Open Theses & Dissertations
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Tuwhera Open Access Theses & Dissertations contains digital copies of theses, dissertations and research projects from AUT's postgraduate research, deposited with the Library since 2002. The full text digital files are available if the author has given permission for their thesis, dissertation or research projects to be available open access.
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Browsing Open Theses & Dissertations by Supervisor "Aguayo, Claudio"
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- ItemExploring the Benefits of Animation in User Interface Design(Auckland University of Technology, 2021) Zhou, YutongThe design of animations in user interface design remains under-studied. The range of possibilities with animations in user interfaces is vast, and the movement can have positive and negative effects in shaping the user experience. This study sets out to explore how animations can be used by interface designers to improve how people interact with applications, especially as they are learning a new system. Through usability tests, we study how to incorporate animation iteratively by testing new interface designs and listening to participants who are invited to contribute their own ideas and suggestions. This study is conducted in a research approach that prioritises practice and it generates three research outcomes: an exegesis, a design portfolio (the artefact) and an annotated portfolio that bridges between these two. The results indicate that animations should be applied based on the task context and users’ need, otherwise it can cause a negative user experience.
- ItemExploring the Potential of a Virtual Learning Environment for the Learning of the Spanish Language and Culture in Aotearoa New Zealand(Auckland University of Technology, 2023) Peredo Alarcon, Karen ElisabethTechnology and globalisation have enabled unprecedented interaction between people from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. However, greater contact does not always guarantee successful communication, which requires understanding and awareness of the sociocultural norms embedded in language. Subsequently, learning additional languages requires an intercultural approach to appreciate the interconnection of language and culture. Language education is undergoing a profound paradigm shift from traditional instruction towards social awareness and intercultural communication, supported by engaging pedagogical resources and innovative learning environments. Unfortunately, language teaching has tended to underutilise digital resources within and beyond the classroom. This practice-based research investigates to what extent a virtual learning environment (VLE) in the metaverse can potentially facilitate Spanish language learners’ intercultural communicative competence (ICC). Based on a framework devised from a literature review and interpretation of research on ICC development in digital learning, a prototype VLE featuring 13 virtual auditoriums and four art galleries which showcase videos of a first language (L1) speaker of Spanish acting as Frida Kahlo was developed. The VLE was designed to encourage students’ self-directed learning, engagement with intercultural content and learning opportunities, and expand general cultural knowledge of Latin American communities. Following a design-based research (DBR) methodology, the VLE prototype was developed and assessed by a panel of experts composed of Spanish teachers, adult Spanish students, and educational technology academics. The panel provided essential information and feedback before, during and after the creation of the platform. Data on usability, content and general feedback from the panellists were analysed, leading to a set of practice-informed theoretical design principles for the development and use of a VLE that potentially facilitates Spanish language learners’ ICC and promotes self-directed learning.
- ItemKō Rimurimu ‘To Be Covered in Seaweed’: Sensory Knowing, Holistic Understanding, and Meaningful Encounters Within a Marine Science Centre(Auckland University of Technology, 2018) Smith, JamesArt+Science collaborations, designed to promote and enhance ecological literacy amongst young people, need to address holistic, sensory and participatory ways of knowing. Through engaging the senses, aesthetics and emotions, deeper more meaningful learning can occur. This research explored how ‘sensory knowing’ can be used to design learning experiences that address our interconnection with the universe, in order to engage primary school children in understanding, adopting and enacting ecological literacy. The research looked to explore “meaningfulness” for primary school children within the context of a Teaching and Learning Research Initiative (TLRI) funded Mixed Reality (MR) experience at the Goat Island Marine Discovery Centre. I explored meaningfulness through the creation of an immersive, physical experience, as well as a sensory mapping process. The sensory mapping allowed me to explore different ways of engaging the physiological and emotional senses, which lead into the development of the final physical experience, a life size immersive, participatory kelp forest. Art+Science principles were brought together in order to create an aesthetically pleasing and meaningful experience, that addressed the interconnection of all life on earth, and intended to inspire and empower the students to take action and make change.
- ItemTowards a Buen Vivir-centric Design: Decolonising Artisanal Design With Mayan Weavers From the Highlands of Chiapas, Mexico(Auckland University of Technology, 2020) Albarrán González, DianaThe highlands of Chiapas is a Mayan region in southeast Mexico recognised for its richness in artisanal textiles. The intervention of hegemonic design in textile traditions has been used as a developmental strategy, following market-driven approaches in a field known as “diseño artesanal” (artisanal design). However, the role of artisans as producers of designers’ creations, the lack of reference to the cultural context, the unequal relationships of power, and the colonisation of Indigenous knowledge is a critical concern. This research aims to contribute to the decolonisation of artisanal design through Buen Vivir (good living, collective well-being), and the recognition of Indigenous design. At the same time, it challenges inequalities in the Mexican context with those in the conventional design field. In a similar manner to the concept of to Buen Vivir, Lekil Kuxlejal (a fair and dignified life) from the Mayan Tsotsil and Tseltal people, is explored through visual-digital-sensorial ethnography and co-design alongside Mayan weavers whose work demonstrates alternatives to textile artisanal design from a community perspective. The wider project seeks to develop a foundation for a context-based, non-Western/Indigenous design from the Global South. The study is rooted in jolobil, an ancient precolonial textile tradition known as backstrap loom weaving. Using jolobil as a research metaphor and methodology, a yosotros approach (Yo+Nosotros) weaves embodiment, sentipensar (feeling-thinking or sensing-thinking), and corazonar (reasoning and feeling with the heart) with decolonial theory, design research and co-design from the Global South. Further, drawing on Indigenous epistemologies and ontologies such as Buen Vivir and Zapatismo the study proffers a new approach to textiles as resistance, based on Mayan cosmovisión (vision of the cosmos), contributing to the collective well-being of artisanal communities. As a result, a central proposal of this study is a Buen Vivir-centric design model, the guiding principle for ethical and fair collaboration which, above all else, respects the autonomía of the community towards Lekil Kuxlejal.