Roadmap to Graduation

Janis A. Rizzo5387 Publications Management

Dr. Craig BaehrTexas Tech University

Spring 2010

Project Development

Based on

Information Development:Managing Your Documentation Projects,

Portfolios, and Peopleby

JoAnn T. Hackos

Getting started

First Class, First DayQuestions on My Mind

What’s an English MOO?

How do you set up a website portfolio?

What are single-sourcing methodologies and technologies?

First Day, End of ClassQuestions on My Mind

How little can someone know about a subject?

What did I get myself into?

Brainstorming project ideas

Choosing a project

Finding legacy documents

Selecting a project title

Defining two deliverables

Blog comments:I’ve had to produce

some potential projects from which to choose my class project. My suggestions lack creativity, substance, and interest. Bad start.

Phase 1: Planning

Abstract

The graduation requirements set by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) are the basis for the project. In the past seven years, TEA has published three different sets of graduation requirements depending on the year the student entered 9th grade.

The Round Rock Independent School District (RRISD) must be compliant with the TEA requirements. To this end, they have established several different programs for graduation over the years: Summa Cum Laude, Distinguished Achievement, Recommended, Round Rock Advanced, Texas Scholars Recommended and High School Program. RRISD also publishes the requirements and course information in its annual course catalogs.

The project will be to inform students of and set up an interactive program for them to track their progress through the requirements of their chosen program.

Understand goals and objectives

Simplify the process of retrieving the requirements for individual students based upon the year they entered high school

Define the different programs Delineate the required components of each program Document the courses from the Round Rock

Independent School District Catalog that would fulfill the requirements

Set up a program for students to track their progress through the requirements

Stimulate use of the program by informing students of its development through a print document

Understand information needs of audience

There are three user groups for the project: students, parents and educators

All of the users have the same need of accumulating data to determine if the students are completing the requirements specific to the program they have chosen

Select legacy documents

Round Rock ISD: Graduation Requirements

http://roundrockisd.org/index.aspx?page=56

Round Rock ISD Course Catalogs High School and Middle School

2009-2010 http://roundrockisd.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=119302008-2009 http://roundrockisd.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=119292007-2008 http://roundrockisd.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=119262006-2007 http://roundrockisd.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=11924

Texas Education Agency High School Graduation Requirements

http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index3.aspx?id=3286&menu_id=793

Define scope of deliverables

The two deliverables will be: an interactive website where users will be

able to determine what the graduation requirements are for their chosen program, then enter past, present, and projected courses to help determine the student's path to graduation

a brochure or flyer to advertise the website

Develop project schedule

Define requirements for final production

Website will have multiple pages with links that guide students to the appropriate set of graduation requirements

A form will allow students to pull up course information and choose the courses that they will use to fulfill requirements

Course credits will be tracked on the formFlyer will engage, inform and direct

students to the website

Evaluate project dependencies and risks

Product stability.  This product is totally stable during the course of this project. The Texas Education Agency does not have changes to high school graduation requirements during this school year. There is significant expectation, however, that requirements will change in the future.

Information availability.  The information being used for the project is public information and is clear and concise and readily available.

Prototype availability.  There is no prototype for the project, just public information in list format for both the high school requirements and Round Rock Independent School District course descriptions.

SME availability.  Since my web design experience is essentially non-existent, I will need to depend on subject-matter experts to help with training and guidance throughout the project. I will probably need to seek out someone with more experience in web design as there will be some complexity in the operation of the site.

Review experience.  I will be asking my four children, all graduates of Round Rock ISD high schools to evaluate the project and its usefulness.

Technical experience.  Understanding the material about the project is not an issue, but my technical skill in web design approaches zero, so there will be a significant learning curve. The production of the brochure/flyer will be easier as I do have experience in desktop publishing, although I have not decided as yet what program I will use for the design.

Writing and design experience.  I have some writing and design  experience that I would categorize as average to above average. Integrating the use of different technologies for the design will create a need for training and extend the amount of time needed for the project.

Audience understanding.  This aspect needs to be investigated as there will be multiples users, i.e. students, educators, parents, who will each have different technological skills and information needs. The focus of the three groups will vary somewhat, even with the unified need to ensure in advance that high school graduation requirements are being met.

Team experience.  Not applicable. Team of one makes this a non-issue.

Tools experience.  This is an area of weakness, in particular the tools and technologies for web design but the desire to learn will offset this somewhat. Production of the brochure/flyer will be easier due to some experience designing similar products.

Phase 2: design

Conduct user and task analysis

Students May have difficulty holding on to flyer with website address Will be able to access and use website without problems May be least interested in utilizing the site

Parents May have trouble receiving information about the availability

of the site May have technological difficulties using the site

Counselors Will be able to readily access the website Will be most informed about availability and usefulness

Participate in training

Training requirements:Learn Microsoft

Expression Web 3Refresh Adobe

PhotoshopLearn upgrade

changes to Microsoft Office Enterprise

Learn basic XML, CSS

Blog comments: I am so excited. I bought

a book to learn the software since the videos and tutorials I've seen don't seem to have any order to them and I can't waste a lot of time on training. The book promises it can teach me the basics of the MS Expression Web 3 in 24 hours. One down; 23 to go.......

Understand the marketing goals and objectives

High school counselors will have flyers available for distribution

Flyer will be uploaded to each class websiteWebsite address will be advertised on

RRISD website and counselors’ home pages Website address will be sent to e-mail

newsletters for distribution to parentsArticle will be written and sent to high

school newspapers for printing

Define usability goals

Make flyer engaging to students to encourage participation

Make flyer information readily available to parents so that they know about the website

Make website simple to use and the form easy to understand for adults with fewer computer skills

Ensure website information is accurate and up-to-date to minimize questions for counselors

Define information structure

Flyer single graphic with overlay of information about

use and availability of websiteWebsitehome page with matching graphic which tells

student to click on year he/she entered high schoolprogram page defines programs for that year and

compares requirements, then tells student to select his/her program

form page lists all categories of subjects with drop-down menus containing potential required courses, plus a place to list any elective courses and credits

Define deliverables

Flyer – classified as single-sourcing level 2: static customized content. The content is single-sourced, but there is additional information that is provided for this particular product, i.e. the announcement of the website to the appropriate users which describes the purpose of and access to the website program.

Website -- would be classified as single-sourcing level 3:

dynamic customized content.  This category includes elements that are stored in drop-down menus, such as the Round Rock ISD catalog courses. Access will be by user selection with the user determining what information he wants to view and each user will see different data depending on their input.

Phase 3: development

Develop new content

Design graphic and text with roadmap theme for flyer

Design layout of tables to maximize quick comparison of programs

Make instructions simple and clearOrganize classes into subject matter and

required vs. electiveDesign form with drop-down menus listing

all options to minimize confusion

Revise draft content based on feedback from smes

Make flyer less busyReduce number of street signsEliminate route numbersReduce number of town namesReduce opacity of backgroundChange font and spacing in text box

WebsiteChange font colors

Edit content for structure and style

Add program names to the navigation bar

Add FAQs Add ContactsAdd advanced

classes earlier for students with advanced placement

Add links to RRISD course catalogs as a reference

Blog comments My plan was to use

Expression Web and not do anymore of that tedious hand coding. But Dr. Baehr was a tricky prof when he made us do the XML scripting exercise. Clearly he knew that we would have to do some coding in our projects. And so I have.

Edit content for compliance with templates

Use Dynamic Web Template to simplify production and revision of multiple pages

Define non-editable areas

Phase 4: Production

Plan and manage production activities

Use Adobe Photoshop to design flyer

Send flyer to printer for production

Use Microsoft Expression Web 3 to develop website

Investigate and choose web server for publication of website

Publish website

Blog comments I was high on getting my project

underway, just having some minor issues with links. So I decided to start on my database. Piece of cake. Then I figured I could work on the form. Simple again. Then wham, a wall. Apparently combining those two is complicated, so complicated that my more detailed reference doesn't cover it except to say it's beyond the scope of the book. Hey, I'm realistic. I can barely interpret that book, so there is no way I can take on a bigger challenge.

Select and contract with production vendors

Get department head signature on form for in-district cost savings

Schedule flyer printing with RRISD Media Shop

Arrange upload to RRISD and high school websites through Information Technology Services

Run pre-production tests on draft content

Ensure version of graphic is same throughout website

Ensure links connect to correct program requirements

Verify completeness of course options against master list

Verify program requirements against TEA tables

Conduct production edit

Manual checks: Be sure not to convey information using color alone Provide sufficient contrast for low-vision users Be sure to include a document type declaration Be sure that you are using style sheets to control layout and

presentation Identify language changes in the document Be sure that equivalents for dynamic content are current Be sure that dynamic content is accessible or provide an

alternative Avoid causing screen flicker Do not create automatically refreshing pages

Do not automatically redirect pages Do not cause pop-ups Use the latest W3C technologies If you are unable to make an accessible page, create an

alternative page Websites and pages should provide semantic information and

orientation Websites and pages should provide layout information Use of navigation should be consistent throughout your

website Use the clearest and simplest language appropriate for this

content Provide a method for the user to skip repetitive links If a time-based response is required, provide an alert allowing

the user to request more time

Warnings: Verify that this document can be read with style sheets turned off If this is a complex data table, identify structure and groupings If this table is used for layout, make sure it makes sense when

linearized If this table is used for layout, do not use structural format for

visual formatting Ensure that implicitly associated labels for form controls are

properly positioned Large blocks of information should be grouped so they are more

manageable If you use electronic forms, ensure that they can be completed

using assistive devices

Incompatibility The W3C now regards the attribute “align” as outdated. Newer

constructs are recommended

Perform final quality assurance checks on all rendered output

Flyer proofread All information links

operationalAll navigational links

operationalForms working

correctlySpell-check

completed

Blog commentsOkay, so I thought I

could call this one "Totally Done". But it's not! After more frustrating work than writing the entire program, I finally got the website published. Then I got to view it. Yahoo! Boo hoo. Home page, first look, failed graphic.

Phase 5: evaluation

Deliverable: flyer

Deliverable: website

http://jamstx.com

Accumulate and analyze project data

Resources required:Team of one – Salary $0Training materials – one reference book – est. $30Software programs:

◦Microsoft Expression Web 3 - $137.46◦Adobe Photoshop – available◦Microsoft Access 2007 - available

Web host – est. $15Domain name - $15

Compare estimates with actuals

Training materials – required two booksSoftware programs – didn’t need Microsoft

Access 2007 since canceled databaseDid not track training or production hoursCost:

Programs free or availableReference materials - $ 56.27Publication expenses - $25.06

Under budget by $116.13

Prepare project’s final report

Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 presentation prepared

Based on Hackos’ Information-Development Life Cycle

Deliverables loaded to portfolio website at www.janisrizzo.weebly.com/project.html

Presentation to 5387 Publications Management class on 4/22/10

Hold “lessons learned” review

Expect that some part of the project will be revised, no matter how well-defined it is

Learning new technologies takes more time than expected

Clear, concise information and training is not readily available

Close attention to resource and time utilization is critical to staying on track

Collect customer feedback

Graphic much improved after revision to make less busy, yet “confusing” signs and text could still stand out more

Good, simple, clean designExcellent idea to use drop-down lists to

choose required courses

Identify problems and correct

Change “About” to “Disclaimer”Correct dropped letters on title barCorrect loading issue on homepage

graphicFormat tablesFix internal link problemsFix loading issues on publication

Revision suggestions

Need “Save” button on formsNeed “Print” button on formsIncorporate database to hold course

information so ~400 electives can be loadedAdd submit link to student’s counselor

depending on high school, grade and last name

Add Webmaster contact informationTotal credits automatically

acknowledgements

Dramatic thank yous to:

Dr. Craig Baehr -- for developing a course structure that was engaging and informational

Bea, Melody, Ali, Jennifer, Bill, Cary, Heather, Kelli and Ashley -- for allowing me to exponentially increase my learning through your comments and work output

My SMEs who provided excellent overall critiques and help with my graphic design