Designing Principles for Creating Effective Web-Based Learning Resources in the Geosciences

Topical Resources

Front Page Design

If what you are creating is a simple online syllabus, then there will most likely be only one page to your resource. Otherwise, you are likely to have multiple pages nested below the main home page of the resource. If this is the case, then there are some pieces of information and formatting that experts recommend having on the first page that your users will see.

• Site Content - What will your user find here?
• Intended Audience - Who are you aiming at (in this case your class)?
• Learning Goals (see Setting Learning Goals) - What do you want your user to get out of it?
• Technical Requirements
  • browser compatibility
  • system compatibility
  • any plug-ins that are required and links to download them
• Authorship - The name and email address person to contact for page maintenance or questions.
• Site Hierarchy - How is the site organized?
• Date of the last update.

Having the site hierarchy on the home page is related to the Usability issue of having consistent and persistent navigation available throughout the site. Often the home page's unique role in the site dictates that the form of navigation present differs from the rest of the site. But it should be similar enough that any differences are obvious or self-explanatory.