Interactive Multimedia Communications
Assignments

Over the course of the semester, you will develop a set of multimedia instructional materials, which will be integrated in a single term project. These instructional materials must therefore have a common theme, focused on a specific topic or concept, and targeted to a specified audience. The topic and the audience are completely up to you. Choose something you are interested in and knowledgable about: e.g. History of China, Greek mythology, the Pythagorean theorem, sentence structure, states of matter. There is one caveat: your topic may not be how to use a specific piece of software.

You will develop your term project in seven (7) assignments. Descriptions are indicated below; due dates appear in the syllabus. You will be penalized for any late or missing assignments; presentations MUST be made on the scheduled date to receive credit. A final assignment will be used to integrate all of the previous assignments and make any necessary adjustments. The final grade for each assignment will be determined by the final version as it appears in the integrated term project.

Grades for the project will be based on the following criteria:

  1. Topic Selection
    Select a topic that you are knowledgable about, and would like to teach or inform others about. At the same time, identify an audience for your topic. Create a 2-3 page document that describes the following:

  2. Give you document an appropriate name (e.g. MarySmith_HW1.doc) and upload it to the shared folder on Google Drive. Be prepared to discuss this in class, on the due date.
     
  3. Website Layout
    Design a website layout for your selected topic and audience using Photoshop (or Gimp). The main page should include a descriptive title and a brief summary paragraph indicating the purpose of the site. Include navigation elements and/or placeholders for the upcoming assignments. Upload the final image to the shared folder on Google Drive.
     
  4. Topic Website
    Using your layout as a guide, develop the website (using Dreamweaver) for your selected topic and audience. Use CSS to create your layout. Your entire website should be contained in a folder. Upload the zipped folder to the shared folder on Google Drive.
     
  5. Informative Graphic
    Design an informative graphic that helps your audience to better understand some key concept or data related to your selected topic. You may create this using any tool that you are comfortable with, but the result must be a digital image or graphic that can be displayed on the web (i.e. .JPG, .PNG or .GIF). Upload the final image to the shared folder on Google Drive.
     
  6. Illustrative Animation
    Create an animation that illustrates some key concept in your topic. Be sure to incorporate some audio into your animation (e.g. a voiceover, music, and/or sound effects). Zip the files for the final animation (producing a .zip file) and upload to the shared folder on Google Drive.
     
  7. Instructive Video
    Create a short (<3 minutes) video that introduces or explains some aspect of your topic. The video may include live action, screen capture, and/or a slide show. Use text captions and/or audio to help clarify the information. Save your video as an MP4 file with an appropriate name. Upload the final video to the shared folder on Google Drive.
     
  8. Integrated Term Project
    Integrate all previous assignments into a single cohesive website designed to teach your intended topic to your intended audience. Any improvements made to earlier assignments (based on suggestions made during class presentations) should be apparent in this final product. Prepare a 5 minute presentation for the final day of class. Your final project must be burned on a CD-ROM and handed in on the last day of class.