WBIT2000 Online Spring 2012 Syllabus

Course Name: WBIT 2000 Course Description: The Enterprise and Information Technology

This course will cover the structure and management of an information technology infrastructure. From the management aspect the course will touch on principles and practices of managing both people and technology to support an organization. The course will emphasize how to make an information technology infrastructure effective, efficient, and productive. The management of hardware, software, data, networks and other supporting IT functions will be studied.

Prerequisites: None

Instructor Information Name: Aurelia Smith Email: Within Vista (preferred) or to [email protected] Department Phone: (706) 507-8170 My office phone: 706-507-8188

Course Objectives and Learning Outcomes Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to: 1) Discuss the value, roles, and goals of IT as a part of the corporate infrastructure 2) Discuss ways in which IT might be used to gain competitive advantage 3) Discuss the main roles and functions of computer operations management 4) Explain the impact of capacity and availability management for systems 5) Discuss the role of service level agreements 6) Identify challenges to information technology budgets and discuss strategies for addressing these challenges 7) Describe the role of teams in information technology projects and evaluate team effectiveness 8) Identify common ethical issues surrounding the use of technology in organizations and analyze strategies for addressing these issues 9) Explain how telecommunications policies and regulations affect the application of information technology

Textbook Information Required Text : IT Systems and Management Author: Rich Schiesser Publisher and copyright year: Prentice Hall, 2010 ISBN: 978-0-13-702-506-0

Instructor Contact Policy Email is the official tool for contacting me. Please use the email tool inside Vista to communicate with me. CC yourself on all the emails you send to me for a reference and to ensure that I have received the emails. I will respond to all emails within 48-72 hours of receipt. If the Vista email does not work or in case of emergency, don't hesitate to email me at [email protected]

Policy on Changes to the Syllabus The instructor reserves the right to change the syllabus and class schedule, including assignments and tests, and will notify the class when such a change has occurred.

Class Cancellation Policy While class cancellation does not apply to an asynchronous online course, should instructional delays occur due to server or connection problems or other unforeseen circumstances, we will endeavor to remain on schedule. Such remedies may include adjustments to due dates of assignments and online discussions.

Attendance/Participation All students enrolled in the WebBSIT Program must verify their enrollment by completing the Enrollment Verification in each course. The link for this is on the home page of your course and also in the Course Calendar. Enrollment verification information is provided to the Financial Aid Office of your home institution. To verify your enrollment you must log-in to each of your WebBSIT VISTA courses by 5:00 pm on the first day of course instruction and complete the Enrollment Verification. Consistent participation is required in each of WebBSIT VISTA course. Activities include, e-mail correspondence, discussion threads and study groups, assignment submissions, wikis.

Withdrawal Withdrawal policy varies by institution. In general, students who stop attending class without a submission of the necessary withdrawal paperwork will receive an automatic grade of ‘F’. Students who withdraw after the mid-point of the course will receive an automatic grade of ‘WF’. Withdrawal policy and procedures are published in the Academic Catalog of your consortium institution.

No-Shows Students must log into each of their WebBSIT Vista courses by 5pm of the day classes begin (January 9, 2012) to confirm their attendance. Remember, you are taking an online course and participation in the course is the only way the instructor can "see" you. If you fail to log into your courses by 5pm of the day classes begin to complete the WebBSIT Enrollment Verification you are considered a “No Show” and notification will be sent to your WebBSIT Institution for appropriate action. If you fail to participate in course activities within a two-week period at any time during the semester, the instructor will consider your lack of activity as an indication of your intention not to continue in the course. At this point, the instructor may choose to remove you from group activities or interactions. Failure to participate without officially withdrawing from the course will result in a grade of F. The special circumstances of taking a WebBSIT course demand regular and consistent participation. Be sure to pace yourself throughout the semester making sure your responses to communications and assignments are timely. If you are not able to participate in any assigned class activities, contact your instructor immediately. Academic Honesty Unless otherwise indicated, all assignments and discussions are individual assessments. Evidence of collaboration between students on these tasks will be treated as cheating. Note that representing the work of another as your own is also considered cheating. The usual penalty for cheating is an 'F' in the course. Any student guilty of a dishonest academic activity such as (but not limited to) copying sections from another student's paper or plagiarizing from another source such as a website will receive an F in this course. For further information on Academic Dishonesty review that section of Academic Catalog of your consortium institution.

Technology Requirements Computers located in on-campus labs or libraries cannot be used as the primary computer resource for taking online classes.

Required Hardware Computer: A personal computer with Windows XP or higher, or an Apple computer with OS X. Sound: A sound card with speakers or headphones. Monitor: A VGA (or equivalent) or better monitor. Strongly Recommended Hardware Printer connected to the computer DVD drive Microphone or headset Internet Connectivity Dial-up connections will adversely affect course performance. High speed Internet connectivity (cable or DSL) is required.

Required Software Microsoft Word 2003 or higher

Web Browser: A JavaScript enabled Web browser. These include Firefox 8.0 or Internet Explorer 8.0 or newer versions of either. Ignore the browser warning you get with Firefox; it WORKS! (Note: Internet Service Providers with proprietary browsers such as AOL may have difficulty with JavaScript-based activities. Test your browser to see if it will work with JavaScript.). Flash Player: Animations (Tutorials) used in this course may require the installation of the cross-platform Flash Player in your browser. You will be prompted to download the latest version of Flash Player from the Adobe website.

Virus protection software: free products are available. Contact me if you need help with this.

Assessment Policies Your course grade will be computed as follows: 40% Discussion Participation (10% for each discussion, the lowest grade will be dropped) 40% Individual Assignments (10% for each assignment, the lowest grade will be dropped) 4/8 20% Term Paper = Group Project (approval on proposal and draft is needed before submission) This course does not have examinations. Discussion Participation Policies Discussions are an important part of this course and help you express your understanding of assigned topics. Post your response and reply to at least one post from another student. Responses and replies count equally toward your discussion grade.

Responses are usually 2-3 paragraphs long and offer an in-depth view of the topic to those who may not have read up on it. Replies to classmates' messages usually add to the discussion by supplementing their responses or asking for clarification. One-liners such as "I agree!" or "Good job!" do not add to the discussion and hence will not be graded. Replies to other messages are typically 2-4 sentences long and further the debate/discussion. Discussion postings are expected to be constructive, relevant, and contribute to the body of existing knowledge in a way that either introduces new information or provides information to confirm, support or challenge previous contributions to the discussion. Please observe netiquette rules for discussion postings.

At least 2 postings per discussion are required for grade purposes: one of these 2 postings is the response, i.e. “answer” to the original “question” (topic), while the other is the comment, i.e. feedback on a classmate’s response. Usually, 3 topics are provided per discussion, so if you respond to topic 1, make sure to comment on a classmate’s response to topic 2 or topic 3 (and vice-versa).

This is the MINIMUM participation required to be considered for credit and will therefore elicit a minimum or a passing grade; greater number of postings are highly encouraged. Responses and comments each count for one-half of a discussion grade. Profanity or inappropriate posts will not be tolerated.

Criticize the content, not the person who posted it. Personal attacks are not allowed and such postings will be deleted (and not graded). Late submissions are NOT graded. A discussion posting usually summarizes the topic in about 2-3 concise paragraphs so that someone who has not read the original article or topic can understand what it entails. You can respond to one of the two topics provided and comment on a classmate's response to the topic that you did not respond to. Responses and comments need to add to the quality of the discussion and continue a conversation, so one-liners such as “Good job” or “I agree” will not count toward the discussion grade for comments. Follow netiquette (Internet etiquette) in all your posts.

Since discussion responses and comments involve some level of subjective grading, remember to use reference material to bolster your messages. These reference sources could include the textbook and/or external sources such as online and offline materials. Please be aware that you need to cite such sources if you used them in your messages. If you copy and paste words or phrases verbatim (not generally recommended), you need to quote this material and cite the source at the end. The quality of your messages is an important component of your discussion grade.

Assignment Deadline Policies Don't procrastinate! No late assignments, discussion postings or group term papers will be accepted. It is my strict policy not to accept late submissions. I know that events and situations inlife can happen without notice, so I am generous with partial credits. Submit partial assignments for partial credit by the deadlines. Also, I drop the lowest grade for assignments and discussions, so one adverse grade will not affect your overall grade.

Proctored Exams: This course has no proctored exams.

How to Succeed in this Course Keep up with or ahead of scheduled work. Notify me immediately if there is a problem. All assigned readings, assignment deadlines, discussion deadlines and term paper deadlines are in the Course Calendar so you can print it out and keep in your planner as a handy reference.

Guidelines for Assignments In order of significance, the most important factors determining your grade on graded assignments are as follows: completeness, correctness, organization, and readability. Completeness: If your writing is a collection of answers, then completeness is a measure of the total number of questions that you have successfully covered. A question is considered to be covered if the underlying answer looks reasonable and it explains your thought in a non- trivial fashion (i.e., simply quoting text from somewhere as an answer is considered trivial). You should try your best to write in your own words and provide credit for sources, quotes and citations.

Correctness: Correctness becomes a grading issue only for problems that are completely answered or covered. A correct answer addresses the question according to well-defined arguments and knowledge from assigned reading materials. Specifically, if you have got a question mostly completed, you will get credit for answering it, but points will be taken off for errors or ill-conceived arguments. If you don't have a question mostly covered, you will not get credit for it. Grading policies are designed to be fair both to the person being graded and to the class as a whole.

Organizational writing style and readability: Finally, quality of organization and quality of your writing will be assessed subjectively. There are two aspects of these qualities that can affect your grade: (a) If there are statements in your writing that significantly and noticeably affect readability, they are considered to be significant; and (b) If there are errors that make it difficult for me to understand your writing, this results in a drastic increase in the amount of time required to review your assignment, these issues are considered to be significant. The word “significant” here means “adversely affects your grade.”

Assignments, discussion responses and replies, and the group term paper may not be revised after the due date. The grade you get is the grade you earn. There is NO do-over in the college level study.

Term Paper or Wiki A portion of your course grade will be derived from the term paper or wiki. As explained in Preparing Your Term Paper in the "Course Resources" section, a successful term paper is one that earns a grade of A and doesn't kill you in the process! The key to a successful term paper is a narrow scope. That's how you get enough depth with a reasonable amount of work.

Choose a general topic from one of the units of this course or chapters in the textbook, especially 15 and up. Another option: choose a case study or current topic from the online IT management sites we will visit during the course. Then find a very specific area within that topic which you will research further.

You have some time to think about this. In about a month into the course (the exact date is in the Course Calendar and the Assignments tool) turn in a Term Paper Proposal. In your proposal, provide the title of your paper, a draft "Statement of the Problem," an abstract that explains in a paragraph or two the topic you intend to research and write about, and list at least three references to material on that topic. (You will have to have done some research to list the references; that's how you know you can find enough material on your chosen topic.) Your proposal will not be a part of your grade, but will be marked "Approved" or "Not Approved." If your proposal is approved, proceed. If it is not approved, the instructor will tell you why. You must then submit a revised proposal for approval.

Your term paper or wiki will not be graded (and will count as a zero!) if you do not work from an approved proposal.

About a month before your paper is due, you will submit a term paper draft. Your draft will not be graded, but will be approved or disapproved with comments. The purpose is to be sure you're on the right track so that you earn a good grade on the final paper. Your term paper draft must have all the required sections described in Preparing Your Term Paper, and the problem statement must be in final form. The literature review may be in draft form, but should be mostly complete. The discussion and conclusion may be in draft or outline form. Your term paper will not be graded (and will count as a zero!) if you do not work from an approved draft.

Your final paper must be at least 12 and no more than 15 typed, double-spaced pages, exclusive of references and figures. Margins should be set to 1 inch on all sides and the type set to 12 size, Times New Roman font. It must be prepared in the format described in Preparing Your Term Paper. You must cite at least 6 references, of which one may be the course textbook. Your remaining references must come from books or papers published in respected journals. At most three references may come from popular publications or Internet publications.

Refer to the Standards of Academic Conduct paper and be careful to attribute comments, observations, and ideas which are not your own. There is a writing example in the "Course Resources" section that will show you how to do this.

Plagiarism, fabrication, reference padding, or other academic misconduct will result in a grade of zero on the paper, a letter-grade reduction in your course grade, and possibly other penalties. I reserve the right to screen your papers using an anti-plagiarism service like Turnitin.com. Be careful what you upload. I will not accept, "I uploaded the wrong thing" or "I completed it on time but forgot to upload" as an excuse for unsatisfactory work, late or missing submissions, or academic misconduct.

Important Dates Please see the Course Calendar for important course dates and graded work deadlines.

Vista Maintenance Schedule The Vista system for your online course has scheduled maintenance periods when the online learning environment is not available. For Spring 2012, the maintenance schedule is published at http://www.usg.edu/gaview/support/maint-schedule-spring-2012.phtml

Rest assured that no assignment deadlines will fall within these scheduled maintenance periods and make sure that you allocate sufficient time to complete your assignments, taking into account the fact that the system will not be available during these maintenance periods.

Grading Philosophy I want to explain my grading philosophy as it relates to assignments, discussions and the project in this course. This means if you satisfy the minimum requirements, you can expect to receive a grade of “C” on the graded activity, i.e. assignment, discussion or project. I reserve “A” grades for students who demonstrate exceptional comprehension and application of the course subject matter. I believe a student who demonstrates an excellent understanding of the content for a specific graded activity has earned an “A” grade.

Students often believe that their grade starts at 100%, and they lose points for not doing certain things. For example, if you complete a discussion as specified in the syllabus, you should expect to receive a C for the discussion. You might think, "How did I lose 30 points?" It is important for you to understand that you didn't lose 30 points. A student who completes a discussion in accordance with the instructions has earned a “C”.

If you want a higher grade, you must exceed the minimum requirements of the discussion or other graded activity. It is up to you how you exceed the minimum requirements of any graded activity in the course. You need to find ways to go beyond the stated requirements of the assignment and add a greater depth of understanding to make it clear to me that you have an excellent grasp of the material.

What are some of the ways in which you may accomplish this? They are different for different graded activities. With quantitative assignments, it may be the clarity you bring to the explanations you provide with your solutions. In an essay it may be the quality of the research or the strength of the argument that makes your paper stand out. It is important for you to remember that it is your responsibility to clearly demonstrate that you have an excellent understanding of the material covered in a specific graded activity. Syllabus Agreement

Instructions: Copy the following text into a Word document, type in your name and initials in the appropriate blank, and send in the Word document as an email attachment in CougarView. Please CC the email to yourself to confirm delivery.

I have read, understood and agree to abide by the policies and guidelines outlined in this syllabus.

My electronic signature is below.

(Sign below with your initials and the date. Then email this portion to me and to you from within CougarView).

______(Name and initials for electronic signature) (Date)