Tuesday, March 10 Class Discussions
Working in groups of three (or four), discuss the following questions:
+ First 15 minutes (answer the following questions):
- What are the misconceptions regarding graphic design from the perspective of the target audience (non-designers)?
- Think about these misconceptions by reflecting upon your experience explaining what you study, what you do in class, what you hope to do when you graduate to family, friends, etc.
- What are some of the things that is not understood by the target audience regarding the topic of graphic design?
- What are some questions you would ask to assess whether someone understood design?
ie. What is (graphic) design? How it’s used? What is the purpose/goal of design?
+ Although you may have many ideas floating in your head regarding “project solutions,” you must first identity who is the target audience—what they think and why they think that way? We need to understand the context of their understanding of design. User research helps to provide that context. User research also helps us to avoid our own biases, because we frequently have to create design solutions for people who aren’t like us.
+ Next 15 minutes: Research Objectives: Identifying The Questions We Are Trying To Answer
Translate these questions (influenced by graphic design misconceptions) into research objectives.
The type of questions you want to answer, and how you phrase them as your research objective, will serve as the scope for your team’s research efforts. Overall these objective should begin to identify the cause of non-designers misinterpreting what is graphic design.
Research objectives often start with the following action verbs: describe, determine, discover, characterize, define, list, indicate, associate, compare, (see Objective.pdf handout in dropbox)
Example Research Objectives:
- Determine how the target audience learns about design? (through tv shows [design through reality tv design competitions: Project Runway, HGTV Rehab Addict]? Media? )
- Identity the aspects of graphic design that are accurately identified by the target audience? Compare with aspects of inaccurate associations with design?
- Compile list of things the target audience associates with graphic design? What are the outcomes/products of graphic design?
+ Next 15 minutes (working individually):
Individually brainstorming (by sketching, creating a mind map, list, or diagram, etc) ways to transform your research questions (from when you formulated the research objective) into a user research survey that will begin to collect qualitative data that provides insight into an effective approach towards a design solution for project 2. Sketch out at least 4 different solutions to the project (that will serve as a platform (“campaign”) to increase awareness and understanding of graphic design.
+ Last 30 minutes (in your groups, discuss your ideas from this sketching session).
Check out these online articles regarding User Researching:
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2013/09/23/5-step-process-conducting-user-research/
http://alistapart.com/article/audiences-outcomes-and-determining-user-needs
http://alistapart.com/article/a-new-way-to-listen
http://www.aiga.org/guide-whatisgraphicdesign/
Homework
1. You have until Friday, March 13 to make modifications to your project 1. Please submit web files via dropbox>P1 Revisions folder no later than 10am, March 13. Be sure put your full name on your folder. Effective and successful changes seen in the project revision will be considered in midterm grading.
2. If you would like to work in a group (no more than two students per group) for Project 2, please email Rachel no later than 10am, Friday, March 13 to confirm students in a group.
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