A series of lectures and seminars that introduce different design methods combined with design exercises that give practical experience. All exercises are carried out within the scope of the project work that students carry out during the course. Methods that are covered include:

• methods to explore a design space: studies of existing interaction modalities, exploration of technologies as design material, state of the art analyses, mood boards
• methods to support design reviews: interaction criticism, parallel design, personas, structured brainstorming.
• methods to develop design alternatives: scenarios, lo-fi prototypes, video prototypes, prototype construction with modern soft- and hardware tools.
• methods for composition and presentation: fine tuning and testing of solutions, efficient user tests, presentation of completed solutions online through different media.

After passing the course, the student should be able to

• give an account of common process models in interaction design
• give an account of design methods in the different phases of the design process
• discuss how different methods can contribute to successful solutions based on research and experiences in the industry
• analyse strengths, weaknesses and applicability of different methods
• account for and utilise technological properties in different design materials to create successful solutions
• apply methods for design of interactive media technologies in practice
• use modern software and hardware tools for interaction design

in order to independently be able to run successful design processes.

Lectures are class meetings where a teacher will convey information to the whole group of students, combining theoretical and applied aspects, and involving a back-and-forth with the students. Slides will be available after the class (if posible, they will also be available beforehand). A priori, lectures will not be recorded so that students feel more participative --in the spirit of seminars--, but this can be arranged with the teacher on a case-to-case basis. Students are encouraged to take notes during lectures. Typically, preparation is not required.

Workshops involve a teacher proposing practical activities to the whole group of students. If slides are used, these will be available after the class and whenever possible, also beforehand. Workshops will consist of in-class exercises to be done individually or in groups during the class meeting. Some workshops require preparation (e.g., bringing material from/for their group project), in which case the students are told in advance. The workshops include guided work and can be followed by project work time.

Seminars are reading seminars that require preparation from students, with readings to be done, and light written assignments to be handed in before the session. This information will be available from the first week of the course. In the seminars, students mainly interact with each other while a teacher facilitates the session.

Tutorials ('handledning') are sessions where project groups will meet their group supervisor and get formative feedback and guidance towards the project. Tutorials can be supervision slots or design critique slots ('crits'). In supervision slots, each group will meet their supervisor for a certain time, and so some preparation is required, i.e. coming ready to discuss the group's progress. In design critique slots, all the groups that share a supervisor will meet and present their progress in front of the rest, in order to get peer feedback (and when possible, teacher feedback). In this case, some preparation is needed (typically, groups prepare some quick slides to show).

The examination ('redovisning') slot corresponds to the last class meeting, in which the whole group of students will exhibit their projects to the teachers and to the rest of the class.

The detailed plan for the learning activities will be always up-to-date in the official schedule: https://www.kth.se/social/course/DM2601/calendar/

In addition, the Canvas course will contain Zoom links if any activity is to be run online.

There are no books that need to be bought or borrowed for this course. Links to optional literature resources will be available on Canvas from course publication. 

The students should have access to a device from which they can type in written assignments, read articles, browse the Internet, run interactive prototyping tools, and if required by their group, run video editing tools. They should also be able to attend Zoom meetings if any is planned. Students should also create a Miro account if they do not have one (they are eligible to an educational account).

We strongly recommend the students to update Zoom to the latest version if their device allows for this.

Extra software will be recommended throughout the course based on students' needs (always listed on Canvas).

Students at KTH with a permanent disability can get support during studies from Funka:

Funka - compensatory support for students with disabilities

• INL1 - Written assignment, self-reflection, 2.5 credits, grading scale: P, F
• PRO1 - Interaction design project within mediatechnology, 5.0 credits, grading scale: P, F

Based on recommendation from KTH’s coordinator for disabilities, the examiner will decide how to adapt an examination for students with documented disability.

The examiner may apply another examination format when re-examining individual students.

If the course is discontinued, students may request to be examined during the following two academic years.

Getting a pass in INL1 implies getting a pass, individually, in all the assignments related to this 'moment'.

Getting a pass in PRO1 implies getting a pass, as a group, in all the assignments related to this 'moment'. At the individual level, getting a pass in PRO1 also involves passing the examination ('redovisning'), where each student in a group must be able to explain and argue for the group's project.

During the course, teachers will provide formative feedback to students, in person and via Canvas, so that they can attain the intended learning outcomes and pass the course.

The final grade will be a pass if the student has obtained a pass in both INL1 and PRO1.

If by the moment the examiner is ready to report the passing grades, a student has not yet passed INL1 or PRO1, they will be informed that they have 6 weeks to compensate for this and be then re-examined. The specific compensation will be arranged with the examiner.

After the deadline for the final project, the examiner will grade the students' work towards PRO1 (as well as any not-yet-passed assignment related to INL1) and will report the final passing grades up to 3 weeks later. If a student did not achieve a 'pass' by then, the examiner will communicate that they have 6 extra weeks to compensate and be then re-examined.

• All members of a group are responsible for the group's work.
• In any assessment, every student shall honestly disclose any help received and sources used.
• In an oral assessment, every student shall be able to present and answer questions about the entire assignment and solution.

Please check on Canvas the course specific guidelines on the use of generative AI tools. 

On 04/15/2021, the Head of the EECS School has decided to establish this official course syllabus to apply from autumn semester 2021, registration number: J-2021-0915.