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| navigate: home: magazine: spring 2002: article | |
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Certificate program prepares next generation of Web professionals By Deborah A. Benedetti | |||||||||||||||||||
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In the early days of the World Wide Web, anyone with the ability to create Web pages and access to a Web server could be a Web professional. Today, Web professionals need more than just the basic technical skills to be successful in this field, according to Dr. Gerry Santoro, assistant professor of Information Sciences and Technology. “For a few years, mainly 1998 to 2000, the ‘dot-com explosion’ resulted in a scenario where anyone with beginner HTML skills could find a decent job developing Web pages,” Santoro said. “The Web is still growing, but the skills needed for gainful employment go beyond basic HTML. In fact, the successful Web professional will be resourceful and have skill at acquiring new technical skills as they are developed.” To prepare the next generation of Web professionals, the School of Information Sciences and Technology and the Outreach Office of Statewide Programs have partnered to enhance and expand Penn State’s Internet technology programs. The University offered its first noncredit Web programs in 1999. Then in fall 2001, the University launched the new Web Professional Certificate program. The program emphasizes exploring concepts and building foundational skills for a lifelong process of learning and discovery. The WebPro program is available at 20 Penn State locations, as well as through the Penn State World Campus, Ed Donovan, director of the Outreach Office of Statewide Programs, said. WebPro is one of several new program development initiatives the Outreach Office of Statewide Programs is pursuing with Penn State campuses. “The Outreach Office of Statewide Programs has been working with campuses for five years,” according to Dr. Patricia A. Book, associate vice president for outreach and executive director of the Division of Continuing Education. “The Web Professional Certificate program has been our single most successful statewide program, illustrating the value of developing and distributing programs that take advantage of Penn State’s full delivery capacity for continuing education.” Cole Camplese, director of Education and Training Solutions for the IST Solutions Institute in the School of Information Sciences and Technology (IST), said, “One of the goals of WebPro is to bridge the shortage of IT (information technology) workers in Pennsylvania. WebPro shortens the time it takes to become a Web professional by providing anytime, anywhere access to education through the Penn State World Campus and network of campus colleges. It does a great job of helping people develop marketable Web skills and increase their value to employers. The certificate program ties in well with Pennsylvania’s ‘Stay Invent the Future’ motto.” WebPro begins with a nine-course Foundations Certificate. Courses include Foundations of Internet Technology, Foundations of HTML, Page Layout with HTML, Foundations of JavaScript, Introduction to Applications, Foundations of Web Design, Preparing for Emerging Technologies, Foundations of Web Server Administration, and Portfolio Review. The program involves 120 hours of instruction and offers 12 continuing education units. The School of Information Sciences and Technology awards certificates to students who complete the program. The first of several advanced-level certificate programs also is available: the Design and Multimedia Principles Certificate. More courses are planned, Donovan said. “Penn State was the first higher education institution to offer a Web professional program in Pennsylvania,” Donovan added. “The Web Professional Certificate program is also the only program endorsed by the World Organization of Webmasters.” Santoro, academic director and lead faculty member for WebPro, noted the certificate program provides a path for people to begin developing Web-related skills. These include technical skills, such as coding and scripting for the Web, as well as design skills to help students appreciate the impact of design on any information system. “The Web Professional Foundations Certificate seeks to provide the basis for developing Web skills resourcefulness,” he said. “Courses on the history of the Internet, Internet tools and emerging technologies help set the stage and provide student perspective. Courses on HTML, JavaScript, Dreamweaver and Fireworks provide basic content-development skills. Courses on visual design and server and security issues look at creative and administrative issues surrounding Web services. A portfolio course (the capstone course for the program) integrates projects and materials from the other courses into a master project to enable students to market their new skills. “I believe that the World Wide Web is emerging as one of the most important communication technologies of the 21st century,” Santoro said. “Already the Web has found its way into business, education, government and entertainment. Its power and applicability will continue to evolve as new services are developed and deployed.” WebPro is designed for people with all levels of Web skills. Donovan said adult workers in many fields, as well as people who have lost jobs, are enrolling in the program. Penn State instructors teach the courses in the evenings and on weekends. Students also have the option of enrolling in the program through the World Campus. The transition from the classroom to virtual learning in the World Campus is designed to be seamless, he said, so students can continue in the program, even if they are transferred to another work location or move. “WebPro is having an impact on economic development in Pennsylvania,” Donovan said. “Some unemployed workers are using their retraining funds to enroll in the program to prepare for new careers.” Russ Owens, instructor in Information Sciences and Technology (IST) at Penn State Worthington Scranton and Continuing Education faculty member at Penn State Wilkes-Barre, has taught more than 100 students enrolled in WebPro. Among his students are attorneys, computer network administrators, college instructors and other adults. Only about 10 percent of his students are traditional college-age students, he said. An important aspect of the WebPro courses is their focus on helping students learn to develop Web sites and on building on the knowledge gained from one course to the next. Owens uses real-world unstructured problems to inspire students in the learning process. Many students begin by designing a Web site that features their resume. They soon realize the possibilities of using the Web for many other purposes. “My students have, for example, developed Web sites to sell Japanese fighting fish and advertise a miniature train repair business,” Owens said. “Two attorneys enrolled in the program, because they wanted to be able to offer their clients additional services related to today’s global economy.” Owens often begins his classes by telling students he can teach them to design and upload a Web site in under three minutes. When his students see how easy it is to do, they quickly realize learning Internet skills is not so intimidating after all, he said. Sam Walch, statewide manager for the Web Professional Certificate programs, noted, “Most Web professionals are self-taught, but as the Web has gotten more complex, people are finding they have gaps in their skills. They are looking for ways to fill those gaps. A formal certificate is a great solution, because companies recognize the value of certificate programs, and they often provide funding for their employees to participate in these kinds of educational programs.” Increasing communications skills is one of the primary benefits of the WebPro certificate program, Walch said. “The Web is not a purely technical field,” he added. “It’s a communications technology field. Keeping up with this technology is important.” WebPro also offers students:
Book added, “This is a great program for campus continuing education offices. Since the first course was offered in 1999, campuses have reported enrollments totaling more than 12,600, and 809 Webmaster and Web Professional Certificates have been awarded.” In preparation for launching the new WebPro certificate program, Donovan and his staff organized an orientation program for campus administrators, faculty and staff involved in the program. He and some of the program instructors shared the latest developments and enhancements to the program. “One of the real assets and strengths of this program is that the final course in the Foundations Certificate now builds to a project portfolio, which integrates the knowledge students learn throughout the program,” Donovan said. “I’m very excited about this aspect of the program, as well as our plans to add more tracks to the program in the future.” Penn State faculty and staff members who would like to enhance their Internet technology skills can now enroll in WebPro at a discount through the State College Office of Continuing Education and the Penn State World Campus. For more information about the program, visit the Web site at http://webpro.psu.edu or contact the Office of Human Resources to request a Catalog of Professional Development Opportunities for Faculty and Staff (phone: 814-865-7922; e-mail: hrdc@psu.edu). Walch noted the WebPro Web site was designed and created by Bienvenido Concepcion, a Penn State film major. “The Web is here to stay,” Walch said. “Although the Web will evolve, it will be a growing and vital force in the business world. Web skills will be an extremely important set of skills employees can add to their tool box of skills.” Santoro said, “Anyone considering a career dealing with information technology, especially Web professionals, should understand that they will be required to continue technical training for the rest of their career. Failure to do so could result in skills that are out-of-date. The Web Professional Certificate is a great way to start on the path of developing current Web skills and the resourcefulness to support an ongoing career in Web development, maintenance and management.” An outreach program of the School of Information Sciences and Technology and the Outreach Office of Statewide Programs | ||||||||||||||||||
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