Week 8 (17 March) A Gentle Re-Entry : Balancing Form and Content in WordPress
Synchronous class outline here.
In the interest of total clarity and sanity, while we are having remote classes, I have decided to break down each week’s work in a separate page. This means each week will sit under the main schedule tab in the menu. This is done by creating what are called “child pages.”
I also am returning to the Course Learning Outcomes in order to streamline and realign the materials for the rest of the semester (and this will mean that the work I ask you to do will change somewhat). My intention in doing this is to put in place very clear goals, very clear communication, and a reasonable path for completing the semester, while being sure that we still learn something interesting and useful this term.
If you didn’t do the check in, fill it out for me.
You might like reading this guide for students in the moment of the online teaching “pivot”:
https://twitter.com/slamteacher/status/1238688482190479361?s=20
This weeks material will address learning outcomes #6 and #7.
In Tuesday’s synchronous class (at the regular hour) we will be exploring some elements of WordPress (WP) that we have not been able to do so far. You will choose a free, responsive theme for your course blog that matches the kind of context that you will putting in it (mostly written blog style entries, some visual content, menus) and that work with little or no customization. We will learn how to structure our own blog so that we have a menu at the top of the page along with our blog postings as “child pages”. I will demo some features and we will try to discuss elements of accessibility.
An excellent place to look for tutorials for WP is LinkedIn Learning (if you are off campus, sign in here).
Preparing for Tuesday’s class:
Watch these videos:
Getting Familiar with WordPress themes
Previewing, Installing and Changing Themes (a little outdated now!)
What is a Responsive Theme?
Accessible Web Design
3 Videos on Digital Accessibility (NYU IT)
Check out this article: Designing for Accessibility that is not that hard (UX Collective)
Thursday assignment:
There will be no synchronous class on Thursday. You should explore the possibilities of your theme and be ready to participate in a forum in NYU Classes. In it, you should briefly address the WP theme (with links) you have chosen and why. Include three new “hacks” or suggestions that you learned about to make your WordPress both more customized and more accessible. I will check in to the forum a couple times a day and jump in as needed. Your participation for this week will consist of a pass/fail. You should expect to receive a pass if you make one post of your three hacks and engage with (that is, respond to a couple of your classmates briefly). This should be completed by Saturday night (21 March).
I asked you to wait on Blog 2 until you had received feedback on Blog 1 (forthcoming). Here is the revised prompt for blog 2:
Blog 2: Discuss some of your findings about the works of Jane Austen using computer-assisted text analysis. How were the works different? Is there progression over time? Embed two live visualizations from Voyant into your writing that illustrate some of what you have learned about Austen’s oeuvre.
At the end of your blog posting about Austen, include a small paragraph in which you discuss how you have improved both the visual appeal and the accessibility of your site. Are there contradictions between visual appeal and accessibility? Do you encounter difficulty viewing your blog on different devices? The usual maximum length of 500 words applies here, but do not count your last paragraph in the word count. Include an image of your website before and after your “visual update.” (due date 2 April, 11:59pm, feedback by 4 April)
Next week is Spring Break. I will see you back in synchronous class at our regular class time on 31 March. By this point we should have more clarity about how the semester will continue, إن شاء الله