Syllabus

Introduction

Course Description

The current course description is as follows:

A focused inquiry into the nature of interaction for entertainment, persuasion, recreation, or human enrichment. Discussions and readings include sociology, anthropology, game theory and urgent topics such as developments in artificial intelligence. Students gain an understanding their role as creator, participant, viewer, and user. Adafruit’s Circuit Playground Express and Python are introduced as the technological substrate for their investigative work.

Course Objectives

  • Understand the vocabulary and practice of UI/UX design and related fields where similar principals apply.
  • Question and interrogate the presumptions of the field and how they relate to our larger culture.
  • Critically engage with urgent technological developments as they relate to us personally and as a larger culture. (AI, Quantum Computing).
  • To practice coding at an introductory level to understand the potential of the technology.
  • Using the Circuit Python Express as a way to physically ground programming concepts.

Expectations

  • You will be on time for class On class does not simply mean being in the classroom when class starts, but in the room and physically and meantily prepared to engage with the material.
  • Limited phone usage Please refrain from checking your phone during class time. If you have an urgent personal matter please let me know.
  • Ask questions (early!) . You will not understand everything in class. Thatistotally okay. Asking questions will help you to understand things as well as help me assess what it is you are understanding or not. Disregard the idea that you are stupid” if you ask questions.
  • Do homework I am structuring the class in such a way that I expect you will work outside of class to develop your understanding of the code we do.
  • You are not expected to become an expert However, you will need to reconsider some aspects of how you understand computers. As such please, treat this like learning a language. Work with your peers and friends, try to “converse” with them. Spend a distributed amount of time over the week, to let your brain “absorb” new knowledge. That is to say, an hour per day over the week is better than five hours the night before.You will be expected to demonstrate that you understand the code we do in class; however, major projects will not require coding.
  • All code requires comments. Some of the code we’re going to do is going to be so simple it is impossible for it to distinguish itself as completely original. We’ll get into it, but comments are the way to keep your code idiosyncratic.

Required Materials

  • A working computer or laptop with Adobe Creative Cloud. Projects in this class do not explicitly require you to use these programs, though proficiency with them is expected as a part of the Graphic Design curriculum.
  • A Circuit Playground Express. I will provide this for you as well as a USB-A to MicroUSB cable. You will also receive an adapter to USB-C if needed.
  • A code editor. Ideally this will be Mu, as it is designed for this purpose, though you are welcome to use any text editor you'd like such as VS Code or Sublime Text.

Attendance

As you know, Purchase College, SUNY, specifically the School of Art + Design, has a rather oppressive attendance policy (emphasis my own):

There are no excused absences in the School of Art+Design. Three or more absences in any course will result in a failing grade. Excessive tardiness may count as absences. Please see your course syllabi for more details.

This is mostly a good thing, in that it places emphasis on being in class together. However, the realities of life may make this policy feel more draconian than what it was intended to be. Please observe these practical policies:

  • Be on time for class, within 10 minutes of the class's start time, or you will be marked as late (unexcused).
  • Leaving class early without a reason that we mutually acknowledge and agree upon before class, counts as being late.
  • Three latenesses is equivalent to one absence.

I conversely will observe the following policies:

  • I will send an advanced warning to everdyone if I’m in danger of being late, and by what amount. This will more than likely be through email.
  • If you arrive late (unexcused or excused) and need to walk through material from class I will make time during a break, in-class work time, or a one-on-one outside of class.

Grading (The Class)

My general policy for grading is as follows:

When you don't give an "eff", that's when you get an F!

This is to say, if you do the work, you will generally pass the class. If you are looking for a superlative grade, then you must do superlative work.

This includes some, non-zero, amount of subjectivity in grading, but is generally outlined in the assignment descriptions.To facilitate this, you will receive some amount of "je ne sais quoi" points on projects for purely subjective reasons (i.e. a cute cat in a poster), otherwise I will try to retain what objectivity I can in grading based on the rubric of a given assignment.

If you are looking for Purchase College's Grades and Grading Policies you can find them here.

Grading (Assignments)

Your assignments will generally include:

  • Projects → These are a larger part of your grade and are, proportionally larger projects. They will take longer to do and will involve some amount of conceptual and technical synthesis.
  • Exercises → These will generally be smaller projects where the outcome is very clear. This might be, in the interest of learning a technique (software or otherwise) and is mainly to provide a kind of, residue that you performed the task.
  • Reading Responses → You may be asked to prepare written responses to readings to share with smaller groups and the class. As this class is within a design program, you will be asked to design and typeset these responses (ie these are not book reports). They will be graded in the same category as an "exercise."

Structure (Individual Classes)

We will begin each class with one of the following

  • Show 'n' Tell you will be asked to talk about anything for five minutes. This could be your favorite tv show, a trip you went on, work in another class. If you take longer than five minutes I will ask you to continue next class.

  • Stoopid Time This is new idea I am trying this semester. People will be assigned to ask and answer "stupid" or absurd questions.

  • Warm-up We will take some time to look at a new code concept on the Circuit Playground Express, review last week's exercise, and review and reinforce old concepts.

  • Discussions We will take some time to talk through a reading, viewing, or piece of art/design. You may be asked to make a designed response to it, or get into small groups and talk and then talk to the class.

  • Presentations/Reports/Meetings/Work Time We will take time to update each other on our progress on projects, or work on them. I may also use this time to talk about specialized topics.

  • Review Homework We will review what is due next week, and what things may have been forgotten or moved around.

Structure (Semester)

This semester I am taking a new approach to assignments. Assignments, generally, do not have proper "due dates." This is to facilitate you navigating the class as best suites you, and to remove some pressure around critique.

That being said, we will generally have three kinds of days for reviewing work:

  • one-on-ones these will be during in-class work time or via scheduled in-class meetings.
  • progress reports you will give a short update on your relative progress on the projects you are working on. This will be used for technological questions or issues. You will give your progress report to the class, and are expected to invest in your classmates' work.
  • discussion days these will be closer to critique. As projects get closer to completion I will schedule time for people to present "proposed" finals. You may be asked to make modifications and show the project again.

You will be expected to complete all the assignments with a significant amount enough time before the end of the semester so that we may display the work in a show.

Additionally, as I have taught this class before and have some sense of the labor (psychic, physical, emotional, or otherwise) involved in completing projects, I may ask you to start turning your focus to certain projects.

As far as projects this semester they will be:

  • Creating a "button" using your newly acquired knowledge to create a button of some kind
  • Creating a "recipe" reframe your understanding of code in order to create a step-by-step sequence of instructions.
  • Change of Boundaries propose and execute a project that interacts with the world in some way.
  • A "recital" for the CPX you will turn your knowledge of code into a project that demonstrates it clearly.
  • A "duet" for the CPX pair with someone else in the class or interact with a computer in a meaningful way.

As far as exercises you will be expected to do weekly homework at the beginning of the semester to demonstrate your understanding of Python and Circuit Playground Express. There will also be weekly readings and viewings.

Required Statements

I am required to include the following statements in my syllabi. I will mention additionally how to locate this material in class, as well as in the printed syllabi.