Standards: Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 | Page 5 | Page 6 | Page 7

WebCT Implementation Standards

Course Menu

• May be added to but not subtracted from. Additions should be limited.
• If student assessment does not include a testing component, the link to "Tests/Quizzes" should remain but bring up a short statement explaining that objective tests are not part of the assessment in this course.
• The link to "Assignments" may be renamed "Drop-box" at the discretion of the course developer.

Textblocks

• Ordinarily every page should have an upper textblock.
• The lower textblock is optional.

Professor

• The inclusion of a photo on the instructor contact page is optional.
• The word "Professor" may be changed to "Instructor" as appropriate .

Calendar

• The major milestones and due dates should be listed on the calendar tool.

Content Modules

• The overall organization of the course may be implemented through content modules (one per unit of instruction) or a comprehensive content module table of contents.
• Normally information should not be presented using organizers pages.
• Individual units should be implemented via content modules (table of contents).

Tables

• HTML tables were not originally meant to be page layout tools. In the future, page layout will be accomplished through cascading style sheets. At the present, however, web page designers are making extensive use of tables for this purpose.
• If you decide to use a table in your page, there are two issues that you should consider:
  1. Many students will be using a monitor with resolution 800x600 pixels. Considering the restriction on screen real estate imposed by the WebCT navigation bar, the maximum table width should be 600 pixels.
  2. Adaptive technologies such as the Jaws screen reader work best with basic tables. Please avoid tables within tables. Also note that screen readers read tables vertically, column then row. Therefore, headings for information in a table cell should be inside the same cell or in the row above that cell. Avoid placing headers in a cell in the same row as the information it points to.

Links

• Do not use hyperlinks of the type "click here." Screen readers have an option to list and read all hyperlinks on a page. A list of twenty items all reading "click here" would not be instructive.

Alt Tags

• All graphics should have alternative text (alt tags) for ADA Section 508 compliance. Additional details about ADA web standards can be found at:
  • http://www.section508.gov/
  • http://www.access-board.gov/508.htm

Fonts

• Research shows that sans-serif fonts are more easily read on computer monitors than are serif fonts.
• Black text on a white background is recommended.

Chat

• Chat is a synchronous tool. Therefore chat should not be a required part of the assessment of student performance.
• Optional use for student consultation is recommended.