All readings and assignments are due before class on the date they appear below. Schedule is subject to change.
Unit 1: Creativity & Design
In this first unit, students will learn about basic design principles and the creative process by engaging with their own observations and interactions with the world around them. Through a sequence of readings and exercises, students will be able to identify strong and weak design elements, understand the historical and cultural properties of objects, and translate these design principles to digital media and user interfaces.
Week 1 (Aug 25-29)
Aug 25: 1st day of class
Aug 29: last day to add
Monday
Topic: Creativity and Play
In-class resources: Tim Brown, “Tales of Creativity and Play” (2008) (video)
Wednesday
Topic: Design Is Everywhere
In-class resources: MakeShapeChange (video/website)
Friday
Topic: The Creative Process: How and Why
Read before class: Frank Chimero, Ch. 1 from The Shape of Design (2012) (course reader)*
*Some notes on the course reader: The course reader is locked behind a password-protected page. The password will be provided in class. The course reader contains some material that cannot be distributed online without violating copyright restrictions; those readings, can, however, be provided by me to you under fair use for educational purposes.
Also, many of the readings are available freely online through many of the links that I have provided throughout the course schedule. For your convenience, I have collated all of these readings into PDF files so that you can conveniently print them out or mark them up digitally (some options for digital markup include Preview for Mac, Adobe Acrobat Standard, and iAnnotate).
Week 2 (Sep 1-5)
Monday [Holiday]
Wednesday
Topic: Interaction Design
Watch/Read before class: Bret Victor, “A Brief Rant on the Future of Interaction Design” (2011) (video/web article)
Friday (Lab Day) MEET IN AVERY 105
Topic: Introduction to WordPress
Technology: WordPress Tutorial
Action items:
1. Update your email address in zzusis (Main Menu > My Profile > Update Personal Information > Names > Email Addresses > Add an Email Address AND/OR click Preferred Address > SAVE)
2. Create and customize WordPress sites
3. Submit your blog URL to me via Google Forms:
Week 3 (Sep 8-12)
Monday
Topic: Rhetorical Approaches to Blogging
In-class resources: Pillar articles; granular posts; scannable content; citations
Action item: propose, discuss, and vote on blogging schedule / policies
Wednesday
Topic: Introduction to Design Principles
Read before class: Don Norman, Ch. 1 in The Design of Everyday Things (1988) (course reader)
Brainstorm approaches to Project 1
Friday
Topic: User Design
Read before class: Explore 52 Weeks of UX (website). Select three articles to discuss in class.
In-class activity: The Wallet Project
Week 4 (Sep 15-19)
Monday
Topic: Design and Science Fiction
Read before class: Frank Chimero, Ch. 5 from The Shape of Design (2012) (course reader)
Peer Review: Bring draft of Project 1 for peer consultation (Refer to The Wallet Project activity)
Wednesday (Lab Day)
Topic: Introduction to Design Tools
Friday
DUE at 11:59pm on your blog: Publish at least ONE post to your blog for evaluation (see blogging guidelines)
If you did not do so already, submit your blog URL to me via Google Forms:
Topic: Design and Science Fiction
Read before class: Ray Bradbury, “The Veldt; or, The World the Children Made” (1950) (course reader)
Week 5 (Sep 22-26)
Sep 23: Last day to drop without record
Monday (Conferencing–no class)
Teacher-student conferences (required)
Wednesday (Conferencing–no class)
Teacher-student conferences (required)
Friday (Lab Day)
Project 1 DUE by 11:59 pm. Submit via Dropbox.
Unit 2: Collaboration & Social Media
In the second unit, students will learn to think critically about the role of social media in contemporary life. Students will access a variety of sources of information, including opposing perspectives on social media, historical perspectives in literature, and contemporary theoretical approaches to social media. The primary goal of this unit is to also put students in face-to-face interaction with campus strangers so that they can critically assess social interactions from a digitally empowered perspective.
Week 6 (Sep 29-Oct 3)
Monday
Topic: Social Collaboration and Creativity
In-class resources: Mr. Norman’s Song ; Cognitive Surplus ; Chillout Song ; Make Believe
Wednesday (Lab Day)
Topic: Blogging
Friday (Hybrid)
Instead of coming to class today, watch the following two TED talks and write a blog post (to be posted by 11:59pm) based on the following prompt.
Watch: Ze Frank, “Web Playroom” (2010); Ze Frank, “Nerdcore Comedy” (2004)
BLOG: Select one of Ze Frank’s “recent projects” that your particularly admire. Perform a rhetorical analysis of the project: focus on HOW the project is constructed. Consider the purpose, the intended audience, the creation process, and the final product. Find its why.
Week 7 (Oct 6-Oct 10)
Monday
Topic: Critical Making
Read before class: David Gauntlett, Making Is Connecting, Ch. 9 (course reader)
Wednesday
Topic: Digital Time and Place
Read before class: Douglas Rushkoff, “Time: Do Not Always Be On” AND “Place: Live in Person,” from Program or Be Programmed (2010) (FROM THE BOOK YOU PURCHASED FROM THE BOOKIE!)
Read before class: danah boyd, “Participating in the Always-On Lifestyle,” from The Social Media Reader (2012) (course reader)
In-class resources: #oneSecond
Friday (Yay! It’s a Hybrid Day!)
Instead of coming to class, write a blog post in response to the readings on the “always-on lifestyle.” Consult this study guide, and use the “Questions for Discussion” and various activities on the pages exploring Rushkoff’s Principle of “Time” and Principle of “Place” to formulate your response.
The best blog posts will take on the more ambitious discussion questions and activities, exploring one concept in depth, while also engaging with ideas from Rushkoff’s books in addition to danah boyd’s ideas on being “always-on.”
Week 8 (Oct 13-17)
Oct 15: Mid-Term Grades due
Monday
Group presentation I: purpose, samples, goals
Groups 1-4 present
Wednesday
Group presentation I: purpose, samples, goals
Groups 5-8 present
Friday (Lab Day)
Topic: Blogs
DUE by 11:59pm: Complete a cumulative total of at least FIVE blog posts for evaluation (see blogging guidelines)
DIRECTIONS FOR SUBMISSION: To submit your blog posts for grading, please go to your blog home page and follow these instructions. The goal is to submit your blog posts as a single file PDF:
Click FILE > PRINT > Destination: CHANGE > Save as PDF > SAVE > Save As: 4.5Lastname.pdf > Upload to our shared Dropbox folder
Week 9 (Oct 20-24)
Monday NO CLASS
Class is cancelled.
Wednesday
Topic: Disconnection & science fiction
Read before class: E.M. Forster, “The Machine Stops” (1909) (course reader)
Friday
Read before class: Clay Shirky, “Gin, Television, and Social Surplus” (course reader)
In-class resources: Matt Ridley, “When Ideas Have Sex”; Why My Cat Is Sad; Cognitive Surplus
Week 10 (Oct 27-31)
Monday
Group presentation II
Groups 5-8 present
Wednesday
Group presentation II
Groups 1-4 present
Friday (HYBRID)
DUE: 11:59pm Oct 31.
Submit a blog post that
- (1)discusses your personal experiences and interactions in completing the Interaction Project; and
- (2) connects those experiences to at least ONE reading from the Unit 2: Collaboration and Social Media.
Length: 500 words. Penalties: 5-point deduction for late submission; 10-point deduction (aka Zero) for no submission by Dec. 1.
Unit 3: Commerce & Marketing
In the third unit, students will be introduced to data culture and collection and the role it plays in a commercial society. They will critically examine the way they currently retrieve information and revise their research methods according to increased knowledge about how databases work.
Week 11 (Nov 3-Nov 7)
Monday
Topic: Introduction to Information Architecture
Slides
Wednesday (HYBRID)
DUE: 11:59pm Nov 5.
Read: Rushkoff, “Choice: You May Always Choose None of the Above” (book)
Skim: Clay Shirky, “Ontology Is Overrated: Categories, Links, and Tags” (2005) (course reader)
Submit a blog post that contains the following:
- Create a classification system for a physical collection of objects in your possession (items in your backpack, fridge, car, desk drawer, etc). The classification systems should contain a hierarchy (see Shirky) of at least 3 levels.
- Reflect on the decisions you made in creating your system: what decisions did you make based on the types and quantities of items present? what kinds of pre-existing categories did you adopt (office supplies, beauty supplies)?
Length: 500 words. Penalties: 5-point deduction for late submission; 10-point deduction (aka Zero) for no submission by Dec. 1.
Friday
Topic: Thinking Outside the Box
Read before class: Rushkoff, “Complexity: You Are Never Completely Right” (book)
Read before class: Rushkoff, “Scale: One Size Does Not Fit All” (book)
Week 12 (Nov 10-14)
Nov 11: Veteran’s Day Holiday
Monday (Holiday)
Enjoy the day off and the long weekend!
Wednesday (HYBRID)
DUE: 11:59pm Nov 12.
Topic: The Complexity of a Moment
Read (or revisit): Rushkoff, “Complexity: You Are Never Completely Right” (book)
Read: Virginia Woolf, excerpt from Mrs Dalloway (1925)
Submit a blog post that contains the following:
- Isolate a single public moment or activity in your day that measures no more than a minute (walking into the classroom, waiting in line for food, sitting on the bus, etc). Describe as many sensory and cognitive details as you can imagine and experience (use Woolf for inspiration). This is a creative writing exercise, and so you can also imagine the thoughts and feelings of other people present or imagined.
- Reflect on the complexity of that moment. What “facts” can you use to objectively characterize that moment? How might that moment be “classified” in the annals of history? Consider what “tags” you might use to label the moment.
Length: 500 words. Penalties: 5-point deduction for late submission; 10-point deduction (aka Zero) for no submission by Dec. 1.
Friday (HYBRID)
DUE: 11:59pm Nov 14.
Submit a blog post on an open topic. Refer to the Blogging guidelines for ideas.
Length: 500 words. Penalties: 5-point deduction for late submission; 10-point deduction (aka Zero) for no submission by Dec. 1.
Week 13 (Nov 17-21)
Monday
Read before class: Stephen Ramsay, “The Hermeneutics of Screwing Around; or What You Do with a Million Books” (2010)
Read before class: Alexis C. Madrigal, “How Netflix Reverse Engineered Hollywood” (2014) (course reader)
Wednesday (HYBRID)
Refer back to Stephen Ramsay’s: “The Hermeneutics of Screwing Around; or What You Do with a Million Books” (2010)
Submit a blog post that contains the following:
1. Visit one of the campus libraries. Find your way to the book stacks. Wander around the stacks until you find a book that interests you enough to want to check it out. Take a picture of the book amid the stacks.
2. Reflect: How did you arrive at this book, and what did you discover once you found it? How is wandering around the library different from performing a search in the database?
Length: 500 words. Penalties: 5-point deduction for late submission; 10-point deduction (aka Zero) for no submission by Dec. 1.
Friday
Topic: Final Project
In the third project you will design a mini-database using Google Forms and Spreadsheets. In class, we will begin to brainstorm types of “objects” or “ideas” that you can shape into a database.
Optional resources on copyright law and remix culture:
Read before class: Douglas Rushkoff, “Openness: Share, Don’t Steal” (2010)
View: Eric Faden, “A Fairy(y) Use Tale (NOT a Disney Movie)” (video)
Read before class: Lawrence Lessig, “REMIX: How Creativity Is Being Strangled by the Law,” from The Social Media Reader (course reader)
In-class resources: William S. Burroughs, “Cut-Ups” ; CutUp Machine ; Alan Bigelow, “This Is Not a Poem”
Thanksgiving Break (Nov 24-28)
Happy Thanksgiving!
Week 14 (Dec 1-5)
Monday
Topic: Final Project
Wednesday
Topic: Blogs and Final Project
DUE by 11:59pm: Complete a cumulative total of at least TEN blog posts for evaluation (see blogging guidelines)
DIRECTIONS FOR SUBMISSION: Instead of submitting a PDF of your blog posts, I’d like for you to submit a one-page business memo that evaluates your blogging this semester and assigns a letter grade to your own work:
A = excellent effort, on-time submissions, 10 complete posts;
B = good effort, mostly on-time submissions, 9-10 complete posts;
C = adequate effort, some late submissions, 8-9 complete posts;
D = poor effort, many late submissions, 6-7 complete posts
The objective of blogging this semester was to get you to internalize course materials and concepts, as well as engage with these concepts in hands-on activities.
Save your one-page evaluation and letter grade as a PDF in dropbox, with the filename: 4Lastname.pdf.
Friday
Project 3 DUE by 11:59pm
Save your document as a PDF file. Save as: 3Lastname.pdf
Submit your final draft to our shared Dropbox folder before 11:59pm on Dec 5.
Week 15 (Dec 8-12)
Dec 12: Last day of class
Monday
Topic: Junior Portfolios, DTC Certification, LandEscapes; SURCA; Poster Tips; Professional Writing; Find Your Why
Wednesday (NO CLASS)
No class–work on reflection letter, assembling materials for your junior portfolio, certification, or LandEscapes.
Friday (Optional Class)
Topic: Portfolios, Certification, Creative Writing, and Beyond.
Junior Portfolio Instructions: Bring materials for Junior Portfolio (printed essay from this class + printed cover sheet) to receive my signature
To receive feedback: Bring draft of DTC certification materials; draft of Resume; draft of Reflection Letter; draft of LandEscapes submission
Reflection Letter DUE by 11:59pm
Save your document as a PDF file. Save as: 5Lastname.pdf
Write a business letter addressed to your professor that highlights your learning achievements this semester. Select 3 examples (from projects, activities, readings, or blog posts) to analyze. Be sure to include relevant quotes, screenshots, or summaries from the examples you select.
Your objective is to demonstrate what kinds of learning took place this semester and how this learning could be applied to future endeavors.
Format: Business letter, 1-2 pages, single-spaced