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In this mini report you will compare two Web sites, one for a U.S. audience
and one for a foreign audience. Choose a foreign site in a language
that you do not understand.
It is important that you try to find two sites with a common theme.
The theme won't necessarily be exactly alike, but try for a close match
in theme. The theme, for example, could be women's support groups,
medical self-help, university sites, travel sites, etc.)
Based on such a limited search and such a small sample, you won't be
able to reach any definitive conclusions, but you will gain some insight
into the kinds of elements that may converge and the kinds of elements
that diverge, based on cultural contexts. There are some things you
may not find out because of a lack of understanding of the foreign language;
for example, texts in some languages read from right to left, instead of
left to right. You won't be able to decipher whether or not this
is happening if you don't understand the language.
Learning goals:
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learn how to research and analyze Web sites that are not published for
a U.S audience
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appreciate the elements that are common to Web sites regardless of the
origin of the site or language of the audience
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appreciate the elements that are unique to Web sites because of the origin
of the site or language of the audience
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appreciate cultural contexts that may occur because of the origin of the
site or language of the audience.
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effectively compose a comparison/contrast of the elements of both
sites
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articulate how your learning experiences in this assignment relates to
the New Century College
Competencies (http://www.ncc.gmu.edu/competency.htm).
I. Do research to find Two (2) Web sites,
each in a different language. One must be written for an English-speaking
(American) audience. The other must be in a language that you
do not understand. (We don't want you to be influenced
by signs and contexts that are familiar to you when investigating the foreign
site.) Some search engines, like Altavista (www.altavista.com),
let you search according to language.
II. Describe the two Web sites.
Include:
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the title of each site
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the URL (Web address), and the language of the site
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the subject of each site
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the date you found each of them
III. Define and describe the elements common
to both Web sites. Some things to observe (Add others
that are unique to your sites.):
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graphics
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format
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color
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navigation techniques
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multimedia (animation, sound, etc.)
IV. Define and describe the elements unique
to each site, using the criteria in item III.
V. Draw some conclusions about your findings.
Feel free to include any unexpected findings. For example,
could you understand some things about the foreign site just because there
were some similarities to U.S sites? Did you feel lost at times because
you didn't have familar elements to hold on to? Is there a universality
about Web sites, at least based on the samples you selected? What
unique cultural elements did you find? Describe them? For example,
was the art unique to the culture or country? Or were there universal
signs - like references to some popular culture icons, like Disney, for
example?
VI. Relate this assignment to the NCC
competencies. You can pick more than one competency. Be specific
in your response. |
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