Policies

DROP POLICY

This course includes a group project. To support mutual responsibility within these project teams, no drops are permitted after the end of week 2. Please do NOT come to talk to me about trying to drop this class after that time. It will only be an uncomfortable situation for us both, and in the end, the policy is firm.

GRADES

Class Participation (12%) 

By actively participating in class you can develop your professional skills for design. Here are some examples of how you can participate:

1. Treat all with respect – be constructive in all discussions
2. Come to class prepared – read carefully prior to class meetings and post reading reflections on time
3. Be an active listener – be attentive, be engaged, use in-class technology with discretion
4. Ask challenging questions
5. Comment, build on, or clarify others’ contributions

Reading Reflections (8%)

There will be substantial discussion in this class. To prepare you for that discussion, you will post reflections on the readings at least 12 hours BEFORE class (9:30 PM the previous evening) each time there is one assigned. These should be short (a paragraph or two) and available on the course website for everyone. Responding to other people’s posts, going back and reading responses to yours, and so on is highly encouraged. Discussion of these responses during class is also highly encouraged. Grades on reading reflections will be pass/fail.

Individual Assignments (30%) 

To give you practice with specific methods for interaction design, you will compete three assignments. All assignments must be conducted independently, unless otherwise stated by the instructor. Detailed assignment descriptions and instructions will be posted on the course website with sufficient time for assignment completion. Unless otherwise stated, assignments are due at the beginning of class by 9:30AM on their designated due date via printouts handed in during class.

Sketching Project (10%) 

One of the goals of this course is to be able to think critically about existing objects and interactions and come up with ways of improving them, as well as coming up with and communicating ideas for new so-lutions to different problems. It is also good to practice sketching design ideas, so that you become more comfortable and more experienced. Thus, for Weeks 2-7 of the quarter, you will keep a sketch-book, in which you will think about objects or interactions in your daily life and sketch ideas for how they could be improved. Each week, we will have an open-ended topic, a theme, or a specific design problem to tackle where you will do three sketches on design solutions related to that topic. For the open-ended questions, you just have to come up with any new product idea or improvement to an existing product. For projects that are specific, you will design three alternate ideas that solve a more specified problem based on user research. For weeks that are themed, you can come up with any idea, as long as it meets the theme. For example, if the theme was “Cooking & Eating,” you might redesign your toaster knobs, come up with a new recipe organization tool, or a smart refrigerator. The idea can focus on an entire system (e.g., smart refrigerator) or one specific interaction (e.g., new toaster knobs). The focus is on the quantity of sketches and ideas and not the quality. The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas. Futuristic, off-the-wall, and original ideas are welcome and encouraged!

Every Thursday for weeks 2-7 of the class, you must bring your sketchbook to class with at least three new sketches related to the topic for that week. Each sketch must be on a single page, numbered and dated. The back of each sketch page should also be left blank

to leave room for notes and critique signatures. You will break into small groups to discuss and critique each others’ sketches and get feedback on your ideas, and each critiquer will sign your sketches indicat-ed that you’ve discussed them. Take good notes during these sessions, as you’ll need them for your re-flection assignment. At the end of the quarter, you will write a short reflection upon your sketching ex-perience, its usefulness in the generation of design ideas, and what you learned from feedback during the group critique sessions.

Group Design Project (40%) 

Design in the real world nearly always takes place with teams of people with diverse backgrounds working together toward a common goal. Developing group work skills, cooperation, and teamwork is an es-sential skill for students to learn who want to work in this space. Thus, a large component of this course will be to work as a team on a design project. Design teams will be assembled in the first week. You may choose your own team, but the instructor reserves the right to change the makeup of these teams in the first week to ensure diversity and fairness. The topic for the design projects will be up to the individual teams, but suggestions will be made by the instructor.

The group project will consist of a number of different components, the full descriptions of which will be posted on the course website. Each component must be conducted and submitted as a group and will be due by in class by 9:30 AM on the due date.

Quality of Written Assignments 

As a graduate student in a field that requires excellent communication skills, this course has high expectations on the written quality and presentation of completed assignments and reports. Reports should be well organized, thoroughly proofread, and free from grammatical errors. The use of appropriate, clear titles, figure captions, and headings is also important. Each assignment will have “quality of written assignments” as a graded component worth at least 10%. This does NOT apply to the sketchbook portion of the sketching assignment, as they are intended to be quick and low quality. You can use which-ever format you would like for your assignments, but please use at least an 11 point font. If English is not your first language, I recommend you check out the UCI writing center at http://www.writing.uci.edu/writingcenter.html

In addition to the above recommendations, all assignments should include the following information:

 Your name and e-mail address (all names and emails for group projects)

 Informatics 231 Fall 2012

 Assignment number and name (e.g., A1 – Thinking About Design)

OTHER POLICIES

Late Assignments

You can turn in your assignments up to two days late for half-credit. Later than that, and no credit.

Extra Credit

I may occasionally give out extra credit. If you don’t get this, don’t worry, you can still theoretically get 100% in the class without extra credit.

Conduct

Students are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner. Students are expected to follow the university’s code of academic conduct. Cases of suspected academic misconduct will be immediately forwarded to the Dean of Student Affairs, and will be pursued to resolution. This is an unpleasant process for all involved, so please do not put yourself in this situation.

Attendance

Students are expected to attend all lectures on time.I understand that things happen in life, particularly when you are in graduate school. You may need to miss class from time to time. It is your responsibility to make up the content by meeting with other members of the class. If you make a habit of missing class, it will reflect in your participation grade. I do not want to talk with you about your excuses for missing class, because a small number of missed classes is acceptable with no explanation and a large number is not acceptable regardless of the explanation.

Contacting the Instructor 

You are welcome to give me feedback about the course, to ask a question about an assignment, to share an interesting article or resource, to request addition-al time for an assignment (because of significant health, personal, or educational matter), or similar communication. Please note the following guidelines:

 Email or before/after class are the preferred and most reliable methods of contact

 Whenever appropriate, please copy the class listserv with your question or comment

 E-mail concerning assignments might not be replied to if it is sent within 36 hours of an assignment due date

 If your question concerns your grade, please follow the re-grading policy (see below)

 E-mail that is sent on Friday afternoon or over the weekend it is not likely to be replied to until Monday or Tuesday of the following week

 If you don’t receive a reply within 2 days or so, please resend your e-mail or ask about it during class

Re-grading Policy 

To have work re-graded, you must submit a Re-grade Request within one week of when your work was returned. The request must be a single page, printed on paper or sent by e-mail. It should contain the following information:

 Re-grade Request

 The information contained on the standard cover sheet

 An explanation for why you believe you deserve a higher grade.

The instructor will consider your request. If the instructor is convinced by your argument, your work will be re-graded. If not, the instructor will send you e-mail explaining why. No re-grades will be considered for late work.