Information Visualisation (DECO2200)

Course overview

Information visualisation transforms complex data into clear, insightful visual representations that enhance understanding and support analysis. By combining graphic design principles, visual communication theory, and data visualisation techniques, we turn raw, tabular, or numerical data into meaningful visuals that tell a story. These visuals not only reveal patterns, trends, and anomalies but also ensure clarity, accuracy, and integrity in how the information is communicated. 

This course introduces students to graphic design and data visualisation theory, focusing on how these concepts apply to the encoding and presentation of both simple and complex data for effective communication. Students will apply theoretical concepts to the creation of meaningful visualisations in print & interactive form, focusing on how to effectively communicate complex datasets through thoughtful content structuring, information architecture, and layout design. The course builds upon design foundations introduced in earlier courses such as Design Thinking (DECO1100), Introduction to Web Design (DECO1400), and Design Computing Studio 1 (DECO1800).

Through the assessments, students will practice design methods and technical skills essential for creating both print and digital media, using industry-standard graphic design tools, such as Adobe Illustrator and Flourish.

Students will study the work of influential contemporary and historical designers, with an emphasis on understanding the social and cultural contexts that shape visual communication. Additionally, the course encourages peer critiques, enabling students to engage in constructive discussions about their own work and that of their peers. By doing so, they will gain the language and skills necessary to critique and evaluate information visualisation with clarity and confidence.

Changes in Response to Previous Student Feedback

Due to a lack of student feedback in 2024 (4 responses from 55 students), changes to the course have been made based on teaching staff observations of student work, student assessment outcomes and student engagement.

• Design Series assessment - this has been changed to a more participatory model where the assessment is completed and submitted during class time. The exercises have been redesigned to support discussion of lecture material and to allow completion during the allotted time. This assessment is now a pass hurdle for the course.
• Introduction of the Visualisation Plan assessment - this assessment has been added to ensure students have appropriate topics & datasets for the visualisation assessment items. In 2024, students selected from a pre-defined set of datasets, limiting topic selection to those related to the datasets provided. This new assessment supports students self-selecting topics and datasets to support their chosen narrative.
• Revision of the Interactive Data Visualisation assessment item - this assessment has been refined to focus efforts on a subset of the narrative chosen for the poster; rather than implementing interactivity for the full narrative. The weighting of this assessment has been reduced accordingly.

Course requirements

Assumed background

As this course is a 2nd year course, it is expected that students have completed at least 1 year of University study prior to commencing this course. It is assumed that students will have prior design process experience, achieved through the prerequisite courses listed. Students who have not studied the prerequisite course, and wish to take this course, must consult the course coordinator prior to enrolling in the course.

Prerequisites

You'll need to complete the following courses before enrolling in this one:

DECO1100 or DSGN1100

Incompatible

You can't enrol in this course if you've already completed the following:

DECO7220

Jointly taught details

This course is jointly-taught with:

• DECO7220

Shared lectures, contacts & practicals with DECO7220

Course contact

Course staff

Timetable

The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.

Additional timetable information

As active learners, you are expected to attend and participate in all scheduled class activities across the semester.

The course comprises the following class sessions:

• Lecture - 1 hr
• Theory Session - 1 hr - various sessions
• Practical - 3 hr - various sessions

The following public holidays have been factored into scheduling:

• Week 8 Friday 18 April - Good Friday
• Week 10 Monday 5 May - Labour Day : No lecture this week.

Aims and outcomes

In this course, we aim to:

• provide students with a solid foundation in graphic and information design principles as they apply to the visual communication of simple and complex data; both theoretically and technically;
• introduce students to the work of contemporary and historical designers;
• provide students with production skills through the development of design projects;
• promote and foster creative thinking through the development of design projects and critique of contemporary works;
• foster student skills in critical analysis of design approaches through critique - of own and others work.

Learning outcomes

After successfully completing this course you should be able to:

Assessment

Assessment summary

A hurdle is an assessment requirement that must be satisfied in order to receive a specific grade for the course. Check the assessment details for more information about hurdle requirements.

Assessment details

Design Exercises

• Hurdle
• Identity Verified
• In-person

Mode

Product/ Artefact/ Multimedia, Written

Category

Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Essay/ Critique, Participation/ Student contribution, Practical/ Demonstration, Presentation, Tutorial/ Problem Set

Weight

3

Due date

Week 1 Mon - Week 1 Fri

Week 4 Tue - Week 4 Fri

Week 5 Tue - Week 5 Fri

Week 6 Tue - Week 6 Fri

Week 7 Tue - Week 7 Fri

Week 9 Tue - Week 9 Fri

Week 10 Tue - Week 10 Fri

Week 11 Tue - Week 11 Fri

Week 12 Tue - Week 12 Fri

Learning outcomes

L01, L04, L05

Task description

Hurdle requirements

Submission guidelines

Exercises will be completed during contact sessions and submitted at the time. You must attend your allocated contact session. Submission format will be either digital (e.g. photograph or EdDiscussion post) or physical (completed worksheet, sketches) and will be explained with the activity.

Deferral or extension

You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.

No extensions are possible for weekly activities. In finalising the grade for this assessment item at the end of semester, the best seven (7) of nine (9) weeks of activities will be taken in consideration. Permission may be granted for alternative arrangements, however such permission will not be granted unless exceptional personal circumstances prevent attendance (documented medical reason or family emergency). Alternative arrangements due to ongoing, external commitments will not be considered. Approval must be sought in advance from the course coordinator. Feedback will be released within 48 hrs.

Late submission

You will receive a mark of 0 if this assessment is submitted late.

Visualisation Plan

• Hurdle
• Identity Verified
• In-person

Mode

Oral, Written

Category

Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Practical/ Demonstration, Presentation

Weight

Pass / Fail

Due date

17/03/2025 3:00 pm

Presentations to occur in your allocated practical sessions. If you are unable to attend your allocated session, email the course coordinator as soon as possible.

Learning outcomes

L04, L05

Task description

Hurdle requirements

Submission guidelines

A copy of your slides & presentation script to Blackboard. See brief for document requirements.

Deferral or extension

You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.

This course uses a progressive assessment approach where feedback will be released to students within 3 days.

If there are exceptional circumstances, an exemption may be approved and will involve submitting/discussing your work as it stands. Exemptions must be requested as an extension with a note specifying exemption via my.UQ.

Late submission

100% Late Penalty after 1 hour grace period.

The one-hour grace period is recorded from the time the submission is due.

Data Visualisation Poster

Mode

Product/ Artefact/ Multimedia, Written

Category

Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Poster

Weight

4

Due date

28/04/2025 3:00 pm

Learning outcomes

L01, L02, L03, L04, L05

Task description

Submission guidelines

Digital submission to Blackboard. Printed poster submission during allocated practical session.

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

The maximum extension allowed is 7 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.

This course uses a progressive assessment approach where feedback will be released for this assessment within 14 days.

Late submission

A penalty of 1 grade for each 24 hour period from time submission is due will apply for up to 7 days. After 7 days you will receive a mark of 0.

Interactive Data Visualisation

• Identity Verified
• In-person

Mode

Product/ Artefact/ Multimedia, Written

Category

Computer Code, Creative Production/ Exhibition, Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Practical/ Demonstration, Product/ Design

Weight

2

Due date

30/05/2025 4:00 pm

Learning outcomes

L01, L03, L05

Task description

Submission guidelines

Digital submission to Blackboard by Friday 4:00pm.

Demonstration in allocated Week 13 practical session - bring valid UQ identification.

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.

For students with approved extension requests, identity-verified demonstrations will take place by appointment with the teaching staff.

Late submission

A penalty of 1 grade for each 24 hour period from time submission is due will apply for up to 7 days. After 7 days you will receive a mark of 0.

Course grading

Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.

Additional course grading information

Qualitative Grading:

Grades for assessment during the semester will identify your work as being of a particular standard from the following list:

• No assessable work received (X) - applies to late or non-submission of assessment items.
• Low Fail (1) - absence of evidence of achievement of assessment outcomes.
• Fail (2) - minimal evidence of achievement of assessment outcomes.
• Marginal Fail (3) - demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of assessment outcomes.
• Pass (4) - demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of assessment outcomes.
• Credit (5) - demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of assessment outcomes.
• Distinction (6) - demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of assessment learning outcomes.
• High Distinction (7) - demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of assessment learning outcomes.

Within each grade category, there may be a further qualifier of + or - to indicate that the work is respectively at the upper or lower bounds of the category. These grades map directly to the standard UQ Grade descriptors (see Part H in the Assessment Procedure linked above). It is recommended that you read the descriptors and example criteria that are associated with each of the UQ grade standards.

Note, that percentages or numerical marks are not required in grading assessment or for calculating grade cut-offs. Percentage cut-offs are primarily employed in courses that utilise quantitative (numerical based) methods for marking. Qualitative grading, such as used here, uses a standards-based approach to grading.

Calculation of Final Grade:

The final grade for the course will be initially constructed from the individual grades according to assessment weightings; and calculated as a weighted average of your assessment grades, using the same formula as used for calculating your GPA (https://my.uq.edu.au/information-and-services/manage-my-program/exams-and-assessment/final-grades-and-gpas). In this case, U equals the weighting for that particular assessment item, and G equal to the grade for the assessment item. In this course, the graded assessment items are Data Visualisation Poster, Interactive Data Visualisation and Design Series.

Example of calculation for final grade:

If you receive the following grades:

1. Design Series (weight x 3) - Pass (4)
2. Data Visualisation Poster (weight x 4) - Distinction (6)
3. Interactive Data Visualisation (weight x 2) - Credit (5)

Your final grade will be calculated as:

(3 x 4) + (4 x 6) + (2 x 5)ﾠ / 3 + 4 + 2

ﾠﾠﾠ 46 / 9 = 5.11 = Credit

This calculation provides the starting point for your final grade, which is then reviewed & moderated based on overall performance across the course; and pass conditions applied.

Pass Conditions for the Course:

In order to pass the course, in addition to achieving an overall passing grade (calculated as above), students will need to:

• Achieve a Pass (P) grade for the Visualisation Plan assessment
• AND Achieve a Pass (4) grade or higher for the Design Series assessment.

Failure to meet these requirements will result in the final grade being capped:

• If the student fails the Visualisation Plan AND passes the Design Series assessment, their grade will be capped at a Pass (4) regardless of performance in other assessment items.
• If the student fails the Design Series assessment, their grade will be capped at a Marginal Fail (3) regardless of performance in other assessment items.
• If the student fails the Design Series assessment AND achieves an overall grade of Marginal Fail (3) across the graded assessment items, their grade will be capped at a Fail (2).

Identify Verified Assessment:

The assessments Visualisation Plan (in-person presentation), Interactive Data Visualisation (in-person demonstration) and Design Series (in-person activities) are identity verified.

Supplementary assessment

Supplementary assessment is available for this course.

Additional assessment information

Academic Integrity inﾠ Design Work:

Ideally, all work & elements within works will be the original creation of the student. However, it is recognised that students may utilise, create derivatives, adapt orﾠ alter already existing work to create original compositions. Existing/external works may include vector art, typefaces, patterns, textures — any work not of the student's original creation that is used in the final composition of a work.

Any work used that is not explicitly created by the student must reference the original creator and must be done so in accordance with the distribution license attached to the work. Works under public domain or royalty-free distribution licenses must also be referenced as these are not created by the student. Failure to correctly cite external work may attract a misconduct charge.

Use of Generative AI & Machine Translation Tools

This course is aimed at students understanding and being able to effectively apply graphic design and information visualisation theories concepts to the visual communication of complex data. This application to the visual communication of complex data requires a level of creativity and critical thinking for which artificial intelligence will provide only limited support and guidance.

Use of Generative AI Tools & Machine Translation Tools is not permitted when completing the following assessment items:

• Design Series
• Visualisation Plan

Use of Generative AI Tools & Machine Translation Tools is permitted in a supportive role when completing the following assessment items within the boundaries outlined in the brief:

• Data Visualisation Poster
• Interactive Data Visualisation

A guide to usage & acknowledgement is provided on Blackboard.

Having Trouble?

If you are having difficulties with any aspect of the course material, you should seek help. Speak to your teaching staff and/or the course coordinator.

If external circumstances are affecting your ability to work on the course, you should seek help as soon as possible. The University and UQ Union have organisations and staff who are able to help; for example, UQ Student Services are able to help with study and exam skills, tertiary learning skills, writing skills, financial assistance, personal issues, and disability services (among other things).

Complaints and criticisms should be directed in the first instance to the course coordinator. If you are not satisfied with the outcome, you may bring the matter to the attention of the School of EECS Director of Teaching and Learning.

When Submitting Assessments to Blackboard:

Please allow plenty of time for submission to Blackboard as many students are attempting the same task at the same time. Be sure to allow enough time for uploading of assessment files. It is YOUR responsibility to check that submissions have been uploaded correctly.

Learning resources

You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.

Library resources

Find the required and recommended resources for this course on the UQ Library website.

Other course materials

Additional learning resources information

All announcements, assessment briefs & learning resources will be delivered via the course Blackboard site.

All students are expected to check their student email account regularly (preferably daily) and the course Blackboard Announcements prior to any major activities. Many sessions will require students to prepare materials for use during the session. All theory sessions expect that students have attended the lecture and are familiar with the material delivered.

This course will use EdDiscussion for questions and discussion; and a Padlet for sharing Design Series outcomes.

Learning activities

The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.

Policies and procedures

University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:

• Student Code of Conduct Policy
• Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
• Assessment Procedure
• Examinations Procedure
• Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure

Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.

School guidelines

Your school has additional guidelines you'll need to follow for this course:

• EECS School Guidelines for Students