March 3, 2007 Professor Byron Hawk Dear Professor Hawk, As a George Mason University graduate student taking her last class in fulfillment of a Master’s degree in English with a concentration in the Teaching of Writing and Literature (TWL), I need to have a web presence in the form of a professional site so that I may include it in my application portfolio when looking for a teaching job in the next few months. In addition, my particular interest in composition is in the use of technologies (e.g., WebCT/Blackboard, wikis, blogs, student-created hypertext or web projects) in teaching writing both at a first-year and a more advanced level. This class and this project are fundamental not just for my learning and applying practical skills in web design and creation but also for solidifying the theoretical foundations that reinforce my pedagogic rationale for using these digital platforms to teach composition. The web portfolio represents the physical and virtual jumping off point for presenting myself outside the context of a classroom in which I am a student into a classroom in which I am a teacher and colleague. As I will say in upcoming job applications and interviews that I am interested in teaching with technology, my not having some kind of web presence would belie this interest. My experience with WebCT, which I use in my current teaching, will not be sufficient to demonstrate to a hiring committee my goal of using all available technological means to teach students to write. We live in a world increasingly reliant on visual media and I feel ethically bound to incorporate what students see and use daily into the classroom as teaching tools. If I want any hiring committee to consider my goals seriously, I must establish a credible, thoughtful, and useful web portfolio that would be used in conjunction with my print application to reflect my beliefs about teaching. My planned professional site will have a simple design and navigation, concise content, and an ability to grow. Design and Navigation. I will forego any flashier design elements because the current audience I envision—hiring committee members—will have varied experience with and, more important, likely varied attitudes toward technology. The three primary colors (yellow background, blue text, red links) in pale hues will help users remain focused on the content rather than the design. Navigation bars will be at the top and bottom, rather than on the side, as I want users to linger on each page’s content rather than be attracted to other links. However, at 600 pixels in width, the body text will not span the entire screen to remain manageable for reading, and any page longer than one screen will have periodic anchor returns to the top navigation bar. Content. A complex site with deep links is not appropriate to this kind of informational project, as potential users may have neither the time nor the desire to explore. It also needs to be a site I can update easily and quickly as my teaching assignments and publications grow in number. Although the four main sections (About Me, Teaching, Writings, and Research Interests) will contain hyperlinks, transparency of purpose is key.
In terms of resources for creating and uploading the various elements of this web project, although I don’t yet own a laptop, I do have access to multiple sites at which I can use a computer to create content, and some of those, such as campus labs, have web design software (Nvu, Dreamweaver, and related programs). My recently purchased Macromedia Studio MX package has just been shipped and so I will have home access to Dreamweaver for the final site refinement. As much of the content is already written, the majority of the work will be in gathering the different pieces and creating pdfs. The bulk of the work is planned for the last week, when I will have the time away from family and school to devote undivided attention to refining links and uploads. As far as the theoretical skills needed to complete this project successfully, I believe that the class readings and discussions, both physical and virtual, have provided enough information for me to build a site with good consideration of design issues and elements. To address practical skills, I have taken several free campus classes in Dreamweaver, and although I will not achieve my ideal level of proficiency by the end of this project, I believe that I will have enough skill to design and construct a solid and usable site that can be put to immediate use as a web portfolio for job applications. I want to teach composition in a way that takes into consideration the world in which my students live outside of class. For me, this means paying attention to, teaching about, and teaching with technology. To do this, I must be familiar with different technologies from a practical, theoretical, and pedagogic standpoint. Having a web presence, initially in the form of this web portfolio to enhance my job application, is thus crucial to my success in doing what I want to do. Your approval of my project will mean that I can create a tool that may be instrumental in helping me secure the kind of job I want. Sincerely, Sarah E. Baker |