Section 01
Spring 2006
2:30–3:20 p.m. M/W/F (Library 005)
The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect.
(quoted on the WAI homepage)
This course is a multidisciplinary exploration of the technology and social consequences of electronic computation and communication. Topics may include the history and technology of the Internet and the Worldwide Web, the techniques and design patterns used to make Web pages and possible future influences that the Internet will have in public policy, social structures, economics, law and ethics.
This section of the course will focus on web accessibility for visually impaired computer users. Students will learn web design with an emphasis on building and maintaining accessible websites, putting into practice what they've learned by implementing and maintaining their own website using open-source software. At the same time, we'll consider legal and moral obligations web designers and content providers have toward the visually disabled—to what extent these exist and the nature of their various justifications.
This class will contain a service learning component in which students will work in groups to apply what they've learned by conducting an accessibility audit of the website of a local nonprofit organization; part of this audit will consist of performing a partial redesign of the website to make it accessible.
Lectures, discussions, and lab sessions will be intermixed throughout the semester. Therefore, you should come to each class meeting prepared for any combination of lecture, discussion, or lab.
[ Back to the Table of Contents ]
To every class meeting, you are expected to bring: your copy of the Duckett text, any other text we're currently working from, your notebook, a writing implement, and a backup writing implement.
Later in the semester, you'll be working in the Ferry computer lab with a screen-reading program named JAWS. You'll need to bring a set of headphones suitable to plug into the workstation running JAWS.
[ Back to the Table of Contents ]
My primary goal in this class is to turn you into competent designers and implementers of websites. I'm going to do this by taking an unorthodox approach to teaching web design: we're going to approach web design from the standpoint of visually impaired computer users—people who can't see what's on the monitor when they're surfing the web. This may seem very counterintuitive since browsing the web seems to be an inherently visually activity—after all, you have to see where the little buttons are so that you can click on them with your mouse! But we'll see (!) that the web is by no means an inherently visual medium—it just happens that most current web design stresses the visual mode of accessing content.
The World Wide Web Consortium's Web Accessibility Initiative has published a list of techniques for making web content accessible. In addition to studying these, we'll also be reading two texts that fall into the area of disability studies. From these, we'll try to get a sense of what it's like to interact with the world from the standpoint of a blind person. We'll also take a look at the federal and NY state laws that require government websites to be accessible, and discuss to what extent this should extend into the private sector.
Our work in this course will not be merely academic—you will apply what you're learning to real-world websites. We are partnering with some Utica-area nonprofit groups to do service learning. The services you'll supply will consist of conducting an accessiblity and general usability audit of these groups' websites; reconditioning these websites to make them accessible; and designing and implementing accessible websites for some groups that don't yet have websites. In addition to applying what you learn in class, you'll also have the opportunity to learn from interacting with professional web designers and working with production-quality websites.
Finally, we'll be using open-source software in this class. You'll get experience in using GNU/Linux and other free software for developing and deploying websites, making it easy for you to take what you learn in this class and apply it in the real world.
[ Back to the Table of Contents ]
The graded components of the course are listed in the table below and described in the next section of this syllabus. In addition, you are expected to attend each class, keep up with the reading (see the course schedule), and attend office hours or make an appointment to see me if you are having difficulty understanding the material.
Note that there are no exams. Thus it is impossible to make up for not keeping up with your classwork by doing well on an exam. Hence, it would be a good idea to keep up with all assigned reading and homework throughout the semester.
| component | weight | when | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Participation | 8% | throughout the semester |
| 2. | Quizzes | 12% | throughout the semester |
| 4. | Labwork | 12% | throughout the semester |
| 3. | Homework | 17% | throughout the semester |
| 5. | Final Project | 12% | May 12 |
| 6. | Groupwork | 39% | throughout the semester |
Each component of your grade will be assigned a number between 0 and 100, inclusive. Your final grade in the course will be a weighted sum Σ of all components, where the weights are given above. Σ will be converted into a letter grade according to the following scale:
|
|
|
|
|
The weighted sum Σ indicates your minimum grade for the course. Significant and constant improvement throughout the semester may be taken into account in determining the final grade.
Professor Mark Bailey of the computer science department has a grading policy that I will also adopt this semester. The policy is as follows:
Earning a failing grade in any of the six components of your final grade is a sufficient condition for failing the course.
In other words, in order to pass this course, you must earn a passing grade in each of the six components of your final course grade. This doesn't mean that you can't fail a quiz and still pass the course—it means that you cannot earn a failing grade on all of component 2 (quizzes) and still pass the course.
If you have any questions on how the Bailey clause applies to your work in this class, feel free to ask me at any time during the semester.
[ Back to the Table of Contents ]
You are expected to participate in class by contributing to discussions, asking questions when you do not understand something, and actively paying attention. A key aspect of active participation is having read the material assigned for each class meeting before you show up in class.
It is impossible for you to actively pay attention in class if you are surfing the web for material unrelated to this course, writing or reading your email, or sending or receiving instant messages during class. So, although you will have a computer in front of you each class session, you should not be using email unless you have been specifically instructed to do so. Further, under no circumstances should you be using an instant messenger program during class.
On the first offense, you will instantly be assigned a C participation grade. The second offense will result in a zero participation grade. Under the “Bailey clause” (see above), this will cause you to fail the course.
Quizzes will be announced in advance and will cover specific material, primarily key concepts and vocabulary with which I want you to be familiar.
Some class days will combine lecture and discussion with a short assignment in which you'll explore the particular technique or concept we've talked about in class. The short assignment will result in the production of something on which you'll be graded. Some labwork will be individual; some will be collaborative.
These are short assignments which you'll do on your own. The topics covered in labwork will prepare you for homework. Late homework will not be accepted.
Your final project will be due on the date the registrar assigns for our final exam. It will be similar in length to a short term paper (e.g., 4-5 double-spaced typed pages) but you'll construct it as a web page (or pages). You'll be graded on both content and presentation. More precise details about the final project will be provided later in the semester.
Your work with our clients will be done in small groups. There will be three group projects during the semester:
I'll form the groups using a suitable randomizing device. It is possible that the composition of each group will change for each project.
The final exam period scheduled for this class, 2:00–5:00 p.m. on Friday, May 12, will be used for a presentation of your work to our client organizations. Attendance at this presentation is mandatory. Keep this in mind as you formulate your post-semester travel plans.
If you believe that you have a valid scheduling conflict with a graded component of this course (e.g., observation of a religious holiday), you must see me before the graded component is scheduled. I will decide whether the conflict is a valid one, and if so, how your graded event will be rescheduled. Note that taking a non-classwork-related trip will not count as a valid conflict. The dates of all exams are clearly indicated on this syllabus, so look them over carefully and mark the dates on your calendar.
[ Back to the Table of Contents ]
You are expected to be familiar with the Hamilton College Honor Code. In short, any work you do for a graded component of this course must be your own.
If you are not clear on how the Honor Code applies to your work in this class, be sure to ask me before you do anything questionable. (Note: you should ask me, not your fellow students or the computer science teaching assistants.) I take the Honor Code very seriously and will prosecute any violations that occur in this course.
In their book The Analytical Engine, Professors Rick Decker and Stuart Hirshfield of the Department of Computer Science at Hamilton offer the following guidelines for observing the Honor Code:
If a subject relates to the technology of computing without treading necessarily on the specific material being studied, it can rightfully be discussed and debated. That is to say, you are encouraged to ask questions of your fellow students if those questions can be posed so as not to refer to the particular assignment you are currently working on.
This applies primarily to the homework and your final project. For collaborative labs or groupwork, you may of course discuss the details of the assignment with the people in your group.
Your academic conduct in this class is largely a matter of common sense. You are encouraged to discuss computer science topics covered in class with your fellow students. You are not encouraged to steal their work or to do their work for them.
[ Back to the Table of Contents ]
I encourage you to drop by during my office hours to discuss any aspects of the course or anything else you want to talk about. If you can't make my office hours, feel free to make an appointment. The best way to make an appointment is to talk to me after class. The next best option is to contact me by email. You can also call my office (the extension is 4816), but unless you call during office hours, I probably won't answer, and I'm not very reliable about checking my voice mail.
[ Back to the Table of Contents ]
If you have a documented disability and require accommodations to obtain equal access in this course, please contact me at the beginning of the semester and when given any assignment for which accommodation is required. Students with disabilities must verify their eligibility by contacting the Associate Dean of Students for Diversity and Accessibility, Berenecea Johnson Eanes (K-J 104; telephone extension 4022).
[ Back to the Table of Contents ]
[ Return to the CPSCI 107 homepage ]
Brian J. Rosmaita <contact me>