J Williams
CMU422

Fundamentals of Web Design

A first-year introduction to modern web design: HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript taught through building real, responsive, accessible sites for actual clients, grounded in industry-standard practices from the first session.

When
2025/26, Semester 1
Institution
Birmingham Newman University
Level
Undergraduate
Credits
20 credits
Cohort
25 students
Also taught
2024/25, Semester 3
Birmingham Newman University

The web is the most widely deployed software platform in existence, and understanding how to build for it is both a technical skill and a design discipline. This module introduces both: the markup that gives a page structure, the styles that give it form, and the JavaScript that makes it respond. Students build real websites for real purposes from the beginning, not toy exercises.

Why it matters

The fundamentals of web design have a low floor and a high ceiling. Getting a page online is achievable in a first session; building something that is fast, accessible, responsive, and maintainable is a craft that professionals spend years developing. This module establishes the floor firmly and gives students enough of the ceiling to understand what they are aiming for.

Accessibility (WCAG) is not taught as an afterthought. Screen readers, colour contrast, semantic markup, and keyboard navigation are woven into the module from the beginning, because a website that a significant portion of users cannot access is an incomplete website.

Module design

The module follows a natural progression: structure before presentation, presentation before behaviour. HTML establishes the semantic layer; CSS controls layout using modern techniques (Flexbox and Grid); JavaScript adds interactivity. The second half of the module escalates from basic scripting through client-side validation and external APIs to a full project cycle that includes planning, implementation, and professional workflow.

Students work with actual clients or real-world briefs wherever possible. Building for someone who will use the site changes the way students approach problems.

Syllabus

  1. Introduction to HTML and web fundamentals
  2. HTML forms, input, and semantic structure
  3. CSS fundamentals: selectors and properties
  4. CSS layout: the box model
  5. CSS Flexbox and Grid systems
  6. JavaScript basics: variables and functions
  7. JavaScript events and interactivity
  8. Advanced JavaScript: client-side validation and regex
  9. Web APIs and external libraries
  10. Project planning and development
  11. Accessibility (WCAG) and future trends
  12. Final project development and professional workflow

What students leave with

Students can build a responsive, accessible, multi-page website from scratch, write and debug JavaScript that handles user input and communicates with external services, and work through a project cycle from brief to delivery. These are not introductory skills that get discarded; they are the foundation every subsequent web module builds on.

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