For the first semester we had 7 assignments to achieve, with a varied subject matter to all it gave us the chance to widen our skills as a whole. Ill be honest and say I thought some of the briefs where a bit pointless, like the sound brief & the subject within the contextual practice essay.

Regarding Sound, I know that sometimes sound is needed within a website and that would be a good reason to get a background knowledge in the subject but when the briefs we are given are to create a web based advert and a documentary style sound clip it starts to aim towards a media studies degree and not web design.

And onto the Contextual Practice subject, ofc I know that essays are a requirement of all degrees, but when you sign up to a web design degree you do not expect to spend weeks learning about the social and political aspects of art & design on the world from the past to today, if I wanted to do that Id have signed up to an art degree, this course is completely off track and misguided in some parts in which it pulls students away and disillusions them.

As to offer a solution to these points Id make sure that regarding sound we'd be taught about how to keep files sizes down and the aspects of sound types against others and whats best for general useage, onto the Contextual Practice matter, my advice would be to have a tutor that knows about modern technology and the history of the web so we would have the chance to write essays upon the later and therefore keep us engaged through-out.

Can you imagine a Nurse student having to do an essay on Ambulance maintenance and the influences it has on hospitals? answer, no! so why makes us do work that doesnt have a single thing to do with our course?