MFA Design and Technology
Major Studio: Interaction, Spring 2010

CRN 4134 – PGTE 5201 – C
Building: Parsons 55 W13th St., Room 304
Wednesdays & Fridays 12:00 – 2:40 pm
Instructor: Melanie Crean – creanm@newschool.edu
Office Hours by appt: Tue 3:00 – 6:00 by skype, Thu 12:00 – 6:00 in 2W13th rm 1110

1.  Overview

The goal of Major Studio: Spring Concentrations (Narrative, Interaction, Computation) is to introduce students to a body of knowledge specific to the studio’s concentration topic, to develop the design process and the expand upon the studio and critique environment upon which most MFADT classes are based, to teach effective presentation skills, to help students develop a summer research plan in preparation for their thesis year, and to engage students in challenging and meaningful discussions about the dynamic relationship between design and technology practices. As a Major Studio, this course is the core course within the curriculum in the spring semester, and is designed as a stepping stone to a student’s own investigations and interests, as well as a space for exploration and experimentation with alternative design processes and methodologies. The course is run in a studio format, which means all students are expected to participate in the making, discussion, and critique of work.

2.  Interaction

This studio advocates the design of interactive artifacts as an integrated practice comprised of both theoretical investigation and “hands-on” research. Throughout the semester we will seek to incorporate interaction design methodology into a wide spectrum of creative pursuits. The particular strategies and technologies applied by each student will vary according to individual interest; however the development and usage of a shared vocabulary and context with which to critique work will be emphasized. To this end we will collectively read and discuss a number of written texts and discuss the role technology, society, and particular approaches to interactive design might have within varied disciplinary domains. The studio will posit a critical approach towards technology discourse, analyzing not only the application of technology and the context from which innovation emerges, but also the agendas and interests that are furthered by such developments.

It is important to emphasize the active role each student will take in this class. This is the bridge semester between induction into the MFADT degree program and the thesis year. It is the critical juncture where students should begin to discover and define their research interests and nurture the emergence of their creative voice. Additionally this semester should prepare students for the academic demands of a graduate level thesis, which in this case includes both strong design ability and writing and critical thinking skills. This studio seeks to achieve this undertaking by emphasizing an approach which places high value on literate and articulate reflection throughout all phases of the design process. The aim is to encourage innovation grounded in theoretical context, with informed awareness of related work and material precedents

3.  Studio Policies

The course meets for two, two-hour and forty minute sessions per week. As per University policy, 5 absences constitute grounds for failure. Two absences will result in an automatic academic warning. Arriving fifteen minutes after the start of class also constitutes an absence. There is no such thing as an excused absence; any failure to attend a class sessions shall be marked as an absence. In addition, all students are required to present at the two major critiques during the semester. Any student who does not participate in these scheduled critiques may receive a failing grade at the discretion of the instructor. Laptops can be used for note taking but must be closed during all student and faculty presentations.

Studio Objectives

  1. To build a common vocabulary within a multi-disciplinary environment
  2. To refine presentation and critique at the graduate level
  3. To emphasize and articulate process and methods
  4. To reinforce rigorous conceptual development and introduce a range of methods for the expression and articulation of ideas
  5. To explore forms of writing, including but not limited to research papers, critical writing, design briefs, self-assessment, personal statements, scenarios, project reviews.
  6. To establish your own voice as a creative author of works including text, performance, object making and evaluation.
  7. To integrate both in theory and practice, principles of interaction design across varied engagement structures.
  8. To develop a strong self-directed research agenda and foundation for thesis development.

Criteria for evaluation
Students in the course will receive feedback on the following areas:

  1. Communication: How well is the student able to express their ideas, both verbally and in written form?
  2. Critical Thinking: To what degree has the student demonstrated and developed critical thinking skills over the course of the semester? Is critical thinking evident in the visual work, in critiques and presentations, and in written assignments?
  3. Design Process: What are the strengths and weaknesses of the student’s design process? Is the student able to evaluate the work at different points in the process and to identify areas in their work for future development?
  4. Contextualization and Connection: To what degree has the student been able to connect the themes and core concepts of the course to concepts introduced in other classes? Has the student been able to connect their work and ideas to historical and contemporary precedents, and to situate their work within the larger discourse surrounding ideas of “interaction?”
  5. Integration and Appropriate Use of Technology: Is the student making good choices about the form and type of technology they are using to express their design concepts? Is the student able to integrate technology into the conceptualization of their projects?

4. Course Components

Major Studio Assignments
The semester can be divided roughly into two parts. In the first section Students will work on a series of short assignments that will assist in understanding and exploring various issues related to interactive design. These projects will contribute to helping each student define domains of inquiry as well as provide possible areas of exploration for the final project.

The second part of the class focuses on a final project which will be determined by the student. The final project serves as preparation for the thesis process, which begins in the third semester of work. The final project will cover approximately seven weeks and will have a strong written component.

Students will be evaluated on their overall classroom participation, participation in classroom activities, group project work, writing (including 2 short papers, reading responses and final paper) as well as their formal Midterm and Final Reviews.

Final Project
The final project is a self-defined, seven-week project which will introduce students to the thesis process. The final project should incorporate skills and strategies learned throughout the first MFA year. The student should be able to demonstrate an understanding of iterative design and prototyping methodology (user testing, scenario design) and be able to situate their work within historical, social, or theoretical contexts. In addition, students will realize a high fidelity prototype which addresses each the prototype characteristics identified by Houde and Hill (Implementation, Role, Look and Feel.) The student should also consider the relationship between their concept and the application of the technology used. There is an accompanying required research paper (See: Section 4, Writing). Final projects will be presented on Wednesday May 12th and Friday May 14th. The research paper will be due on the last class meeting, Wednesday April 28th.

Domain Mapping
Throughout the semester students will engage in Domain-mapping exercises to help them refine their creative interests and summer research plan. Domain maps will play a key role in providing the “guiding questions” and contextual groundwork for students’ work.

Domain-specific Bibliography
Throughout the semester each student will work to compile a set of “essential reading lists” around their specific research domain. Furthermore, students should actively connect with relevant luminaries, scholars, artists, practitioners, critics and peers, and develop online bonds of shareable peer knowledge networks. (e.g., Twitter lists, join listserv, host a meetup). These lists should be compiled through independent research and interviews with thesis faculty and other experts in the domain they are researching. For example, if a student was interested in the domain of Information Architecture, they would compile a list of the five most important books, magazine, or journal articles written on the topic and would consult a professional information architect. The lists produced by the studio will become part of a larger resource all students will have access to as they begin their thesis research.

Summer Research Plan
Each student will work together with the studio faculty to develop a concrete research plan for the summer, in preparation for their thesis. Early in the semester students will be asked to define areas of interest, and craft a set of design questions that will guide them in their research over the summer. Research might include writing stories, learning a technology or programming language, building models of forms of interaction, taking field trips, interviewing people as experts or subjects, etc. This research plan will take the form of a written design brief, 2-3 pages in length, which includes an outline of specific deliverables to be produced over the summer.  It will also be presented to thesis faculty in the first week of your thesis studio the following Fall semester.

Mini-Projects
There will be three mini-projects assigned at the beginning of the semester. This year the project themes are objects, space and play. See below, under assignments. Students are encouraged to explore their own ideas and interests within the context of each of these assignments.

Critique and Presentation
There are two major reviews: midterm review and final review. Guest critics are invited to both sets of reviews, and the final review is open to the public. Students should be able to present their work in a clear and concise manner. For each presentation in-class practice sessions will be provided to explore and refine presentation strategies. Midterm reviews are scheduled for the week of March 10th and Final reviews are scheduled for the week of May 12st.

Reading and Discussion
Reading and discussion are critical components of the studio environment. Each student will come to class ready to participate in discussions about the assigned readings.  They will also post an individual reaction to each reading on the class blog before the class in which the article is to be discussed. When posting to the blog, students should use two tags.  The first is the class tag: interactive10,  the second is an assignment tag. For readings, the assignment tag will be reading_authorsname.  For example, for Mark Weiser’s reading, it would be reading_weiser.

In addition, students will be assigned to reading groups, which will take turns leading discussions about the readings.  These discussions will not be summaries of the reading, but rather interactive exercises or games to convey the nature of the theme discussed that will engage fellow classmates as active participants. Presentations should relate core themes in the text to concepts being discussed class. Reading will be provided in the form of PDFs or URL’s listed on the class blog.

Writing
Writing represents a central form expression at the Masters level, as design writing is an essential component of design thinking, a crucial way to work through and articulate one’s ideas. In the Major Studio, the active engagement in writing integrates the overall studio experience. In addition to two one page writing projects, students will also be asked to produce a longer research paper in association with their final project.

  1. Interactive project critique, due Feb 17th: One page critique of any interactive project that falls within your domain of interest.  To be written in free writing style:  Choose the work to be discussed and form a basic argument in your head.  Once you begin writing, don’t stop. If you cant think of something to say, write, “I don’t know what to say” over and over until you do.  Start writing on the top left corner of the page, don’t stop writing till you reach the bottom right corner. Single space.  Submit by email and post to blog. Blog tag: writing_critique
  2. Shape of Change Design for Change assignment, due March 3rd: answer 4 shapeofchange.com project questions to describe they type of change you want to create as designers, analyze shapeofchange.com interface (design brief to follow). Blog tag: writing_shapeofchange

Final Project Document
As part of the final project students will be asked to develop a written project document. This document will be written during the course of the project, and is due on April 28th. This document will be written in Chicago MLA style with endnotes and bibliography.  It should be between 10-15 pages in length, with 1.5 spacing, 1 inch margins, and 10 point type. The specific style and format will be discussed in class.

It is important to keep in mind that the following guidelines will generally apply to any research paper.

Document Objectives

  • Present a clear and concise overview of the project concept;
  • Situate the project within historical and creative contexts;
  • Provide a set of criteria used to evaluate the project;
  • Provide self-assessment of the project’s strengths and weaknesses;
  • Give an overview of the design process;
  • Present a list of related resources.

Guidelines
The final project research paper will contain the following information:

Research Questions: a list of 2-4 primary questions that explain what it is that you are trying to discover. Your primary questions may contain a set of sub-questions as well.

Domains: what are the domains with which your project engages? What relationships exist between these domains?

Summary: a narrative description of the project. What it is, who it is designed for, what it is designed to do, what kind of technology it explores, etc.

Precedents/Related Work: What are examples of work that share something in common with your project? These precedents can be contemporary or historical and can be drawn from the realms of design, technology, sociology, psychology, etc. In preparing this section of your document, please include the following information for each precedent discussed:

  • title of work and author/designer/artist
  • brief description of project
  • relevance of the project to your own work

Process: a narrative description of your process, key methods and discoveries, sample sketches, storyboards, diagrams, etc.

Evaluation: the Evaluation section of your document has two parts:

  • A narrative summary that outlines your thoughts on the strengths and weaknesses of your project.
  • A list of criteria that you are using to evaluate the quality of your project. These criteria will be shared with the critics during your final presentation, and will serve as the basis for feedback during your review.

Bibliography, References, Resources: a list of important works used to guide your project. Bibliographic information should include the title of the work, author(s), publication date, publisher, and pages cited.

Blog tags: paper_outline, paper_draft, paper_final. If you are asked to do revisions, it would be paper_reviseddraft etc.