Physics Website

Physics website

What is your reaction to the entire web development process? Please describe any positive and negative reactions.

The web development process was surprisingly easy and user-friendly! Weebly had a lot of tools that were really easy to use and insert into the website. It was really easy to produce webpages and switch their order as well. I'm glad I had the opportunity to do this now for a class, because now I know how easy it is to make a website. I know that if I had already started teaching, I would think it is too complicated and not pursue it. It was a good experience for me.

What was involved in the process of developing your site? What obstacles did you encounter? How did you overcome those obstacles? What successes did you encounter?

I first started by created my user name and webpage name. I created my homepage, and the other pages that I wanted to use. I then created their layouts and inserted all of the information I needed to on each page. One obstacle I encountered (which is a pretty silly one actually - not that big a deal) is that a lot of times when I was trying to create a header or write in the paragraph form on the website, the "styles" toolbar would go right in front of my text. This happened to me a few times, and so it was a bit annoying because I wouldn't be able to see what I was writing. But it got done! I eventually just tried to work around it, but I have a feeling if I had gone out of the weebly site and gone back in, everything would have been fine. I also was interested in including a calendar on my website, which I think I'd like to do. I couldnt' figure out how to link a google calendar to a site, but I'd like to explore that. I think it would be beneficial to have a calendar posted so students can see what's in store for our class for the next few weeks, so I'd like to look into this. I was successful at creating a blog on my site, which is pretty cool! I have that page set aside to post "latest news" and where I can post answers to student questions on homework, assignments, etc.

Will you continue to build on/update this site after this course ends? Why/Why not? Please explain.

I think I will definitely continue to build onto this website, and add useful material to students (links to website, etc) that pertain to each unit I'll be teaching in physics. I think it's great to have one location that students can go to to find websites that I recommend and find useful - in search engines today, like on google, there are so many sites that show up on a search for a physics topic. At least this gives students the "top" sites that I prefer and find useful. When I start teaching, I will def use the site to post assignments and surveys to get to know my students better. I'm really excited about it!

What errors/issues did you find when you tested your web site for 508 compliance? Based on those errors/issues, what changes would you make to your site?

I got an error on my website for having hyperlinks show up only when the mouse hovers over an object. For instance, I have a hyperlink linked to one of my pictures, and the link only shows up when one puts the mouse over the picture, so I had an error for that because there is no way to use the keyboard to get to the link if one does not have a mouse. I also got an error for having different colors on my website that people may not be able to identify if they have color blindness. I also got an error that there wasn't enough contrast between a picture and the background.

I would change my website so that I don't have an important message that I want people to read distinguishable by color. For instance, I will not make an important message on the homepage bright red so people will notice it. Instead, I'll use a bold font and bigger text if I want to post an important message, so that those with colorblindness will be able to read the message.