What's a content page?

A "content" webpage includes informative online articles, supported by a digital artifact (graphic, video, and/or audio), and that:

• inform others and 

• showcase your authority and credibility about one or more course concepts. 

Below, I share key guidelines related to your purpose, the title of this webpage, and the requirements or "must haves" for the e-portfolio assignment.

Your Purpose and Title

Purpose: To Inform

The purpose of a content webpage is to inform. As you think about this purpose as an author and content creator, be intentional about synthesizing course content and citing your sources using in-text citations.

When you inform others by supporting your claims with solid evidence, you showcase your authority and credibility about one or more course concepts. 

For this reason alone, you may have more than one "content" page to inform your audience, each with a specific and meaningful title (webpage name). 

Title: Change Alert!

One of your first edits will be to give this webpage a specific, meaningful title. In other words, do not use "content" as the webpage title.

Must Haves (Requirements)

On this page, you'll write at least one informative online article about a course topic, with a digital artifact such as a graphic, video, or audio resource that you've created. 

It must have the following features:

1 - Credibility

You're informing others, so your work must be credible and trustworthy. Your audience should immediately recognize that your online article is research-, fact-, or theory-based.

How?

Start with the claim, evidence, reasoning (CER) framework and include plenty of in-text citations. The online article must:

1. 1. synthesize from at least two sources

   2. draw only from our course materials

   3. avoid using language related to your course work (e.g., "In Week 7...")

   4. in your written work and any digital artifact you create, follow Best Practices for Citing Sources in a Digital Assignment from Seneca College for all in-text citations

2 - Expository Communication

Informing others requires expository communication.

According to Mendez and her team (2021), when we create expository content, it's essential that we 

1. introduce your topic with clarity

2. explain our concepts, ideas or processes that may be difficult to understand

3. use plain, jargon-free, readable language (and if we do use jargon, we clearly define it for our audience)

4. be objective and unbiased and avoid sharing our personal opinions. 

5. be concise

3 - Structure

For all content - images, text, video, etc. follow these tips to design your information with the audience in mind. In particular, you must:

1. orient our audience by following the BLUF principle (see Get to the Point!) and with powerful topic sentences

2. lay out your content a logical order

3. use specific titles, headings, sub-headings, etc. and ensure they're formatted for screen-reader technology

4. avoid centering text other than your titles, headings, etc.

5. mix short, tightly focused paragraphs with lists (bulleted or numbered)

4 - Digital Artifact

Finally, your informative online article must include at least one original digital artifact such as a graphic, video, or audio product. By original, I mean it must be created by you from our course materials. 

Your digital artifact will complement and add value to your purpose of informing your audience. Here are examples and requirements for each type of digital artifact:

Graphic - Examples and Requirements

Examples of a graphic (also called a visual), include:

• table and/or graph

• diagram

• flow chart

• infographic

Examples of a video you can create and share include:

• YouTube providing an example of the concept you're writing about

• screencast, explaining a process or illustrating a process

An example of an audio includes a podcast or interview.

When you share the digital artifact, you must:

1. refer to the visual before it appears - explain the information you’re presenting and don’t expect it to speak for itself

2. provide a title or caption to identify the visual and explain its significance for your text (your topic)

3. provide alternative text to ensure that those using screen-reader software can understand the visual

4. ensure your source(s) are cited and your name is included 

What to keep in mind.

• How about sharing my projects and assignments?

• Note: instead of "projects" use terms that describe the project, for example, policy development, learning design, etc. No one really wants to read someone's assignment, right? A powerful and effective way to introduce important content is with a STAR statement, especially if you're sharing a project (e.g., in a PDF or other form). You'll find guidance on STAR statements in my article, Are you career ready?.