THE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM OF MARYLAND

BOWIE STATE UNIVERSITY

GRADUATE PROGRAM IN MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS

INSS 690 Professional Seminar

Education Center : RAF Mildenhall

Dates : Term 4 2000/2001 Weekends B

Saturday/Sunday 31 March,1 & 21/22 April ; 5/6 & 19/20 May 2001

Times : 0900-1600 (Lunch 1200-1300)

Lecturer : Chris Payne Ph.D.

Prerequisites : Successful completion of MIS comprehensive exam.

Text : Articles from current journals and periodicals - other materials as appropriate.

Course Description : This is a seminar course that focuses on current topics in information systems. As such, class discussions attempt to bring together the theoretical and practical bases of the field and provide seminar members opportunities to discuss contemporary issues in information systems and technology. Students will prepare, present and discuss a research paper dealing with a significant issue in information systems and their management.

Course Objectives : At the completion of this course, a student will :

1.Have refined his/her research and presentation skills;

2.Be able to demonstrate familiarity with the literature in a particular area of information systems;

3.Be able to integrate material from past courses into a framework for discussing information systems;

4. Have a sophisticated understanding of contemporary issues and current information systems;

5. Be able to write a paper which conforms to accepted professional standards of intellectual quality and presentation for published work in scholarly journals.

Method of Instruction

The main method of instruction will be a continuous exchange of ideas between members of the class.

Definition of 'seminar' : a small group of students in a college or graduate school engaged in original research under the guidance of a professor.

(American Heritage College Dictionary, Houghton Miflin, Third Edition 1993)

Class members are expected to read extensively in the literature to support class discussions.

Course Requirements

Research Proposal

The two to four page research proposal will contain a clear statement of

a. the purpose of the research, research questions and preliminary thesis;

b. the boundaries of the research area ;

c. an outline of the research sub-topics;

d. the methodology used, i.e. literature or field research;

e. a preliminary reading list.

It is suggested that students pick research topics that they want to know more about, i.e. topics which have not been adequately covered in past courses. Research should not recycle experience gained in work situations. Students are encouraged to go outside the literature and perform 'field' research via interviews and other forms of information gathering.

Research Paper

Individually, students will write a 30-40 page research paper which defines the problem or research area , clearly explains current technologies or issues and provides some indications of what they expect to see happen in the future. The extensive use of quotations is forbidden. The work must be original by presenting the material to support the thesis . Counter arguments must be advanced leading to a conclusion based on the careful examination of the evidence. The research report evaluations will be based on content, presentation and quality of expression. Papers are expected to meet or exceed accepted graduate-level standards of scholarship and written English.

The general order of items should be :

• Title page
• Abstract which incorporates the thesis
• Table of Contents
• Outline
• Body of paper
• Conclusion
• Acknowledgments
• References cited
• Appendices containing supporting material

When submitting your paper, do not use a cover/folder - simply staple the paper at the top left-hand corner.

Presentation of Research : Students will present their research findings conclusions to the class using appropriate audio-visual and/or handout material. The in-class presentation is to be planned for 30 minutes, plus another 15 minutes for questions and discussion. More time can be made available on prior request. Members of the class as well as the instructor will contribute in evaluating and providing feedback of the presentation. Evaluation and feedback are considered part of class participation. Class Participation : The essence of a seminar is the exchange of information. Seminar members are expected to come to class prepared, to accept responsibility for one or more parts of the seminar process and to participate fully in - and carry their weight in class discussions.

Grading Criteria :

Final grades will be determined using the following factors :

Research Proposal ( and presentation ) 15%

Research Paper 35%

Presentation of Research 25%

Active and constructive participation 25%

Letter grades will be assigned as follows

90-100% A

80-89% B

70-79% C

Below 70% F(a)

A grade of F(n) will be assigned for unexcused absences.

Attendances : Regular class attendance is expected. This is very important in a class based on the weekend format since missing a weekend would mean the student would miss 25% of the entire course.

Late Papers and Presentations : Late submission of papers and presentations is strongly discouraged and advance permission must be obtained and will only be granted in serious circumstances. The grade assigned will be reduced by 10% per week or part-week of lateness.

Incompletes : The grade of Incomplete(I) is awarded only in rare, very exceptional circumstances e.g. unexpected PCS or serious personal difficulties . It will not be approved where the student merely needs extra time to complete the work.. In the event that a student is awarded an Incomplete, then he/she is reminded of his/her (not the instructor's ) responsibility for obtaining a substantive grade by meeting the outstanding requirements within the prescribed deadline.

Sources of Research Material

Libraries Within the United Kingdom There are a number of useful specialist libraries which are open for research . These include :

1. The National Library for Science and Technology at Boston Spa, near Wetherby and at Holborn London WC.1
2. The Library of the British Computer Society, Institution of Electrical Engineers, Savoy Place, London W.1.
3. The British Library, St. Pancras, London

Supplemental References : The following non-exhaustive list of journals, periodicals and trade magazines may be consulted for information.

Business Week

Harvard Business Review

Communications of the ACM

IEEE Computer

The Economist

Journal of Systems Management

MIS Quarterly

Scientific American

Sloan Management Review

Information Week

Communications Week

InfoWorld

Byte

LAN Times

Network World

Datamation

CIO

Computer World

IEEE Software

AT&T Technical Journal

IBM Systems Journal

Some Web Home Pages:

http://www.cox.smu.edu/mis/misq/archivist/home.html

http://www.datamation.com

http://www.internet.net/stores/infoworld/index.html

http://www.ziff.com

http://www.henry.harvard.edu:Welcome.html/

http://www.starbase.ingress.com/ioma/

http://www.almaden.ibm.com

http://www.digital.com/info/info.home.html

http://www.research.com

Some Suggested Topics (This list is not exhaustive.)

Future trends in IS.

Technology diffusion.

Client/server systems.

Object oriented programming , databases etc.

Software reusability.

Entrepreneurial opportunities in information systems.

Software quality.

Capability Maturity Model & ISO 9000.

Intelligent Information Systems.

Using information systems for strategic advantage.

Productivity issues in IT.

Network computing

Developments in the Internet

Human-Computer Interfacing

IT and the Third World

CASE

Course Schedule

Weekend #1 Saturday

Introductions

Course administration details: syllabus, grading,etc. Discussion of available research facilities.

Topic list development for future classes

Writing the research paper

Weekend #1 Sunday

Characteristics of highly regarded information systems personnel Information systems positions

First paper discussion

Presentation of Research Proposals

Weekend # 2 Saturday

Presentation of Research Proposals, continued

Due : Research Proposal with thesis statement, preliminary outline, preliminary bibliography.

Topic discussions.

Weekend # 2 Sunday

In-progress research paper review

Weekend # 3 Saturday

Due : Current thesis statement, detailed outline, annotated bibliography & draft of first half of final research paper.

Topic discussions

In-progress research paper review

Weekend # 3 Sunday

Research presentations

Weekend # 4 Saturday

Research presentations

Weekend # 4 Sunday

Due: Research Paper

Course evaluations

Your Instructor

Office Hours : Before or after class or by appointment out of class hours.

Addresses etc.

Website : http://uomd.freeserve.co.uk/maryland/

Email : chris_payne@uomd.freeserve.co.uk

Home : 45 Rockingham Road,Uxbridge UB8 2TZ, UK

Phone : 01895 257627 or 0410461770(Mobile)

Dr Chris Payne

London UK

February 2001

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