Course Description

Instructor and Course Information

English 680S, "Digital Rhetoric and Design Studio"
Instructor Name: Dr. David Blakesley
Section: 68000-002
Office Hrs: M, 10-11:20 a.m., T 10:30-11:45 a.m., and by appt.
Office: Heavilon 302
Ph: 765.494.3772
Fax: 206.600.5072
E-Mail: blakesle@purdue.edu

Overview

The focus of this studio-based seminar will be on the composition, production, and presentation of digital and printed content. Students will apply principles of visual rhetoric, graphic design, information architecture, and usability to their own projects, as well as projects with clients, and which may include websites, digital or printed portfolios, ebooks, printed books, academic and literary journals, book covers, multimedia presentations, promotional and display documents, 3-D mapping, the design of virtual environments, film, or other projects that involve design, visual rhetoric, and multiple media. The emphasis, again, will be on practice, presentation, feedback, and collaboration. Some attention will be devoted to the skills and tools of project management, development, and consulting. Although some experience with production can be helpful, students with limited experience with the technologies of digital and print design will learn by practice. Major course projects will be self-selected. A showcase and exhibition will be featured at or near the end of the semester.

Recommended Resource Texts and Other Course Readings

The texts listed here are not required reading but will prove useful in a number of ways for designers. They have not been ordered through local bookstores. There won't be any required reading from these texts.

D.I.Y.: Design It Yourself by Ellen Lupton (2006, Princeton)
Exploring Multimedia for Designers: A Designer-Driven Introduction to the Essential Concepts and Technologies of Multimedia by Ray Villalobos (2008, Cengage).
The Pantone Guide to Communicating with Color by Leatrice Eiseman (2000, Grafix Press)
The Big Book of Design Ideas 3 edited by David E. Carter (2008, HarperCollins)
The Chicago Manual of Style (15th edition) (2003, University of Chicago Press)
The Thomson Handbook by David Blakesley and Jeffrey Hoogeveen (2008, Cengage)

Course Readings will occasionally appear on the course calender and are meant as resources for in-class discussion or examination.

Course Goals

Project Management

• Understand, develop and deploy various strategies for planning, researching, drafting, revising, and editing design projects.
• Select and use appropriate technologies that effectively and ethically address professional situations and audiences.
• Build professional ethos through documentation and accountability.

Project Design
Make rhetorical design decisions about design projects across a variety of modes and genres, including

• understanding and adapting to genre conventions and audience expectations
• understanding and implementing design principles of format, layout, and presentation
• interpreting and arguing with design
• drafting, researching, testing, and revising visual designs and information architecture

Peer Review
Learn and apply strategies for successful peer review, such as

• responding constructively to peers' work
• eliciting and using peer feedback effectively

Public Presentation
Learn effective methods of presentation:

• Learn strategies for displaying your projects publicly, on the Internet, in virtual worlds such as Second Life, and at conferences, exhibits, or poster sessions.
  

Technology
Use appropriate technologies for individual projects:

• Use and evaluate the design and project management technologies frequently used in designing projects for publication, including production software and Web 2.0 appliations.
• Learn to use the right tools for the job.
• Learn new technologies in class with the group to better evaluate their potential for individual projects.

Course Projects and Activities

1. Weekly In-Class Production Happenings

Each week, we will spend about 30-45 minutes to learn a new technology useful for producing effective multimedia or print designs and presenting them either on the Internet or in real space. The goal will be to produce a prototype design in a short period of time using assets (images, text, and other elements) that you collect throughout the semester. To earn full credit for this work, you will just need to be present and then post some type of product to your blog on the course website so that others may view and respond to it before the next class. Each week a winner from the previous week will be selected to receive bonus recognition (prize TBA). (Individual: 15% of course grade.)

2. One Big Project

For your big project, you should select a task that you can work on throughout the semester and that has multiple dimensions of design, content, and production. Early in the semester, you'll be asked to settle on a focus and to begin mapping your project, reporting on it initially to the rest of the class, and then throughout collecting assets, setting and meeting milestones, taking the project through multiple iterations following prototyping and peer review, keeping a project log, and then presenting your work in multiple formats, including to the rest of the class, online, and during a live poster session.. Examples of suitable projects will be discussed in class. You may work individually or collaboratively. Everyone should keep a project log starting in Week 3. Those who work in groups will be asked to submit Collaborative Project Evaluation forms. Projects that complete all the steps in the process successfully will earn an A. (Individual or collaborative; 50% of course grade.)

3. Two Smaller Projects

For the two smaller projects, you'll work on existing or new projects with limited scope and complexity, with a goal of refining and polishing the work for publication in some form. You'll start by writing a short project planning/goals doccument, keep a modest project log, and then submit your work for peer review. Examples include designing and publishing a small website, brochure, logo, image portolio, business card, print-on-demand book, user documentation, comic book, YouTube video, machinima, t-shirt, book cover, or anything else that could be completed in a reasonable amount of time. (Individual: 10% each for a total of 20% of course grade)

4. Peer Review

As a studio course with a strong focus on production and review, your responses to your colleages--both online and in class--are vital. Each week, you should participate actively during in-class review and then post 2-3 responses to the work of peers that has been posted on the class website, using the artist/writers suggestions for feedback when appropriate. (15% of course grade.)

Grading Summary

All major assignments will be graded on the standard plus-minus letter-grade scale: A=100-94, A-=93-90, B+==89-87, B=86-84, B-=83-80, C+=79-77, C=76-74, C-=73-70, D+=69-67, D=66-64, D-=63-60, F=59 or below.

Students must participate in all of the major projects and complete a majority of the required peer review in order to pass this class.

Attendance

Attendance is required at all scheduled electronic and face-to-face (F2F) meetings. Three absences may result in your final grade being lowered by as much as a letter grade. More than three absences can result in a failing grade for the course. Excused absences may be granted for religious holidays or university-sponsored events, provided you make a written request to me no less than two weeks in advance and that you complete any required work before the due date. Being excessively or regularly late for class or team meetings, both electronic and F2F, can also be counted as an absence.

Academic Integrity

Purdue students and their instructors are expected to adhere to guidelines set forth by the Dean of Students in "Academic Integrity: A Guide for Students," which students are encouraged to read here:

http://www.purdue.edu/ODOS/services/gradeappeals.htm

The preamble of this guide states the following: "Purdue University values intellectual integrity and the highest standards of academic conduct. To be prepared to meet societal needs as leaders and role models, students must be educated in an ethical learning environment that promotes a high standard of honor in scholastic work. Academic dishonesty undermines institutional integrity and threatens the academic fabric of Purdue University. Dishonesty is not an acceptable avenue to success. It diminishes the quality of a Purdue education, which is valued because of Purdue's high academic standards."

Academic dishonesty is defined as follows: "Purdue prohibits "dishonesty in connection with any University activity. Cheating, plagiarism, or knowingly furnishing false information to the University are examples of dishonesty." [University Regulations, Part V, Section III, B, 2, a] Furthermore, the University Senate has stipulated that "the commitment of acts of cheating, lying, and deceit in any of their diverse forms (such as the use of substitutes for taking examinations, the use of illegal cribs, plagiarism, and copying during examinations) is dishonest and must not be tolerated. Moreover, knowingly to aid and abet, directly or indirectly, other parties in committing dishonest acts is in itself dishonest." [University Senate Document 72-18, December 15, 1972]"

If you have any questions about this policy, please ask.

In Case of a Campus Emergency

In the event of a major campus emergency, course requirements, deadlines and grading percentages are subject to changes that may be necessitated by a revised semester calendar or other circumstances. You can acquire updated information from the course website, by emailing me, or by contacting me through the English Department at 765-494-3740.

Late Work

The majority of missed class assignments cannot be made up.If a serious and unavoidable problem arises, however, you should contact me in writing prior to the deadline to determine whether or not an extension for the work will or will not be granted.