LIBR 200-12
Information and Society
spring 2005

Instructor: Debra Slone
E-mail

Two required face-to-face classes meet April 18th and 19th, 2005 in Fullerton. The rest of the class will be conducted on the Web through Blackboard.

Students must self-enroll for this course on Blackboard between January 19th and January 26th.

Course Dates: January 26th - May 17th (Spring Break March 28th)

GREENSHEET

| Textbooks | Grading Policy | Assignments/Attendance | Expectations |
Class Format | Grading/Accommodation of Disabilities |

Course Description

A class designed to explore the complex social, historical, political, economic, electronic and technological developments that influence the impact of information on society. The mission, values and ethics of information professionals are analyzed also. This course provides a foundation for thinking critically about information professions and the roles of information professionals.

Course Objectives

Upon completion of the course, the student will be able to

• demonstrate an understanding of issues affecting the information profession;
• discuss underlying principles common to all information/library science professionals;
• demonstrate an understanding of the impact of technology on the profession;
• identify major areas of professional function, clientele, access, use, and service in different libraries and information agencies;
• demonstrate professional oral and written communication skills; and
• state a personal philosophy of the field of information and library science based on accepted professional ethics, standards and principles.

SLIS Goals and Objectives

Information and Society addresses the following goals and objectives:

Introducing the major theories, important principles, and current practice in

• the foundations of information services; and
• advocacy and leadership for citizen access to information and knowledge resources;

SLIS goals and objectives can be found at http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/slis/mission.htm

Required Text

Rubin, R. E. (2000). Foundations of library and information science. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers. The 1998 edition may also be used.

Recommended Text

American Psychological Association. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA). 5th ed. Washington, D.C. This is the standard used for the MLS program at SJSU.

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Grading Policy

Grades for written assignments will be determined using the following criteria: (1) content, how well the paper addresses the assignment given; (2) quality of writing, whether grammar, sentence structure, punctuation, etc. meet graduate level standards; and (3) scholarship, how closely guidelines in the APA style manual are followed. Grades for oral assignments will be based on knowledge of the topic(s) and ability to successfully communicate this knowledge.

Academic Honesty: All assignments submitted must be your own work. Sources must be properly cited according to APA standards. The San Jose State University regulations governing plagiarism will be enforced. Those regulations may be found at: http://info.sjsu.edu search option: Academic Dishonesty. See also the University policy as linked from the SLIS Faculty Handbook page on plagiarism http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/de/problems/plagiarism.htm

Read the SJSU Academic Integrity Policy
http://www2.sjsu.edu/senate/S04-12.pdf

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Assignments

Below are the assignments for the course. Please see the class Web page for assignment descriptions.

Attendance & Participation

Attendance at the onsite sessions is mandatory. You are expected to be in class on both days from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., or until class is dismissed. Participation in class and in Blackboard discussion forums is crucial to learning in the online environment. Reading and reviewing the required materials will enhance your ability to participate in these discussions. Check Blackboard regularly for detailed assignments, announcements and updates.

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General Expectations

All students must

• have the minimal home computing environment as described at http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/ecommunication/homecomputing.htm
• use a current virus protection program to scan all assignments before they are submitted electronically to Blackboard and to the instructors;
• enroll in Blackboard to receive communications from instructors (http://tigris.sjsu.edu/)
• submit assignments electronically. Use the following scheme for submitting files: Student's Last Name, Assignment;
• submit assignments by midnight of the due date. An assignment submitted after the due date may be subjected to a grade penalty;
• type or key all work using Microsoft Word and double space in an 10, 11 or 12-point font
• avoid spelling, grammatical and syntactical errors;
• consistently follow the American Psychological Association Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.) for formats, citations and references; and
• consecutively number all pages with the student's name in the footer (NOTE: This requirement is an instructor exception to APA.)

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Class Format

The class will be asynchronous, which means there is no regular online meeting. You can "attend" class whenever and from wherever you choose. You are expected to log on to our blackboard for at least three hours a week, in more than one session. The blackboard keeps a sophisticated set of user statistics, which I use to monitor student activity. In addition, as is with all graduate school programs, you should expect to invest an additional 6-9 hours outside of class for every one hour in class (that's why six to nine hours of grad school class is considered fulltime) and to extend your reading and research beyond the class requirements and assignments.

This course will be taught in four (4) major parts, beginning with an overview and history and ending with trends. An assignment is due at the end of each part. Each part will consist of:

• several sub-parts with related topics;
• instructor-composed discussion questions or challenges;
• textbook and supplementary readings, and
• assignment(s) related to the topics.

Blackboard is a shared, online virtual classroom that includes chat, e-mail, bulletin board, document repository, white board, etc.  We will be "building community" in the blackboard, and your regular and focused presence is required.  You are expected to read the Blackboard posts and messages, think about them, bring your mind to bear, and respond thoughtfully. 

You may use the class-wide Blackboard functions freely, including setting up chat sessions (virtual classroom) with each other.  To schedule a chat session, e-mail the people you want to chat with and give the time (Pacific Standard Time, please) and date for your chat session, set up the chat and be there.

You will submit your assignments to the digital drop box or via e-mail Word document.

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Grading

Final grades will be based on the following grading scale established for graduate students by San Jose State University:

Reasonable Accommodation of Disabilities

Students who need accommodations due to a disability must register with the Disability Resource Center (DRC) during the first three weeks of the semester. The DRC will work with the students to determine the disability, document it, and determine the services and accommodations necessary for student success. Then, the DRC will contact the faculty member to determine the types of consideration necessary.

Students attending the Fullerton campus should first contact the Disability Resource Center in San Jose since they are SJSU students. The DRC will then direct the students to supporting resources on the Fullerton campus.

The DRC Web site: http://www.drc.sjsu.edu/

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