Information Architecture

Syllabus

COURSE DESCRIPTION

In the digital age, Information is an ever-growing factor, understanding how to organize it based on user mental models and behavior is more imperative than ever. This course will help prepare students for a future career by giving the student a basic knowledge of Information Architecture.  

Students will explore basic concepts and methods to design an appropriate information structure / navigation while taking into consideration the needs of the user.

IS 690e is a graduate level, three-credit course.  The prerequisite is IS621 with a Minimum Grade of C. Students do not need to know how to write code and will not be expected to do as a requirement for this course. Nice to have skills, but not required:

- Omnigraffle

COURSE GOALS

Information Architecture is the arrangement of information so that it is navigable, findable and understandable. Through teaching solid theory and practical application, the goal of course will give students a strong introductory foundation of Information Architecture.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Students will learn:  

• The definition Information Architecture

• Acquire information needs and seeking behavior knowledge

• Understand organizational models and structures of information

• The definition of Navigation, as well as its anatomy

• How to conduct research (Card Sorting)

• When and how to use search

TEXTBOOKS AND SUPPLIES

Required textbook:

• Information Architecture for the World Wide Web, 4th Edition by Peter Morville, Louis Rosenfeld

Recommended textbook:

• Communicating Design, 2nd Edition by Dan Brown

The online site for this course (on Blackboard) will contain readings, presentations, interactive exercises, and supplemental material covering Information Architecture concepts and principles.

ACTIVITIES

Time in the classroom (Room W200A) will be broken up into small increments with 5 minute breaks in between each increment, this is so that students have time to digest information and not be overwhelmed.  The increments will be the following formats:

• Lecture & Hands on learning

• Design Studio (Share and critique sessions)

• Workshop (In class time for collaboration and exploration)

• Presentation

Outside of the classroom students will be expected to do the following:

• Reading assignments

• Spend time collaborating with team members

• Conducting exercises based on the lessons

• Brainstorming and developing final project

SCHEDULE

The following how the semester will unfold, note that the schedule is subject to change:

Prework

Read about heuristics, be prepared to discuss and have examples:

• https://uiuxdesgnthings.quora.com/UX-vs-UI-vs-IA-vs-IxD-4-Confusing-Digital-Design-Terms-Defined

• https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ia-vs-navigation/

Additionally, read the following:

• https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ten-usability-heuristics/

• http://www.uxmatters.com/mt/archives/2011/09/framing-the-practice-of-information-architecture.php

• http://www.uxbooth.com/articles/the-difference-between-ia-and-ux-design/

• http://www.uxbooth.com/articles/introduction-to-taxonomies/
  

Week 1

Class Activities

Class Discussion: Intro to class: rules, etc.

Break

Lecture: Intro to Information Architecture(IA)

• What is Information Architecture

• https://aycl.uie.com/virtual_seminars/watch_intro/139/4/?f=tw

Break

Lecture: Intro to Information Architecture

• What is Information Architecture

• Why is it important

• What is the role of an IA

• Double Diamond Process

Exercise: Sort and categorize candy in as many ways as you can think of

Week 2

Homework due:

Information Architecture for the WWW

• Chapter 1: Introducing Information Architecture

• Chapter 2: Defining Information Architecture

Class Activities

Discussion: Review homework Break

Lecture: The problems the Information Architecture solve and Defining it

• The many definitions of IA

• The abstract nature of IA

Exercise: Work in teams of two, define information Architecture and explain to the class. Include real world example.

Exercise: As a class recreate the record collection scenario described in the book. Organize the records according to alphabet, Singer or Group, by type, By year etc, how does the medium impact the organization?

Week 3

Homework due:

Information Architecture for the WWW

• Chapter 3: Design for Finding

• Chapter 4: Design for Understanding

• Read:

  • https://www.nngroup.com/articles/chunking/?utm_source=Alertbox&utm_campaign=0bb365f445-Games_User_Research_and_Chunking_03_21_2016&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_7f29a2b335-0bb365f445-40062217

  • http://boxesandarrows.com/four-modes-of-seeking-information-and-how-to-design-for-them/

Class Activities

Discussion: Review homework

Break

Lecture: User Needs and Behaviors How Users Navigate

• Information needs and seeking behavior

• Defined

• Why it’s important

• Models of how users look for information

• Seeking Behavior

• How people make sense of where they are and what they can do there

• Place making in the physical world and in information environments

• Basic organizing principles to make information environments more understandable

Break

Exercise: Heads Up:

• Perfect Catch = known-item seeking

• Lobster trapping = exploratory seeking

• Indiscriminate drift netting = exhaustive research

• Moby Dick = re-finding

Week 4

Homework due:

Information Architecture for the WWW

• Chapter 11: Research https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2014/10/improving-information-architecture-card-sorting-beginners-guide/

• https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/book/the-encyclopedia-of-human-computer-interaction-2nd-ed/card-sorting?ep=armin_z-dot-

• https://www.nngroup.com/articles/card-sorting-definition/?utm_source=Alertbox&utm_campaign=255ac9cfbf-track-ux-capacity-card-sorting_2018_03_19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_7f29a2b335-255ac9cfbf-40062217

• https://usabilitygeek.com/card-sorting-quick-guide-for-beginners/

Class Activities

Discussion: Review homework

Break

Lecture: Card Sorting

Break

Workshop: Test run card sorting

Exercise: Conduct a card sort using the following site: https://lanasfashionboutique.com/. Test at least 5 people.  Report your findings.

Week 5

Homework due:

Information Architecture for the WWW

• Chapter 5: The Anatomy of Information Architecture

• Chapter 6: Organizational Systems

• Read

  • https://www.nngroup.com/articles/polyhierarchy/

Class Activities

Discussion: Review homework

Break

Lecture: Visualizing IA and Organizational Systems

• What is it

• Why it’s important

• The various ways to visual it and categorize IA

• Organizational systems defined

• Why it’s important: Our entire life is organized to keep up oriented

• Organizational schemes: Exact and Ambiguous

• Organizational structures:  Hierarchy, hypertext and social classification

Break

Exercise: Finding examples of exact and ambiguous / Hierarchy and hypertext

Week 6

Homework due:

Information Architecture for the WWW

• Chapter 7 part 1: Labeling Systems (up to and including Iconic Labels)

• Chapter 7 part 2: Labeling Systems (Designing Labels)

Class Activities

Discussion: Review homework

Break

Lecture: Labeling Systems

• Why they’re important

• Defined

• Common types

• Guidelines for developing

Exercise: Workshop for project #1

Week 7

Homework due:

None

Class Activities

Presentation of project #1

Week 8

Homework due:

Information Architecture for the WWW

• Chapter 8: Navigation Systems

• Read:

  • https://www.nngroup.com/articles/universal-navigation/

  • http://www.uxbooth.com/articles/the-rules-for-modern-navigation/

  • https://www.nngroup.com/articles/mega-menus-work-well/

• Chapter 9: Search Systems

Class Activities

Discussion: Review homework

Break

Lecture: Navigation Systems

• Define Navigation

• Why designing a proper navigation is important

  • Just like when we navigate highways there's a system in place to help us keep oriented…it’s the same with navigation

  • Components of navigation: Global, local and contextual

• Additional tools for navigation

• All other navigation

Break

Exercise: Candy sorting labels

Week 9

Homework due:

None

Class Activities

Midterm

Studio time

Week 10

Homework due:

Information Architecture for the WWW

• Chapter 10: Thesauri, Controlled Vocabularies, and Metadata

Class Activities

Discussion: Review homework

Break

Lecture:

• Define (metadata, controlled vocabulary, synonym rings, authority files, and thesauri)

• Explore classification schemes

• Hierarchy

• Facets

Break

Exercise: Faceted classification and polyhierarchy

Week 11

Homework due:

Information Architecture for the WWW

• Chapter 13: Design and Document

Class Activities

Discussion: Review homework

Break

Lecture: Search Systems

• Define

• Why design documents are important

• When to use them

Break

Workshop: Omnigraffle

Week 12

Holiday No class

Week 13

Homework due:

None: Work on project

Class Activities

Lecture: How to present your material

Week 14

Homework due:

None: Work on project

Class Activities

Lecture: Project review and presentation rehearsal

Week 15

Homework due:

None: Work on project

Class Activities

Lecture: Final project presentation