Assignments

Assignment: Research Paper Report

• DUE: Submitted as a page on your personal website, and a link to the appropriate Slack channel by October 23 at 11:59pm.

Researchers and designers often re-invent. Instead it is valuable to take advantage of what is already known. To do this, you need to find and understand prior results. Find and read a (8+ page) research paper related to your project. The paper does not necessarily have to describe an app or device. For example, the research paper may describe the results of surveys or interviews on how people currently learn some thing (or some way) related to your project.

We have discussed a number of research papers in this class from HCI-related conferences such as:

• CHI
• UIST
• UbiComp

But you might find a research paper in another related field, such as psychology or education. Some conferences at the intersection of technology and learning include:

• Artificial Intelligence in Education
• International Conference of the Learning Sciences
• Interaction Design & Children
• Museum Computer Network
• IEEE VIS

Many papers are available via the ACM Digital Library or on author websites.

The search tool for the ACM Digital Library is pretty terrible, so a better choice is typically Google Scholar (advanced search lets you search certain venues, too. See screenshot at the bottom).

1. In one paragraph, summarize the findings of the research paper.
   • What were the main points of this paper?
   • Given the paper, do you believe those main points?
2. In one paragraph, describe how the paper applies to your project.
   • After reading this paper, is there anything you wish you had done differently in your design?
   • Do you think you’ve designed something that’s improved upon what this paper discusses?

This reflection should be no more than one page of text (i.e., 500 words). Be prepared to present a summary of this paper (along with your thoughts) to the class.

Submission

Your reflection should be submitted as a page on your personal website, and with a link posted to the appropriate Slack channel (#assign-hci-research). The page should be accessible from your main individual course page.

Grading

This assignment will be graded on a scale of 8 points:

1. Summary
2. Application