The Codecademy (Optional) (CAO) project offers you the opportunity to expand your knowledge of web design by completing a series of additional html & css tutorials on the Codecademy.com web service. This CAO project is challenging because it requires you to think about design at the code level, which is immersive and disorienting for some.
Note. In effect, this is a built-in option for earning extra credit. If you do not complete the project, it neither counts for you nor against you. This option is recommended for people interested in career opportunities in the realm of web design.
The first submission for the CAO is the final submission. You'll post proof of completing each of the courses listed in the optional series in this description.
For the full specifications, see Submission Requirements.
The Codecademy (Optional) (CAO) project continues the learning journey from the connected assignment: Codecademy (Required). This component adds depth and dimension to your knowledge of CSS. For any of you interested in UXD, web design, publishing, or dynamic content design, this is core knowledge.
If you are not already aware of the connection, all digital books (e.g., Kindle, Nook, ePUB) are built on html and css. You can use this knowledge to produce eBooks using Adobe InDesign or other tools that harness such code. If you are interested in learning more about that topic, I can provide material to teach it later in the semester for those who want it.
The second course in this series focuses on principle for user-interface design (UI) and user-experience design (UX), which should be familiar to you by now. However, it also presents material on Figma, which has become a favorite multi-tool for information designers in recent years. Among other things, Figma is capable of hosting assets that need to be shared among multiple team members and projects, and supports the construction of dynamic (interactive) wireframes of web sites, apps, and other information spaces and portals.
Deliverables: memo, screenshots
Document scope: 150 words (memo), 2 proof claims (screenshots)
Project value: 100 points
Evaluation rubric: _Eval_CodecademyOptional.pdf
Recommended tool(s): Microsoft Word (memo); Computer and web browser (course work)
The CAO requires you to complete 2 courses on intermediate css, UI, UX, and Figma. For clarity, I have copied text from the description of each course on the Codecademy site to make them easier to identify.
Codecademy predicts that this set of courses should require approximately 12 hours to complete.
As you complete each segment of the assignment, print the certificate of completion (if offered), or take a screenshot that shows that you have completed the course. For any courses that you do not complete, take a screenshot that shows how much of the course you did complete.
Note. Because this assignment is extra credit, I will score it differently than the required Codecademy course content. If you complete the both courses, your total grade for the course will include full credit (100 points) for an additional 100 point assignment. That would raise your overall grade if you miss points on other assignments.
If you complete at least 50% of the content for the intermediate CSS course, you will earn 20 points of extra credit. If you complete only the Intro to UI + UX course, you will earn 10 points of extra credit.
A memo of transmittal introduces the accompanying document(s) to its audience(s). Your memo should be addressed from you to me, and should report on your progress with the accompanying project. Your memo should incorporate the following content elements.
This section is designed to help you be strategic in the development of your project components. Consider the following hints and tips. Use this set of recommendations as a checklist for quality control.
Working with Codecademy requires a web browser and a good computer. I do not know if it is possible to do this work on a tablet or Chromebook, but I suspect there would at least be problems. With that in mind, use a computer.
I recommended above that you complete at least the first course during the first week of the semester. Doing so will help you determine your pace of work with this content and learning environment. You have 4 weeks to complete the assignment, but would likely find it frustrating and unwieldy to attempt the whole assignment just before the submission date. Again, pace yourself. There is no penalty for completing the assignment early.
You'll encounter moments when it is clear that entering different numerical or textual values in the code you work with would produce different results from the standard flow of the course content. When you recognize that such moments are at hand, take a little time to explore the impact that variations in values have on the output of content on screen in the sandbox.
As you begin to familiarize yourself with html, css, and web design strategies, begin to consider the design aesthetics, qualities, and characteristics that you appreciate in web documents. Try to connect those goals with the course content so that once you have the opportunity to begin creating on your own, you have some sense of the design goals you want to achieve and how you might achieve them.
Read and attend carefully to these submission guidelines. Failure to do so may result in points lost on the final evaluation of your project.
Create a project folder inside your shared class folder on Dropbox.com. Remember, I can only view files that you place inside the shared folder. Until you place files in that space, you have not in practice submitted them.
Name the folder Codecademy-Required.
When you assemble your submission for the CAR project, there will be 13 files in the folder. Again, model your filenames on the examples listed here:
Note. Although some of the course names have colons (:) in them, do not use these characters in your file names. That signals a command line to the computer, and may confuse Dropbox.
Note. Do not share the individual files with me. By placing them in your project folder, you have already shared them by default.
Take the time to organize your work as directed here, and to name each file properly. This helps me keep track of your work, and makes clear which files are meant to represent the on-going and final stages of project development.
The final project submission is worth 200 possible points. The standard described on the policies page (see Policies does not fit this learning moment. Instead, you'll earn full points for the successful completion of the course series, or you'll earn points based on the percentage of content you complete.
If you complete at least 50% of the content for the intermediate CSS course, you will earn 20 points of extra credit. If you complete only the Intro to UI + UX course, you will earn 10 points of extra credit.
The specific areas of emphasis for this project are drawn from the description and discussion of the project, and are detailed in the evaluation rubric (_Eval_CodecademyOptional.pdf).
Remember that I will only post the point values for projects on the Grades page in SVSU Canvas. I will post the details relevant to that evaluation in your class folder in a project-specific file.
This material has evolved over many years of teaching & research, and is protected by U.S. copyright laws.
If you are here because of random chance, or because this content came up in a search, then please feel free to explore the site. If you are a teacher or other professional in any context who would like to use any of my course content in your work, I grant you permission to do so with the following limitations.