12/27/2024 9:03:10 AM	GD 90 Course Outline as of Spring 2021	Changed Course
CATALOG INFORMATION
Discipline and Nbr:  GD 90	Title:  USER EXPERIENCE
Full Title:  Designing the User Experience
Last Reviewed:2/11/2019

Units		Course Hours per Week			Nbr of Weeks	Course Hours Total
Maximum	3.00	Lecture Scheduled	3.00		17.5 max.	Lecture Scheduled	52.50
Minimum	3.00	Lab Scheduled	0		6 min.	Lab Scheduled	0
		Contact DHR	0			Contact DHR	0
		Contact Total	3.00			Contact Total	52.50
		Non-contact DHR	0			Non-contact DHR Total	0

Total Out of Class Hours:  105.00

Total Student Learning Hours: 157.50

Title 5 Category:  AA Degree Applicable
Grading:  Grade or P/NP
Repeatability:  00 - Two Repeats if Grade was D, F, NC, or NP
Also Listed As: 
Formerly: 

Catalog Description:

This course covers user experience design, following the user-centered design process. It is oriented toward practical methods for approaching a design problem holistically, beyond usability and usefulness. It examines different target platforms such as smartphone, tablets, and desktop systems. A user-centric approach is employed to determine which platform is best for the desired application. In this class, students will demonstrate an understanding of user experience including how to design for it and how to evaluate it. This course teaches a set of techniques to gather information about what the user needs, how to design and model interfaces based on those needs and then how to evaluate the design to ascertain that the user's goals are met.

Prerequisites/Corequisites:

Recommended Preparation:
Course Completion of GD 51

Limits on Enrollment:

Schedule of Classes Information
Description:

This course covers user experience design, following the user-centered design process. It is oriented toward practical methods for approaching a design problem holistically, beyond usability and usefulness. It examines different target platforms such as smartphone, tablets, and desktop systems. A user-centric approach is employed to determine which platform is best for the desired application. In this class, students will demonstrate an understanding of user experience including how to design for it and how to evaluate it. This course teaches a set of techniques to gather information about what the user needs, how to design and model interfaces based on those needs and then how to evaluate the design to ascertain that the user's goals are met.

(Grade or P/NP)
Prerequisites:
Recommended:Course Completion of GD 51
Limits on Enrollment:
Transfer Credit:CSU;
Repeatability:00 - Two Repeats if Grade was D, F, NC, or NP

ARTICULATION, MAJOR, and CERTIFICATION INFORMATION

Associate Degree:		Effective:		Inactive:
Area:
CSU GE:	Transfer Area			Effective:	Inactive:
IGETC:	Transfer Area			Effective:	Inactive:
CSU Transfer:	Transferable	Effective:	Fall 2019	Inactive:
UC Transfer:		Effective:		Inactive:
C-ID:

Certificate/Major Applicable: Both Certificate and Major Applicable

COURSE CONTENT

Student Learning Outcomes:
At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:

1.  Perform user research, synthesize data, and generate personas

2.  Create prototypes testing user interactions with designed interfaces

3.  Use data collected to create user-centered designs

 

Objectives:

At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:

1.   Gather useful information about users and activities through asking, looking, learning, and

      trying

2.   Organize information about users into useful summaries with affinity diagrams

3.   Convey user research findings with personas and scenarios

4.   Learn and utilize the skill of sketching as a process for user experience design

5.   Learn to give and receive critiques of design ideas in a constructive manner

6.   Demonstrate skills for low-fidelity prototyping, and describe the strengths and weaknesses of

      a variety of prototyping methods

7.   Describe the process of user experience design as a cyclical, iterative process

8.   Understand the differences between usability and user experience

9.   Analyze an interaction design problem and propose a user-centered process, justifying the

      process and identifying the trade-offs

10. Prepare high quality, professional documentation and artifacts relating to the design process

      for preparation for a professional portfolio

Topics and Scope

I. Introduction to User Experience Design

    A. User experience (UX) and user interface (UI) design principles

    B. UI design principles

    C. Product design to user experience

    D. User experience and the web

    E. Mind your users

    F. Seven steps

         1. Plan

         2. Discovery

         3. Explore

         4. Define

         5. Design

         6. Validate

         7. Deliver

II. UX Design Thinking

    A. Equal parts of beauty, ease and accessibility

    B. Leveraging pre-existing skills

    C. Applying design thinking to real problems

    D. Five planes

         1. Surface

         2. Structure

         3. Scope

         4. Strategy

         5. Skeleton

III. User-Centered Design Research

    A. Defining strategy

    B. Success metrics

    C. User needs

    D. Usability

    E. Team roles and process

    F.  Discovery

IV. Systems Thinking

    A. Function and content

    B. Defining requirements

    C. Functional Specifications

V.    Empathy and Users

VI.   UX Interviewing

VII.  Insight Synthesis

VIII. Decision Mapping

IX.   Prototyping

X.    User Interaction Design

    A. Information Architecture

    B. Structuring content

    C. Architectural approaches

    D. Organizing principles

    E. Navigation design

    F. Way-finding

XI.  Mock-Up Software

XII. Project Management

Assignments:

1. In and out of class writing assignments (1-16), such as:

    a. Discussion boards

     b. Creating user personas

     c. Writing project briefs

    d. Weekly readings (1 - 50 page) with reflection discussion board posts

    e. Responding to peer discussion board post

2. In class assignments (1-16), such as:

    a. Group based mock interview based problem solving

    b. Group based brainstorming and concept generation

    c. Interface analysis and problem solving

    d. Sketch and create a storyboard of the interactive prototype

    e. Creating high-fidelity prototypes

3. Major project, such as: a term length project. The end result will be a complete user

    experience design package:

    personas, stories, preliminary layout and storyboards, UX testing plan, user interaction

    analysis, and prototype implementation. In addition to gaining hands-on experience at

    each stage of the design process.

4. Quizzes and/or tests (0-16)

5. Participation and attendance

Methods of Evaluation/Basis of Grade.

Writing: Assessment tools that demonstrate writing skill and/or require students to select, organize and explain ideas in writing.		Writing 10 - 25%
In and out of class writing assignments
Problem solving: Assessment tools, other than exams, that demonstrate competence in computational or non-computational problem solving skills.		Problem Solving 25 - 50%
In class assignments
Skill Demonstrations: All skill-based and physical demonstrations used for assessment purposes including skill performance exams.		Skill Demonstrations 25 - 50%
Major project
Exams: All forms of formal testing, other than skill performance exams.		Exams 0 - 20%
Quizzes and/or tests
Other: Includes any assessment tools that do not logically fit into the above categories.		Other Category 5 - 10%
Participation and attendance

Representative Textbooks and Materials:

100 Things Every Designer Needs to Know About People. Weinschenk, Susan. New Riders. 2011 (classic)

 

Elements of User Experience: User-Centered Design for the Web and Beyond. 2nd ed. Garrett, Jesse. New Riders. 2010 (classic)

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