course-details-portlet

IMT4316 - Information Architecture

About

Examination arrangement

Examination arrangement: Multiple Choice Test/Assignment/Essay
Grade: Letter grades

Evaluation Weighting Duration Grade deviation Examination aids
Project work 5/10
Essay 4/10
Multiple Choice Test 1/10 1 hours

Course content

Key topics

  • Types of information structures (sequential, matrices, hierarchical trees, hypertext, deep versus shallow);
  • Categorization;
  • Labeling;
  • Navigation;
  • Search.

Potential additional topics: The codex book and its global and local access structures as a forerunner of the web; Social navigation, collaborative filtering, and tagging; Prototyping techniques.

Learning outcome

Knowledge

The student, upon completion of this course, will know:

  • How collections of information are organized (categorized and labeled) and accessed (through navigation and search) to satisfy the needs of the users.

Skills

The student, upon completion of this course, will be able to:

  • Create new information architectures from scratch.
  • Evaluate the architecture of existing collections of information, document their organization, identify issues, and suggest improvements;
  • Carry out informed analysis and research on the tools, methods, and concepts of information architecture, and present those findings to others.

Overall competence

The student, upon completion of this course, will know how to:

  • Contribute to the development of sound and user-friendly information architectures for commercial and public web sites, based on a familiarity with commonly used approaches and strategies.
  • Discuss and reflect on the practices and the theoretical and conceptual frameworks that are current in information architecture.

Learning methods and activities

Teaching methods and activities

  • Lectures
  • Seminars
  • Group work
  • Lab work
  • Assignments
  • Essay

Compulsory requirements: Oral presentations of written work in seminar meetings (students unable to attend in person may deliver a recorded presentation).

Compulsory assignments

  • Coursework Requirements

Further on evaluation

Compulsory assignments: Coursework requirements.

Forms of assessment

  • Written essay reflecting on methods or theory of information architecture (40%);
  • Quiz on basic information architecture concepts (10%);
  • Written group assignment documenting, evaluating and suggesting improvements to an existing information architecture (50%).

Students must receive a passing grade on all assignments in order to pass the course.

Re-sit: Next ordinary exam.

All exams must be redone if one of them is failed or by voluntary repetition (improvement of grade).

Specific conditions

Admission to a programme of study is required:
Interaction Design (MIXD)

Course materials

Required reading

Rosenfeld, Louis, Peter Morville, and Jorge Arango (2015). Information architecture for the Web and beyond. Fourth edition. O'Reilly. ISBN: 9781491911686

Supplementary reading

Hearst, Marti A. (2009). Search user interfaces. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521113793. (Available for free online at https://searchuserinterfaces.com)

Garrett, Jesse James (2003). The elements of user experience: User-centered design for the web. New York / Berkeley: American Institute of Graphic Arts / New Riders.

Porter, Joshua (2008). Designing for the social web. Berkeley: New Riders.

Resmini, Andrea and Luca Rosati (2011). Pervasive information architecture: designing cross-channel user experiences. Burlington: Morgan Kaufmann.

Hunter, Eric J. (2009). Classification made simple: An introduction to knowledge organisation and information retrieval. Third edition. Farnham: Ashgate.

Levene, Mark (2010). An introduction to search engines and web navigation. Second edition. Wiley.

Russell-Rose, Tony and Tyler Tate (2012). Designing the search experience: The information architecture of discovery. Elsevier / Morgan Kaufman.

König, R. and Rasch, M. (editors) (2014). Society of the Query Reader: Reflections on Web Search. INC Reader #9. Amsterdam. Institute of Network Cultures. (Available for free online at http://networkcultures.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/SotQreader_def_scribd.pdf)

Credit reductions

Course code Reduction From To
IMT3950-006 5.0
IMT4042 7.5 AUTUMN 2017
More on the course

No

Facts

Version: 1
Credits:  7.5 SP
Study level: Second degree level

Coursework

Term no.: 1
Teaching semester:  AUTUMN 2024

Language of instruction: English

Location: Gjøvik

Subject area(s)
  • Interaction Design
Contact information
Course coordinator:

Department with academic responsibility
Department of Design

Examination

Examination arrangement: Multiple Choice Test/Assignment/Essay

Term Status code Evaluation Weighting Examination aids Date Time Examination system Room *
Autumn ORD Multiple Choice Test 1/10 2024-12-19 09:00 INSPERA
Room Building Number of candidates
Autumn ORD Essay 4/10

Release
2024-10-01

Submission
2024-10-18


08:00


15:00

INSPERA
Room Building Number of candidates
Autumn ORD Project work 5/10

Release
2024-11-18

Submission
2024-12-08


08:00


13:00

INSPERA
Room Building Number of candidates
  • * The location (room) for a written examination is published 3 days before examination date. If more than one room is listed, you will find your room at Studentweb.
Examination

For more information regarding registration for examination and examination procedures, see "Innsida - Exams"

More on examinations at NTNU