Reflections on Web Design & Development

Web Design, Collaboration, Hurricanes

During the Fall Semester, I worked on designing and developing websites while learning key principles of the field. There were challenges and issues along the way especially with Hurricane Ian causing havoc in Florida. My focus in this reflection is on my final project, which was a website portfolio to showcase the skills I've learned in instructional design.

How was my final website?

Overall, my final site achieved the goals I set out and works as a starter portfolio. I liked being able to have a good blog attached to it and fix the design elements to make it easier to work with. It was hard to find time to create my portfolio so this gave me the push I needed. I liked that I created a logo for the website that I can use in other places and connect with my career change I want to an instructional designer. The colors look professional but not too dark so the page is difficult to read.

There are some things that I will need to add to the site since my portfolio will keep growing. I want to put more content of things I have created that focus more on the instructional design aspect rather than the teacher part. I tried to add an accessibility toolbar but with the free website, I cannot add custom code. If I can get into creating videos, it would be good to showcase those skills with more interactive content. There's a lot to learn in this field and I have only started.

How was working in a group?

The group for the website project disbanded after Hurricane Ian because it was difficult to communicate with people and so many had issues to deal with at home. It became easier to work on the project individually than together. When we first started the project, it seemed to go well and we had a plan in place with communication from most members. Unfortunately, it was difficult to continue that plan.

Eventually, I decided to focus more on my portfolio. Originally, the website was dark blue and white text but I felt like that was too much and it needed better colors. I wanted contrast within the same color wheel so I focused on brown, beige, and white. It made it easy to read and gave a lighter feel. I used the plugin for my blog and chat feature. It gives people many ways to contact me and I was able to connect it to my email for quicker responses. While I had a site design, it was a roughed-out idea that I drew in a notebook because there was not a lot of time after my group separated, especially with Thanksgiving Break coming soon. I feel like it came together though and I accomplished something this semester that I had been wanting to do.

Leave a comment below or like the post if you had a good semester or made it through Hurricane Ian too.