LIBR 247-10
Vocabulary Design
Summer 2005

May 31 – August 12
Class Meetings:

• June 12 (required)
• July 10 (optional)

Mikel Breitenstein, Ph.D.
Call me Micki!
E-mail
6721 E. 9th Street,
Long Beach, CA 90815
T. 562-594-6015
F. 562-594-6133
Hours: E-mail 24/7; Class Chat on Blackboard TBA

GREENSHEET

Textbooks and Resources | Course Requirements | Projects and Evaluation

Reminder: Please check MySJSU for Blackboard enrollment instructions

Course Description

Principles and practice for the creation of subject vocabularies for the organization and retrieval of information-bearing documents.

This class will be useful for students who need to design access systems; for people involved in special collections arrangement; for Web site designers and indexers; and for others who anticipate working in areas of revision of the standard schemes (Dewey, LC, and others).

Course Goals and Objectives

At the end of the class, the student will

• understand the principles of vocabulary creation and term assignment and know the theory and practice that underlies them
• understand similarities and differences in vocabularies control for analog and digital formats
• be able to construct correct controlled vocabularies based on user requirements
• be able to evaluate vocabularies
• understand the use and design of metadata with regard to subject access
• be aware of current research and future directions in indexing, metadata, and vocabulary design

The Course Supports the Following SLIS Objectives:

http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/slis/mission.htm

specifically, teaching of theories and current practices; and providing experience in research and practical applications of research

Textbooks and Resources

Required Textbook to purchase
Lancaster, F. W. (2003). Indexing and abstracting in theory and practice. 3rd ed. Champaign-Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press.

I will occasionally use other texts or resources in lectures, and will post those for you throughout the course.

There may be additional password-protected Web sites provided by SJSU, posted on the Blackboard site.

Top of Page

Course Requirements

This course will be operated mostly through Blackboard software, supplemented by two meetings, groups chats, and telephone communications as needed. Students may begin to access course materials on Blackboard beginning May 16, and must have access continually from May 31-August 12.

You will be required to send and receive files that may be as large as 8MB. If your current e-mail provider places smaller restrictions on your file sending and receiving capacity, you should obtain a free and unrestricted e-mail account from SLIS.

Instructor Policies
Instructor policies will be posted on the Blackboard site by May 31.

Course Schedule
Most dates shown are Thursdays – our "class day" – I will try to post lectures and assignments by Thursday each week, and your work will be due on Thursdays unless indicated otherwise.

Academic Integrity
Plagiarism is a serious offense. All assignments submitted must be your own work. Sources must be properly cited, using APA or Chicago style. The San José State University regulations governing plagiarism will be enforced.

The Academic Senate recently passed a new Academic Integrity Policy. Access it at http://www2.sjsu.edu/senate/S04-12.pdf -- that 0 is a zero.

This document is rather lengthy. Please read carefully the parts that apply to students and be sure you understand the consequences of actions that are deemed inappropriate. If you have questions about the policies, please ask me or the SLIS administration and I will refer you to the correct person within SLIS or on campus. We will assume that you understand the policies and are acting in compliance.

Reasonable Accommodation of Disabilities
Students who need accommodation due to a disability must register with SJSU's Disability Resource Center (DRC) during the first three weeks of the semester. The Center 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 José 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/

Top of Page

Projects and Evaluation

I will grade papers as A+ through C-, and F, and will adjust the grade scale according to the achievements of the class members. Any grade below a B- indicates unacceptable performance on that assignment.

Top of Page