CISS 493 A Senior Seminar in Computer Information Systems

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1 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 1 CISS 493 A Senior Seminar in Computer Information Systems Early Fall Session August 17 October 10 Course Description Culminating course required for Computer Information System (CIS) majors. Readings from the current literature. Requires original research project and paper. Grade of C or higher required. This course includes a program evaluation component. Prerequisite: CISS 325 (or CISS 320), CISS 350, CISS 360, CISS 430 and senior standing. Proctored Exams: None Textbooks There are no textbooks for this class. Course Overview This is the capstone course for the CIS degree. It provides an opportunity to synthesize material from your CIS studies and to demonstrate your command of material in the curriculum. Completion of this course requires researching a topic from the current literature in significant depth and writing a research paper that explicates the topic. You will have demonstrated mastery of material from the core courses required for the CIS degree. Technology Requirements Participation in this course will require the basic technology for all online classes at Columbia College: A computer with reliable Internet access, a web browser, Acrobat Reader, Microsoft Office or another word processor such as Open Office. You can find more details about standard technical requirements for our courses on our site. Specific to this course you will also need the following: Microphone/headset for your computer

2 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 2 Course Objectives To assess learning outcomes for the major. To acquire and apply research and writing skills appropriate to the field of computer information systems. Measurable Learning Outcomes Grading Conduct effective literature searches and create bibliographies pertinent to the current state of research in an area of computer information systems. Identify a research direction within an area of computer information systems and write a preliminary research proposal which includes papers to be studied, a list of resources required for the project, and a timeline for the progress of the project. Conduct research using a critical thinking skills and the synthesis of knowledge acquired from other courses. Write effectively through the completion of a research paper of no less than 15 pages in length. Speak effectively and professionally by defending their research orally to a group of their peers. Critically analyze and discuss current literature in the field. Demonstrate competence in required course areas including programming, algorithm design and analysis, data structures, systems analysis and design, assembly language, database design, construction and querying, and principles of accounting, principles of management, statistics and business finance. Grading Scale GRADE POINTS PERCENT A B C D F Schedule of Due Dates Grade Weights ASSIGNMENT POINTS PERCENT Literary Discussions 70 19% Competency Assignments 50 13% Research Paper Topic 5 1% Research Paper % Research Paper Presentation 50 13% Total % Week Assignment Points Due Date 1 General Discussion Introduction 0 Sunday Literary Discussion Ethics 7 Wednesday Literary Discussion Response 3 Sunday Research Paper Topic 5 Sunday 2 Competency Assignment Programming 10 Sunday Research Paper Bibliography (MLA Works Cited) 10 Sunday 3 Literary Discussion Cyber-crimes 7 Wednesday Literary Discussion Response 3 Sunday

3 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 3 Competency Assignment Algorithm Design and Analysis 10 Sunday 4 Literary Discussion Project Management 7 Wednesday Literary Discussion Response 3 Sunday Competency Assignment Database Design, Construction and Querying 10 Sunday 5 Literary Discussion Teambuilding 7 Wednesday Literary Discussion Response 3 Sunday Competency Assignment Statistics 10 Sunday 6 Literary Discussion Safeguarding Information 7 Wednesday Literary Discussion Response 3 Sunday Competency Assignment Systems Analysis and Design 10 Sunday 7 Research Paper 200 Wednesday 8 Research Paper Presentation 50 Wednesday Literary Discussion The Future 7 Wednesday Literary Discussion Response 3 Saturday Total 375 Assignment Overview General Discussions: The introduction discussion thread is required but has no points associated to it. This discussion will be used to record attendance for Week 1. Literary Discussions: Sixteen percent of your grade will be based on participation in the online literary discussions. There are a total of six discussions covering a range of topics within the computer information systems arena. You are expected to do the following: Provide a thoughtful and insightful response to all parts of the question. This will involve research into a topic you may or may not be familiar with. Include MLA citations as appropriate. Respond to these questions and provide a thoughtful and insightful response to one other student s posting. Competency Assignments: Fourteen percent of your grade will be based on competency assignments. These assignments will be placed into the appropriate Dropbox and will cover some or all of the following topics: Programming Algorithm design and analysis Data structures Systems analysis and design Assembly language Database design, construction and querying Principles of accounting Principles of management Statistics Business Finance Research Paper: Fifty-six percent of your grade will be based on a research paper submitted no later than midnight Wednesday of Week 7.

4 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 4 The paper must be pages in length. Research papers must be original work for this course. Do not submit a paper used in another course. Topic: Each topic must be approved by me. Submit your topic by Sunday of Week 1. Since it is possible your initial choice of topic will be unacceptable or need to be modified, you are encouraged to submit your topic as early as possible. The most common problem is selecting a topic that is too broad. For example, The Effects of the World Wide Web on Office Productivity would be too broad. There have been books written on this topic and it would be impossible to do it justice in a 15-page paper. Depth is more important than breadth when considering possible topics, so try to narrow the topic. A wide variety of topics are appropriate and you are encouraged to pick a topic that is of particular interest to you. If you are stuck for ideas a quick scan of articles in the research papers, journals, and magazines in the Digital Library should give you some ideas. The topic you choose and the level of discussion is to be appropriate for a senior-level culminating-experience course. Bibliography: You must also submit your bibliography (works cited) with a minimum of 8 primary sources (journals, books, research papers, etc.) no later than Sunday of Week 2 for review and approval. Ensure this is formatted in MLA format as a Works Cited page. Format: The final paper should include a title page (which does not count in the 15-page requirement), an abstract, introduction, body, summary/conclusions, and reference page(s). Pages must be numbered. The paper must be a Microsoft Word document and double spaced. Use MLA style for your citations. All source material must be properly cited in the body of the paper. I do not expect to see references to articles from popular magazines/books such as Newsweek, Time, Omni, etc. Research Paper Presentation: Fourteen percent of your grade will be based on your defense of your research paper in the form of a PowerPoint presentation. You are required to record your voice-over within PowerPoint, presenting your topic as you would to a classroom of IT professionals. Use your headset to Record Slide Show from within PowerPoint. This will enable me to download, open and simply watch/listen to your presentation. Ensure professionalism throughout. Course Schedule Week 1 Ethics General Discussion: INTRODUCTION Introduce yourself to the class and to the instructor. Provide a little about your background in Information Technology, your status at Columbia College, hobbies, likes and interests. Provide this introduction by Sunday of Week 1. ETHICS Research an article on the ethical use or misuse of computer resources within our society. Provide a brief summary of the article. Provide your opinion/analysis of the article. Post in the discussion area marked for such by Wednesday of Week 1. Ensure that you cite your source properly at the bottom of your discussion. RESPONSE Respond to another student s discussion by providing a contradictory opinion. Ensure that your response does not antagonize the writer, but rather points out a differing opinion.

5 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 5 Research Paper Topic: Week 2 Programming TOPIC Research a topic related to computer information systems that interests you. Ensure that the topic is not too broad or too narrow as this will adversely affect your research paper. Post your topic in the discussion area marked for such early so that you get the topic of your choice. It is first come, first served for topics. No two students can have the same topic choice. Competency Assignment: PROGRAMMING Using Java, C, or C++, solve for the following. Upload to the Dropbox as three separate text files by Sunday of Week Write a method or function that accepts an argument for the age of an individual and returns the year that person was born. 2. Write a method of function that accepts an integer argument. The method should use if-else statements to determine if the integer is between 45 and Write a method or function that accepts an argument for a person s name. The method should loop through the number of characters in the name sending each character to the screen each on a separate line. Research Paper Bibliography: BIBLIOGRAPHY Following MLA formatting standards, find 8 primary sources (journals, books, research papers, etc.) no later than Sunday of Week 2 and submit to the Dropbox marked for such. Week 3 Cyber-crimes; Algorithm Design and Analysis CYBER CRIMES Research an article on cyber-crimes affecting our society. Provide a brief summary of the article. Provide your opinion/analysis of the article. Post in the discussion area marked for such by Wednesday of Week 1. Ensure that you cite your source properly at the bottom of your discussion. RESPONSE Respond to another student s discussion by providing supporting facts gathered from your own research on the topic. Competency Assignment: ALGORITHM Define what an algorithm is. Then create an algorithm that tells a user how to boil and eat x number of eggs. This should be in enough detail that one could follow it step by step and be successful. (Don t forget your assumptions.) Week 4 Project Management; Database Design, Construction and Querying PROJECT MANAGEMENT Research an article on the unique management issues associated to IT projects. Provide a brief summary of the article. Provide your opinion/analysis of the article. Post in the discussion area marked for such by Wednesday of Week 1. Ensure that you cite your source properly at the bottom of your discussion. RESPONSE Respond to another student s discussion by either providing an alternate

6 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 6 solution to the challenge given or provide an additional challenge to IT project management for the given facts. Competency Assignment: DATABASE DESIGN Using PowerPoint, create a relational database model for the following. Ensure you include all the appropriate entities, relationships, primary keys, secondary keys and the basic attributes for each entity. Upload to the appropriate Dropbox by Sunday of Week A pet owner can have one or more pets. 2. A pet can have one or more vaccinations. 3. A pet can be seen by one or more doctors during a visit. Week 5 Teambuilding; Statistics TEAMBUILDING Research methods for building strong teams for IT projects. Provide a brief summary on one method you found that would build a strong team, specifically for IT professionals. Provide your opinion/analysis on how that could be applied to an online setting. Post in the discussion area marked for such by Wednesday of Week 5. Ensure that you cite your source properly at the bottom of your discussion. RESPONSE Try out one of the other student s team building exercise and post your results to their response. Competency Assignment: STATISTICS Prove or disprove Moore s law through statistical analysis. Include the data and charts using Microsoft Excel and upload to the appropriate Dropbox by Sunday of Week 5. Week 6 Safeguarding Information; Systems Analysis and Design SAFEGUARDING INFORMATION Research an article on either the safeguarding of personal information or that of a corporate nature. Provide a brief summary of the article. Provide your opinion/analysis of the article. Post in the discussion area marked for such by Wednesday of Week 1. Ensure that you cite your source properly at the bottom of your discussion. RESPONSE Respond to another student s discussion by providing supporting facts from your own research on the topic. Competency Assignment: SYSTEMS ANALYSIS AND DESIGN Describe to me the Systems Analysis and Design lifecycle. Upload to the appropriate Dropbox by Sunday of Week 6. Use the waterfall approach for this exercise. For each stage of the lifecycle, provide a detailed scenario to emphasize your understanding. Course Evaluation: You will have the opportunity to evaluate the course near the end of the session. A link will be sent to your CougarMail that will allow you to access the evaluation. Be assured that the evaluations are anonymous and that your instructor will not be able to see them until after final grades are submitted.

7 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 7 Week 7 Research Paper Research Paper: RESEARCH PAPER There are no additional readings or discussion assignments this week so that you can focus on completing your research paper. It is due no later than midnight Wednesday of Week 7. Course Evaluation: You will have the opportunity to evaluate the course near the end of the session. A link will be sent to your CougarMail that will allow you to access the evaluation. Be assured that the evaluations are anonymous and that your instructor will not be able to see them until after final grades are submitted. Week 8 The Future Research Paper Presentation: PRESENTATION Create a PowerPoint presentation of no more than 30 slides that accurately and completely reflects the information within your research paper. This presentation will include a timed voice-over of the presentation where you present your paper to me. Ensure that the presentation is professional and that your voice is clear and precise. Your presentation should have the following: Course Policies Student Conduct Plagiarism No more than 30 slides Slide transitions Graphics Recorded voice-over Timed slides (when I start the presentation, it runs itself) Covers all majors points from your research paper Free from spelling and grammatical errors Professional in nature (as if presenting to a classroom full of IT professionals) THE FUTURE Research articles on technology currently being developed. Provide a brief summary of the technology as well as your thoughts on its future use. Post in the discussion area marked for such by Wednesday of Week 8. Ensure that you cite your source properly at the bottom of your discussion. RESPONSE Respond to another student s discussion by providing your opinion on the future use of that technology as well as your thoughts on its future use. All Columbia College students, whether enrolled in a land-based or online course, are responsible for behaving in a manner consistent with Columbia College's Student Conduct Code and Acceptable Use Policy. Students violating these policies will be referred to the office of Student Affairs and/or the office of Academic Affairs for possible disciplinary action. The Student Code of Conduct and the Computer Use Policy for students can be found in the Columbia College Student Handbook. The Handbook is available online; you can also obtain a copy by calling the Student Affairs office (Campus Life) at The teacher maintains the right to manage a positive learning environment, and all students must adhere to the conventions of online etiquette. Your grade will be based in large part on the originality of your ideas and your written presentation

8 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 8 of these ideas. Presenting the words, ideas, or expression of another in any form as your own is plagiarism. Students who fail to properly give credit for information contained in their written work (papers, journals, exams, etc.) are violating the intellectual property rights of the original author. For proper citation of the original authors, you should reference the appropriate publication manual for your degree program or course (APA, MLA, etc.). Violations are taken seriously in higher education and may result in a failing grade on the assignment, a grade of "F" for the course, or dismissal from the College. Collaboration conducted between students without prior permission from the instructor is considered plagiarism and will be treated as such. Spouses and roommates taking the same course should be particularly careful. All required papers may be submitted for textual similarity review to Turnitin.com for the detection of plagiarism. All submitted papers may be included in the Turnitin.com reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism. This service is subject to the Terms and Conditions of Use posted on the Turnitin.com site. Non-Discrimination There will be no discrimination on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin, sexual orientation, religion, ideology, political affiliation, veteran status, age, physical handicap, or marital status. Disability Services Students with documented disabilities who may need academic services for this course are required to register with the Coordinator for Disability Services at (573) Until the student has been cleared through the disability services office, accommodations do not have to be granted. If you are a student who has a documented disability, it is important for you to read the entire syllabus before enrolling in the course. The structure or the content of the course may make an accommodation not feasible. Online Participation You are expected to read the assigned texts and participate in the discussions and other course activities each week. Assignments should be posted by the due dates stated on the grading schedule in your syllabus. If an emergency arises that prevents you from participating in class, please let your instructor know as soon as possible. Cougar All students are provided a CougarMail account when they enroll in classes at Columbia College. You are responsible for monitoring from that account for important messages from the College and from your instructor. You may forward your Cougar account to another account; however, the College cannot be held responsible for breaches in security or service interruptions with other providers. Students should use for private messages to the instructor and other students. The class discussions are for public messages so the class members can each see what others have to say about any given topic and respond. Late Assignment Policy An online class requires regular participation and a commitment to your instructor and your classmates to regularly engage in the reading, discussion and writing assignments. Although most of the online communication for this course is asynchronous, you must be able to commit to the schedule of work for the class for the next eight weeks. You must keep up with the schedule of reading and writing to successfully complete the class.

9 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 9 There will be a penalty for late submission of the research paper: 10% of the points possible will be deducted for each day the paper is late. You will receive a grade of zero if the paper is over four days late. Discussion posts and competency assignments will not receive any credit if posted late. The culminating experience exam may not be taken after the deadline. Attendance Policy Attendance for a week will be counted as having submitted a course assignment for which points have been earned during that week of the session or if the proctoring information has been submitted or the plagiarism quiz taken if there is no other assignment due that week. A class week is defined as the period of time between Monday and Sunday (except for Week 8, when the week and the course will end on Saturday at midnight). The course and system deadlines are all based on the Central Time Zone. Course Evaluation You will have an opportunity to evaluate the course near the end of the session. A link will be sent to your CougarMail that will allow you to access the evaluation. Be assured that the evaluations are anonymous and that your instructor will not be able to see them until after final grades are submitted. Additional Resources Orientation for New Students This course is offered online, using course management software provided by Desire2Learn and Columbia College. The Student Manual provides details about taking an online course at Columbia College. You may also want to visit the course demonstration to view a sample course before this one opens. Technical Support If you have problems accessing the course or posting your assignments, contact your instructor, the Columbia College Helpdesk, or the D2L Helpdesk for assistance. Contact information is also available within the online course environment. CCHelpDesk@ccis.edu ex helpdesk@desire2learn.com Online Tutoring Smarthinking is a free online tutoring service available to all Columbia College students. Smarthinking provides real-time online tutoring and homework help for Math, English, and Writing. Smarthinking also provides access to live tutorials in writing and math, as well as a full range of study resources, including writing manuals, sample problems, and study skills manuals. You can access the service from wherever you have a connection to the Internet. I encourage you to take advantage of this free service provided by the college. Access Smarthinking through CougarTrack under Students->Academics->Academic Resources.

10 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 10 Grading Criteria Literary Discussion Criteria Description Points Content Answer is complete and concise; reflects an understanding of the readings 3 Originality Demonstrates original thought 2 Examples Provides details or examples from the readings or practical experience in the field Format At least two paragraphs in length 1 Response Provides an insightful and complete response to another student s discussion Total 10 Competency Assignment Criteria Description Points Content Clearly addresses all of the aspects of the assignment 5 Summary Provides an overall summary of the assignment 3 Mechanics Free of errors in grammar, punctuation, word choice, spelling, etc. 2 Total 10 Research Paper Criteria Description Points Topic Provides an adequate topic for research 5 Content Originality Organization Sources Style Responds fully to the assignment; presents results clearly and persuasively; justifies all arguments through application of appropriate types of reason and evidence. Uses illustration and support through relevant examples and details. Demonstrates originality, creativity, and initiative that go beyond the basic requirements for the assignment. Is well-organized and unified, has good flow, and opens and closes effectively Correctly acknowledges and documents sources; provides references to at least 8 valid sources Avoids expressions of personal opinions (the paper is research about a topic, not a discussion of how you personally feel about the topic) Mechanics Free of errors in grammar, punctuation, word choice, spelling, etc. 30 Total

11 Columbia College Online Campus P a g e 11 Research Paper Presentation Criteria Description Points Content Voice Organization Responds fully to the assignment; presents results clearly and persuasively; justifies all arguments through application of appropriate types of reason and evidence. Uses illustration and support through relevant examples and details. Demonstrates originality, creativity, and initiative that go beyond the basic requirements for the assignment. Is well-organized and unified, has good flow, and opens and closes effectively Mechanics Free of errors in grammar, punctuation, word choice, spelling, etc. 10 Total