How to Hold an Effective Critique

Agenda Part 1 (For Students)  Critiques vs. Comments  Why Critique?  What to Look For  Criticism: How to Give it  Criticism: How to Take it Part 2 (For Teachers)  Suggestions for the Classroom Standards Addressed: 3.1 (Industry language) 4.5 (Written critiques) 7.9 (Pre-production) 8.2, 9.1 (Production) 8.11, 10.6 (Forum/digital critique) 11.0 (Critique through every phase) 12.4 Presentation

Critique vs. Comments Are they the same?  Critique = specific; actionable; make something better as a whole; solving a specific problem. I like it! I don’t like it.

Why Critique? Real-world application for ANY industry … or walk of life.  Boss to employee  Employee to customer/client  Parent to child  Friend to friend Creation is communication. Deep down, designers love feedback. (we just might not be on the same page as everyone else. )

What to Look For Design fundamentals = Backbone of good critiques.  Note where your eyes go first. (Emphasis, Movement, Simplicity)  Squint your eyes. (Balance, Contrast)  Scan diagonally from top left to bottom right. (Movement)  Find the Intersections (Balance, Unity, Movement)  What five things do you remember most? (Emphasis, Unity, overall effectiveness) 3.1 (Industry language)

Criticism: How to Give it The “A.C.E” Method: Appreciate Identify something done well or correctly. Coach Specify ways to improve. Encourage Reassure of success.

A.C.E. Practice 1

A.C.E. Practice 2

A.C.E. Practice 3

Criticism: How to Take it How you take criticism is more important than how it is given. Showing that you can hear and respond thoughtfully to feedback reflects well on YOU. “It can be hard not to be struck dumb, thrown into doubt, when someone criticizes your work. It’s like they’re criticizing you. But they’re not. They’re critiquing your work. It’s an output, not your essence.” - John Moore Williams, Director of Content Strategy at InVision

Criticism: How to Take it  Don’t think defensively.  If the suggested change makes sense, get the person to expand on it.  If the suggested change doesn’t make sense, argue against it (design fundamentals).  When in doubt, ask “Why?”  Feel free to ignore suggestions.  But if you hear the same one twice or more, it’s definitely worth considering.

Suggestions for the Classroom

Lead by Example Model the type of language and format you’d like your students to use when providing feedback.

How Often? You should hold critiques at every stage of a project. Different stages call for different levels of criticism.  Pre-Production  Research/brainstorming/thumbnails  Production  Roughs/revisions  Post-Production  Final outcome 11.0 (Critique through every phase)

Ideas: Pre-Production  If students are working in a group, have them vote on the most interesting ideas to take further.  Pair students together for brainstorming/thumbnail sessions.  Make the Pre-Production work an actual assignment and select 3-5 of their best ideas as part of your grading process. 4.5 (Written critiques) 7.9 (Pre-production)

Ideas: Production  This is the digital age! Have students post their progress on forums, discussion threads, social media, etc. and have their peers give feedback. (Just be sure to set ground rules)  “Review Breaks”: Have students take a 10-minute break during lab time and walk around the room to see what their peers are doing. 4.5 (Written critiques) 8.2, 9.1 (Production) 8.11, 10.6 (Forum/digital critique)

Ideas: Post-Production  Start with a silent “review” – all work is displayed and everyone takes a look silently.  Have students present to smaller groups rather than the whole class.  During presentation, have students cover these three talking points:  Why they made the decisions they did (color, font, images)  Their favorite part of the piece  Where they think they could improve 8.2, 9.1 (Production) 12.4 Presentation

Your Ideas? What’s been successful for YOU?

Q&A Any other questions or concerns?

Thank You Resources and references:  10 Creative Critiques to Try (The Art of Ed) 10 Creative Critiques to Try  Free Forum tool: Muut.com Free Forum tool: Muut.com  5 Tips on Taking Design Feedback (InVision) 5 Tips on Taking Design Feedback  How to Give Designers Better Feedback (InVision) How to Give Designers Better Feedback  The Good Creative (free Kindle eBook) The Good Creative  4 Tips for Getting Better Client Feedback (InVision) 4 Tips for Getting Better Client Feedback  The Forrst Park Guide to Giving Feedback (ZURB) The Forrst Park Guide to Giving Feedback  5 Steps to Getting Better Feedback on Your Design Projects (Interaction Design Foundation) 5 Steps to Getting Better Feedback on Your Design Projects