MIS 24053 Fall 2012 Steinberg

Computer Applications – Fall 2012

Dr. Geoffrey Steinberg

A418 College of Business

gsteinbe@kent.edu

Objective

The fundamental objective is for you to develop competency in handling data using various programs. An additional objective is that you develop an appreciation for the contribution that computers and software can make to your life as a student and as a professional. It is expected that during this term you will develop competency in the operation of the computer programs to which you are exposed. It is further expected that as you master the course material your confidence will increase.

Learning Outcomes

Theme

The course theme is data & information & decision making.

Sources of Information

You have five main sources of information for this course:

Class lecture / discussion
The e-book (bring it class)
The e-book's interactive lessons
Me (email me with questions)
Tutors

BONGOPOWER

Most of your course assignments (homework and quizzes) are interactive and involve using BONGOPOWER. Your instructor will inform you about how to gain access to BONGOPOWER.

Assignments administered by BONGOPOWER are graded instantly .
BONGOPOWER is available 24/7.
Your course grade report is updated on BONGOPOWER each time anything is graded.

Class Attendance

Class attendance is recommended.

Textbook

The course's text book is Dancing with Data, 2012, Active Learning Lab, Kendall-Hunt, 978-1-4652-0403-5. The textbook is an e-book and includes:

Numerous interactive lessons
Interactive checkpoints - you get extra credit for these
Many other beneficial features including highlighting and note taking explained in the book's preface.

Use the course schedule (later in syllabus) and know what to read before each class. Read the material before coming to class to be ready to participate in the class discussion and to earn extra credit.

Other Materials

Microsoft Office

For this course you will use software including Microsoft Office (2007+ any version). Office may be used on your computer if you have it or in the College of Business computer lab or other labs on campus.

If you do not have Office installed but would like it you can obtain a 60 day trial copy from www.microsoft.com for free. NOTE: many computers have Office without Access (the database program). You will need Access for this course.

You can purchase Office for a special price here: http://www.kent.edu/is/helpdesk/microsoft.cfm

SQL (database)

You will use an on-line interface to an SQL database. This will be provided for you by a link from BONGOPOWER.

Notepad

This is a Windows only program. If you have a Mac assignments requiring Notepad must be completed on a Windows computer.

Homework Assignments

Twelve homework assignments - all graded instantly by BONGOPOWER. You may attempt each assignment up to three times. Your last attempt is the grade of record. Not the highest. Not the average. The last.

Log on to BONGOPOWER, click My Assignments; select an assignment; follow the directions. BONGOPOWER will guide you to the specific exercises to be completed.

Writing Assignments

Four essays - graded by professional readers. Each essay is about a topic from this course and based on readings in the e-book. Upon receiving feedback from the readers you may rewrite and resubmit to improve your grade. If your initial grade is below C you must rewrite and resubmit.

Quizzes

Seven quizzes - all graded instantly by BONGOPOWER. You may attempt each quiz one time. At the end of the semester you may take an 8th quiz to replace the lowest quiz score if you wish. Quizzes are open book, open notes, and take home. The quiz schedule is later in this syllabus. The content of each quiz is listed in the schedule.

Prerequisites - some quizzes have prerequisite assignments. Check BONGOPOWER for details this way:

Login to BONGOPOWER
Click My Assignments on the course menu
Select any quiz on the left hand side of the page
All prerequisites and homework that relate to the selected quiz will be listed.

Reservations - You will need a reservation time to begin a quiz. Use BONGOPOWER to make a reservation at the appropriate time. Your instructor will explain how to do this. Reservations open two dayes before a quiz begins. DO NOT DELAY in making a reservation - if you do you may not get the time you want and you may end up not taking the quiz and receiving a grade of zero. It is up to you to get a reservation and take the quiz. If you do not find the time you want get a different time. Do not ask the instructor to get a specific time for you. No special deals are made for anyone regarding reservations. YOU DO NOT NEED TO COMPLETE PREREQUISITES TO MAKE A RESERVATION!

Extra Credit

Up to ten points of extra credit are awarded based on you completing reading assignments in the e-book and answering questions ("checkpoints") as you read. To learn how to record your earned extra credit in BONGOPOWER:

Login to BONGOPOWER
Click Resources on the course menu
Read the document: "GETTING EXTERNAL EXTRA CREDIT SCORES"

Grading Scale

Minimum Score	Letter Grade
90	A
80	B
70	C
60	D
0	F

+/- grades are not used. No curves.

Lateness

The following are the Kent State accepted excuses for absence and late homework submission or permission to take a quiz late. No other excuses are accepted. No special deals.

sickness with medical note
athletic event - with coach's note
religious observation
military responsibility with documentation
death in family with documentation

eMail Communication with the Instructor – Read Carefully!

Communicate with your instructor using e-mail. There are some rules, however, that you must observe. Follow these guidelines:

Use the e-mail address shown at the top of this syllabus. No other e-mail addresses are used by the instructor.
Do not send attachments of your work to your instructor unless specifically invited to do so.
Make sure that your spelling and grammar are correct.
Get to the point. Do not be long-winded. No jumbled verbiage.
Be organized. Be clear.
Be honest.
Use proper English - no slang.
DO NOT TYPE IN ALL CAPS!
Be respectful.
Say who you are.
Allow 24 hours for a reply.

The instructor will not answer eMail:

About an assignment on the due date for that particular assignment.
On weekends or evenings.
Written in a rude or demanding way.
That contains “ASAP”.
That begins with "Hey"

Office Hours

Appointments by email. Use the address at top.

Class Tutors

In addition to the instructor’s office hours tutoring is available in room A418 College of Business. Tutoring is provided by several experienced students. No appointment is necessary. Drop in. Hours will be announced and posted on the course website.

Ground Rules

Class is a discussion - not a lecture - be ready by completing assigned readings
All questions are important
Respect all students
Cameras not permitted in classroom

Class Schedule

After the first two weeks we will meet Tuesdays only. The schedule is designed this way to give you ample time to complete homework, prerequisites, readings, and writing assignments.

Note Tuesday November 6th's class (election day) will be held Thursday November 8.

Reading assignments are from the e-book. To receive extra credit complete the reading by class time (12:30 pm) on the dates shown below. To learn how to record your earned extra credit in BONGOPOWER see the section about extra credit earlier in the syllabus.

Week	Day	Topic	Reading Assignment from e-book table of contents Read before class	Extra Credit Checkpoint Topic
1	Tue 8/28	Introduction
1	Thr 8/30	Information Systems	Introduction Information Systems	Introduction Information Systems
2	Tue 9/4	Operating Systems Data and Information	Operating Systems Data and Information	Operating Systems Data and Information
2	Thr 9/6	Data and Information
3	Tue 9/11	Excel Introduction, Data Types Formatting, Functions, Formulas, Data Analysis	Excel up to: Conditional Formatting	Excel-Basics
4	Tue 9/18	Data Analysis
5	Tue 9/25	Cell Addressing, Excel Merge, Data Import	Cell Addressing Excel-Merge	Excel-Merge
6	Tue 10/2	Excel Merge and Import Data
7	Tue 10/9	Excel Logic	Excel-Logic	Excel-Logic
8	Tue 10/16	Excel Logic
9	Tue 10/23	Database SQL	Database SQL	Database SQL
10	Tue 10/30	SQL
11	Thr 11/8	Access Queries	Access	Access
12	Tue 11/13	Access Operations
13	Tue 11/20	Excel Statistics and Charts	Excel-Statistics	Excel-Statistics
14	Tue 11/27	Excel Statistics and Charts
15	Tue 12/4	Review

Quiz Preparation

This section should help you prepare for each quiz. The material you are responsible for on each quiz is listed below.

In the topics column any topic marked with ** will not be discussed in class. it is your responsibility to read the named chapter in the e-book. By completing the checkpoints in the chapters marked ** you will received extra credit. See the schedule in BONGOPOWER for exact due dates for extra credit availability. To learn how to record your earned extra credit in BONGOPOWER see the section about extra credit earlier in the syllabus.

Quiz #	First Day	Last Day	Topics
1	Fri 9/7	Wed 9/12	Information Systems Operating Systems Data and Information System Development **
2	Fri 9/21	Wed 9/26	Excel Introduction Formatting Functions Formulas Data Types Data Analysis Security & Privacy **
3	Fri 10/5	Wed 10/9	Cell Addressing Excel Table Merge Data Import Social Impact **
4	Fri 10/19	Wed 10/24	Excel Logic The Internet WWW
5	Fri 11/2	Wed 11/7	Database SQL Hardware **
6	Fri 11/16	Wed 11/21	Access Software **
7	Fri 11/30	Wed 12/5	Excel Statistics and Charts Communication & Networking **
8	Wed 12/5	Wed 12/12	Comprehensive

--- Official KSU/College of Business Information Follows ---

Cheating and Plagiarism

Academic honesty: Cheating means to misrepresent the source, nature, or other conditions of your academic work (e.g., tests, papers, projects, assignments) so as to get undeserved credit. In addition, it is considered to be cheating when one cooperates with someone else in any such misrepresentation. The use of the intellectual property of others without giving them appropriate credit is a serious academic offense. It is the University's policy that cheating or plagiarism result in receiving a failing grade for the work or course. Repeat offenses result in dismissal from the University.

Disabled Students

University policy 3342-3-01.3 requires that students with disabilities be provided reasonable accommodations to ensure their equal access to course content. If you have a documented disability and require accommodations, please contact the instructor at the beginning of the semester to make arrangements for necessary classroom adjustments. Please note, you must first verify your eligibility for these through Student Accessibility Services (contact 330-672-3391 or visit www.kent.edu/sas for more information on registration procedures).

Official Registration

Students have responsibility to ensure they are properly enrolled in classes. You are advised to review your official class schedule (using Student Tools on FlashLine) during the first two weeks of the semester to ensure you are properly enrolled in this class and section. Should you find an error in your class schedule it is your responsibility to correct the error. If registration errors are not and you continue to attend and participate in classes for which you are not officially enrolled, you are advised now that you will not receive a grade at the conclusion of the semester for any class in which you are not properly registered.

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