    Students send and receive, teacher consults and advises

  • Copies of publications (LEO), Field trips, Phone calls
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    The Web
    Another tool in the toolbox

    Content
  • Very good for formatted text and photographs.
  • Pretty good for diagrams and illustrations.
  • Relatively weak for video, audio, equations, complex notation.
  • Can use to download files (PostScript, etc.)
  • Requires more of the reader.

    • Production
  • Required effort varies with level of sophistication.
  • Many useful tasks can be done quickly from the desktop.
  • Accessible to many students.

    Distribution
  • Virtually every computer in the world.
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    The Web
    How it works

    The client-server model
  • The client makes requests and receives information.

  • The server responds to requests and transmits information.

  • Browsers such as Netscape are clients, like television sets.

  • Servers (a.k.a. hosts) are like broadcast antennas.
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    The Web is Like Television
    A lot like television

    Similarities
  • Distribution occurs at the time of information consumption.

  • The consumer receives the provider's most recent updates (not like books or CD-ROM).

    Differences
  • The consumer receives the information on demand, rather than on the provider's schedule.

  • The content is primarily static (text and still images) rather than dynamic (sound and video).

    Why the web is better
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    The Good, the Bad, and the Webly
    Technology is no longer a quality filter

    The GOOD THING about the web
  • Just about anyone with access to a computer can publish text, graphics, and photos around the world.

    The BAD THING about the web
  • Just about anyone with access to a computer can publish text, graphics, and photos around the world.

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    Thoughts of Our Founder
    Jefferson's views on the web of his day

    The man who reads nothing at all is better educated than the man who reads nothing but newspapers.

    I do not take a single newspaper, nor read one a month, and I feel myself infinitely the happier for it.

    The advertisement is the most truthful part of a newspaper.

    Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)

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    Using the Web in Teaching
    How tangled a web to weave?

    Preliminaries
  • One time set-up

    Work Environment
  • Areas for authoring and publishing

    Levels of Engagement
  • A four step program to becoming a web-head.
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    Preliminaries
    Setting up your broadcasting station

    Setting up:
  • Get a UNIX account
  • Create a public_html directory
  • Set permissions for public access

    Help resources
  • Official ITC "home page how-to"
  • ITC Help Desk
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    Work Environment
    Authoring, publishing, and useful tools

    Authoring area
  • Where you create and test documents.
  • Includes notes, drafts, and other working materials that you don't intend to publish.
  • For most people, this will be the desktop PC.

    Publishing area
  • Where your published files are.
  • For most people, this will be the public_html directory on the UNIX machine.

    Useful tools
  • File transfer (from Authoring area to Publishing area).
  • Text file Converters.
  • Graphic and image creation, manipulation, and conversion.
  • Special editors for web documents.
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    Level 1
    Converting: publishing word processor documents on the web

    Plain text
  • Save word processor file as text only with line breaks.
  • Use file name with ".txt" suffix and no spaces.
  • Transfer file to Publishing area.
  • Give out the URL.

    Formatted text
  • Save word processor file as Rich Text Format (RTF).
  • Convert to HTML with conversion program.
  • Transfer file to Publishing area.
  • Give out the URL.
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    Uniform Resource Locators (URLs)
    Broadcast channels of the web

    General Anatomy

    1. The server protocol.
      • "http" is for HyperText Transfer Protocol ; there are others.
    2. The server's name.
    3. The user id.
    4. The file name.
      • This is the name of a file, or a path to a file, in the public_html directory.
      • If no file is specified, most servers will look for a file called home.html
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    Using Level 1 in Teaching
    Putting handouts on line

    Dispatch of plain text
  • Can be done with e-mail or news groups.

    Dispatch of formatted text
  • Can be done with handouts.

    Advantages
  • Puts paper handling in the hands of students rather than you and staff.
  • Handouts are available in the case of loss or absence.

    Disadvantages
  • If you do not go beyond this level, you must give out the URL for each handout.
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    Level 2
    Authoring: Creating coherent sites with text and pre-digitized images

    Identify your objectives
  • Set your target.
  • Organize your information.

    Learn HTML
  • Library Short courses.
  • Multimedia Resource Center Short courses.
  • On-line Tutorials.
  • See How to Create Web Services under the Help menu of Netscape

    Study Style

    "The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."
    -- Albert Einstein

  • Use the Source command under Netscape's View Menu.
  • Check out style guides (e.g. The Yale Style Manual)

    Beware of copyright violations
  • Learn Access Restriction.
  • Domain name
  • Password

    • Start with small projects
  • Create an index of links to on-line handouts.
  • Create an index of links related to your course.

    Collect appropriate tools
  • An HTML Editor.
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    Using Level 2 in Teaching
    Creating an overall framework, plus links to outside

    Creating a coherent web site for a course
  • Build an organizational framework for handouts.
  • Add commentary that you might not include in paper handouts.
  • Easily viewable by outsiders.
  • Well organized dispatch.

    Creating links to useful resources
  • Organizations.
  • Related courses.
  • Beginnings of moderated interaction.
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    Level 3
    Imaging: Authoring with original images

    Tools
  • Illustration programs. (line diagrams).
  • Image processing programs. (photographs).
  • 3D modelling programs. (renderings).
  • Image conversion programs.
  • Scanning hardware and software.
  • Large-scale storage and backup.
  • Even more stuff for video and animation.

    Issues
  • The wonderful world of image formats.
  • Managing multiple versions of images:
  • Thumbnail
  • Low resolution.
  • Working image for publishing
  • medium resolution
  • compressed.
  • Archival Image
  • Very high resolution.
  • lossless compression.

    • Benefits
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    Using Level 3 in Teaching
    The power of visual media

    Photographs
  • The real world.

    Scanned original documents
  • Primary sources. (from Valley of the Shadow, by Ed Ayers)

    Annotation
  • Adding your interpretation.

    Access outside of class
  • Integrating images into course content.
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    Level 4
    Programming: Collecting and processing input from students

    Levels 1 through 3:
  • Rich content with wide accessibility.
  • Short lead time.
  • Distribution is primarily dispatch
  • You broadcasting to them.

    • Level 4:
  • Use the web to collect from them and give feedback.

    Forms:
  • Simple to use.
  • Hard to learn.
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    Basic Form Types
    Multiple choice and text input

    Single Selection
  • Radio Buttons
    Choice 1
    Choice 2
    Choice 3
    Choice 4

  • Selection menu

    Multiple Selection
  • Checkbox
    Choice 1
    Choice 2
    Choice 3
    Choice 4

  • Selection list

    Text
  • Single line

  • Multiple line
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    Processing Form Input
    Dynamic documents, collecting information, and processing information

    Things to do with form data:
  • Use it to create a new web page.
  • Search engines do this.
  • Quotations
    (Michael Moncur)
  • Museum Educational Site Licensing Project
    (Christie Stephenson, UVa Digital Image Center)

  • Send it to a file for your review.
  • Much better than e-mail.
  • Information is automatically compiled.

  • Send it to an external program and report the results.
  • Meyers-Briggs.

    • How do you do that?
  • The Common Gateway Interface
  • A Scripting Language
  • The trust of your system administrator
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    Using Level 4 in Teaching
    Gathering information and polling students

    Building resources
  • Web surfing assignment.

    Collecting feedback
  • Formal
  • Informal

    Inductive learning
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    The Web is a Mental Illness
    Metaphor or Diagnosis?

    Level 1: Converting
  • People with reasonable computer experience can cope on their own.
  • With a library class and a little patience.

    Level 2: Authoring
  • Requires more drive and motivation, but within reasonable reach for most people.
  • Learning HTML is really pretty fun (if you like that kind of thing).

    Level 3: Imaging
  • The inexperienced may need professional help.
  • If you work a lot with graphics already, you may be able to do this on your own.
  • Ambitious projects should seek help from the Teaching + Technology Initiative.

    Level 4: Programming
  • Seek professional help.
  • Unless you have experience with computer programming languages and operating systems.
  • One of the most fertile areas for teaching possibilities.
  • Ripe for TTI proposals.
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    Final Words
    Finding a level that's right for you

    If you're just getting started:
  • Do things of immediate use.
  • Make a home page.
  • Convert your vitae to HTML.
  • Bio sketch, Teaching philosophy, etc.
  • Link your papers off your home page
  • Maintain it regularly and let it record your accomplishments.

  • Find useful tasks in your day-to-day work.
  • Developing a group proposal.
  • Other small projects.

  • Build your knowledge and experience, and move on to teaching.

    • If you're itching to become a webmaster:
  • Learn from others (Harry Kriz, Virginia Tech)

    Be patient.
  • This will all become much easier very soon.
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