| SCHOOL
WEB SITES What
is it?
A school web site is a set of web pages grouped together to meet the information
needs of staff, students, and/or the community. Good school web sites
have a clear purpose, organized themes with good information, and appealing
graphical elements that hold the site together. Ultimately, a school web
site is a communication tool that represents the vision, image, and culture
of a school.
Education
World: Cool Schools
Link to almost 200 award-winning school sites and find out what makes
each school web site so special.
Why Use
It?
A school web site may be the most important and useful tool for communication
since the school newsletter. A well-organized school web site may give
information for teachers, staff, students, parents, and the local community.
There are
many steps in the creation of a good school web site. Usually, a "School
Web Team" works together to envision the purpose, content, and structure
of a school web site, and work together to maintain it. Teachers, staff,
students, parents, and even community members may provide content (web
pages) for the school web site, depending on the vision of the School
Web Team.
How Is
It Used?
Good school web sites organize their information into themes using a hierarchy,
concept map, or web. Themes may include school information, current events,
student work, research links, staff links, and so forth, depending on
the needs of a school. The home page of the school is a welcome mat that
organizes the different themes and allows people to navigate smoothly
throughout the web site to find the information they are looking for.
Yale
Style Manual - Site Design
This style manual is a great site for understanding how web sites are
organized into related themes.
Privacy,
copyright issues, and acceptable use policies should all be a part of
the development of a school site. Do not wait until there is a problem
to deal with some of the major considerations of having a school web site.
Home Sweet Home
Jamie MacKenzie has written a book about "Creating WWW Pages Which
Deliver." Jamie includes some of the issues that schools will face
when creating web sites.
Once
you are ready to create your site you will have to use HTML or a web-site
creation program. There are many good programs including Microsoft FrontPage,
Macromedia Dreamweaver, Netobjects Fusion, Hot Metal Pro, and so on. A
good web-site creation program will cost money, but may save you time
in the storyboarding and maintenance of your school web site.
Building a School Web Site
Wanda Wigglebits provides some good beginner information about building
a school web site.
Internet Brothers
This web site in an invaluable tool for beginner, intermediate, and advanced
web site developers. It includes information on HTML, graphics, layout
and design, and some advanced web creation.
School
Web Site Design
A great site with links for web site design, legal issues, and resources
for school web site design.
Once your
web site is up and running you will want to share it with others and ensure
that it is maintained current and accurate. Be sure that the School Web
Team has thought about who will be responsible for the web site as it
grows, changes, and evolves.
Maintaining a School
Web Site
This web page includes some good information on ensuring that your web
site stays current, accurate, and useful. It will walk you through some
of the issues you will face once your web page is done and up for the
world to see.
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