Research-based Hypertext

For this assignment, you will conduct a full research project, using primary and secondary sources, and fieldwork as appropriate, on the topic of your choice. However, instead of producing a traditional academic research paper, as the culmination of your project you will present your argument as a fully-linked hypertext. Your hypertext should consist of a series of interlinked pages, equivalent in scope and research to a 10-15 page research paper. The final revision should be accompanied by a site map (this can be a link on your website or handed in/posted independently) as well as a 1-2 page reflection letter on the hypertext project as a whole.

The hypertext

What exactly is hypertext? One scholar defines it in this way:

A term coined by T.H. Nelson in the 1960s ... hypertext refers to the non-sequential arrangment of text-based information. Hypertexts are broken down into nodes, small units of text (screens of text, of text and graphics, or scrolling screens of text and graphics, for instance), which are linked, or connected to other nodes in webs, or connected sets of information. (Richard Selfe 217 from Teaching Argument in the Composition Course 274)

Hypertexts vary in layout and design, a variation that is often influenced at least in part by differences in purpose & audience: a personal webpage, for instance, has a markedly different purpose and probably a different audience than a commercial website such as amazon.com.

For this assignment, your purpose is to create a research hypertext that presents your research to an academic audience, such as the students in your class. Your project should be analytical and argumentative (i.e. whose pages and relationships between links are designed to facilitate your particular line of inquiry) rather than solely informational (i.e. simply providing information on a topic). The organization of the page is up to you – however, all hypertexts should contain

• a homepage

• a clear navigational structure

• a series of links to topic and subtopic pages

• graphics as appropriate

• a works cited page (in correct MLA format)

Other elements you may want to include to enhance your hypertext include:

• contact link

• external links

• roll-over graphics or animation

• a conclusion

In general, your research hypertext should follow the principles for effective design and persuasive e-rhetoric discussed in Chapter 8 of Envision and should be composed of a variety of interconnected links stemming from a central homepage and at least 3-4 central “paths.” Remember as you link your texts that your links shouldn’t be random: your navigation structure needs to be clear and logical to ensure that your reader can follow your argument and the intellectual connections behind your links.

You may create your pages in any program that you like – from Microsoft Word (saving as .html) to Frontpage, Netscape Composer or Dreamweaver. You may even code it yourself if you like. However – keep in mind that if you decide to draft in Microsoft word, all your formatting will change (bolding, italics, font, etc) once you paste your text into a Dreamweaver document. If at all possible, you may want to write your draft on a layer in a Dreamweaver document so that the formating you do is preserved.

The Site Map

As part of your final draft, you need to turn in a site map of your research hypertext. This site map can be done by hand or a graphics program like Inspiration - however, it should accurately reflect your links and their relationship to each other. It is advisable to create and revise this map as you go along to minimize the time you need to spend on it at the end. In addition, having a draft of your site map present at each part of the research process should greatly facilitate peer review and evaluation.

This site map should either be posted onto your personal space or printed out to be handed in. It may be an expansion of your visual map from earlier in the quarter or it may be a completely different document.

The Reflection Letter

The reflection letter is your opportunity to discuss the principles of e-rhetoric that you tried to implement in your research project as well as to reflect on the hypertext project as a whole. In your reflection, please give an overview of your progress through the project – recording both your highs and lows as you moved through the stages of the hypertext assignment. In addition, please comment on the design of your site: what rhetorical decisions you made about voice, audience, purpose, design, organization, chunking; what you are proud of; what you would have done more of had you had more time; and what you would have improved on had you had greater technical knowledge. In addition, please note the principles of e-rhetoric that you followed in constructing your site – i.e. what decisions you made about embedded vs. listed links, amount of text on a page, use of graphics, etc. You may refer to a supplementary text if it was instrumental in determining how you constructed your hypertext. Your reflection letter should be 2 pages long. It does not need to be linked to your hypertext site, but you may link it if you want to.