Roadmap to Graduation

1. Roadmap to Graduation Janis A. Rizzo 5387 Publications Management Dr. Craig Baehr Texas Tech University Spring 2010

2. Based on Information Development: Managing Your Documentation Projects, Portfolios, and People by JoAnn T. Hackos Project Development

3. First Class, First Day Questions on My Mind What’s an English MOO? How do you set up a website portfolio? What are single-sourcing methodologies and technologies? Getting started

4. First Day, End of Class Questions on My Mind How little can someone know about a subject? What did I get myself into?

5. 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.

6. Phase 1: Planning

7. 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. Abstract

8. 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 goals and objectives

9. 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 Understand information needs of audience

10. 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 Select legacy documents

11. 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 Define scope of deliverables

12. Develop project schedule

14. 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 form • Flyer will engage, inform and direct students to the website Define requirements for final production

15. 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. Evaluate project dependencies and risks

16. 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.

17. 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.

18. Phase 2: design

19. 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 Conduct user and task analysis

20. Training requirements: • Learn Microsoft Expression Web 3 • Refresh Adobe Photoshop • Learn 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....... Participate in training

21. High school counselors will have flyers available for distribution • Flyer will be uploaded to each class website • Website address will be advertised on RRISD website and counselors’ home pages • Website address will be sent to e-mail newsletters for distribution to parents • Article will be written and sent to high school newspapers for printing Understand the marketing goals and objectives

22. 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 usability goals

23. Flyer • single graphic with overlay of information about use and availability of website Website • home page with matching graphic which tells student to click on year he/she entered high school • program 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 information structure

24. 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. Define deliverables

25. Phase 3: development

26. Design graphic and text with roadmap theme for flyer • Design layout of tables to maximize quick comparison of programs • Make instructions simple and clear • Organize classes into subject matter and required vs. elective • Design form with drop-down menus listing all options to minimize confusion Develop new content

27. Make flyer less busy • Reduce number of street signs • Eliminate route numbers • Reduce number of town names • Reduce opacity of background • Change font and spacing in text box Website • Change font colors Revise draft content based on feedback from smes

28. Add program names to the navigation bar • Add FAQs • Add Contacts • Add 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 structure and style

29. Use Dynamic Web Template to simplify production and revision of multiple pages • Define non-editable areas Edit content for compliance with templates

30. Phase 4: Production

31. 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. Plan and manage production activities

32. 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 Select and contract with production vendors

33. 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 Run pre-production tests on draft content

34. 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 Conduct production edit

35. 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

36. 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

37. Flyer proofread • All information links operational • All navigational links operational • Forms working correctly • Spell-check completed Blog comments • Okay, 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. Perform final quality assurance checks on all rendered output

38. Phase 5: evaluation

39. Deliverable: flyer

40. http://jamstx.com Deliverable: website

41. Resources required: • Team of one – Salary $0 • Training materials – one reference book – est. $30 • Software programs: • Microsoft Expression Web 3 - $137.46 • Adobe Photoshop – available • Microsoft Access 2007 - available • Web host – est. $15 • Domain name - $15 Accumulate and analyze project data

42. Training materials – required two books • Software programs – didn’t need Microsoft Access 2007 since canceled database • Did not track training or production hours • Cost: Programs free or available Reference materials - $ 56.27 Publication expenses - $25.06 Under budget by $116.13 Compare estimates with actuals

43. 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 Prepare project’s final report

44. 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 Hold “lessons learned” review

45. Graphic much improved after revision to make less busy, yet “confusing” signs and text could still stand out more • Good, simple, clean design • Excellent idea to use drop-down lists to choose required courses Collect customer feedback

46. Change “About” to “Disclaimer” • Correct dropped letters on title bar • Correct loading issue on homepage graphic • Format tables • Fix internal link problems • Fix loading issues on publication Identify problems and correct

47. Need “Save” button on forms • Need “Print” button on forms • Incorporate database to hold course information so ~400 electives can be loaded • Add submit link to student’s counselor depending on high school, grade and last name • Add Webmaster contact information • Total credits automatically Revision suggestions

48. 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 acknowledgements