Coursework Title: HCI Essay
Course Name: Human-Computer Interaction
Course Code: DECO2500/7250
Weighting: 20%
Course Coordinator: Dr Nell Baghaei
Contact: Room: 78-304
Hand-in Date: 14
th
October 2022 by 4:00pm (AEST)
Hand-in Method: Blackboard
You are required to choose either Assignment 4A or Assignment 4B to work on. You are not
required to complete both.
This is an individual piece of work. You are not allowed to work with anyone else during the
completion of this assignment.
You must submit your work via Blackboard on or before the due date/time.
Learning Objective Being Assessed
2 Relate cognitive, social, behavioural, and emotional theories to the design of effective
human-system interaction.
6 Apply HCI knowledge, in terms of system accessibility, within appropriate user-interface
design for a broad range of user groups.
Assignment 4A:
1. Introduction
You are required to write an essay about an HCI or UX concept or method of your choice. The
essay must incorporate an explanation of the concept or method, research, a case study of
that concept or method, and a critical analysis of the concept or method outlining issues such
as (but not necessarily including or limited to) limitations of its application to emerging
technology or problems arising in the application of an evaluation method.
2. Details of the Task
Throughout the course you will have encountered many concepts related to Human-Computer
Interaction and User Experience. You will have also encountered and used many methods
that are used to either enquire into or evaluate a phenomenon. Earlier in the semester, you
encountered concepts such as conceptual models for a system and different issues related to
human cognition. As you progress through the Interaction Design process, you will use a
number of different methods to evaluate your prototypes.
Your experience from the group project has provided you with an opportunity to gather insights
into the application of concepts or use of an HCI method within the context of your project. School of Information Technology and
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Through this assignment, you will be presenting an individual reflective essay that
encompasses both background to the concept or method that you have chosen, and what you
have learned through its application in your project.
You are required to describe in your essay:
a) An explanation of your chosen concept or method
b) Where applicable, this should incorporate the development of that concept or method,
theories on which it is based, and how that concept or method is being applied in current
practice, i.e., in research and/or industry.
c) A case study of the application of that concept or method based on the work that has
been completed in your group work. You will need to use evidence drawn from your own
HCI process as data for the analysis. Your case study might include, for instance:
Explanation of a documented workshop in which you applied your chosen method
to your project, where you can show how the method was carried out and what
value it delivered for your team at that stage of the process
A demonstration (e.g., through visible changes over prototype iterations, or
iterations of your conceptual design), of how the use of a particular HCI concept
influenced or altered your project and/or your understanding of the problem or
context
d) A critical analysis of that concept or method based on your experience of its application
in the project. This critical analysis should include considerations of limitations or
practical issues arising from its application or use. Examples can include (but are not
limited to):
Limitations in terms of the use and nature of current or emerging interactive
systems.
Potential practical problems in the use of an evaluation method given the form of
the technology, the particular user community or the context of use.
How a concept or method might need to change or evolve to take into account
current approaches to, for example, defining User Experience goals or the nature
of Design Principles.
The body of your essay should be 1500 words (excluding reference list). You should aim to
be close to this word limit (e.g. within ±10%). The content of your essay must be completely
independent from any work undertaken within your group (i.e. do not directly copy work
from your group assignments into your essay).
You must appropriately reference all resources in your essay and include a reference list.
IEEE referencing style is recommended but not required. It is your choice what referencing
style you ultimately use. Whichever style you choose, ensure you are consistent throughout
your document. You are advised to use a word processor (such as Microsoft Word or
OpenOffice/LibreOffice) that supports spelling and grammar checking to prepare your essay.
3. Grading Scheme/Assessment Criteria*

Assignment 4B:
Choose an interface (a website, or a mobile application or a game or a AR/VR application)
and evaluate it using Nielsen’s ten usability heuristics (See Week 6 slides). Your report should
have an Introduction section (in which you introduce the interface), Critical Evaluation section
(divided into 10 subsections based on 10 usability heuristics) and Conclusions and Areas of
Improvement. For each heuristic, explain why you think the interface of your choice meets or
doesn’t meet the heuristic and justify your explanation. Use of screenshots are highly
recommended.
Examples you can choose from include: Gmail (web or mobile version), Blackboard, Zoom,
Microsoft Teams, UQ website, Commonwealth Bank, ANZ Bank, An Australian govt website
or mobile app, PeerWise, YouTube, Amazon, Facebook/Meta, Instagram, Bing, Netflix,
TikTok, Snapchat, Telegram, WhatsApp, WeChat, Qantas, Alibaba, a mobile game of your
choice, a VR/AR game, a VR/AR app, etc.
The body of your report should be 1500 words (excluding screenshots and reference list). You
should aim to be close to this word limit (e.g. within ±10%).
Submit the summary through Blackboard by the due date (14 October).
References (if you have any): Please use APA 6th referencing style:
https://guides.library.uq.edu.au/referencing/apa6
Grading Scheme/Assessment Criteria*
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What You Should Hand In For Assignment 4A OR 4B
You should submit a single electronic file via Blackboard on or before the due date/time.
Your submission must be a single word-processed document that contains your essay,
including reference list (e.g. Microsoft Word (.doc/.docx) or Pages (.pages) formats only).
No other forms of submission are allowed without prior written permission from the course
coordinator.
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Guidelines
Correctly reference any resources that you use.
Resources Required
You should make use of these specific tools and resources:
Lecture/Studio Materials
The Internet
Course-specific textbooks
UQ Resources, such as:
o https://my.uq.edu.au/information-and-services/student-support/study
skills/assignment-writing
o https://my.uq.edu.au/information-and-services/student-support/study
skills/assignment-writing/assignment-types
o https://my.uq.edu.au/information-and-services/student-support/study-skills
o https://web.library.uq.edu.au/research-tools-techniques/google-scholar
o https://guides.library.uq.edu.au/referencing
Published academic papers on relevant methods or concepts, such as (but not limited
to just) those below, which may give you an idea about writing style, critical reflections
on methods and assessments of their value to particular projects:
o Blomkvist, J., & Arvola, M. (2014). Pausing or not? : Examining the Service
Walkthrough Technique. 171–176.
o Tan, W., Liu, D., & Bishu, R. (2009). Web evaluation: Heuristic evaluation vs. user
testing. International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 39(4), 621–627.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ergon.2008.02.012
Late Submission/Extenuating Circumstances
The submission of progressive assessment material on the due date as set out in the
Electronic Course Profile (ECP) is the sole responsibility of the student. Students should not
leave assignment preparation until the last minute and must plan their workloads to meet
advertised or notified deadlines. It is your responsibility to manage your time effectively.
Where the assessment item is submitted after the deadline, without an approved extension, a
late penalty will apply. The late penalty shall be one grade will be deducted from the grade for
the assessment item per calendar day (or part thereof). A day is considered to be a 24-hour
block from the assessment item due time. E.g. if you originally received a Credit but your
submission was late and within 24 hours you will lose one grade and will be awarded a Pass.
If you are over 24 hours late, you will continue to lose one grade in this way per 24-hour block
until the end of the scale is reached. Negative grades will not be awarded.
However, if there are medical or exceptional circumstances that will affect your ability to
complete an assessment by the due date, then you can apply for an extension. Extensions to
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all other assessment items must be requested via my.UQ. You can find instructions on how to
submit your request online.
An extension application granted on medical grounds will not be approved for any more than
the number of calendar days the medical certificate indicates you were unfit for study. Students
who are ill for more than 14 days should consider applying for withdrawal without academic
penalty.
Requests must be made at least 48 hours prior to the submission deadline, unless the medical
or other circumstances are such that you could not reasonably be expected to have applied
by then. Requests for extensions which are received on or after the due date may not be
considered. Please refer to the ECP for full details about the University’s policies and
guidelines regarding assessment.
Academic Misconduct
The University defines Academic Misconduct as involving ‘a range of unethical behaviours
that are designed to give a student an unfair and unearned advantage over their peers’.
The University takes Academic Misconduct very seriously and any suspected cases will be
investigated through the University’s standard policy. If you are found guilty, you may be
expelled from the University with no award.
It is the responsibility of the student to ensure that you understand what constitutes
Academic Misconduct and to ensure that you do not break the rules. If you are unclear
about what is required, please ask.
It is also the responsibility of the student to take reasonable precautions to guard
against unauthorised access by others to their work, however stored in whatever
format, both before and after assessment.
For more information, you are directed to the following University web pages:
Information regarding ITEE Student Misconduct (Including Plagiarism)
o https://www.itee.uq.edu.au/itee-student-misconduct-including-plagiarism
Information regarding Academic Integrity and Misconduct:
o https://my.uq.edu.au/information-and-services/manage-my-program/student
integrity-and-conduct/academic-integrity-and-student-conduct
o http://ppl.app.uq.edu.au/content/3.60.04-student-integrity-and-misconduct
Information on Student Services:
o https://www.uq.edu.au/student-services/
Information regarding Referencing:
o https://web.library.uq.edu.au/research-tools-techniques/digital-essentials/write-cite
submit?p=2#2
o https://web.library.uq.edu.au/research-tools-techniques/referencing-style-guides
Information regarding the Student Charter:
o https://ppl.app.uq.edu.au/content/3.60.01-student-charter
Information regarding Plagiarism:
o https://web.library.uq.edu.au/node/4221/1#1
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Essay Grading Criteria for Assignment 4A