First Year
- Fundamentals of Interaction Design
- Carla Diana
-
Through a series of themes, this course will explore diverse disciplines, both historical and theoretical, to demonstrate how these themes shape contemporary practices in interaction design. Beginning with the core interactions of the body manifested in dance, language, music, art and architecture, continuing to the psychological and sociological ideas that have shaped how we interact with one another, through the inventions and technologies that transform the human condition, the course provides context and inspiration for the practicing designer. The fundamental interaction and communication design concepts, influential people and movements, and iconic projects and designs will be addressed. By the end of the semester, students will have acquired a vocabulary and toolkit for future design challenges.
- Craft and Communication
- Jason Santa Maria
-
One of our primary ways to convey information to people is through text; articles, operating instructions, books, websites, and more. Type is both a verbal and visual medium; what you say is just as important as how you say it, and where those two things meet is the start of a conversation with our audience. We are expected to create and consume mass amounts of information daily. The design of that information is becoming more important to aid in our audience’s comprehension.
- Fundamentals of Physical Computing
- Robert Faludi
-
This course explores the fundamentals of extending computation beyond the glowing screen and into the physical world. Using a programmed single-chip computer, students will learn how to connect sensors, actuators and indicators to create devices, installations and environments that move computational interaction “outside the box.” Our focus is on people rather than on devices. We will consider how the human mind is affected by physicality in all environments. By making a hands–on exploration of reactive, expressive, interactive and embodied behaviors, students learn to observe users, understand affordances and move seamlessly from digital processes to tangible actions. Course work is done individually in weekly technique labs and in groups for longer creative assignments. Note: No previous programming or electronics experience is required.
- Lecture Series
-
Visiting entrepreneurs, researchers, professionals and scholars will bring forward topics that inspire interaction design—from anthropology, cognitive psychology, mathematics and music to human–computer interaction, game design, and beyond. Students will take part in leading the question–and–answer session that follows each presentation. The aim is for students to understand the broader role and influence of interaction design across companies and organizations.
- Strategies in Design Practice
- Rachel Abrams
-
Business grads are excited about “design thinking,” and they are onto something. As opportunity spotters, design thinking is what we, as students of interaction, do every day. In this course, the edges between thinking and doing are intentionally blurred. Together, we'll unpack tools for thought, identifying methods for thinking through all stages of a project, through reading, exploratory research, storytelling, and sketching. Students will be introduced to theory, to expert practitioners, and case studies, and have an opportunity to rehearse your own practical methods. The point is not to end up with a finished prototype, the goal is to gain frameworks through which to generate ideas, organize findings, assess implications and represent solutions. Strategy techniques will be explored for implementation in professional design practices.
- Community, Collaboration, Civic Sharing, and Human Flourishing
- Tamara Giltsoff
-
This week-long workshop will explore the emergence of a new era of business and society, which is debunking the highly mechanized and industrialized worldview and presenting significant potential in addressing global systemic social issues. Together we will explore the role and future of community, grass-roots social innovation, networked society 2.0 and an increasing focus on unlocking the potential of humanity to overcome issues and arrive at radically new solutions. Students will also work with Participatory Learning and Action Research methods, gaining new practice skills alongside exploring content. The aim of the week is to explore and observe the emerging world view, as well as gain experience working with practice that is attuned to this new era.
- Prototyping User Experiences
- Robert Fabricant – Joshua Musick – Jeff Hoefs
-
Interaction design concepts can be hard to describe. And the best way to both communicate and improve your design is to prototype it quickly and often. This course examines how to integrate lightweight prototyping activities, as well as some basic research and testing techniques, into every stage of the interaction design process. A range of methods will be covered, from paper prototyping to participatory design to bodystorming. Students will learn how 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. The course is highly collaborative with hands–on prototyping and testing. Working individually and in teams, students will create rapid exercises, with one prototype developed or iterated each week, with the goal of evolving toward more robust ways of expressing ideas in rich interactive form.
- Strategic Innovation in Product/Service Design
- John Zapolski
-
The design of interactive products and services differs from other forms of design in important ways. Developing the context for successful user experiences requires designers to think more holistically about the business models for the products they create: how the value proposition to customers and users unfolds over time; what’s being “sold” and where the costs of production and management occur; how to engage, complement, and benefit from other services that intersect with what is being offered. This course will help students in becoming more effective at understanding and describing the strategic decisions involved in the creation of interactive products and services, and to equip them with tools and methods for generating innovative options and making smart strategic choices.
- Thesis Preparation
- Liz Danzico
-
This course will assist students in developing a course of action for choosing a thesis topic or topic direction, as well as a thesis advisor. The structure and presentation of the thesis proposal will also be addressed.
- Design in Public Spaces
- Jill Nussbaum
-
Interfaces are embedded in nearly every aspect of our daily lives—from grocery shopping to banking to reading books. How can we integrate technology with the physical world to create better interfaces and more useful, playful and meaningful experiences? This course explores how interaction design fundamentals apply to physical spaces by surveying branded environments, retail stores, museums, urban settings and corporate venues with specific user goals and design considerations in mind.
- Information Visualization
-
This course explores the communication and narrative potential of information visualizations. Building on a foundation of core design concepts like typography, color, and composition, the class proceeds through graph and map-making best practices toward advanced topics of data structure and programmatic visualizations.
- Entrepreneurial Design
- Zach Klein
-
Building on topics of design processes, this studio course will focus on needs analysis, framing, prototyping, iteration and collaboration in an applied context. Each student will choose a client, as well as engage in semester–long projects that bring together business goals, user needs and technology.
- Research Methods
- Nate Bolt
-
User–centered design begins, by definition, with an understanding of users. In this course, students will learn how to model interaction by conducting qualitative and quantitative research into users' behaviors, attitudes and expectations. By exploring ethnographic techniques, usability testing, log analysis, surveying, and other research methods, students will learn how to engage user feedback effectively at every stage of the design process. We will also address how to conduct secondary research into published literature and other sources that can inform thesis projects and beyond.
- Public Interfaces
- Jake Barton – Ian Curry
-
Concepts and methods of layout, grid and typography form the foundation for constructing meaningful layouts and, in turn, effective communications. This course will explore how to create meaning through useful, usable, and desirable interfaces across the complex environments of different media at different scales. Understanding basic concepts through the development of a vernacular, students will be encouraged to re–interpret concepts for interactive environments.
- Introduction to Cybernetics and the Foundations of Systems Design
- Paul Pangaro, Ph.D.
-
This course presents frameworks for modeling interaction in terms of structure and context, augmenting traditional discussions of form and syntax. We will collaboratively address questions that are fundamental to design practice: What is a system, and what are the different types? How do we interact with systems, and what are the different types of interaction? Systems may act independently, interact with other systems, learn, and even converse. What do such systems have in common, and how can we describe them? How can we measure their limitations? The course explores the integral structures and coherent processes for the design of effective artifacts, communications, collaborations, and services. Students will apply frameworks for steering design processes and/or design outcomes based on their own interests, encompassing domains as broad as education, health and wellness, and sustainability.
Recently
- Form Language, Guinness, and One Big Family: Interaction 12, Day One
- Thinking Thesis: Erin Moore on Privacy & Information Sharing
- Verge Review: The Language of Geography
- Icograda Design Education Manifesto 2011 and future of design education
- In the span of a click: Prachi Pundeer
- Liz Danzico in .net Magazine
- Here and Now: Sana Rao
