Art New Media 324 Online-Fall 2016
American River College
Digital Design
John Driscoll

driscoj@arc.losrios.edu

Class Communications and Accessibility

INTRODUCTION
Objective and Purpose
•The objective of this course is to offer an introduction to digital design using state of the art software. The class will be taught in an online format which will require self-directed study and timely completion of assignments.

• Students will learn to create effective visual communications using Illustrator CC and apply the basic principles design to their work. A series of exercises and projects will reinforce the learned skills and principles.

•Students will enhance their design vocabulary with online forums and critique groups where projects will be discussed.

Student Learning Outcomes (SLO) ARC Curriculm Guide 2013

The outcomes are what we expect students should know or be able to do upon completion of a course.:

* Analyze and apply basic tools of Adobe Illustrator. SLO#1
* Apply tools to create and manipulate images. SLO#2
* Define and effective project plan.SLO#3
* Evaluate completed design projects. SLO#4
* Create professional portfolio presentation. SLO#5

Technical Requirements
To effectively participate in this course students must have the following equipment and software:

Basic computer familiarity
PC or Macintosh computer with Illustrator CC (Creative Cloud Version) installed.(Note: I always have students asking if it's ok to use earlier versions of the software. You can do all the projects with CS6 (last CD verison) but you will not be able to complete some of the Classroom In A Book Exercises becasue they are based on the newest Creative Cloud software.

Books, Software, and Supplies (Required)
Adobe Illustrator Creative Cloud (CC)
Illustrator CC Classsroom In A Book (2015 Version Ed 1)
Sketching material (sketch pad, pencils, pens) for preliminary design work on projects.

Optional
Illustrator CC Visual Quickstart Guide-(2014)This book will help you look-up skills and techniques, it's not project oriented. To minimize student costs it is not required. You can use the internet and Adobe's web site for this purpose too.

Digital tablets (WACOM for example) are not required. You are welcome to use, but I do not teach the use of these tools.

Student’s Responsibilities
•You are required to review the online orientation and submit the first week's assignments or you will be dropped
•You must meet the assignment deadlines by posting required exercises or projects as directed in weekly lectures/assignments
•Student participation/communication in class is essential. We will critique our work as well as the work of others in online group discussions.
•You will be dropped from the class for non-participation. If for some reason you are unable to submit work for more than a two-week period you must let me know. I will do my best to notify you prior to being dropped but class participation and communication is your responsibility.

Overview of Assignments
•All exercises and projects will have specific due dates which can be found in the PROJECTS and SCHEDULE pages.
•Project deadlines are a very important aspect of design. Be prepared to discuss your project online and how you met project requirements with your design.
•Although we are working in an electronic medium, sketching your layouts is an important part of the creative process. You will be required to scan and e-mail some of these sketches.
•Due dates must be met.

NOTE: Weekly assignments will have a two week window for submission in the weekly dropbox. If you submit completed work during the first week ending on Sunday) you will earn full credit. If you submit during the second week you will receive half credit. No assignments will be accepted after the second week and the dropbox will be closed. Accepting work randomly submitted after the two week period is a big problem and impacts my ability to respond quickly and grade work in a timely manner.

Projects submitted during the assigned week (always ending on Sunday) will be on-time. Late projects (up to one week late) will have an automatic full grade deduction. No projects will be accepted after the second week.

Grading
Your projects will be evaluated on several criteria:
•Understanding the assignment and skill with Illustrator techniques
•Concept/Originality
•Design/Composition
•Overall project completeness (project planning to include: completing sketches/answering project questions/meeting deadlines)

Notes on Grading:
•All assignments must be submitted by the time scheduled on the date due unless noted otherwise by instructor or updated schedule.
•Late projects will be downgraded. Turning in a project after the deadline will result in a full letter grade reduction. (i.e. A becomes an B). Each additional week late will reduce the grade by an additional full grade (i.e. an A becomes a C).
•Projects will not be accepted after one week past the due date, unless special arrangements have be made with the instructor.

Exercises/Quiz/Projects

Self-Paced Tutorials and Exercises- These are tutorials from the Adobe Classroom In-A-Book and exercises I have created which will reinforce weekly topics. These will be graded on a 10 point scale with 10 per half-semester. Cummulatively, exercises are worth 30% of overall grade. They must be comepleted on the due date to receive credit!

Quizzes - There will be two quizzes focused on Illustrator and design theory. Lectures and Classroom in a Book chapter questions will be the source for quiz questions. They will be assigned a letter grade and are, in total, worth 10% of your overall grade.

Projects - There will be Five creative Illustrator projects which account for 60% of your total grade.

Summary of Graded Elements

Graded Exercises and Tutorials=30%
In-class Exercises and Classroom In a Book (CIB) tutorials.

Note On Exercises due dates: Three missed due dates will result in the lowering of your grade by one-half a grade. It's important to meet deadlines in the design business. I hope this incentive will help you be better organized and aware of the deadlines.

Quizzes=10%
Based on Classroom In A Book End of Chapter Questions Exercises and content provided in weekly modules.

Projects=60%
Sketch Everyday Object10%
Interior Variations Project 10%
Logo Design 10%
Label/Packaging 10%
Web Page 20%

Grading Scale

You can view your cumulative grade, completed quiz and completed project grades in the D2L Gradebook. Exercises will be calculated in two groups, the first after week 8 (modules 1-8) and at the second (modules 9-16) at the end of the semester.

A=100-91% of total points
B=90-81%
C=80-71%
D= 70-61%
F=60% or below