Syllabus
Last updated
Last updated
"We thrive when we stay on our own leading edge." ~ Sarah Lewis from The Rise: Creativity, the Gift of Failure, and the Search for Mastery (p. 20).
Name
De Angela L. Duff
Term & Year
Spring 2025
deangela.duff@nyu.edu
Meeting Day
Wednesdays
Meeting Time
2:00-3:50pm
Office
370 Jay, Rm 361
Location
370 Jay, Rm 307
Student Hours
Credit Hrs
3
You are reading this syllabus on gitbook, https://deangela.gitbook.io/idm-senior-project-sp-2025-duff, the official source for all dates and assignments. Why? I believe in open-source. I don't like having syllabi behind a "walled garden." The schedule on gitbook is the official source for all dates and assignments. This syllabus provides a general overview and guideline for the course.
I will send all course announcements via our NYU Brightspace course site.
You can reach out to me at any time with any questions or requests. Also, you can talk with me directly after class, during one of our one-on-one meetings, or set up an appointment during my student hours: After class or by appt. at http://calendly.com/deangela at 370 Jay on Wednesdays; otherwise Zoom. I have a split appointment at NYU, and I'm primarily at Bobst Library.
If at all possible, please use Google chat instead of email to communicate. I will see it faster and also it won't get buried within the other emails I receive.
Google chat about logistics ONLY (when, where, how many?). Please note that I may not see your message immediately even though it is a chat. I may be in a meeting. Please expect a response within 24 hours during the weekday and by Monday on the weekends.
Talk to me directly after class, during one of your one-on-one meetings, or set up an appointment at http://calendly.com/deangela about issues and problems. DO NOT chat or email long conversations. If your chat/email goes over one paragraph, that indicates we should have a real-time conversation, instead.
To turn on Google Chat inside of Gmail: Go to your Gmail settings (the cogwheel) and click on the "Customize" link under Chat and Meet. Click on "Google Chat."
If you do not want anyone to know your online status, you can set it to "Away" in Gmail. That's what I do at, all times.
What is Senior Project in Digital Media? Senior Project in Digital Media is the capstone course for the Integrated Design & Media (IDM) program. This course mirrors the creative process that professional artists, designers, creative technologists, and entrepreneurs must practice throughout their entire careers. In order to succeed, this course requires you to devote a lot of time and effort outside of class, throughout the entire semester.
The primary goal for the student is to develop a hunger and passion for self-directed, lifelong learning, and creativity. To achieve this students will involve themselves in a semester-long capstone project that includes a robust investigation of all phases of the creative process, including research, design, development, and user testing for the production of a substantial and mature body of work, representing their creative and conceptual skills as artists, designers, creative technologists, and/or entrepreneurs.
As you engage in the rigorous practice of a professional artist, designer, or entrepreneur, your project will naturally evolve and change, and may in fact take quite a different shape than what you proposed at the beginning of the semester. This is normal and OK.
The Senior Project can take many forms, including but not limited to the following:
a screen-based, digital application (website, mobile app, game, etc.)
a physical object, musical instrument, physical game, or interactive installation
a performance or event,
a moving image (animation, film, motion graphics, video web series, etc.)
audio (podcast, etc.)
print medium
The Senior Project can also be a team-based project if your teammate is also taking Senior Project in any section this semester.
Excerpt from the book Anything You Want by Derek Sivers
No “yes.” Either “HELL YEAH!” or “no.” If you’re not saying “HELL YEAH!” about something, say “no.” When deciding whether to do something, if you feel anything less than “Wow! That would be amazing! Absolutely! Hell yeah!” —then say “no.”
How are you currently feeling about your Senior Project?
Yes.
Absolutely, Yes! or
No:(
If you are NOT feeling “Absolutely, Yes!” about your senior project, remember your project idea is just that YOURS. I highly suggest you read "What is Senior Project in Digital Media?", again, AND the required and recommended resources NOW!
Senior Project is about the work YOU are and will continue to do when you are no longer a student. You don’t need anyone to whip you to work because you can NOT, not do it. You will live, eat, breathe, and sleep with this project. It is NOT about doing a project for a class or pleasing the IDM faculty. It is about you, your ideas, your concerns, your questions, and your passion.
Senior Project in Digital Media is about demonstrating the maturity, responsibility, and integrity to manage your practice/research/investigation while having the luxury of constructive critique and feedback from your fellow classmates, faculty, and outside critics. Ultimately, your goal is to COMPLETE a project that has a life beyond school, beyond graduation.
The following IDM program goals are reinforced within this course. Students will:
develop conceptual thinking skills to generate ideas and content in order to solve problems or create opportunities.
Students will develop a research and studio practice through inquiry and iteration.
develop technical skills to realize their ideas.
Students will understand and utilize tools and technology while adapting to constantly changing technological paradigms by learning how to learn.
Students will be able to integrate/interface different technologies within a technological ecosystem.
develop critical thinking skills that will allow them to analyze and position their work within cultural, historical, aesthetic, economic, and technological contexts.
gain knowledge of professional practices and organizations by developing their verbal, visual, and written communication for documentation and presentation, exhibition and promotion, networking, and career preparation.
This course will help students to:
determine, communicate, and accomplish your own vision and goals for your senior project.
practice an iterative design process in conjunction with effective project & time management.
continue to hone all aspects of professional communication about your creative process and work through critiques, presentations, and writing.
By the end of the course, students will be able to develop, complete, and document a body of work that is meaningful and carefully crafted to be used for professional purposes (employment, gallery shows, starting a business, etc.) beyond graduation.
This class will consist of individual "one on one" meetings, process and project critiques, A-Team and class critiques, project demos, and presentations. Students are expected to work on their projects every week. You must be prepared to meaningfully share work in every presentation (demos, crits, etc.) and in every one on one meeting. “Meaningfully” means that you are showing a sufficient amount of work-in-progress in an appropriate format, so we can have a worthwhile discussion about it.
Students should expect to spend roughly 5 hours each week on supplemental work in this course. This may include reading, writing, watching, listening, researching, collaborating, doing homework assignments or unsupervised group work, building, writing code, studying, etc.
Schedule your time (keep a calendar of some sort).
Come to class, individual meetings, and special events (i.e. midterm demo and end of year showcase) on time.
Participate in class critiques and discussions. Be vocal.
When your classmates are presenting, please be present and engaged.
Check Brightspace announcements at least once a week for up-to-date info.
Back up your work constantly.
Complete all deliverables by their due dates.
Action – do your absolute best.
Reflection - Any action without reflection is meaningless.
Iteration - Strive for continuous improvement.
Pay attention to detail & craft.
Take risks & be fearless with your projects.
This is your last semester, so have fun!
Have desire amounting to enthusiasm to learn and explore.
Have self-motivation, proactiveness, and focus.
Have patience, persistence, and discipline.
Be curious and creative.
Have self-confidence and pride in your work!
Have Integrity.
Students will conduct self-assessments at midterm and at the end of the semester.
Real learning only occurs as part of a reflective process. Reflection is studying your own practice as seriously as you study anything. It involves thinking about why, what, and how you create something.
Attendance
Attendance is mandatory at the Midterm Demo and Critique and IDM Student Showcase.
Even if you have little or no progress to show, you should still come to class (if not moreso).
In the event that you need to be out of class, you can see what was covered and what's due for the next class period on this gitbook. You should also speak to your A-team about what you missed.
Contact the professor IN ADVANCE if you will not be in class (a Google Chat is preferred).
For excused absences, religious accommodation, medical leaves, and general health and wellness, please contact eng.studentadvocate@nyu.edu.
Your final grade will be based on a synthesis of quantitative & qualitative evaluation and feedback. Final course grades will be made available via Albert. Mid-semester and end of semester feedback will be given by me to you in individual meetings. We will also meet individually throughout the semester to discuss your class participation and performance. If you are not making the progress needed to complete the course, I will let you know far in advance.
Quantitative Grading Overview
38% Process
12% A-Team
37% End of Semester Documentation and Deliverables
2.5% Course Evaluation
15% Demos and Critique
05% Midterm Demo
10% Exhibition
Qualitative Grading Overview
Each student will be judged on the iteration & improvement (process), craft & completion (execution), and exhibition, documentation & presentation of their senior project work.
A Excellent
Process, execution, exhibition, documentation & presentation, and attendance of the student have been of the highest level, showing sustained excellence in meeting course responsibilities. Work clearly differentiates itself from other work, has memorable impact, pursues concepts and techniques above and beyond what is discussed in class, exceeding expectations.
B Very Good / Good
Process, execution, exhibition, documentation & presentation, and attendance of students have been, good, though not of the highest level. Work demonstrates a better than average sensitivity to senior project and meets expectations.
C Satisfactory
Process, execution, exhibition, documentation & presentation, and attendance of the students have been adequate, satisfactorily meeting the course requirements. Work is average and competent, showing a basic understanding of senior project.
D Poor / Below Average
Process, execution, exhibition, documentation & presentation, and attendance of the student have been less than adequate. Work is lacking in many areas that show any understanding of senior project. Problems may include lack of interest, procrastination, and/or poor time management.
F Unacceptable
Process, execution, exhibition, documentation & presentation, and attendance of the student have been such that the student has failed course requirements. Work shows no overall understanding of senior project on many levels, and/or a severe lack of interest.
Laptop computers and other mobile devices are invaluable tools for students when used responsibly. However, this technology can also be incredibly distracting in the classroom. When in class, you may use your laptops and other devices for any activities pertaining to the course: taking notes, researching material relevant to our readings and discussions, making class presentations, etc. However, the following uses are unacceptable: checking email, instant messaging, texting, using social networking sites such as facebook, instagram, twitter, etc.
When your classmates are presenting, please close your laptops and turn off your cell phones unless you are specifically taking notes for a member of your A-Team.
"To create, one must first question everything. Never adopt someone else's conclusion without putting it to the test of your own reasoning and imagination." ~Architect and furniture designer Eileen Gray on thinking for yourself from Eileen Gray: Her Work and Her World This quote also applies to generative AI.
Generative AI is a subset of artificial intelligence (AI) that creates new data, such as text, images, audio, video, and code, based on what it has learned from existing data through its initial training and in response to additional prompts (text you enter into generative AI chatbots).
Generative AI is a tool to use just like any other. However, with any tool, there are always pros and cons with its use.
First and foremost, please be aware of generative AI's pitfalls and limitations:
Protect Your PII (personally identifiable information). This is for ALL digital tools, not just generative AI.
Algorithmic Bias: Human biases exist on the internet. Because generative AI tools were originally trained on the internet and continued to be trained on human input, some of the content that is generated may also be biased, which could lead to reinforcing stereotypes. Please keep in mind that generative AI tools are not neutral.
Plausibility, Not Accuracy: Generative AI is designed to produce plausible responses (i.e., to make things up). In context of generative AI, the term hallucination refers to the fabrication of information that is not based on actual data, facts, or reality. If you use generative AI tools for tasks that require accuracy (e.g., references and citations) you must check whether this “hallucinated” content is correct. Generative AI is not considered a reliable source for factual information. It is not a replacement for databases, peer-reviewed studies, reputable journalism, or primary research.
And there are several ethical and environmental concerns to be aware of:
Generative AI is trained on copyrighted materials (in some instances) and some would say procured unethically (this is currently going through the courts), but the copyrighted materials can’t be reproduced verbatim.
Generative AI can promote misinformation & create deepfakes.
Training and operating large generative AI models require substantial computational power, leading to significant energy consumption and vast amounts of water for cooling its data centers.
When used intentionally and with an awareness of its limitations, it can help with the creative process, in particular and brainstorming and identifying gaps in your thinking. However, an over-reliance on generative AI can hinder independent and critical thinking, creativity, and the development of essential skills needed to excel as creative professionals.
If you choose to use generative AI, I recommend:
using the "sandwich method," where you initiate your own creative work, use generative AI to iterate it or expand upon it, and finalize it with further iteration by your own hand (and without generative AI) to reflect your unique creative voice and skills.
verifying the accuracy of AI-generated content by doing due diligence because it makes things up aka hallucinates, and
acknowledging or attributing its use.
considering the ethical implications of your choices, including potential biases in AI outputs, and issues of intellectual property and copyright.
Remember, the ultimate goal is not to rely on generative AI but, instead, leverage your own creativity and critical inquiry. Use it responsibly as another tool in your toolkit.
While not required, generative AI is permitted in this class with the following stipulations:
Learning and creativity are both messy endeavors. There will be peaks and valleys in the process. Generative AI should not be used as a short-cut to forgo learning and growth.
You cannot represent any generative AI output as your own work. This would be plagiarism. Any use of generative AI must be documented, acknowledged or attributed.
Generative AI text outputs cannot be copied verbatim into any document you are submitting. This must be treated like any other text that is not your own. At a minimum, it must be paraphrased, acknowledged or attributed. However, the use of paraphrased generative AI output should be limited. This is similar to other sources, in that you shouldn’t over rely on any one source.
You are responsible for everything in a document you submit, which includes information generated from a generative AI query. You must ensure that it does not contain misinformation.
Generative AI cannot be used to replace user-research or create user personas. It cannot be used to perform as a real person or generate false experiences of real humans. For example, if you are producing an app to help elderly people access medical services, you cannot ask ChatGPT to pretend to be an elderly person and ask it a question about the difficulties it theoretically encounters in the situation.
If it seems like you are over relying, misusing, or carelessly using generative AI in your work, expect a conversation with the instructor to adapt your use of these tools.
All file names must include your name, assignment, date, and version. Do not submit a file named something generic like resume.pdf. For example:
Firstname_Lastname_assignmentName_date.pdf (De Angela Duff Project Plan Jan 12 2025.pdf)
If you are submitting a revised document or a new version, include the revision number after the assignment name and the date. For example:
Firstname_Lastname_assignmentName_date_version#.pdf (De Angela Duff Project Plan Jan 17 2025 v2.pdf)
Also, put your name in the body copy so that if the document is printed it is attributable to you.
Please read:
NYU's Academic Integrity for Students policy and
All work for this class must be your own and specific to this semester. Any work recycled from other classes or from another, non-original source will be rejected with serious implications for the student. Plagiarism, knowingly representing the words or ideas of another as one’s own work in any academic exercise, is absolutely unacceptable. Any student who commits plagiarism must re-do the assignment for a grade no higher than a D. In fact, a D is the highest possible course grade for any student who commits plagiarism. Please use the MLA or Chicago Manual style for citing and documenting source material.
You MUST have complete rights of use to any and all materials which appear in your senior project. This includes images, illustrations, audio, etc. The source of any materials NOT created by you MUST be documented. Please remember that you can collaborate with other students to create your own media or contact the authors of your media selections for rights. I strongly encourage you to use original media for your senior project, however, should you absolutely require to use stock images, video, etc., you will need to provide a PDF of all source files and the usage rights you have purchased/negotiated or whether it is creative commons or copyright free.'
If you are experiencing an illness or any other situation that might affect your academic performance in a class, please email Deanna Rayment, Coordinator of Student Advocacy, Compliance and Student Affairs: deanna.rayment@nyu.edu. Deanna can reach out to your instructors on your behalf when warranted.
NYU offers many health and wellness services and resources. Take advantage of them. https://www.nyu.edu/students/health-and-wellness.html
If you are student with a disability who is requesting accommodations, please contact New York University’s Moses Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD) at 212-998-4980 or mosescsd@nyu.edu. You must be registered with CSD to receive accommodations. Information about the Moses Center can be found at www.nyu.edu/csd. The Moses Center is located at 726 Broadway on the 3rd floor.
NYU’s Calendar Policy on Religious Holidays states that members of any religious group may, without penalty, absent themselves from classes when required in compliance with their religious obligations. You must notify me in advance of religious holidays or observances that might coincide with exams, assignments, or class times to schedule mutually acceptable alternatives. Students may also contact religiousaccommodations@nyu.edu for assistance.
The NYU Tandon School values an inclusive and equitable environment for all our students. I hope to foster a sense of community in this class and consider it a place where individuals of all backgrounds, beliefs, ethnicities, national origins, gender identities, sexual orientations, religious and political affiliations, and abilities will be treated with respect. It is my intent that all students’ learning needs be addressed both in and out of class, and that the diversity that students bring to this class be viewed as a resource, strength and benefit. If this standard is not being upheld, please feel free to speak with me.
Title IX makes it clear that violence and harassment based on sex and gender are Civil Rights offenses subject to the same kinds of accountability and the same kinds of support applied to offenses against other protected categories such as race, national origin, etc. If you or someone you know has been harassed or assaulted, you can find the appropriate resources here https://www.nyu.edu/about/policies-guidelines-compliance/equal-opportunity/title9.html
Students now have the opportunity to add their pronouns, as well as the pronunciation of their names, into Albert. Students can have this information displayed to faculty, advisors, and administrators in Albert, the NYU Home internal directory, as well as other NYU systems. Students can also opt out of having their pronouns viewed by their instructors, in case they feel more comfortable sharing their pronouns outside of the classroom.
Here is more info on how students can access the pronouns and name pronunciation features via Albert from the Personal Info page.
You can enter your chosen/preferred name in Albert, or change it, at any time. When you enter a preferred name in Albert it will sync overnight to other systems you log in with using your NYU NetID, such as NYU Classes, ServiceLink, Google Apps and more. Here is more info to enter your chosen/preferred name from Albert's home page.
Article from the Bullet Journal blog: Plans vs Goals vs Resolutions vs Intentions
Analog and/or Digital Calendar for Time Management
Analog or Digital system for Project Management or this can be integrated into your Process Website.
IDM Equipment Room: Senior project students have access to all IDM labs and equipment to support their projects. Students will still need to complete the appropriate lab training and provide proof of insurance when borrowing equipment. Information about each lab can be found at wp.nyu.edu/idmtech. Please note that the number one thing that most alumni say they miss the most is the equipment room.
Tandon's Maker Space: Take advantages of Tandon's Makerspace through their trainings and reservations as well as events. You can subscribe to their newsletter.
Assistance with strengthening your writing: NYU Writing Center (nyu.mywconline.com)
Obtain 24/7 technology assistance: IT Service Desk (NYU IT) (nyu.edu/it/servicedesk)
by appt. at at 370 Jay on Wednesdays; otherwise Zoom
Google Chat in your web browser (chat.google.com) You will be prompted to download a desktop app here if you're interested.
