Statement of Intent (SOI)

THESIS:   STATEMENT OF INTENT or  What do you plan to do?
Complete Degree Title:  (BA Hons):Graphic Design and Interactive Media
Student Name:					Student Registration Number
Matthew Anthony Keith					4	8			0	5		0		0		L
Institute: Art and Design
Main Area of Research you are interested in:
The use of signs and symbols to help teachers manage children in schools.
Signature								Date			3		10		10

Guidance questions

SECTION ONE – The written Thesis / Dissertation.  (guide 100 words) A. Proposed working title (if already known) or theme of your Thesis. B. What you would like to work towards producing and what you intend to submit by the due date.                    (Since requirements may be Institute specific, you shall be informed accordingly).

A. Title - The adaptation of signs and symbols to assist primary school teachers with the management of their students. B. My concept is to create a tool to assist primary school teachers to manage their students. Teachers are looking for new ideas to help them with this. I plan to adapt a set of signs and symbols to assist the teachers as a form of visual communication, for example, as traffic signage is used by drivers. I feel this concept is particularly useful at early primary school age as this is the time that children are most easily influenced. Another point is that this idea could be easily widened to include other environments such as other areas of the school.

SECTION TWO – Influences…    what got you interested in this subject. (guide 100 words)       C. Early ideas, starting points, research plans, sources…  It is recommended that you include a short list of research sources.

Signs and symbols have always fascinated me and they are an accepted part of our daily life, for example traffic signage. A problem that we often read about in the daily newspapers and sometimes hear about on television is discipline in schools. It occurred to me that it might be possible to adapt one to assist with the other. After looking through a number of books. I designed a set of questions to self-evaluate the topic which interested me for my thesis. This helped me to come up with a specific title and concept. A few books that I consulted which helped to further my interest in the subject were among others: Evamy, M. (2003) World Without Words. Laurence King Publishing Ltd: UK. Partin, R. L. (2009) Classroom Teachers Survival Guide: Practical strategies, management techniques and reproducible for new and experienced teachers.  3rd edt. Jossey Bass: USA. Hampshire, M., Stephenson, K. (2008) Signs and Symbols. Rotovision: USA.

SECTION THREE –  Timetable:   You may wish to include a Gantt chart on a separate sheet. D.    Draw up a preliminary timetable which gives a good idea of how you plan to develop your thesis.              (Timescales should follow MCAST’s calendar). If your programme requires a model or actual end product, state intended techniques, media, processes and fabrication timetable.   (guide 150 words)

Timetable: 15/10/10 - 30/11/10: Literature Review. 1/12/10 - 22/12/10: First set of questionnaires and interviews. 23/12/10 - 2/1/11: Analyse results of questionnaires and interviews. 3/1/11 - 31/1/11: Begin to design prototype of final product. 1/2/11 - 18/2/11: Produce prototype of final product. 19/2/11 - 4/3/11: Field tests of prototype to see if it is feasible in practise. 5/3/11 - 16/3/11: Questionnaires on effectiveness of prototype. 17/3/11 -24/3/11: Interviews with teachers, students, and other experts related to this subject. 25/3/11 -12/4/11: Evaluation of the results from the various tests, interviews and questionnaires. 13/4/11 - 22/4/11: Conclusion of findings. 23/4/11 - 2/5/11: Completion and bibliography of thesis. 3/5/11 - 15/5/11: Last organisation and layout of thesis and adjustments where necessary of titles and                            chapters. 16/5/11 - 22/5/11: Send to proof reader. 23/5/11- 25/5/11: Correction of text after proof reading. 26/5/11 - 10/6/11: Send finished thesis to printers. 11/6/11 - 16/6/11: Check for any error in printing. 17/6/11: Handing in of thesis.

SECTION FOUR – Bibliography:         E.  Include a relevant  list of books and/or  magazines found in the MCAST library which you plan to consult.              For courses involving a Final product, state how you shall evaluate the designed product. (guide 150 words)

Book list: Ballantyne, R., Hughes, K., Moscardo, G. (2007) Designing Interpretive Signs - Principals in Practise. Fulcrum Publishing: USA. Macnab, M. (2008) Decoding Design: Understanding and using Symbols and Visual Communication. How: USA. Mitchell, W. J. T. (1995) Picture theory: Essays on Verbal and Visual Representation. University of Chicago Press: USA. Morgan, J., Welton, P. (2009) "See What I Mean": An Introduction to Visual Communication. 2nd edt. Bloomsbury: USA. Partin, R. L. (2009) Classroom Teachers Survival Guide: Practical strategies, management techniques and reproducible for new and experienced teachers.  3rd edt. Jossey Bass: USA. Porter L. (1996) Student Behaviour: Theory and Practise for Teachers. Allen and Unwin: Australia. Sturken, M., Cartwright, L. (2009) Practises of Looking: An Introduction to Visual Culture. 2nd edt. Oxford University Press: USA. I plan to evaluate my final product by: Questionnaires to individuals involved in this subject. Interviews to individuals involved in this subject such as child psychologists and teachers. Field tests using a prototype in a classroom environment.

(Remember: Good research is at the base of every good thesis).