Module 1 — Overview

Introduction and in-depth exploration of HCI, IxD, UXR, and Usability

Module 1 serves multiple purposes which are listed below:

The module ascertains that students are aware of the class policies, syllabus, communication policies, where to get help, and other `formalities’, among those plagiarism and misconduct processes as well as the general class grading rubric.
The module and the embedded activities (discussions, quizzes, assignments) are lightweight and will introduce students to essential Canvas functionalities necessary for the remainder of the class, for instance, where to find a rubric or how to submit a file via a Canvas Discussion.
The module will introduce students to ethical research through a mandated Institutional Review Board Training assignment, which is imperative to continue the course.
Through the explorations, students will learn key terms, origins, and concepts from the fields of usability engineering, human-computer interaction, interaction design, user research, and related materials.

As such, Module 1 is a `typical’ week 1 module, which makes heavy use of images and videos to engage students with the initial learning materials.

After successful completion of this module, you should be able to do the following (in addition to answering the questions listed below):

Present yourself to an audience of your peers via a short biography.
- What are the key components of a short biography?
- What are your immediate and long-term career goals?
.Explain and evaluate ethical research with human participants.
- What is the Belmont Report?
- What are Institutional Review Boards?
- Why is ethical research, participant safety, and security important?
- What does informed consent mean?
- How do you protect the psychological and physical safety of your research participants?
Explain key terms and concepts in Usability Engineering.
- What were the design goals of the Apple Lisa 1 computer from 1983?
- What are examples of interfaces, interactions, or devices which exhibit good and poor usability?
- What is a `Norman Door’?
- What are affordances and constraints?
- What are the four stages of Don Norman’s human-centered design process?
- What are Don Norman’s design principles?
- What is the difference between usability and usability engineering?
- What is the difference between interaction and interaction design?
- What is user research?
- What is human-computer interaction?
- What is the difference between empirical and formal research methods?
- Why is user testing important and what are the three critical key points, according to Jakob Nielsen, to keep in mind for user testing?

Use the pages within this module to explore the following concepts:

Please make sure to complete the following assignments and other tasks: