Prerequisite/Recommended prerequisite for participation in the module

Content, progress and pedagogy of the module

This course trains students to research, analyse, prototype and conceptualise design considering all system aspects including the social and cultural contexts of use. The course gives a comprehensive knowledge about user involvement in the design process, going beyond traditional methods such as usability lab testing. The course introduces students to the application of multi-modal methods and interaction design within contemporary fields such as surface computing, pervasive computing, social and mobile computing, and/or mundane computing.

The objectives are realised by presenting methods and tools in a case based framework and through the students’ active participation in workshops and assignments.

Learning objectives

Knowledge

Students who complete the course module will obtain the following qualifications

• Knowledge about system design methods including the social and cultural contexts of use.
• Knowledge of ethnographic study methods for user behaviour research.
• Knowledge about qualitative research methods involving end users in the field, such as interview techniques, analysis and experience sampling.
• Knowledge about scenario-based design methods.
• Knowledge about principles for multi-modal interaction design.

Skills

Students who complete the course module will obtain the following qualifications

• Apply the taught methods to solve concrete design problems.
• Able to evaluate and compare and apply the methods for a specific design problem.
• Understand user analysis and organise data from and interaction in a way that can be used in the design process (synthesis).
• Apply knowledge to facilitate the design process involving users in real-life contexts.

Competences

Students who complete the course module will obtain the following qualifications

• Ability to choose the appropriate method to suit different dimensions of a design problem at different stages in the process and the pitfalls of each approach (synthesis).
• Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of the methods.

Type of instruction

See general description of the types of instruction described in the introduction to Chapter 3.

Exam

Exams