LIBR 204-15
Information Organizations
Spring 2008 Greensheet
Benjamin F. Speller, Jr., Ph.D.
E-mail
Phone: (919)530-7342
Fax: (919)530-5220
Office Location: New School of Education Building, Room 2104 (NCCU)
Online Office Hours:Best time to reach me via e-mail is 2 p.m.- 5 p.m. EST, Th-F
| Greensheet Links Textbooks and Readings Course Requirements |
Resources Blackboard Blackboard Tutorials SLIS eBookstore |
The instructor will enroll students in this course on Blackboard by January 21, 2008. Students will be informed via email. Students not receiving an e-mail notice should send their Name, Username and Email address to instructor by January 24, 2008.
Course Description
Theory and practice for management of library and information centers are presented and discussed in a virtual environment. Emphasis is placed on examining the distinguishing characteristics, cultures, and relationships in libraries and information organizations.
Course Objectives
Student Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Use basic management principles, concepts, and theories in planning, organizing, staffing, directing, controlling and evaluating libraries and information organizations. (Capstone Essay and Strategic Plan Assignments)
- Evaluate and utilize relevant research studies from a variety of disciplines to decide on positions on leadership, ethics, standards, and intellectual property issues related to both information staffs and services in a diverse society and to defend them orally and in writing (Reading Assignments, Management Skills Pre-Post Assessments, and Capstone Essay Assignment).
- Work effectively as an individual in a team to produce a strategic plan as a guiding document for a library training project or program that is based on appropriate learning principles and theories (Self-Assessment, Management Skills Pre-Post Assessments Team Strategic Plan Assignments).
- Present clear documentation of these expected outcomes by selecting examples of their work in a course learning portfolio.
- Use effectively current communication and information technologies in completing the learning outcomes of this course (All assignments).
LIBR 204 supports the following SLIS Core Competencies:
- apply the fundamental principles of planning, management and marketing/advocacy;
- design training programs based on appropriate learning principles and theories;
- demonstrate oral and written communication skills necessary for group work, collaborations and professional level presentations;
- evaluate programs and services on specified criteria.
In addition, this section supports the following SLIS Core Competencies:
- articulate the ethics, values and foundational principles of library and information professionals and their role in the promotion of intellectual freedom;
- compare the environments and organizational settings in which library and information professionals practice;
- recognize the social, cultural and economic dimensions of information use;
- demonstrate proficiency in the use of current information and communication technologies, and other related technologies, as they affect the resources and uses of libraries and other types of information providing entities;
- understand the nature of research, research methods and research findings; retrieve, evaluate and synthesize scholarly and professional literature for informed decision-making by specific client groups;
- contribute to the cultural, economic, educational and social well-being of our communities.
Textbooks and Readings
Required Text and Readings
- Evans, G. E., Ward, P.L. (2007). Management Basics for Information Professionals. Second Edition. New York: Neal-Schuman. The required text may be purchased online at (www.neal-schuman.com).
Each course unit has required readings from Evans and Ward and from Business and Library Science professional journals.
Suggested Text for Strategic Planning (Not Required)
- Matthews, Joseph R., (2005). Strategic Planning and Management for Library Managers. Portsmouth, NH: Libraries Unlimited. Used copies are available at (www.amazon.com)
Recommended Texts
Books, below, are recommended to provide a contextual background for recent changes in the business and management cultures. You may make appropriate substitutions in preparing your required assignments. They are available in most local libraries and are available at Amazon.com and other online bookstores as used copies for less than $4.00 to $ 9.00 if you want personal copies.
- Hammer, Michael and Champy, James (2003) Re-engineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for B usiness Revolution. New York: Collins.
- Collins, Jim and Porras, Jerry I. (2004) Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies. New York: Collins.
- Davidow, William H. and Malone, Michael S. (1992) The Virtual Corporation: Restructuring and Revitalizing the Corporation for the 21st Century. New York: Harvard Business.
- Fukuyama, Francis. (1997) The Virtual Corporation and Army Organization. Rand Corporation
- Norman, Donald A. (1988) The Design of Everyday Things. New York: Currency Doubleday.
Additional readings may be recommended throughout the class.
Online Resources
- Library Journals: Administration/Management from the Internet Library for Librarians lists key journals in the areas of library administration and management, and gives a brief description of each.
- The ALA’s Library Organization and Management section investigates issues pertaining to efficient library operations in all types of libraries and disseminates information on management issues to all its members, the Library Administration and Management Association (LAMA) membership, and all librarians. Issues of ongoing interest are specified in the section's standing committees and discussion groups.
- You are encouraged to subscribe to LEADS from LAMA, an electronic newsletter which includes news relevant to librarians interested in management and administration. Send an email message to: Listproc@ala.org. Leave the subject line blank or type "subscribe" if your system requires a subject. Put as the only line in the body of the message: subscribe LAMALEADS YourFirstName YourLastName.
Course Requirements
Complete the New Student Technology Workshop
This is a mandatory short, self-paced online workshop on Blackboard that must be completed by all new SLIS students before the first day of classes. The access code for this course will be sent to new students via MySJSU. If you have questions about this course, e-mail Debbie Faires or Dale David.
For more information, see http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/slis/blackboardintro.htm
Technology Literacy Requirement
All students must meet the Technology Literacy Requirement, available at:
http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/admissions/tech.htm
Home Computing Requirement
All students must mee the Home Comoputing Requirement , available at: http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/ecommunication/homecomputing.htm
Site Based Attendance
All students must attend three one-day class sessions for the course overview, group organization sessions, and final reporting sessions that are scheduled from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. on January 27, 2008 and May 11, 2008.
Preparing and submitting assignments
- Submit all assignments electronically. The following scheme is required for the files: [Course Number and Section] _ [Student’s Last Name] _ [Assignment Number]. Example: 204-15_Your Surname_Essay1.doc
- The student will use a current virus protection program to scan all assignments before they are submitted electronically to Blackboard and to the instructor.
- Assignments will be submitted by the midnight of the due date. All assignments submitted after the due date may be subjected to a grade penalty.
- All papers will use The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, Fifth edition, as the official style manual for formats, citations, and bibliography.
- All work will be typed or keyed using Microsoft Word, double-spaced and in 12 point font.
- All pages will be consecutively numbered with the student’s name and the name of the assignment in the footer of each page.
- Errors in spelling, grammar and syntax will be subject to a grade penalty.
- Evidence of plagiarism will result in a grade of F for the course.
Assignments
All assignment will be posted on Blackboard.
These are the general assignments for the course. Specific reading and other requirements are linked to the course assignments. Please see course information tab and the assignments tab on the Blackboard web page for specific assignment details, including due dates.
The five major course assignments below focus on the following cognitive expectations:
- Relating and organizing information learned previously.
- Applying information according to a rule or principle in a specific situation.
- Critical thinking in the following contexts:
- Analysis of parts and their functionality in the whole
- Synthesis or putting parts together to form new and original whole
- Evaluation or valuing and making judgment based on information
- Assessment and Learning Component (50%)
- Personal Self Assignment (5%)
- Management Skills Pre-Post Assessment Assignment (25%)
- (Based on Required Unit Readings)
- Capstone essay (20%): completed as per the assignment schedule.
- Application of Knowledge Component (30%)
- Team Strategic Plan: a team document.
- Send the strategic plan to the instructor. He will post it with the class on Blackboard as a course document.
- Outcomes Assessment Presentation (20%)
- Learning Outcomes Portfolio
Course Calendar
(Subject to change with fair notice)
| January 27, 2008 | Site-Based Session—Course Overview |
| January 27, 2008 | Team Organization Sessions and Reports |
| *February 28, 2008 | Personal Self Assessment should be completed |
| *April 18, 2008 | Pre and Post Management Skills Assessment Assignments and Required Readings should be completed |
| April 25, 2008 | Capstone Essay must be submitted to Instructor |
| May 3, 2008 | Submit Team Strategic Plan to Instructor |
| May 11, 2008 | Final Reports and Learning Outcomes Portfolio |
*No submissions are required to the instructor.
Grading
Everyone begins the class with a grade of “B”, the standard grade for graduate level work. Students who complete the assignments, attend the on-site sessions and participate in the discussions will receive the B provided the quality of written work meets the standard of rigorous scholarly work for the University. Above standard work, B+ and above, is defined as clearly displays one of more of the following criteria:
- Originality in the approach to the assignment
- Greater depth of analysis than the written assignment expects
- Critical evaluation of readings by comparing them to other authors or sources
- Ability to organize information for themselves and others plus create tools for life long learning and knowledge retrieval
Grading Scale
The standard SJSU SLIS Grading Scale is utilized for all SLIS courses:
| 97-100 | A |
| 94-96 | A- |
| 91-93 | B+ |
| 88-90 | B |
| 85-87 | B- |
| 82-84 | C+ |
| 79-81 | C |
| 76-78 | C- |
| 73-75 | D+ |
| 70-72 | D |
| 67-69 | D- |
| Below 67 | F |
In order to provide consistent guidelines for assessment for graduate level work in the School, these terms are applied to letter grades:
- C represents Adequate work; a grade of "C" counts for credit for the course;
- B represents Good work; a grade of "B" clearly meets the standards for graduate level work;
- A represents Exceptional work; a grade of "A" will be assigned for outstanding work only.
Students are advised that it is their responsibility to maintain a Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.0.
Academic Integrity
Your own commitment to learning, as evidenced by your enrollment at San José State University, and the University's Academic Integrity Policy requires you to be honest in all your academic course work. Faculty members are required to report all infractions to the Office of Student Conduct and Ethical Development. The policy on academic integrity can be found at http://sa.sjsu.edu/student_conduct.
Reasonable Accommodation of Disabilities
If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability,
please e-mail me as soon as possible. Presidential Directive 97-03 requires
that students with disabilities register with the Disability Resource Center
(DRC) to establish record of their disability.
No matter where students reside, they should contact the SJSU DRC to register. The DRC Web site: http://www.drc.sjsu.edu/
One Washington Square - San José, California USA, 95192-0029
Phone: 408-924-2490
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