Business-driven assignment for teaching HCI

The purpose of this paper is to offer a reflection on some of the challenges of teaching interaction design. A proposed solution to address these challenges is through a business-driven problem which has been translated into a research question to be tackled by students in their learning context. The case study outlines and evaluates the six stages of this process. Apart from providing the company with research solutions that can be used to improve its profitability, other benefits consist of better teaching/learning process which emphasises learning by doing and involves applying research knowledge and skills in an industrial project. The paper also highlights the lessons learned and the understanding gained into how this approach can be successfully replicated. Categories and Subject Descriptors H.5.2 [Information Interfaces and Presentation]: User Interfaces - evaluation/methodology, theory and methods General Terms Design, Experimentation, Human Factors, Theory.