Self Reflection

Journal #6: 

Since this is review for me, I'm amazed at the amount of recent changes in HTML 5. Occasionally, it is difficult for me to break old habits and make use of the new coding systems, but with the amount of training and exercises provided, I have been getting the hang of it. I'm excited to see the new improvements and learn the new content. Although it may be difficult, I'm prepared to adapt to the new changes. To view some of the exercises i have completed, please follow the links provided below:

Book exercises
Lab exercises

Trying Twitter

Journal #5

I believe use of twitter can be effective in educational settings. One of the advantages that can twitter have is giving the students a sense of belonging which is one of the most important elements in young and growing youths. As any other social media or connection tools twitter also can be abused in a wrong ways, but by a closer monitoring and educating the students, this problem can be controlled better. 

Q: Is modern technology such as twitter going to be the future of educational settings?

A: The way society and technology is moving is seems to have no choice but to adapt the technology use in educational setting. years ago no one used web site and email to keep connected to schools, but nowadays it seems without technology use connections are limited.

Q: Would the users/ students feel more comfortable communicating via twitter since this method omits face to face interaction?

A: Use of twitter in k-12 setting can be beneficial since most youths do avoid face to face interaction in educational setting. It seems like they have a easier time sharing their opinion or responding to others through social media.

Personal Portfolio Project Plan

Journal #4

• Site title - www.faranakeftekhari.com (purchased but under construction)
• Developer - Faranak Eftekhari
• Rational or focus - By building a professional website I can present my resume, sample projects, and my experiences in a refined way to share with others. Through this website I can be more creative than a traditional portfolio or resume, and be able to share its content worldwide. Because of the flexibility of an online portfolio, I’ll be able to show my personality through design and layout selection. 
• Main features outline - On this website a viewer can find the following information:


• About me
• Resume
• Sample portfolio
• A link to my personal Blog
• Contact information 
• Content - The site will contain a main home page which will be linked to five sub level: About, Resume, Portfolio, Blog, Contact. The Portfolio and Contact page will be sublinked to three different pages.

Site Map

Wire frame

• Target audience - Employers, potential clients, and whom ever that needs to know more about me.
• Design considerations. Simplicity, easy to navigate, and implementing some design and programing ability
• Limiting factors - Browser compatibility, common platform to convey information to the diverse audience.

Q: How important it is to keep a website's navigation consistent?

A: In order to navigate the site easily, the viewer needs to be able to find the path they have browsed.This requires a consistent navigation system throughout the whole site. for example the bread crumb technique is one of the methods that have been serving this purpose.

Q: What role the programming and designing a site plays in the speed of upload?

A: A web designer can eliminate the unnecessary upload waiting time by optimizing the images and clarifying the HTML and CSS codes to speed the upload process time.

The Case For Social Media in Schools

Journal #3

Kessler, S. (2010, September 29). The Case for Social Media in Schools. Retrieved October 18, 2014, from http://mashable.com/2010/09/29/social-media-in-school/

This article is reviewing case studies that have shown better performance and increase of grades with the addition of social media and technology to the learning environment. One of the elements it points out is the fact that "Social Media is Not Going Away". The survey it discusses has indicated that more students are using social media and banning it from students has negative results. Another fact the author indicates is "When Kids Are Engaged, They Learn Better". The case study in which students were asked to write a blog showed that the students overall grades increased, as did the quality of their  work.  The article also elaborates how "Safe Social Media Tools Are Available — And They’re Free". Using the controlled and safe social media environment allows the students get benefit without bending the budget or sacrificing their safety. The author also suggests when the chance is given students "Replace Online Procrastination with Social Education". When school work was assigned through social media, it motivated the students to do more work. With the promotion of the use of social media, students were encouraged to collaborate with all of their peers instead of cliques, a work style  which lends itself more to real world applications. Lastly, the author elaborates on how "Cell Phones Aren't the Enemy". Nowadays students all own cell phones, a parent sponsored tool, which can create a better connection among educators and students. Even Though there are risk with young students being online he author shows the benefits clearly outweighs the risks.

Q: Given the information in this article would you be prefer your children to learn in an environment which intergrades social media? 

A: With the indicated studies it seems that students learning process is enhanced through the use of social media. As any other system as long as the usage does not become excessive and out of hand, I prefer to use new technology to keep the students in the loop.

Q: Do you think its appropriate for an educator to communicate with their students via text messages?

A: I am still not comfortable for an educator to allow students method of communication to be through texting. This approach  can be challenging due to level of maturity of the students.

Digg Reader

Journal #2 

By searching and navigating trough this site I was allowed to create a centralized collection of articles I was interested in. It seems to be a very effective and direct way of gathering information clips instead of browsing and searching through numerous sites and articles. On the other hand the challenge for me was to keep up, weed through, and find the information that was useful among  hundreds of articles being thrown at me. This elimination process can be task on its own. Some of the topics I was interested in were web design, Mobile programing, and some Javascript tutorial naming a few. Even though digg allowed me to get a hold of a lot of great and interesting information on these topics, it also overwhelmed me with the number of choices that I had to pick among.

Q:What are some of interesting features digg offers?

A: Among some features that I learned digg offered, saving articles of your choice, Narrowing the articles based on their popularity, and being able to share interesting topics on the other social networks caught my eye the most.

Q: How effective can digg be to users the long run?

A: I am assuming that readers might not be able to keep up with the tsunami of information delivered to them on daily basis, that after a while user might loose interest and have to find a way to digg through the "digg".

Chapter 1-3 Summery

Journal #1

Robbins, J. (2012). Learning web design: A beginner's guide to HTML, CSS, Javascript, and web graphics (4th ed.). Sebastopol, CA: O'Reilly.

The first part that contains the first three chapters of this books talks about the most fundamental parts of web design; Authoring/markup: By the use of HTML tags, Styling: By the use of CSS, and Scripting and programming: By the use of “web-related programming languages including JavaScript, PHP, Ruby, Python, and ASP.NET. Next chapter talks about how the web sites works explaining URL and the writing the codes for web sites. Last chapter however overviews how the accessibility of the web site works and the growth and expansion of the web world.

Q: How can a web designer keep up with the changes of coding? 

A: Since web programing and technology is constantly changing field, a web designer needs to keep up with the new changes, however the good news is most softwares e.g. Dreamweaver keeps up with most of these changes and makes the process of up keeping with the programing easier.

Q: Is easy navigation layout an important factor on a web site?

A: Yes.  Web sites with easy navigation layout are more user friendly and allow the user to find and navigate through the site without getting lost in a loop of links. The 5 golden rules that should be followed in a web site according to Eric Miller consists of: 1. Navigation Should Be Easy to Find. 2. Keep it Consistent. 3.Use Obvious Section Names. 4.Less is More. 5.Remind the User Where They Are.

About Me

Hello, my name is Faranak Eftekhari. I was born, raised, and attended school until the age of 18 in Tehran, Iran and moved to California at the age of 19. I started attending classes at Mount San Antonio College to learn English while taking some classes at Cal Poly Pomona, the school to which I eventually transferred . As an undergraduate student at Cal Poly, I majored in Graphic Design and was among the very few who were able to learn web design in its first stages during the last year of my undergrad along with my professors (World Wide Web was at the earliest stages of growing at the time).  After graduating with a degree in Graphic/Web Design, I started working at Air Quality Management District (AQMD) as a Webmaster in 1996. During the first stages of growth in web design, I had to hand code HTML documents, as more advanced softwares were not yet available. Some of my responsibilities at AQMD were, but not limited, leading the web development team to design content placement and upgrade navigation, building and maintaining both Internet and Intranet sites, analyzing browser compatibility performance, and collaborating in graphic design of the Automated Permitting Project. A few years later, upon the birth of my third child, I decided to the best course of action was for me to stay home and focus my duties as a mother. Not being used to staying home all day long, I decided to go back to school to obtain my master's degree in Educational Technology from Cal Poly Pomona. During this time, I contracted more web design projects at San Dimas Technology and Development Center (STDC) converting paper format documents to searchable web-based data and designing handicap accessible web pages complying with W3C guidelines. As a part of this process, I created a website for my childrens' school as my Thesis project for my Master's Degree. This project made the school a pioneer within the region due to it being the first to have a website which it used to communicate with parents.  This also allowed the school to be among the first to go paperless. This project opened the opportunity for me to work with more clients requesting web and technology consultation as a freelance web designer.  After obtaining my degree, I was hired as a computer teacher at the same school, which allowed me to work, while maintaining the level of involvement with my family I desired at the time.  I continued working as a freelancer during and after my work with the school.

Being in the this field for the last 19 years has given me a great deal of inspiration to grow in the field of technology and be a part of its constantly advancing world.  This is the field that motivates me the most due to its fast moving nature. Every new technique that is introduced in the tech world allows users to have fast access to information, increases communication, and speeds up work.

Now that my kids have gotten older I am able to put my focus back on my career. Being an alumna of Cal Poly Pomona with a Master's of Educational Technology, I have been keeping up with the new advancements of this field and look to obtain any new information I can to stay current in this ever-changing discipline. Furthermore, my goal is to advance my skills and work toward obtaining a faculty position at a college.