Human-Computer Interaction

Class Meetings

Asynchronous work is linked from the course schedule and should be submitted as instructed on the activity.

During synchronous meetings, our class will meet through the Zoom online conference system.   
For everyone’s benefit, join the course in a quiet place, use earphones, turn on your video, mute your microphone unless you are speaking. We will adopt the same rules and norms as in a physical classroom: take notes, raise your hand to participate by asking and answering questions.

To protect your privacy, please follow these rules when using Zoom:

• The instructor will email you a link to a zoom meeting. Do not share this information with anyone.
• In general, lectures and discussions will not be recorded.
• Before turning on the camera be aware of people and items in the background.
• Before sharing your screen make sure you do not share private or sensitive information.
  

Reading Material

At points in the semester, you may need to connect to Wellesley College's campus network to access some readings. To do this, you will need to set up and connect to the Wellesley College VPN. Please do this by 5/20.

Some of our readings will include articles from the New York Times. Wellesley College provides a free NYT subscription to all students. To claim this subscription, you must be connected to the Wellesley VPN before activating your NYT group pass. Please do this by 5/20.

There is no required textbook for this course. All reading materials are available and linked from the class schedule. If you would like to dive into the material and purchase a textbook to follow along, you can obtain one of the following books:

Recommended reading materials and textbooks:
Don Norman's Design of Everyday Things (DOET)
B. Shneiderman, C. Plaisant, M.Cohen, S. Jacobs, N. Elmqvist, N.Diakopoulos, Designing the User Interface: Strategies for Effective Human-Computer Interaction (6th Edition)
A. Dix, J. Finlay, G.Abowd, R. Beale, Human-Computer Interaction (3rd Edition)

Course Requirements

Class attendance is essential for meeting the objectives of this course. Students are required to attend the synchronous class meetings. Active participation in this course, through many forms such as class discussions, small group break-outs, teamwork, is expected.

This course is a project-based course that requires students to work in teams to design, implement and evaluate a mobile user interface through an iterative process. As part of your team project, you will be expected to do the following:

• Identify a problem that could be addressed through the development and deployment of a web app.
• Develop a conceptual design for a novel user interface.
• Implement the user interface you have designed using low and high fidelity prototyping tools.
• Document your user interface with pictures, video, diagrams, and text in a web page that will remain a part of the Human-Computer Interaction course online gallery.
• Present the interface you have built in class.

There are three types of individual assignments: reflection questionnaires, reading reviews, and homework assignments.

Grading

Grades for the course will be determined by the following:
Project - 45%     
Homework assignments - 40%
Participation (submission of all asynchronous activities, participation in synchronous lectures) - 15%

Grading Policy: There is no arbitrary limit on the number of A's, B's, C's etc. for the class, and every student will be assigned the grade they earn and deserve according to the rubric for each assessment.

In general, the mapping from numerical score to letter grades looks like this: 95.00 is an A, 90.00 is an A-, 86.67 is a B+, 83.33 is a B, 80.00 is a B-, 76.67 is a C+, 73.33 is a C, 70.00 is a C-, 60.00 is a D.

Late Assignment Policy

You are encouraged to submit assignments on the requested deadline but you may submit it up to 48 hours after the deadline . If you need extra time beyond this grace period, it is required that you contact the instructor during the 48 hours grace period. We will work together to make a plan that is reasonable and effective so that it supports both your learning and your health.

Collaboration Policy

The Wellesley College honor code applies to CS220. This course emphasizes collaboration, as working effectively within teams is an important part of innovation culture. Working with a team provides you with opportunities to develop and improve interpersonal, communication, leadership, and follower-ship skills. Group assignments and team project are also important for learning integrative skills through the development of a complex system.

I strongly encourage you to get to know all of your classmates and to collaborate extensively with them. Because of the interdisciplinary nature of this course, you may be strong in some areas but weak in others. Please share your strengths, and feel free to ask others for help.

Here is a summary of the collaboration policy:

• In-class activities and discussion: This class requires your active contribution during our time together. Please come to class prepared and ready to contribute to our learning community. During class you will work in group using breakout rooms and other online tools.
• Independent asynchronous activity: Collaboration is allowed and encouraged. Specifiy your collaborator(s), submit your own copy.
• Homework assignments: No collaboration.
• Project: Teams of 3-4 students work together to complete and submit project milestones. You will be assigned to a team.

Using Generative AI

Aligned with its learning goals, this course encourages students to explore responsible and critical engagement with generative artificial intelligence (GAI) tools such as ChatGPT, DALL·E, Midjourney, Claude and Bard within the context of interaction design. The use of GAI or AI powered tools is only allowed on specific assignments or activities, and follow this CS220 policy on using GAI.

We draw your attention to the fact that different classes at Wellesley implement different AI policies, and it is the student's responsibility to conform to expectations for each course. 

Disabilities

If you have a disability or condition, either long-term or temporary, and need reasonable academic adjustments in this course, please contact Disability Services to get a letter outlining your accommodation needs, and submit that letter to me. You should request accommodations as early as possible in the semester, or before the semester begins, since some situations can require significant time for review and accommodation design. If you need immediate accommodations, during the semester, please arrange to meet with me as soon as possible. If you are unsure but suspect you may have an undocumented need for accommodations, you are encouraged to contact Disability Services. They can provide assistance including screening and referral for assessments.

Disability Services can be reached at disabilityservices@wellesley.edu, at 781-283-2434, or by scheduling an appointment online at their website www.wellesley.edu/disability.