Course coordinator
Dr Dhaval Vyas
Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 2, 2024 (22/07/2024 - 16/11/2024)
- Study level
- Undergraduate
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Elec Engineering & Comp Science School
Interdisciplinary teams of students undertake studio-based design and development projects covering a broad understanding of user research, prototyping, application development, evaluation, project management and teamwork, and showcase their work at design exhibitions.
DECO2850 is a level-2 studio course. In this course, the student will form a team (4-6 members) and work on an interaction design project, by using various design, prototyping and evaluation methods and techniques. It is expected that the outcome of the projects is a functional and high-fidelity prototype that may be a web or electronic application or a mix of both.
The course will cover the traditional design cycle: problem understanding, engaging with users, designing prototypes and running evaluations. The course will be taught in a studio format, which will have a combination of short lectures and workshop activities.
*** 2024 Updates: An assessment of Design Journal has been added and Design Critique has been removed. This change is based on the feedback around making workshop activities recorded/assessed. This will be done through a design journal over 13 weeks.***
Course requirements
Assumed background
This course assumes that students have
- familiarity with web programming and know basics of software development life cycle
- completed DECO1800 (or DECO7180) - Studio 1
Technical skills will not be taught in this course. However, students will be provided with the required materials to complete their projects.
Prerequisites
You'll need to complete the following courses before enrolling in this one:
DECO1800
Companion or co-requisite courses
You'll need to complete the following courses at the same time:
COMP2140
Incompatible
You can't enrol in this course if you've already completed the following:
DECO2800 or DECO7280 or DECO7285
Restrictions
ERG - prerequisite DECO1800
Jointly taught details
This course is jointly-taught with:
- DECO7285
All learning activities are jointly taught.
Course contact
Course staff
Lecturer
Dr Dhaval Vyas
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Aims and outcomes
Provide students with an opportunity to apply skills in interaction design, human-centred design and software development practices within a studio-based design and development project. Provide students with positive experiences of collaborative learning and appreciation of the need for life-long learning skills.
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Employ interaction design methods to inform the development of interactive technologies.
LO2.
Develop solutions to design problems through the creative application of interaction design methods and processes.
LO3.
Create designs in the context of a large open-ended project, taking into account other, potentially conflicting, features.
LO4.
Analyse complex problems and apply design patterns to design contextually appropriate solutions.
LO5.
Demonstrate an ability to work collaboratively and effectively with others in a team towards shared project goals, while managing individual work.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay/ Critique |
Ethical Conduct in Design
|
20% Individual |
29/08/2024 3:00 pm
via the course Blackboard site |
| Creative Production/ Exhibition, Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Participation/ Student contribution, Performance, Practical/ Demonstration, Presentation, Poster, Product/ Design, Project |
Project
|
60% Team |
Milestone 1: 06/09/2024, 1pm to 5pm - during regular studio schedule (design exhibit) Milestone 2: 25/10/2024, 1pm to 5pm - during regular studio schedule (design exhibit) Milestone 3: 14/11/2024, 3pm via the Blackboard site |
| Notebook/ Logbook |
Design Journal
|
20% Individual |
24/10/2024 3:00 pm
submission via the Blackboard site |
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
Ethical Conduct in Design
- Hurdle
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Essay/ Critique
- Weight
- 20% Individual
- Due date
29/08/2024 3:00 pm
via the course Blackboard site
- Learning outcomes
- L04
Task description
As a part of this assessment, students are asked to develop a proposal on their project, especially focussing on ethical issues and implications. They will write a ~1500 word essay on their project proposal.
Hurdle requirements
Students must gain an overall passing grade for the individual assessment (Ethical Conduct in Design + Design Journal) to pass the course. Failure to achieve an overall passing grade for the individual assessment will result in an overall fail for the course, with the grade capped at 3.Submission guidelines
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.
Longer extensions are not possible. The teaching team aims to mark/grade assessment items within 14 days of submission. Hence, anything longer than 7 days will affect the teaching team's marking capabilities.
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.
Project
- Team or group-based
- In-person
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance, Oral, Product/ Artefact/ Multimedia, Written
- Category
- Creative Production/ Exhibition, Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Participation/ Student contribution, Performance, Practical/ Demonstration, Presentation, Poster, Product/ Design, Project
- Weight
- 60% Team
- Due date
Milestone 1: 06/09/2024, 1pm to 5pm - during regular studio schedule (design exhibit)
Milestone 2: 25/10/2024, 1pm to 5pm - during regular studio schedule (design exhibit)
Milestone 3: 14/11/2024, 3pm via the Blackboard site
- Other conditions
- Longitudinal.
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03, L04, L05
Task description
Students forming teams and working on their projects is at the core of Studio-2 Interaction Design. As a part of this assessment, student teams will identify a problem space and develop a software solution, using various Interaction Design methods and techniques. Teams will follow a complete design cycle of exploring and understanding a problem, eliciting user requirements, designing working software prototypes and testing/evaluating them in real-world situations.
Teams will conduct two iterations of their prototypes and showcase their design prototypes and processes in week 7 (first iteration) and in week 13 (second iteration). A detailed project report of the complete design and development process is expected at the end of the course.
This team-based assessment will be divided into three smaller-assessment milestones:
- Design Exhibit/Presentation of Iteration 1 (week 7): 15%
- Design Exhibit of Iteration 2 (week 13): 25%
- Project Report (14 Nov 2024): 20%
Milestone 1 is expected to be a work-in-progress activity, where a prototype will be exhibited during a regular studio session. It is expected that prototypes developed in this milestone are functional, there is no expectation of any user evaluations/testing in this milestone.
Milestone 2 is expected to show a final prototype, where the aesthetics and look-and-feel of prototypes is high-resolution. It is expected that findings from an adequate level of user engagement, testing or evaluation is incorporated in the prototype.
Milestone 3 is expected to be a ~3000-word project report that should capture all aspects of the project.
Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.
Project milestones during semester are formative assessment of snapshots of the team’s current work-in-progress. Extensions would delay the teaching team’s ability to provide feedback on the work in a timely manner. Additionally, it is challenging to extend/postpone/recreate design exhibitions (week 7 and 13), which are important learning activities.
Participation in these in-person events where students discuss the work that they have done is a required part of the identity-verified assessment component of this course. All students are expected to participate; any absences must be approved.
Late submission
You will receive a mark of 0 if this assessment is submitted late.
Design Journal
- Hurdle
- Identity Verified
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Notebook/ Logbook
- Weight
- 20% Individual
- Due date
24/10/2024 3:00 pm
submission via the Blackboard site
- Other conditions
- Longitudinal.
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L03
Task description
As a part of this assessment, students are asked to maintain a design journal throughout this studio course. Students should report their weekly activities and provide evidence. A total of 10 journal entries are required, where students need to provide the following content on each journal entry: 1) ~100 words description of the design activity, 2) visual evidence of the activity through images, and 3) a statement on learning from the design activity.
Hurdle requirements
Students must gain an overall passing grade for the individual assessment (Ethical Conduct in Design + Design Journal) to pass the course. Failure to achieve an overall passing grade for the individual assessment will result in an overall fail for the course with the grade capped at 3.Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.
The journal is a series of posts to an individual student’s design journal, generating an ongoing record of work on their project throughout the semester.
Student are expected to make weekly entries, reporting their activities in specific weeks. If a student is unable to post to the journal for an extended period of time, they should inform the teaching team member and resume posting as soon as possible.
To pass this assessment, students must have at least 10 journal entries during the 13 weeks.
Late submission
100% Late Penalty after 1 hour grace period.
The one-hour grace period is recorded from the time the submission is due.
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Fails to demonstrate most or all of the basic requirements of the course. |
| 2 (Fail) |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Demonstrates clear deficiencies in understanding and applying fundamental concepts; communicates information or ideas in ways that are frequently incomplete or confusing and give little attention to the conventions of the discipline. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes Course grade description: Demonstrates a superficial or partial or faulty understanding of the fundamental concepts of the field of study and limited ability to apply these concepts; presents undeveloped or inappropriate or unsupported arguments; communicates information or ideas with lack of clarity and inconsistent adherence to the conventions of the discipline. OR Fails to meet the individual assessment hurdle for the course. |
| 4 (Pass) |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Demonstrates adequate understanding and application of the fundamental concepts of the field of study; develops routine arguments or decisions and provides acceptable justification; communicates information and ideas adequately in terms of the conventions of the discipline. |
| 5 (Credit) |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: As for Credit, with frequent evidence of originality in defining and analysing issues or problems and in creating solutions; uses a level, style and means of communication appropriate to the discipline and the audience. |
| 6 (Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: As for Distinction, with consistent evidence of substantial originality and insight in identifying, generating and communicating competing arguments, perspectives or problem-solving approaches; critically evaluates problems, their solutions and implications. |
| 7 (High Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Demonstrates substantial understanding of fundamental concepts of the field of study and ability to apply these concepts in a variety of contexts; develops or adapts convincing arguments and provides coherent justification; communicates information and ideas clearly and fluently in terms of the conventions of the discipline. |
Additional course grading information
Qualitative Grading
This course uses a qualitative grading system, where qualitative feedback on your work will be provided. You will get your final grades on the following UQ grade band:
- No assessable work received (X) - applies to non-submission of assessment items
- Low Fail / No Academic Merit (1)
- Fail (2)
- Marginal Fail (3)
- Pass (4)
- Credit (5)
- Distinction (6)
- High Distinction (7)
Within each category, there may be a further qualifier of + or - to indicated that the work is respectively at the upper or lower bounds of the category. For example, if work is assessed at the level of Credit, for example, it has been assessed overall to meet the quality described by the Credit grade descriptor. Credit- means that the work is assessed at credit, but it is at the lower bound having just satisfied the requirements for Credit. Credit+ means that the work is assessed at Credit, but while it is at the upper bound of this grade, it is missing key aspects that would lead it to be assessed at the next grade up.ﾠGrades on formative assessment items during the semester will be used to calculate the initial overall grade for each student (see below). The final moderation process will consider student work holistically, taking into account evidence of improving grades and/or incorporation of feedback in later assessment items.
Qualitative grading is the only method used in this course to grade work but in order to calculate a grade, each qualitative descriptor is coded to a numerical digit from 0 – 15 (see below). There are no % used in any calculation and the coding system does not correspond to a % value.
The qualitative grades in this course map to UQ Grade bands as follows:
- High Distinction+ (15) --> High Distinction (7)
- High Distinction (14) --> High Distinction (7)
- High Distinction- (13) --> High Distinction (7)
- Distinction+ (12) --> Distinction (6)
- Distinction (11) --> Distinction (6)
- Distinction- (10) --> Distinction (6)
- Credit+ (9) --> Credit (5)
- Credit (8) --> Credit (5)
- Credit- (7) --> Credit (5)
- Pass+ (6) --> Pass (4)
- Pass (5) --> Pass (4)
- Pass- (4) --> Pass (4)
- Fail+ (3) --> Fail (3)
- Fail (2) --> Fail (2)
- Fail- (1) --> Fail (1)
- X --> 0
The final grade for an assignment is calculated by assigning the qualitative grade its corresponding digit from the coding system and the weighting in a formula to arrive at a final grade. The Course Coordinator reserves the right to moderate grades. The final grade for the course uses the same principle (see below examples).
Example 1:
- Ethical Conduct in Design: Pass+ (6)
- Project: Pass (5)
- Design Journal: Pass- (4)
- Initial Grade Calculation: (6*0.2) + (5*0.6) + (4*0.2) = 5
- Final UQ Grade: Pass (5)
Example 2:
- Prototype 1: Credit- (7)
- Prototype 2: Credit (8)
- Prototype 3: Credit+ (9)
- Initial Grade Calculation: (7*0.2) + (8*0.6) + (9*0.2) = 8
- Final UQ Grade: Credit (5)
Example 3:
- Prototype 1: Distinction- (10)
- Prototype 2: High Distinction (14)
- Prototype 3: High Distinction+ (15)
- Initial Grade Calculation: (10*0.2) + (14*0.6) + (15*0.2) = 13.4
- Final UQ Grade: High Distinction (7)
Final Grade Moderation
The final grade for the course will be initially constructed from the individual grades according to assessment weightings. It will then be reviewed & moderated based on overall performance across the course. Peer feedback and observed participation is used as input to the course intervention and moderation process. The course coordinator reserves the right to moderate grades.
Hurdles in this course
Students must gain an overall passing grade for the individual assessment (Ethical Conduct in Design + Design Journal) in order to pass the course. Failure to achieve an overall passing grade for the individual assessments will result in an overall fail for the course with the grade capped at 3. One purpose of the individual assessment items is to provide evidence of individual contributions to team outcomes - students who are unable to demonstrate their contribution to the team outputs risk failing the course with an overall grade capped at 3 by not meeting this requirement.
Identity verified assessment
Studio teaching staff actively monitor individual participation throughout the semester and are aware of the degree to which students are contributing to the team projects. Regular updates to the Design Journal are required to support evidence that students are reporting on their own work. Any student who does not update their Design Journal with an appropriate frequency will be asked to provide evidence of the work that they have been doing in a face-to-face session with a member of the teaching team. Failure to do so will be considered a failure of the individual Design Journal assessment with the outcome as above.
Team-based Assessment
In the team-based assessment item (Project), all members will be asked to provide a statement on their individual contributions. It is expected that all members of a team contribute equally and have demonstratable evidence of their contribution. The course coordinator reserves the right to vary group marks for each group member in the event of varied contributions to team effort.
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is not available for some items in this course.
Supplementary assessment is only available to students who pass the team-based assessment (Project) and continuously assessed parts of the course (Design Journal).
Additional assessment information
Generative AI and Machine Translation in Assessment:
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Translation (MT) are emerging tools that may support students in completing this assessment task. Students may appropriately use AI and/or MT in completing this assessment task. Students must clearly reference any use of AI or MT in each instance. A failure to reference generative AI or MT use may constitute student misconduct under the Student
Code of Conduct
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.
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Multiple weeks |
Studio |
Studio Studios will be a mix of content delivery (short lectures), workshop activities and student-led team projects. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04, L05 |
Additional learning activity information
Studios are 4 hours in-class sessions where students will go through course instructions, mini-lectures, workshops, and various forms of design activities.
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: