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One does not need a working knowledge of HTML authorship to critique academic hypertexts. A course on "hypertext theory" could do well even if students never actually composed hypertexts. But a course in which students actually construct academic hypertexts must either require a web development course as a prerequisite or include significant instruction in the software commonly used in web development. At a minimum, students must acquire a working knowledge of an HTML editor. Academic hypertexts that begin to participate in Kress's (1999) notion of design require considerably more knowledge. Compositionists interested in possibilities for electronic argument must accept software instruction as a component in the process of helping students develop skills with academic hypertext composition. Software instruction need not be at odds with instruction in hypertext and visual rhetoric. Small, technical knowledge-building exercises focused around explorations and critiques of academic hypertext (for example, the hypertext evaluation or an image-editing exercise) can serve pedagogical aims while building familiarity with software interfaces. This approach does require an instructor with competence in HTML and image-editing software, and a willingness to admit that he does not have all the technical answers. Enabling students to push new media as far as their ideas take them and helping them with the technical execution of their designs creates ample opportunity to get students to reflect on whether (and how) the Macromedia Flash animation, for example, actually contributes to the overall project. I asked students to tell me what my Flash buttons added to the course website. back to basics? | a value in techno-gimmicks
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abstract | background | theory | praxis | models | course
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& #808080: Hypertext Theory and WebDev in the Composition Classroom Michael J. Cripps, York College, City University of New York |
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