This document outlines the coursework assignment for an Information Architecture module. Students must create an information portal about a chosen professional role, applying information architecture principles. They must produce both the portal using WordPress, and a 5-10 page reflective report connecting the concepts learned to their design choices. The report must include the portal's URL and be submitted by January 9th, 2012. Support is available from the module leader and teaching assistants during the process.

1. Dr Vesna Brujic‐Okretic INM401: Information Architecture 19 October 2011
INM401 Information Architecture
Coursework Assignment 2010‐12
The module is assessed by coursework only (100%) and it will be assessed as individual work.
The coursework assignment requires you to gather and organize information for a web site
based on a particular professional role that you chose to support by this information source. You
should apply Information Architecture principles in organizing the information and present your
design by clearly laying out the structure that you have developed (e.g. the vocabularies,
classification, metadata and taxonomies used) to best accommodate the requirements of the
chosen role. You should use wireframes to present how you envisage the design of the web
pages layout and the structural diagrams to reflect the envisaged navigation structure. This will
be incorporated in the report that you will be submitting as a key output of your work.
In addition, you will produce an Information Portal using an easy-to-use blogging environment
– WordPress – and implement, at least in part, the design you propose in your report.
Your deliverables will therefore be:
• The information portal itself, and
• A written report, in which a critique of your own work – from an information architect’s
point of view will be presented, based on the knowledge and expertise acquired in the
course of the module.
The choice of the role is left to your personal preference and interests, but - whatever the role –
you are advised to establish and explain the responsibilities of the role to which the envisaged
web site will be referring and to present them at the start of the report.
The Detailed Requirements
From the information architecture theory point of view, you are required to follow its principles in:
• organizing the content
• creating meta-data
• creating hierarchies of terms
• matching appropriate terms with a chosen, in-built navigation system
• selecting a layout that meets the requirements set out in the role’s tasks
Your online portal will have to satisfy the following minimum set of requirements:
• It will contain textual and graphical information about the role, which is easily updatable
• The information will be laid out following good practice examples of the contemporary user
interface design and information architecture, using templates available within the
WordPress blog environment
• The portal will provide the role with a flow of information relevant to their domain, in real time,
by having readily available links to:
o Twitter (your account, or another account relevant to the role)
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2. Dr Vesna Brujic‐Okretic INM401: Information Architecture 19 October 2011
o Facebook (your account, or another account relevant to the role)
o News web page that is most relevant to the role
o Flickr, to manage graphical inputs effectively and also providing meta-data for an easier
search
Technical Environment
It is recommended that your portal be created within the WordPress environment, using the
blogging version of it, but with advanced features – such as the templates found here:
http://theme.wordpress.com/ . Other similar environments will be accepted, depending on the
role and your personal preference, but Wordpress is recommended for its ease of use.
Reflective Report
In the written report, you will make connections between the principles of information
architecture learnt in the module, such as tagging, associative relationships, search methods etc
- and the way in which you implemented them to your information portal. You will explain how
these solutions enhanced your visibility on the web and the attractiveness and usability of your
web presence and information dissemination.
The report should be reflective and evaluative of your experience and observations made during
the creation of the portal. The report may contain some screenshots from your portal - some
significant parts of it - to illustrate the point, but it should be no more than 5-10 pages long,
together with references and possible appendices, if you feel you should include them.
The title of the report will reflect the role you have chosen to present and will be followed by the
URL at which your portal resides, so that it can be accessed easily by the assessors of your
work. The report may contain other active links - to the URL's you have found relevant while
investigating the role and enriching your narrative. This would be in line with the philosophy of
harnessing knowledge and information available on the internet to enhance your own.
Assistance and Support
Support will be available during the course of the module by the Module Leader, Dr Vesna
Brujic-Okretic, and the two Teaching Assistants: Alexander Kachkaev and Stelios
Papakonstantinou – in the lab and online.
The marking scheme is available in a separate document on Moodle.
Submission
The report, in a PDF format, containing a clear reference to the URL of your portal and
possible required login credentials, must be submitted on Moodle, in a designated submission
area.
The deadline for submission is: 9th January 2012, 10am
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