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UMUC-Europe Syllabus UMUC-EUROPE GRADUATE PROGRAMS

Common Syllabus for ITEC 610

Course Title:

Information Technology Foundations

Required Texts and Readings:

American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication manual of the American psychological association (5^th ed.). Washington, D.C.: APA. O'Brien, James A., Marakas, George M. (2008). Management Information Systems 8^th ed. McGraw-Hill 0073323098. [Additional reading materials to be provided by the instructor.]

Supplementary Readings:

All graduate students should be prepared to utilize theUMUC online library. The library contains a large number of full text academic journals that are free of charge and immediately available. The library homepage also contains a number of links related to improving students' research and writing skills.

Recommended Journals:

Publications of the various professional societies (such as ACM -- the Association for Computing Machinery, the IEEE Computing Society, and the various management professional societies) are strongly recommended. In addition, there are many trade journals (such as eWEEK) that IT professionals should become familiar with, many of these being published both weekly and on-line.

Course Description:

A fundamental study of technology and its applications, as well as the economic and social issues they have raised. Topics include computers, peripherals, databases, and networks; operations (of business, government, and other enterprises), decision-support systems, acquisition of information technology resources; and information security, productivity, equitable access by users, intellectual property rights, and global reach. Discussion also covers current and future developments in the field and their implications.

Course Goals:

Upon successful completion of this course, the student should understand and be able to apply knowledge concerning: Fundamentals of technology. Applications of technology. Economic and social issues raised by uses of technology. Current and emerging issues and trends in information technology.

Course Objectives:

Upon successful completion, the student should be able to: Analyze the underlying nature of data and information such as its digital measure, characteristics, formats, and processing. Explain the principles of operation of the various components of information, such as computers, software, databases, and networks. Demonstrate how the components of information technology fit together to form useful systems that are responsive to organizational needs. Assess the utility of information technology in the operations, decision making, and investment of organizations. Identify and appraise the principal economic, social, and cultural issues raised by the applications of information technology. Show currency with events and developments in the information technology field. Assess the relevance of current events and developments in the information technology field to management practices and significance to social change.

Grading Information:

The final grade will be determined as follows: 25% -- Mid-term Examination 25% -- Final Examination 30% -- Research Paper 10% -- Group Project 10% -- Class Participation According to the Graduate School grading policy, the following symbols and scale are used: A = excellent (90-100) B = good (80-89) C = passing (70-79) F = failure (less than 70) The grade of "B" represents the benchmark for the Graduate School. It indicates the student has demonstrated competency in the subject matter of the course, i.e., has fulfilled all course requirements on time, has a clear grasp of the full range of course materials and concepts, and is able to present and apply these materials and concepts in clear, reasoned, well-organized and grammatically correct responses, whether written or oral. Only students who fully meet this standard and, in addition, who demonstrate exceptional comprehension and application of the course subject matter, merit an "A." Students who do not meet the benchmark standard of competency fall within the "C" range or lower. They, in effect, have not met graduate level standards. Where this failure is substantial, they earn an "F."

Course Requirements:

The course requirements are as follows: Examinations: Midterm and final examinations will be given. Research Paper: Students will prepare an individual research paper 15-20 pages in length on a current topic relating to an information technology innovation, trend or a related development. The instructor will approve the topic in advance. Group Project: Students will be assigned to project teams for the purpose of analyzing a specified topic and presenting findings and conclusions in an industry-specific case study from the textbook. Students are required to research background information about the organization, integrate the responses and construct a presentation. Class Participation: Students are expected to participate in the Weekly Discussions.

Description of Course Requirements:

Successful graduate students in American universities dedicate approximately three hours of preparation/study time for every hour spent in the face-to-face classroom. Thus, the following course requirements were developed on the assumption that students would be prepared to spend approximately 150 hours of their own time working on them. In an 8-week term, that is the equivalent of a half-time job. Most 14-week graduate distance education courses require at least 10 hours per week of dedicated time, plus time spent in the virtual classroom. STATEMENT ON WRITING REQUIREMENTS: Effective managers and leaders are also effective communicators. Written communication is an important element of the total communication process. The Graduate School recognizes and expects exemplary writing to be the norm for course work. To this end, all analyses and papers must demonstrate graduate level writing ability and comply with the format requirements of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. All writing assignments will be graded on the basis of content, logic, analysis, mechanics, organization, and research. Careful attention should be given to source citations, proper listing of references, the use of footnotes, and the presentation of tables and graphs. Work submitted online should follow standard procedures for formatting and citation. POLICY ON ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: Academic integrity is central to the learning and teaching process. Students are expected to conduct themselves in a manner that will contribute to the maintenance of academic integrity by making all reasonable efforts to prevent the occurrence of academic dishonesty. Academic dishonesty includes (but is not limited to) obtaining or giving aid on an examination, having unauthorized prior knowledge of an examination, doing work for another student, and plagiarism of all types. PLAGIARISM: Plagiarism is the intentional or unintentional presentation of another person's idea or product as one's own. Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to the following: copying verbatim all or part of another's written work; using phrases, charts, figures, illustrations, or mathematical or scientific solutions without citing the source; paraphrasing ideas, conclusions, or research without citing the source; and using all or part of a literary plot, poem, film, musical score, or other artistic product without attributing the work to its creator. Students can avoid unintentional plagiarism by following carefully accepted scholarly practices. Notes taken for papers and research projects should accurately record sources of material to be cited, quoted, paraphrased, or summarized, and papers should acknowledge these sources in footnotes. The penalties for plagiarism include a zero or a grade of F on the work in question, a grade of F in the course, suspension with a file letter, suspension with a transcript notation, or expulsion. Resubmission of course work from previous classes (whether or not taken at UMUC, UMUC-Europe or BSU), partially or in its entirety, is not acceptable in this course and will result in an automatic failure on the assignment. DISABLED STUDENTS: Students with disabilities should contact the Director of Student Services, phone: +49-6221-378299, email: edstudent_svc@ed.umuc.edu, mailing address: Unit 29216. APO AE 09102 or Im Bosseldorn 30, D-69126 Heidelberg, Germany. COURSE EVALUATIONS: Feedback on each graduate course and instructor is important to the university, your professor, and to all UMUC students. UMUC has the responsibility to assess the effectiveness of classroom instruction, and each student has the responsibility to provide accurate and timely feedback through completion of the course evaluation form. This is a shared obligation for us all. It is therefore important that you complete the evaluation form for each course you attend. This should be viewed as an additional course and program requirement.

Course Schedule:

SESSION 1: Introduction Definition of Information Technology The Importance and Role of Information Technology Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 1 SESSION 2: Technology Basics I: Data and Information Definition and Measure of Information Digital Representation (bits and bytes) Formats (numbers, characters, sound, images, video) Processing (e.g., 32-bit vs. 64-bit) Error Correction Compression Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 2 (pp. 38-47) SESSION 3: Technology Basics II: Hardware Computers Processors Input and Output Devices Storage Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 2 (pp. 47-56) Group Case Study Topic and Abstract due Individual Research Paper Topic and Abstract due SESSION 4: Technology Basics III: Software Operating Systems Application Programs Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 2 (pp. 56-65) SESSION 5: Networks and Telecommunication Network Functions Network Components Protocols and Standards The Internet Telecommunications Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 3 SESSION 6: Databases Relational Queries Object Oriented Search Engines Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 4 Group Case Study Topic and Abstract due Individual Research Paper Topic and Abstract due SESSION 7: Midterm Examination SESSION 8: Security Threats Controls and Defenses Cryptography Privacy Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 5 SESSION 9: Applications I: General Production Operations Transactions Electronic Data Interchange Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 6 Applications II: Enterprise Integration Enterprise Resource Planning Supply Chain Management Marketing/Customer Relationship Management Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 7 SESSION 10: Applications III: Electronic Commerce Web Services Mobile Services Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 8 SESSION 11: Decision Support Artificial Intelligence/Expert Systems OLAP Data Warehousing and Data Marts Data Mining Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapters 9, 10, and 11 Assignments: Individual Research Paper due SESSION 12: Systems Development and Acquisition Systems Development Approaches Hardware Acquisition Software Acquisition Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapter 12 Assignments: Group Case Study due SESSION 13: Economic, Social and Cultural Issues Security Productivity Intellectual Property Outsourcing Globalization Equitable User Access Net Neutrality Regulatory Considerations Global impact of the Internet Readings: Post and Anderson, Chapters 13 and 14 Assignments: Individual Research Paper due SESSION 14: Final Examination

Academic Policies:

The University has a license agreement with Turnitin.com, a service that helps prevent plagiarism from internet resources. I may be using this service in this class by either requiring students to submit their papers electronically to Turnitin.com or by submitting questionable text on behalf of a student. If you or I submit part or all of your paper, it will be stored by Turnitin.com in their database throughout the term of the University's contract with Turnitin.com. If you object to this temporary storage of your paper, you must let me know no later than two weeks after the start of this class. Please Note: If you object to the storage of your paper on Turnitin.com, I may utilize other services to check your work for plagiarism The official university policy on Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty can be found at http://www.umuc.edu/policy/aa15025.shtml. Section I.C. states: "Faculty may determine if the resubmission of course work from previous classes (whether or not taken at UMUC), partially or in its entirety, is acceptable when assigning a grade on that piece of course work. Faculty must provide this information in their written syllabi. If the resubmission of course work is deemed to be unacceptable, a charge may not be brought under this Policy and will be handled as indicated in the written syllabi." Please refer to Description of Course Requirements for specific information on how resubmissions will be treated in this course. Students with disabilities should contact the appropriate support office at UMUC-Europe. Jan Keller, Director of Student Services UMUC-Europe, Heidelberg Phone: +49-6221-378299 Email: edstudent_svc@ed.umuc.edu Mailing Address: Unit 29216, APO AE 09102 OR Im Bosseldorn 30, D-69126 Heidelberg, Germany Please refer to the UMUC-Europe Graduate Catalog for information on the following: Academic Integrity Course Load Exception to Policy Grade Appeal Process Make-up Examinations Nondiscrimination Code of Civility Hard copies of the catalog are available at your local Education Center.