Designing a Course and Community for e-Learning Graphic Desig ...

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Abstract

This paper looks at the design and implementation of course content, and online community for a Motion Graphics and traditional Illustration course at UNF. Students today are familiar and well versed in the technology such as wikis, blogs, video conferencing, and podcasts as a means for keeping in constant contact with one another. So why not use this knowledge base in an e-learning educational setting to reinforce the sense of community usually experienced through a traditional classroom setting? One challenge was to design the space for which this new community would flourish. Due to design students having a critical eye and discerning sense of aesthetic, each course has a totally different look and feel, so that when logging-on, one is immediately thrown into a visual sense of the course. CSS, Quicktime movies, and video packages were created for students to access step-by-step instruction to learn either software applications, or fine art techniques, thus fulfilling the connection created when giving in-class demonstrations, while focusing on design. To establish the relationship between students, discussion boards, journals, and video conferencing were implemented through out the course. All of which could be accessed 24 hours a day, anywhere in the world.