Department of Education Website Gets New Look

New format features easier navigation, improved access

Why change a Web site that has bragging rights to more than a million "hits" (page requests) per month?

The Department of Education has made it easier for visitors to find what they're looking for on the agency's Web site and to make the site more accessible to people with visual disabilities, as required by state guidelines.

After months in the development stage, the improved site went live on January 17. The home page address remains the same (www.kentuckyschools.org), but users need to update their bookmarks and lists from other pages.

The new site takes on a new look and an entirely new navigation structure. User-friendly tools include an enhanced search function and a site map that more accurately reflects what is available on the site. The site is fully accessible to visually impaired people who have text-to-speech software, which reads text aloud.

"We're doing this for Kentucky parents and educators, but students will reap the ultimate benefits," said Armando Arrastia, director of the department's Division of Publications and Web Services. "We believe the new site makes it easier for Kentucky parents and educators to find information that will support their school improvement efforts."

The department organized the site into three main sections:

  • Administrative Resources - Information about school finance, nutrition services, pupil transportation, grant opportunities and other functions that usually happen outside the classroom.
  • Instructional Resources - Information that pertains to what happens in the classroom, including curriculum materials, information about grade-level instructional practices and the state's student and family support initiatives.
  • About School and Districts - Information about Kentucky's schools and districts, with links to the Kentucky Schools Directory, school and district Web sites, school and district report cards and test results.

Visitors can navigate the new site using an expanding menu that stays at the left-hand side of every page. On the home page, this menu shows users key areas of the site. On subsequent pages, it shows visitors exactly where they are within the site and offers other content options within that category and within that section of the site.

An enhanced search function presents results in various descriptive categories and even suggests alternative search terms. It searches Web pages and the contents of downloadable files available on the site. It then allows visitors to preview the content of these files before downloading them. This is an especially convenient feature for those who access the Web by dial-up connections, which are slower than the typical school or school district office connections. By previewing these documents in their Web browsers, users can have more information before deciding whether or not to launch potentially time-consuming downloads.

The new site map allows users to view outlines of different sections or the entire site and to select any page on the site for viewing.

For more information about the new Department of Education Web site, visit http://www.kentuckyschools.org in January or contact Armando Arrastia at (502) 564-3421 or aarrasti@kde.state.ky.us (or through the KETS global list).

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Used with permission from the KY Dept. of Education
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February
2003