Designing Interactions (Spring 2020)

Abstract

This specialisation focuses on theories, practices and methods from Human Computer Interaction and Interaction Design and enhances the students ability to critically analyze, understand and develop interactive technologies through hands-on experiments in a studio workspace.

Description

In the first specialisation module, ‘Designing Interactions’, the students will engage in design and programming of interactive web and mobile technologies and larger interactive systems for areas such as Smart Technology, IoT, and welfare technology  based on related research areas within Embodied Interaction, Embedded Computing and Affective Interaction. The specialisation offers an advanced approach to researching and creating interactive artefacts and interactional qualities both from a digital, physical and hybrid point of view. The first part of the specialisation, ‘Designing Interactions’, focuses on analysis and design of mobile and web technologies.
The specialisation enables students to innovate existing interactive products, and take a lead role in defining key product features and setting product development strategies. Candidates from with this specialisation will be able to manage interaction design processes, act as a design consultant in user interface development, or work as frontend developer in both larger organisations (e.g. banks, municipalities, design agencies) as well as smaller design consultancies.
Topics will cover for instance (but are not reduced to):

• Web and Mobile (JavaScript, CSS, HTML, or related frameworks)
• Embedded Computing
• Interaction Aesthetics

• Embodied Interaction

• Affective Interaction

Formal prerequisites

The course builds upon knowledge from the courses of the 1st semester of the KDDIT program and students should have completed those courses.

This course is part 1 of the Designing Interactions specialization. 

Intended learning outcomes

After the course, the student should be able to:

• Identify and apply theories, methods, and tools for analysing interactive qualities of digital products and applications.
• Design and program interactive web and mobile concepts.
• Reflect and theorize on the nature of interaction with interactive systems and technologies.

Learning activities

PART 1 : 'Designing Interactions'

The first part of the specialisation will focus on historically important theoretical developments in interaction design, methods for analysing product interaction, and a hands-on interaction design project in which novel interactions are programmed and prototyped. It will particularly emphasise the design and programming of interactive web and mobile technologies, following up on the semester 1 course ‘Prototyping Interactive Technologies’. It provides students with a solid theoretical backbone, a vocabulary to articulate qualities of an interactive artefact, and technical skills to analyse, explore, and demonstrate working interactive artefacts.

Course literature

http://designthinkmakebreakrepeat.com

Student Activity Budget

Estimated distribution of learning activities for the typical student

• Preparation for lectures and exercises: 10%
• Lectures: 25%
• Exercises: 25%
• Project work, supervision included: 30%
• Exam with preparation: 10%

Ordinary exam

Exam type:
D: Submission of written work with following oral, external (7-trinsskala)
Exam variation:
D22: Submission of written work with following oral exam supplemented by the work submitted.

Time and date