Cybertourist

Every day we visit multiple websites. Whether the purpose is gathering specific information for a research paper or if the intent is purely recreational, surfing through various pages by following links that seem interesting, the fact is that we rely heavily on sites and refer to them consistently. This dependency may lead one to consider the following questions: What makes a website useful? What elements create an aesthetically pleasing page? What would I change on this website to improve it?

These are the types of questions I will use to investigate three school websites, one for an elementary school, one for a middle school, and one for a high school. Technology is being integrated more and more within the education system and school websites are keys to opening avenues for more fast and efficient distribution of information, sharing of and feedback for the school's efforts and more open communication between the school and its students, parents and community members.

The elementary school website I looked at, Miss Stem's Kindergarten Class', is very thoughtfully composed. Because the focus and audience for the website are young children and their parents, the cute, colorful pictures and casual fonts are appropriate and contribute greatly to the aesthetics of the site. The links are useful, easy to follow and each page has been individually created to be unique and interesting. Also, there are many photographs which show that the site has been personalized, both for the teacher and for the students. This enables parents to truly feel connected to the classroom and to the learning that their children are experiencing. Though there are many wonderful aspects of this site, it looks like it is very separated from the school. As a result, the teacher has considerable control over how the class is represented in a public way.

The next website I investigated was Mabry Middle School's. This school's site is very different than the previous one. It is more formal, more professional and therefore less personal. The links are useful but there is little creativity involved for children of middle school age. Also, there is too much unnecessary information on the home page, making it difficult for a viewer to find the contact information which is located in small print on the bottom of the page.

Finally, my high school's website (the International School of the Americas at www.neisd.net/isa) is a good example of a well-done site for a secondary school. Even with its picture slideshow, concise list of upcoming events, clear and accessible contact information and choice links for students and parents, a viewer still does not need to scroll down much in order to see the entire home page.