Revised: August 19, 2019
Northern Virginia Community College - Annandale Campus
This course information sheet is designed to supplement the ITE 170 Common Syllabus. The ITE 170 common syllabus was first used in Fall 2018 and attempts to ensure consistency in ITE170 across all NVCC campuses. The schedule page contains the week-by-week material for my section; for week by week information, do not use the schedule shown in the ITE 170 Common Syllabus
ITE 170 - Multimedia Software, Fall 2019 (3 credits)
003N - M 3:30-5:40 PM- CT 106
Web Site for Class: www.billpegram.com
Course Content
My course includes the process of developing a web site, web design principles, page layout, image formats, accessibility, and copyright issues, but HTML and CSS, the basic coding used in web pages, receives greater emphasis and time. Instruction is provided in the use of four Adobe programs - Dreamweaver, Animate, Photoshop, and Premiere Pro. There is no discussion of server-side programming (which can connect web pages to databases), client-side scripting such as JavaScript, content management systems such as WordPress, social media, or mobile apps
There is some overlap between my course and ITD 110, Web Design I. ITD 110 does not cover the Adobe programs (Dreamweaver, Animate, Photoshop, and Premiere Pro) and thus can cover the other topics in ITE 170 to a greater level than in possible in ITE 170.
Transfer to GMU
The current situation regarding transfer of ITE 170 to GMU is described at https://ist.gmu.edu/students/transfer-students/transferring-from-another-institution/
Software
Text editors such as Notepad or Notepad++ (Windows), Brackets, Atom, or Sublime Text (Windows and Mac) are free downloads and are available on some campus computers.
Four Adobe CC Programs (Dreamweaver, Animate, Photoshop, and Premiere Pro) are a substantial portion of this course. Here are some alternatives for accessing these programs outside the classroom:
- There are several PC computers and several Mac's in the open lab in CT228 with the CC software - see https://www.nvcc.edu/annandale/ocl/index.html
- There are 7 day free downloads of each Adobe CC program. You can have a separate 7 day period for each of the programs. See www.adobe.com/creativecloud/catalog/desktop.html?promoid=KRUVM I advise students to do homework during the course with the software in the open lab, saving the trial programs for the project at the end of the semester. The trial versions this semester will be the 2019 version of the software rather than the 2018 version found in the labs and the textbooks. The difference in versions is small and either version can be used for work in this course.
- Purchase of software - Because you are students, you are eligible to rent the Creative Cloud suite at greatly reduced prices - currently $19.99/month (https://creative.adobe.com/plans?plan=edu) or $199.99 for the year. Very few students do this and it is certainly not a course requirement that you do so. My understanding is that the monthly plan involves a commitment for a year but I've heard some students say the obligation might be less. There is also a monthly plan of $79.49 with apparently no commitment beyond a month.
The Adobe CC programs are only available to rent, not to buy.
Adobe Photoshop Elements 2019 and Premiere Elements 2019 are stripped-down versions of the CC programs. You can purchase (not rent) these two Elements programs as a combined package for $80 for the Student and Teacher Edition. Each of these two Elements programs are also available as a separate 30-day free trial. I purchased these programs but haven't had a chance to try them. I hope to be able to say more about them before we get to Photoshop and Premiere Pro in the second half of the course. The two Elements programs are not available in the classroom or in the open lab.
Textbooks
You can read online the four Classroom in a Book textbooks for this course; the Dreamweaver and Photoshop books are shown as required on the Common Syllabus, whereas the other two are shown as recommended. For each of the four books, login to your myNova account and then click the link specified below. The number of simultaneous users is limited, so if you can't get access, try back at another time. Accessing the book this way does not provide you access to the exercise files. I can provide the exercise files through Canvas if desired.
Dreamweaver CC 2018 release Classroom in a Book - http://proquest.safaribooksonline.com.ezproxy.vccs.edu:2048/book/web-design-and-development/9780134872179
Photoshop CC 2018 release Classroom in a Book - http://proquest.safaribooksonline.com.ezproxy.vccs.edu:2048/book/photo-and-graphic-manipulation/9780134852560Animate CC 2018 release Classroom in a Book - http://proquest.safaribooksonline.com.ezproxy.vccs.edu:2048/book/animation-and-3d/9780134872292
Premiere Pro CC 2018 release Classroom in a Book - http://proquest.safaribooksonline.com.ezproxy.vccs.edu:2048/book/video/9780134872483I do not think you need to purchase any of the above books; however purchasing will be useful if you wish to go deeper into one of these tools than we will go in class.
HTML and CSS are an important part of this course. The Dreamweaver book has material on HTML and CSS. The schedule page has links to some good online material on HTML and CSS. You might consider purchasing a fifth book - HTML & CSS design and build websites by Jon Duckett. It is very good and inexpensive and we will spend more time on the subject matter covered in this book than we will on any single one of the four software programs listed above. You can also view it online through the NVCC library at https://proquest-safaribooksonline-com.eznvcc.vccs.edu:2443/9781118206911.
Homework
Homework assigned will generally be due 8 days after the homework is assigned. This will permit you to work on the homework during the week, get any questions resolved in the next class, and submit the homework on time. Late homework will not be accepted but your two lowest homework grades will be dropped; this policy of dropping the two lowest two grades is designed to cover illness, computer problems, work or family responsibilities, etc. so exceptions to this policy will not be granted.
You must submit your homework so that the files can be read on a Windows machine. Thus if you are using a Mac, you must do any necessary conversion of the files. If you are required to submit a zipped folder, make sure that whatever you submit can be opened by WinZip. If you are using software that is not properly licensed, make sure the resulting files can be opened on another Windows machine.
Canvas
Canvas will be new to many of you and to me this semester. Hopefully this will not cause too many problems. Practically all of the course content can be found at www.billpegram.com. Therefore the use of Canvas will be primarily for
- announcements and communication back and forth between students and myself (in addition to email)
- submission and grading of assignments
- administering and taking of some tests
Please let me know of problems when they arise.
Attendance:
This is not an online class so regular attendance is expected. If you miss class, please check the class website for any changes to the schedule, including new assignments. Althouigh I do not grade on attendance, as required by the ITE 170 common syllabus, 15% of your grade will be on in-class assignments which will be assigned during the class period and must be submitted by the end of the class period. Thus if you miss class, or leave before the in-class assignment, your score for that in-class assignment will be 0 and this cannot be made up at a future date. . I will drop the two lowest grades for in-class assignments.
Office Hours Schedule
Office hours will be held in the classroom. I expect this will be as follows, but the final schedule will be announced on Canvas once the classroom availability at these times is confirmed.:
Monday - CT106 - immediately before class (by arrangement) or at the end of class
If these times are not convenient, please email me to arrange a mutually agreeable time
Communication with Instructor:
In addition to office hours, most class periods will have time for one-on-one questions with the instructor. Asking questions in this way is generally more efficient than email.
Required Email Address
I will email you at the email address on my class list which is your VCCS email address. If you do not check this address frequently, I would recommend you set it up for automatic forwarding to an email address you do check more frequently. I will show you how to specify a forwarding address.
Please remember to include your name, class (ITE170) in all emails to me.
Academic Integrity
On homework assignments and projects, students may ask for and receive some assistance from others, unless otherwise directed by the instructor. Yet those helping a student should avoid "doing the work" for the student.
Unless specifically stated in the assignment, students may work together to complete an assignment. However my experience is that students who turn in essentially identical work on an assignment tend not to do well on subsequent tests either because they have not learned the material or are too reliant on another person.
No assistance is permitted on exams and quizzes and your use of the computer may be monitored. The college policy on student conduct is found at www.nvcc.edu/students/handbook/conduct.html. You will be asked to present your student ID to take exams.
Cheating on a test will result in a grade of 0 on the test. Cheating on a subsequent test will result in a grade of F for the course. Cheating may be reported to the Division Dean and the Annandale Judicial Affairs Officer.
Dropping and Withdrawal from the Class:
Thursday, September 5th is the last day to drop a 16 week class and get a tuition refunds (use NovaConnect) or to switch to audit (which requires my signature). Tuesday, October 29th is the last day to withdraw without grade penalty in a 16 week course. The award of W after the last day to withdraw REQUIRES official documentation and the Dean's signature which is very difficult to get..
Classroom Conduct
Sustained talking during lecture is extremely distracting to the instructor and to other students. During hands on instruction where we are all coding together, it is appropriate to ask me to repeat what I said or briefly ask your neighbor if you don't see where to click, etc. However, if I've moved onto another topic, it's better for everyone concerned if you move on as well, and then deal with the issue later. If you wish to use your computer during class for things other than viewing PowerPoints or following along during in-class coding exercises, please sit where this will not be a distraction to other students. Do not do homework during lectures; you should be focused on learning the new material being presented..
Student Success Tips
- Come to class - Although I do not grade on attendance, some of what I say isn't in the texts and it may be easier for you to understand something if you hear me explain it, instead of just relying on other sources. Also, 15% of your course grade will be in-class assignments that must be completed during that class period. I will try to have at number of these, so an absence on a single day will not have much effect on your course average.
- When you come to class, pay attention - the class is in a computer classroom so resist the temptation to multitask by looking at Facebook, games, or other material during lectures. If you want to do so, sit in the back row so as to not disturb other students. Studies of students who try to multitask indicate that students don't do this very well.
- Books - Buy, rent, or access online the two required books. Consider purchasing the Duckett HTML & CSS book or access it online..
- Don't procrastinate - If you are having a problem logging in or transfer files to your website, fix it or email me. Do the homework on time and definitely before the tests. If you need help, ask.
- Keep your files organized in folders - perhaps one folder for each class session or homework assignment. The file and folder structure on your website should be the same as on your computer or flash drive, and uploading files is a good way to back them up. When you are working in the classroom, don't have some files on your flash drive and some on the computer - keep them all in one place. Google Drive would be a good place to put them.
- Pay attention to the dates to drop and withdraw from the class.
- As long as you attend class once, I will not drop you from the class. It is therefore important that you check your email (various methods will be discussed the first day of class) from time to time. If you do poorly on the midterm, you need to decide whether to withdraw from the class before the deadline or to continue in the class. If you continue in the class, you need to continue to come to class, to do homework and to take the final, otherwise you will likely fail the course.