CSC3731 : Human Computer Interaction: Interaction Design
- Offered for Year: 2025/26
- Module Leader(s): Dr Ahmed Kharrufa
- Lecturer: Dr Ian Johnson
- Owning School: Computing
- Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus
Semesters
Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.
| Semester 1 Credit Value: | 20 |
| ECTS Credits: | 10.0 |
| European Credit Transfer System | |
Aims
• To give students an understanding of Interaction Design practice and its application to a variety of
domain areas including user experience, social interactions and playful interactions.
• To give students an understanding of relevant concepts from Interaction Design.
• To equip students with a skill set in practices of Interaction Design including understanding users,
prototyping, and evaluation.
• To expose the students to the issues of privacy and ethics in relation to digital and emerging technologies
such as Generative AI and how they relate to specific design decisions.
• To give students experience in GUI design on multiple platforms.
• To give students experience of, and to develop skills in, working in collaborative design teams.
Outline Of Syllabus
• Understanding users and user requirements.
• Fieldwork for design and evaluation.
• Models, theories, and frameworks of interaction design.
• Design principles.
• Methods for designing with and for users.
• Generative AI for HCI.
• Designing for specific application areas such as user experience and social interactions.
• Prototyping.
• Expert and user evaluation techniques.
• Data, ethics and privacy.
Teaching Methods
Teaching Activities
| Category | Activity | Number | Length | Student Hours | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 30 | 1:00 | 30:00 | Coursework development and preparation of individual report. |
| Structured Guided Learning | Lecture materials | 10 | 1:00 | 10:00 | A combination of short recordings of lecture material, slides and/or text published on Canvas each week. |
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 15 | 1:00 | 15:00 | Coursework group work development and preparation and group presentation. |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 11 | 2:00 | 22:00 | Opportunities for in person discussions and Q & A about the topics covered during the week. |
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 10 | 2:00 | 20:00 | Skills practice - practical independent individual work. |
| Guided Independent Study | Directed research and reading | 10 | 3:00 | 30:00 | Reading preparation for in person, practicals and live sessions. |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Practical | 11 | 2:00 | 22:00 | Practical (in person) classes to carry out group activities. |
| Guided Independent Study | Independent study | 39 | 1:00 | 39:00 | Background reading. |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Scheduled on-line contact time | 12 | 1:00 | 12:00 | Online tutorials around using prototyping tools such as Figma. |
| Total | 200:00 |
Teaching Rationale And Relationship
In each week, students will be provided with online learning material (short videos, slides and/or text) that will be used to introduce the learning material and for demonstrating the key concepts by example.
Lectures sessions will provide opportunities to discuss the materials covered in the week and for live questions and answers about these topics
Students will be expected to read suggested material or engage with suggested online media resources in preparation for lectures and practical sessions. Students are expected to widen their knowledge beyond the content of lecture notes through wider self-directed background reading.
Practical classes will develop skills through hands-on experience of interaction design techniques and developing GUI design on multiple platforms. These will also promote group working skills. Students will be expected to spend significant time in completing work between practical classes, which will be used towards their coursework.
Online tutorials will be used to teach the students the skills needed to use industry standard prototyping tools (such as Figma). The will give the opportunity to learn by example, then apply in their own machine to learn the required fundamentals.
Assessment Methods
The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners
Other Assessment
| Description | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design/Creative proj | 1 | M | 30 | Group showcase of early technology concepts in response to a design brief (equivalent to 1000 words). |
| Design/Creative proj | 1 | M | 70 | Individual report (equiv 2500 words) Individual report of design work in response to a design brief. |
Zero Weighted Pass/Fail Assessments
| Description | When Set | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Practical/lab report | M | Feedback on practical activities. Submitted responses will be signed-off. To progress , students must have at least 60% signed off. |
Assessment Rationale And Relationship
The students will be given a design brief and are expected to submit a design report in response to the design brief.
The first submission is a group submission and showcase demonstrating the ideation process and initial design(s). This will give an opportunity to give early feedback on the design direction before proceeding with their ideas for the second coursework.
The second submission is an individual report demonstrating the application of knowledge and skills acquired throughout the module to the students designs.
The formative assessment will give students as much feedback as possible before submitting the final report.
These assessments will ensure that students have hands-on experience in advanced user-centred design process that is both field and theory informed. The hands-on practical nature of human computer interaction practice necessitates a coursework based evaluation, rather than a written exam.
Reading Lists
Timetable
- Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
- CSC3731's Timetable