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Module Specifications.

Current Academic Year 2024 - 2025

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Date posted: September 2024

Module Title Exploring Interaction Design
Module Code HS1 (ITS) / ICT1007 (Banner)
Faculty Engineering & Computing School Electronic Engineering
Module Co-ordinatorRichard Bolger
Module Teachers-
NFQ level 8 Credit Rating 15
Pre-requisite Not Available
Co-requisite Not Available
Compatibles Not Available
Incompatibles Not Available
Coursework Only
Array
Description

This module introduces students to the Interaction Design (IxD) cycle and to the principle of user centered design. It provides students with the opportunity to practice the use of a variety of IxD tools to better understand users' needs, develop prototype interactive systems and evaluate those systems.

Learning Outcomes

1. Explain the process of user-centered design and its impact on user experience.
2. Carry out usability assessment of interactive systems.
3. Create design artefacts that assist with ideation and protyping.
4. Evaluate approaches to user research.
5. Work in teams with classmates online.
6. Design a basic experimental and qualitative study.
7. Communicate ideas orally and in writing.
8. Apply citing and referencing skills to written work



Workload Full-time hours per semester
Type Hours Description
Tutorial25Tutorials are held primarily online on Saturdays and weekday evenings according to the timetable
Online activity55Interaction with tutor and fellow students
Group work45Work in groups on assignments over the course of the academic year.
Assignment Completion75Work independently and in groups on three assignments over the course of the academic year.
Assessment Feedback10Individual and general feedback on assignments
Independent Study155Reading, study, research and problem solving
Total Workload: 365

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

Introduction to Interaction Design
o Defining Usability o Defining User Experience o The User Centred Design Cycle o Principles of User Centred Design o Contemporary Issues in Interaction Design

Learning to Learn
o Academic Writing o Citing and Referencing o Locating Secondary Sources o Group work and Presentation Skills

Research Methods
o Quantitative vs Qualitative Data o Survey Design o Interviewing o Focus Groups o Observation o Experimentation o Diary Study o Analysing Data

Establishing requirements
o Approaches, Using Research Methods, o Task Analysis, Journey Mapping, Personas, Scenarios, Use Cases o Information Architecture o Establishing Requirements o Meeting Business Requirements o Case studies

Sketching and Prototyping
o Storyboarding o Low Fidelity o High Fidelity o Prototyping Tools/Wireframes o Prototyping - Case studies

Evaluating usability and user experience
o Usability Testing o Heuristic Evaluation o Qualitative evaluation o Think Aloud protocol o Evaluation Case studies

Assessment Breakdown
Continuous Assessment100% Examination Weight0%
Course Work Breakdown
TypeDescription% of totalAssessment Date
AssignmentAssignment30%n/a
AssignmentAssignment35%n/a
AssignmentAssignment35%n/a
Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories:
Resit category 1: A resit is available for both* components of the module.
Resit category 2: No resit is available for a 100% continuous assessment module.
Resit category 3: No resit is available for the continuous assessment component where there is a continuous assessment and examination element.
* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a Continuous Assessment/Examination split; where the module is 100% continuous assessment, there will also be a resit of the assessment
This module is category 1
Indicative Reading List

  • Gothelf, J: 2013, Lean UX: applying lean principles to improve user experience., O'Reilly, Sebastopol, CA,
  • Cooper, A.: 2014, About face: the essentials of interaction design., 4th, Wiley, Indiana,
  • Greenberg, S., Carpendale, S., Marquardt, N., and Buxton, B.: 2012, Sketching user experiences, Morgan Kaufman, Oxford,
  • Kuniavsky, M., Goodman, E., and Moed, A.: 2012, Observing the user experience: A practitioners guide to User Research., Morgan Kaufman, Oxford,
  • Lazar, R: 2017, Research methods in human computer interaction, 2nd, Morgan Kaufmann, Cambridge, MA.,
  • Preece, J., Sharpe, H., and Rogers, Y.: 2019, Interaction design: Beyond human-computer interaction, 5th, Wiley, Chichester,
  • Rosenfeld, L.: 2015, Information architecture: For the web and beyond, 4th, O'Reilly, Sebastopol, CA,
  • Unger and Chandler: 2009, A project guide to UX Design, New Riders, 978-032160737
Other Resources

None

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