Nowadays many web-based tools are designed easy-to-use. Users can quickly deliver content through webpages. However, we notice that people may not consider the web design elements when they create interactive teaching materials online.
Questions we often come across are like below. It’s hard for people to know everything of web design and their user experience. So I list some quick resources that may help you to design online materials better.
- I want to use an image on the page, but where can I get good free images?
There are massive image resources on the Internet. However finding a suitable image from a reliable resource and using the image legally are the key. The UK Intellectual Property Office has published an Intellectual property – guidance: Copyright notices. Before you searching images, read it first. Below are useful resources for you.
- Confused about Copyright? written by Allan Theophanides from ELTT, Cardiff University
- Finding Free and Legal Media online created by Simon Wood from the ESRC Wales Doctoral Training Centre, Cardiff University
- Finding royalty free images online provided by Cardiff University
- Find free images online! written by Judy O’Connell from the Faculty of Education, Charles Sturt University
- The Ultimate list of Free Stock Photos Sites for eLearning written by Christopher Pappas, eLearning Industry
- Image searching tutorial from JISC Digital Media
- Pics4Learning is a safe, free image library for education
- Why does the image look differently on other people’s machine from mine?
Your audiences view the page using different mobiles, tablets and browsers. Different web browsers that are created by different companies may not display web pages the same way. Thus, make sure you have tried on different devices if possible and make sure your webpages are cross-browser compatibility. Using some of the recommended tools to check your webpages.
- How to Test a Website in Different Browsers: Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, Chrome written by Janine Warner
- Our Favorite Cross-Browser Testing Tools (Free & Subscription) That Ensure Website Compatibility written by Matt Curtin
- 10 Useful Tools For Cross-Browser Compatibility Check from 1stwebdesigner.com
- 13 Essential Tools to Check Cross-Browser Compatibility written by Grace Smith
- What highlight colour on the page should I use if I want call people’s attention?
Think about what theme colours you have on your webpage. Who are the audience? Does the page or image on the page contain red/green colours combination that may affect colour blind users? Do you have more than three key colours on the page? What do you want to highlight, for instance texts or a specific area. Is it possible to call user’s attention without to use highlight colours? Ask random audience to have a look at your webpage and see how they respond to it.
Using some of the resources to improve your pages.
- ColoursMatters is award-winning educational website about using colours, produced by Colorcom. You can learn why colours matter and what colours would be suitable for your page.
- Think about what learning materials you deliver and Understand colours are associated with emotions
- Don’t forget to have a look at the Types of Colour Blindness
- Use Colorblind Web Page Filter to check your webpage colours.
- Read the article to learn more: Colors in Web Design: Choosing The Right Combination For Your Website
- Use the color wheel to find the perfect color scheme, created by Sessions College for Professional Design
- Does Colour Blindness a Problem for Web Design? Read this article written by Alex Bulat.
