Spring 2020  |  WRIT 4501 Section 001: Usability and Human Factors in Technical Communication (54718)

Instructor(s)
Class Component:
Discussion
Credits:
3 Credits
Grading Basis:
Student Option No Audit
Instructor Consent:
No Special Consent Required
Instruction Mode:
In Person Term Based
Class Attributes:
Community Engaged Learning
Times and Locations:
Regular Academic Session
 
01/21/2020 - 05/04/2020
Thu 04:00PM - 06:30PM
UMTC, East Bank
Science Teaching Student Svcs 512B
Enrollment Status:
Closed (26 of 24 seats filled)
Also Offered:
Course Catalog Description:
Principles/concepts of human factors/usability testing. Developing objectives, criteria, and measures. Conducting tests in lab, field, and virtual environments. Using software programs to analyze qualitative/quantitative data.
Class Description:
Usability is concerned with how people interact with design and technology; usability is commonly known as the "ease of use" of products and technologies by a range of users. This course emphasizes usability and user research and will explore the intersection of usability and technical communication. We will investigate definitions of usability and user-centered design principles, and we will explore a variety of usability research methods including use cases, heuristic evaluation, and usability testing. The course will focus heavily on usability testing of web sites, a common technical communication task that involves observation and interviews of human subjects interacting with a web site. Individual assignments include a design analysis, heuristic evaluation, and final exam. Collaborative assignments include a use case, test plan, and test report and corresponding documents to supplement a 10-week team project involving a usability test of a client web site in the University of Minnesota Usability Lab. To fulfill graduate credit, graduate students taking this course will research a usability-related topic. Because this is an advanced level course, students should already have knowledge of basic technical writing skills such as editing, information design, and collaborative teamwork skills.
Grading:
20% Final Exam
70% Reports/Papers
10% Class Participation Other Grading Information: Individual work consists of 60% of total course grade. Collaborative work consists of 40% of total course grade.
Exam Format:
Take-home essay
Class Format:
20% Lecture
30% Discussion
10% Laboratory
30% Small Group Activities
10% Student Presentations
Workload:
50-70 Pages Reading Per Week
50 Pages Writing Per Term
1 Exam(s)
1 Presentation(s)
4 Special Project(s)
Other Workload: Student groups will design, conduct, and record results of a usability test on a web site for a real client outside the classroom.
Textbooks:
https://bookstores.umn.edu/course-lookup/54718/1203
Instructor Supplied Information Last Updated:
30 October 2013

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