I’ve got some very good news! National History Day has made some positive changes to the web site category. In the past few years, students have used individual software programs like PowerPoint or iWeb to create their web site entries. These entries would then be put on a CD and sent in to the regional, state or national offices weeks ahead of the contest date. The result of this process was a technology disaster. Everyone was very confused about not using a live internet connection to view the projects. The good news is that the whole process has changed. For the 2009-2010 school year, National History Day is debuting a new system for the web site category. In a nutshell, all students’ projects must be created using an online web site creator developed by Weebly.com for the History Day program.
What do you mean by “web site creator,” you ask? Well, it’s basically a website that allows visitors to create their own web site. (Remember Freeweb? It’s sorta like that.) The student-created web sites will be saved on the web site creator’s server, and not on a personal computer hard drive. And yes, you’ll need an internet connection to access it.
Why has National History Day done this? National History Day believes that this new process will make everything from creating the websites to entering them into competition easier. NHD has a dedicated portal to their safe and secure web site creator right on their home page. All students who want to do a web site project must create it using the portal. Students will be able to use the site to create their projects and then enter only the URL for the competition. No more CDs! Yay! And even better, no more submitting projects early; web site entries will be able to be modified up until the day before a contest!
So how does this online portal/service/website creator work? You go to www.nhd.org and click on the icon of the left side of the screen that’s labeled “NHD Web Portal.” It will take you to a special National History Day Weebly.com portal. You simple enter a valid email address and a password and accept their term and conditions to get started.
How do I use the system to create my site? The best thing about the NHD Web Portal is that the system is very easy to use. Follow the prompts on the screen to drag and drop components on to your web site template. It’s very similar to desktop publishing.
That almost sounds too easy. What if I want a challenge? The NHD Web Portal also allows advanced users to write their own HTML code, develop their own templates and so on. Even advanced web developers will find the portal interesting and fun.
Will you come up with any tutorial info on how to use the system? Probably. We’re learning right now just like you. Check this blog and www.nyshistoryday.org occasionally for updates. If you are looking for general web site developing tips, I’d suggest investing in National History Day’s How to Create a Historical Website book. It's $22 and you can order it right from the NHD website. It will provide you with some great tips for building a quality website.
Let me know what questions you have, either here on the blog or email me at t.voigt@nysha.org. I will keep you posted as I have new information.
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