Technical Plan

The site will be designed as a flat html file using Macromedia Dreamweaver MX software as the html editor, and Adobe Photoshop Elements 2.0 for web-page design and to integrate and massage images. Primary sources will be transcribed as opposed to scanned from the original documents to allow for easier reading by students.

The interactive online exercises will be developed using JavaScript as opposed to PHP since JavaScript allows for use of a client for development whereas PHP requires the use of a server.[4] Moreover, JavaScript from similar exercises of other sites can be copied and changed in accordance with the requirements of this project. Finally, since Javascript is open source, no additional financial outlay will be required.

At present, twelve to fifteen online exercises are planned. The estimate for programming of the online exercises is 1½ days per exercise, or approximately 3 weeks for the online exercises portion of the site. The estimate for completion of the remainder of the site is 10 weeks, since much of the research upon which the site is based has already been completed. In addition to 13 weeks for development, an additional 3 weeks will be set aside for content/design review and revision. This 16-week schedule allows for completion in early May, assuming a start date of mid-January.

Conclusion

The main purpose of this project proposal has been to demonstrate how new media can be harnessed primarily to teach – not teaching as an adjunct to archive or exhibit, but for the purpose of clearly instructing an audience of high school and college undergraduate students. In short, rather than making education secondary to the presentation of primary documents, the sources will be employed as a vehicle to enhance the teaching. Moreover, combining such an objective with the subject of black women athletes both fills a topical void on the web and serves as an interesting way to get at the issue of gender and race constructions of mid-twentieth-century America. Indeed, while Headlining the Sports Page will be a powerful resource for teachers, it will be designed to teach students.

[4] This portion of the technical plan is based on an interview with Amanda Shuman, programmer for the online exercises currently under development for CHNM’s World History Matters.