Course syllabus — AY2025

* Note that in rare instances, such as disruptions to transportation networks, some classes may be delivered online.

Please read the the below carefully, prior to taking this course. The onus is on students to familiarise themselves with all course policies, deadlines, and expectations outlined in this syllabus. If you have any questions about any of the below, it is your responsibility to seek clarification from the instructor.

Course overview

This course provides a gentle introduction to the fundamentals of visual communication design. Students will learn design theory, concepts, and skills, developing knowledge and understanding of the foundational creative components of visual communication. By emphasizing practical skills relevant to digital industries, students will learn how to utilize design concepts and theories, and use contemporary design applications to create their own digital design works.

This course will be delivered through a series of interactive lectures and hands-on tutorials. The course covers design principles, elements and layouts, as well as file handling for digital media. Through a series of small design projects, students who take this course will put design theory into practice. There will be two design projects, and quizzes and tests, to test your knowledge of the course material. Feedback on assignment work will be given within approximately two weeks, via Manaba. You will also be assessed on your completion of in-class activities.

Please note: GLA students should not take this course if they already passed Design Practice in 2019-2022, as there is significant overlap in the contents and assessments.

Course objectives

Students who successfully complete this course will be able to:

• Describe what visual communication design is and its various implementations.
• Identify, describe, and analyze the concepts and theories of visual communication, including design composition, elements, and principles, and use of type and various modes of visual depiction.
• Apply design concepts and theories to effectively communicate visually to an audience.

What is expected of you

By taking this course, you are committing yourself to the following:

• reading all of the course materials
• contributing to class discussions
• completing the course assessment items

It is expected that you come to class having done any necessary preparation in advance.

What to expect from your instructor

The job of your instructor is to assist you in developing your understanding of the topics, and to help you develop your academic skills more broadly. Your instructor will also grade your assessments, which will include detailed feedback where appropriate. This feedback, which may seem quite critical at times, is intended to help you improve the standard of your work. If you need help, your first port of call should be contacting your instructor — it is their job to help your learning and do all that is feasibly possible to assist you.

Contacting your instructor

Email is the best method of contacting your instructor. Please do not use Manaba for contacting your instructor outside of class hours.

Some important points about emailing:

• On weekdays, email inquiries will be responded to within 24 hours as a general rule.
• Generally, emails sent after 6pm on weekdays, on weekends, or on public holidays, will be responded to on the following work day.
• If it is the first time for you to email your instructor, make it clear which course you are writing about.
• Please use your instructor's title and surname correctly in all email correspondence.
• If your email is about the course structure, content, or assignments, it is recommended that you carefully check the course syllabus, course content, or assignment descriptions, prior to emailing your instructor.
• Recognise that emails within a university setting to your instructors or university administration staff are formal, professional correspondence, so you should treat them as such ( See a list of professional email etiquette tips here ). Emails that don’t adhere to professional email etiquette will not be responded to.

Course readings

Selected readings from:
Hagen, R., & Golombisky, K. (2017). White space is not your enemy: a beginner’s guide to communicating visually through graphic, web & multimedia design (3rd ed.). CRC Press.

This text is available in the library, but also as an ebook via the library website. While it is not necessary to purchase a physical copy of the book, you are encouraged to do so. Previous editions are OK.

Students are expected to read assigned readings before the lectures, and should bear in mind that all course materials (including readings and lecture notes) are relevant to the assessments.

Software

For this class, we will use Lunacy software, which is available for free on both Mac and Windows. See more here about working with design software in the tutorial sessions of this course.

Regarding electronic devices

As a general rule, you should not use electronic devices in class, with the exception of using laptops for the portion of the classes where we are doing course-related tasks. When taking notes in class, paper is best, though tablet devices are OK if you are taking notes with a stylus pen. Phones are immensely distracting to you, those around you, and your instructor(s), and it is recommended that you leave them in your bag during the class period.

Weekly schedule

Note that the below schedule will be conducted over 13 weeks, with one additional session containing a week's worth of asynchronous content.

1. Introduction (Reading chapter 1)
2. Design research, design history (Reading chapter 2)
3. What not to do in design (Reading chapters 3-4)
4. Design elements and principles [Online session for Golden Week] (Reading chapter 5)
5. Typography (Reading chapter 7)
6. Typography (continued) [Asynchronous session] Watch: : Hustwit, G. (Director). (2007). Helvetica [Film]. Film First.
   https://vimeo.com/398873298 (Note that an updated URL will be provided on Manaba)
7. Typography (continued)
8. Colour theory (Reading chapter 8) — In-class test #1 in tutorial class Friday May 16
9. Images in design [Online session] (Reading chapter 9)
   — Design project 1 draft due in tutorial class Friday May 23; final version due 5pm Monday May 26
10. Images in design  (continued)
11. Layouts (Reading chapter 6)
12. Infographics (Reading chapter 10)
13. Infographics (continued) — In-class test #2 in tutorial class Friday June 27 
14. Course review
    — Design project 2 draft due in tutorial class Friday July 4; final version due 5pm Monday July 7   

Wednesday classes will be lectures, while Friday classes will be tutorials. Please bring your PC to all tutorial sessions. Note that asynchronous content in Week 6 is material that could be covered in both of the in-class tests, so should be reviewed before the tutorial session of Week 8. The content will also be part of in-class and/or online discussion prior to the first quiz.

Note that this schedule may change due to unforeseen circumstances. However, the overall topics and methods of assessment will not change. Students will be notified via Manaba immediately of any changes after the commencement of semester.

Please confirm all assignment deadlines on Manaba. Students are responsible for ensuring that their own work is completed and submitted on time.

Assessments

• Design project #1: 15%
• Design project #2: 35%
• In-class tests: 30%
• Review quizzes: 10%
• In-class activities: 10%

Further information regarding assessments

• Details of assessments, including due dates, will be announced in class. Feedback for all assessment items will be given through Manaba and, where appropriate, in-person. Feedback on assignments will generally be returned within two weeks (10 working days), unless notified otherwise.
• All written work should use APA 7 referencing format. You can find a "quickstart" guide at http://www.ritsumei.ac.jp/~haimes/publications/citation.pdf. A more comprehensive resource is the official APA 7 guide at https://apastyle.apa.org.
• Quizzes and tests cover 1-3 of the course objectives. The main project and mini projects cover all of the course objectives. Engagement in class activities is also relevant to all of the course objectives.

Design project #1

This is an exercise primarily in typography. Also important is your application of design elements and principles. You are to design a menu based on the constraints and details given in class. The submission should also include evidence of brainstorming and sketches. A draft and sketches will be shown in class, as per the schedule.

Design project #2

This is an exercise in layout, imagery, and typography. Also important is your application of design elements and principles. You are to design a feature story layout based on the constraints and details given in class. The submission should also include evidence of brainstorming and sketches. A draft and sketches will be shown in class, as per the schedule.

In-class tests

Two in-class tests will be given to test students’ knowledge of the course material. The mid-term test will be worth 10%, while the end of semester test will be worth 20%.

Review quizzes

Quizzes will be given in class to review the course material.

In-class activities

There will be several practical activities in the tutorial sessions of this course. Students will be graded based on whether they submit the work by 7pm on the day of the tutorial or not.

Late policy

Students are responsible for meeting all deadlines as set by the course instructor. If a student cannot meet the submission deadline as specified by the course instructor the assignment will be deducted 5% (per 100 marks) for each 24 hour period passed. Any submission within a 24 hour period counts as the entirety of that period. Assignments will not be accepted for evaluation if the assignment is submitted five or more days late unless specified otherwise by the course instructor. Late assignments may receive fewer comments as feedback.

Furthermore, students should realise that deadlines are not just for students, but for instructors to help manage their time. Late assignments are frankly an inconvenience, and instructors are doing you a favour when they accept work submitted late. It's expected that students provide a compelling reason why they are submitting work late.

In the case of request for a makeup assessment or extension due to extenuating circumstances, students must consult the instructor in charge of the course. In such cases, students should contact the instructor prior to the deadline or in-class assessments.

Other policies

For the full list of academic policies, refer to the GLA Academic Handbook (“for All Undergraduate Students” and “for GLA Students”) posted on manaba+R. Click here to see the Curriculum Map and Course Numbering: http://www.ritsumei.ac.jp//students/pathways-future/course/curriculum.html.

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