***UPDATED 10/27/02***
Kennesaw State
University
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DEPARTMENT OF
COMPUTER SCIENCE AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS
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Fall 2002 |
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IS 8826/01, Information
Technology Services |
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Wednesday, 8PM-1045M, CL
2003 |
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Course Description: |
Design
and management of the service functions performed by the Information Systems
organization. Topics include: Managing help desks, customer support, training
end users, developing professional development programs for IS employees,
documentation management, and marketing IT products. Internal and external
clients are considered. |
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Prerequisites: |
Admission to the MSIS program or
permission of the graduate program director. |
Textbook & Readings:
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Beisse,
Fred (2001). A Guide to Computer User Support for Help Desk & Support
Specialists. Course Technology: Canada. ISBN
0-619-03363-0 Other
readings as noted. |
Instructor:
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Amy
B. Woszczynski, Ph.D. |
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Office:
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CL
3009 |
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Email
Address: |
(24/7
availability, preferred form of communication) |
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Phone: |
770.423.6572
(may take 2-3 days to respond) |
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Office
Hours: |
Mondays,
1PM-3PM Wednesdays,
430PM-6PM And
by appointment. |
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Fax
Number: |
770.423.6731 |
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Website
Address: |
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Course Objective:
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Help
desk management is one of the most common IS functions in the contemporary
computing environment. This course will address the issues associated with
help desks and other IT support functions. |
Learning Outcomes:
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Upon
completion of this course, students should be able to: ·
Explore the internal workings of the help desk and develop programs
for problem identification, escalation, tracking, and resolution. ·
Develop internal marketing plans for IT services within a charge-back
environment. ·
Explore and document comprehensive, professional development programs
for IS professionals. ·
Responsibly market and deliver services to internal and external
clients. ·
Discuss the pricing, design, and delivery of IT products and
services. |
Class Policies: |
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Make-Up
Exams: There
will be no make-up examinations. It is the student’s responsibility to
arrange for an excused absence before the exam. A grade of zero will be
assigned for all exams missed without an excused absence. If an emergency
arises on the day of an exam, and the instructor deems that the absence is
excused, then the weight of the final exam may be increased in place of the
missed exam. Written verification of the excused absence must be provided to
the instructor. Guidelines for Submitting Work: All
hard-copy submissions should be arranged properly and stapled
together. All assignments are due at the beginning of class, so if you are
sending me an assignment via e-mail, it should be sent no later than the
class start time. Late assignments will not be accepted! If you have
any questions about your grades, contact me immediately. The end of the
semester is too late to argue for grade changes on earlier assignments. Attendance: Class
attendance is up to the student. However, high grades are clearly a function
of attendance, good notes, questions, and productive studying. Active class
participation is encouraged and welcomed. Late arrival, early departure,
excessive conversation with other students, and the like are unacceptable. Instructor
Absence: Normally,
I will be in class on time. If I am more than 15 minutes late and prior
arrangements have not been made, the class is canceled. If an emergency
causes me to miss class, I will make every effort to notify students in
advance. You are encouraged to check the class web site for daily updates. Lecture Notes:
All lecture notes,
announcements, assignment guidelines, and the like will be available on the
class Web site: http://courses.kennesaw.edu WebCT: To login to WebCT, you will need
to know your WebCT login ID and your PIN. Detailed instructions for
determining your WebCT login can be found at http://online.kennesaw.edu/webct-help/index.html.
Your password is your University PIN, which is your 6-digit birthdate if you
haven't changed it. If you would like to have your
WebCT e-mail forwarded to your preferred e-mail address, go to: Mail…Message Settings…Forward my mail to: and enter your preferred e-mail
address. You are strongly advised to forward your e-mail to an account your
check regularly. |
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Withdrawal
Policy: |
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The
last day to withdraw without academic penalty is 10/25/2002. Ceasing to attend class or oral notice thereof
DOES NOT constitute official withdrawal from the course. Students who simply
stop attending classes without officially withdrawing usually are assigned
failing grades. Students wishing to
withdraw after the scheduled change period (add/drop) must obtain and
complete a withdrawal form from the Academic Services Department in the
Registrar’s Office.
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Enrollment
Policy: |
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Only
those students who are enrolled in the class may attend lectures, receive
assignments, take quizzes and exams, and receive a grade in the class. If a student is administratively withdrawn
from this course, they will not be permitted to attend class nor will they
receive any grade for the class.
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Electronic Devices:
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In
order to minimize the level of distraction, all beepers and cellular phones
must be on quiet mode during class meeting times. Students who wish to use a
computer/PDA for note taking need prior approval of the instructor since key
clicks and other noises can distract other students. Recording of lectures by
any method requires prior approval of the instructor.
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Tentative Course Schedule: Subject to
change
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Week
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Date |
Topic |
Chapters |
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1 |
8/28 |
Overview
of course Introduction
to End-User Computing |
Ch.
1 |
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2 |
9/4 |
Introduction
to Computer User Support Customer
Service Skills for User Support |
Ch.
2 Ch.
3 |
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3 |
9/11 |
Troubleshooting
Computer Problems Common Support Problems |
Ch. 4
Ch.
5 |
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4 |
9/18 |
Help Desk Operation |
Ch.
6 |
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5 |
9/25 |
Project
Work Day |
Assignment #1 |
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6 |
10/2 |
User
Support Management Product
Evaluation Strategies and Standards |
Ch.
7 Ch.
8 |
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7 |
10/9 |
Readings
– Ch. 7a |
Preliminary Outline |
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8 |
10/16 |
No
class, power outage |
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9 |
10/23 |
Readings
– Ch. 7b Readings
– Ch. 8 |
Assignment
#2 (Due 10/26/02) |
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10 |
10/30 |
User
Needs Analysis and Assessment Readings
– Ch. 9 Installing
End-user Computer Systems Readings
– Ch. 10 |
Ch.
9 Ch.
10 |
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11 |
11/6 |
Training
Computer Users Readings – Ch. 11
Writing for End Users
Readings – Ch. 12 |
Ch. 11
Ch. 12
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12 |
11/13 |
Project
Work Day |
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13 |
11/20 |
Final Project Draft Due – Peer Review
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14 |
11/27 |
No class, Fall Break |
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15 |
12/4 |
Project Presentations
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16 |
12/11 |
Project Presentations
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Final Project Due
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Final |
12/18 |
Project
Presentations (if needed) Final
Exam Due 8PM |
Assignment #3
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Special Dates: |
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Holidays/No Class |
11/27/2002 |
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Last day to withdraw without penalty |
10/25/2002 |
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Last day of class |
12/11/2002 |
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12/18/2002,
8PM-1045PM |
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12/20/2002 |
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Notes: |
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Supplemental Readings
Gaspar,
S. (2002, June 10). The power of users. www.nwfusion.com
[Online], 40. Retrieved August 14, 2002, from http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2002/0610man.html.
Kelly,
J. (2000, January 21). The play for on-click support. www.upsidetoday.com [Online], pp.
104-108. Retrieved August 14, 2002, from http://www.upsidetoday.com/texis/mvm/story?id=387e2d980.
Ware,
L. C. (2001). User support survey. CIO.com [Online]. Retrieved February
5, 2002, from http://www2.cio.com/research/surveyreport.cfm?id=58.
Ashworth,
J. (2001). Excellence in support or support is more than a correct answer. SIGUCCS
’01, October 17-20, 2001, Portland, OR, pp. 8-11. (Available from ACM
Digital Library)
Hurst,
J. (2002, June). The phone, the Web and customer service. Scientific
Computing & Instrumentation, 19(7), p. 14. (Available from GALILEO)
Kreitzberg,
C. B. (1999, May 10). Keep the human touch in customer service. Internetweek.
Issue 764, p. 27. (Available from GALILEO)
The
Network Hub (1999, February 15). The network hub: Customer satisfaction takes
precedence over market share. Asia Computer Weekly, p. 1. (Available
from GALILEO)
Avery,
M. (1999, August 23). Healing System frees help desk. Infoworld, p. 39.
(Available from GALILEO)
Corbin,
C. (2000, May). On-line help for franchises. Chain Store Age, p. 268.
(Available from GALILEO)
Klein,
G., Jiang, J. J., & Tesch, D. B. (2002, June). Wanted: Project teams with a
blend of IS professional orientations. Communications of the ACM, 45(6),
pp. 81-87. (Available from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Rea,
D., & Cleary, K. (2001). See for yourself: Implementing web-based remote
observation/control. SIGUCCS ’01, October 17-20, 2001, Portland, OR, pp.
153-156. (Available from GALILEO)
Businessworld
(1999, January 12). Jollibee outsources help desk operations to IBM. Businessworld,
p. 1. (Available from GALILEO)
CEO
Perspectives (2002, February). E-sourcing: IT on demand. A Supplement to
Chief Executive Magazine, pp. 1-8. (Available from GALILEO)
Govindarajulu,
C. (2002, January). The status of helpdesk support. Communications of the
ACM, 45(1), pp. 97-100. (Available from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Melymuka,
K. (2002, May 13). Think big. Computerworld, p. 46. (Available from
GALILEO)
Prescott,
J., Kitty, T., Franklin, G., Cleary, A., Lovgren, T., & Mai, A. (2001).
Evolution of three help desks. SIGUCCS ’01, October 17-20, 2001,
Portland, OR, pp. 135-141. (Available from the ACM Digital Library)
Service
Views (2001, July). Leadership is key to support success. IT Support News,
p. 23. (Available on GALILEO, Proquest)
Service
Views (2000, December). How does your operation stack up? IT Support News,
p. 30. (Available on GALILEO, Proquest)
Shaw,
N. C., DeLone, W. H., & Niederman, F. (2002, Spring). Sources of
dissatisfaction in end-user support: An empirical study. The DATA BASE for
Advances in Information Systems, 33(2), pp. 41-56.
Taylor,
K. (2000, July). Check your help desk’s vital signs: A transplant may be in
order. C@ll Center CRM Solutions, No. 329,
pp. 44-52. (Available from GALILEO)
Arnold, D., & Niederman, F. (2001). The global
IT workforce. Communications of the ACM, 44(7), pp. 31-33. (Available from GALILEO and
ACM Digital Library)
Behling, O. (1998). Employee selection: Will
intelligence and conscientiousness do the job? Academy of Management Journal,
12(1), pp. 77-86.
Denning, P. J. (2001). Who are we? Communications
of the ACM, 44(2), pp. 15-19. (Available from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Denning, P. J., & Dunham, R. (2001). The core of
the third-wave professional. Communications of the ACM, 44(11), pp.
21-25. (Available
from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Gray, J. (2001). The end of career. Communications
of the ACM, 44(11), pp. 65-69. (Available from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Hazelhurst, S. (2001). Developing IT skills
internationally: Who’s developing whom? Communications of the ACM,
44(7), pp. 27-28. (Available
from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Lai, V. S., & Chung, W. (2002). Managing
international data communications. Communications of the ACM, 45(3), pp.
89-93. (Available
from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Moore, J. E., & Burke, L. A. (2002). How to turn
around ‘turnover culture’ in IT. Communications of the ACM, 45(2), pp.
73-78. (Available
from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Parkhurst, L. G., Jr. (2001). Bridging the gap with
emergency operating procedures. SIGUCCS ’01, October 17-20, 2001,
Portland, OR, pp. 129-131. (Available from ACM Digital Library)
Rowell, M. (2001). Women & technology: How
Wellesley College recruits, trains and retains student staff. SIGUCCS ’01,
October 17-20, 2001, Portland, OR, pp. 169-171. (Available from ACM Digital Library)
Schambach, T., & Blanton, J. E. (2002). The
professional development challenge for IT professionals. Communications of
the ACM, 45(4), pp. 83-87. (Available from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Stager, S., & Shadle, J. (1990). Issues in user
services management for the 90s. ACM SIGUCCS XVIII, pp. 371-375. (Available from ACM Digital
Library)
von Hellens, L. A., Pringle, R., Nielsen, S. H.,
& Greenhill, A. (2000). People, business and IT skills: The perspective of
women in the IT industry. SIGCPR 2000, Evanston, IL, pp. 152-157. (Available from ACM Digital
Library)
Whiting, J., & Everett, P. (2001). Surviving
your success. SIGUCCS ’01, October 17-20, 2001, Portland, OR, pp.
210-214. (Available
from ACM Digital Library)
Wynekoop, J. L., & Walz, D. B. (1998).
Revisiting the perennial question: Are IS people different? The DATA BASE
for Advances in Information Systems, 29(2), pp. 62-72.
David, J. S., Schuff, D., & St. Louis, R.
(2002). Managing your IT total cost of ownership. Communications of the ACM,
45(1), pp. 101-106. (Available from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Lim, V. K. G., Teo, T. S. H., & Loo, G. L.
(2002). How do I loaf here? Let me count the ways. Communications of the ACM,
45(1), pp. 66-70. (Available
from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Oravec, J. A. (2002). Constructive approaches to
Internet recreation in the workplace. Communications of the ACM, 45(1),
pp. 60-63. (Available from GALILEO and
ACM Digital Library)
Siau, K., Nah, F. F., & Teng, L. (2002).
Acceptable Internet use policy. Communications of the ACM, 45(1), pp.
75-79. (Available
from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Simmers, C. A. (2002). Aligning Internet usage with
business priorities. Communications of the ACM, 45(1), pp. 71-74. (Available from GALILEO and
ACM Digital Library)
Stanton, J. M. (2002). Company profile of the
frequent Internet user. Communications of the ACM, 45(1), pp. 55-59. (Available from GALILEO and
ACM Digital Library)
Urbaczewski, A., & Jessup, L. M. (2002). Does
electronic monitoring of employee Internet usage work? Communications of the
ACM, 45(1), pp. 80-83. (Available from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Kettinger, W. J., & Lee, C. C. (2002). Understanding
the IS-user divide in IT innovation. Communications of the ACM, 45(2),
pp. 79-84. (Available
from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Ergonomics Rules (2001, January 22). IT industry
opposes impending ergonomics rules. Informationweek, p. 33. (Available from GALILEO)
Geyer, P. D., & Williams, E. (1999). The role of
technical assistance centers in addressing employer concerns about
accommodating workers who are deaf or hard of hearing. Labor Law Journal,
pp. 280-288. (Available
from GALILEO)
Mondak, P. (2000). The Americans with Disabilities
Act and information technology access. Focus on Autism and Other Development
Disabilities, 15(1), pp. 43-51. (Available from GALILEO)
New Tools (2001, May 14). New tools boost number of
disabled in IT ranks. Informationweek, pp. 84-88. (Available from GALILEO)
Benbunan-Fich, R. (2002). Improving education and
training with IT. Communications of the ACM, 45(6), pp. 94-99. (Available from GALILEO and
ACM Digital Library)
Compeau, D. (2002). The role of trainer behavior in
end user software training. Journal of End User Computing, 14(1), pp.
23-32.
Grainger, C. (2001). Just-for-me training:
Personalized options for training on demand. SIGUCCS ’01, October 17-20,
2001, Portland, OR, pp. 49-54. (Available from ACM Digital Library)
Krupa, T. (2001). Triple play: Delivering effective
& key communication. SIGUCCS ’01, October 17-20, 2001, Portland, OR,
pp. 73-79. (Available from ACM Digital Library)
Chase, N. (1999). What to do: When MIS abandons you.
Quality, 38(2), pp. 70-73. (Available from GALILEO)
Panko, R. P., & Beh, H. G. (2002). Monitoring
for pornography and sexual harassment. Communications of the ACM, 45(1),
pp. 84-87. (Available
from GALILEO and ACM Digital Library)
Assessment
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Assignments
(60%) |
4
equally weighted assignments. |
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Research
Paper (40%) |
A
research paper on a topic related to user support is due 12/11/02. A preliminary
outline of the research paper is due 10/9/02. The paper should be of
sufficient length to adequately explore the topic. The paper should be
double-spaced, include at least 5 outside references, and must use APA format
throughout (consult the APA Style Guide). Each student will prepare
and present an overview of the research during the last 4 class meetings.
Students are expected to attend all presentations and ask relevant questions.
10% of the project grade is based on attendance and participation during peer
presentations. Students
should complete the research paper on one of the following topics: ·
Prepare an analysis of the help desk operation at your organization.
Identify how the user support function can change to better meet the needs of
the users. Should the help desk software be updated? Should a reorganization
of the operation be undertaken? Should the help desk operation be outsourced?
If so, why? Should employees be re-trained, or new employees hired? Identify
appropriate costs and benefits. Also consider change management,
organizational culture, etc. ·
Describe the evolution of end user support at an organization of your
choice. ·
Describe your vision of the help desk of the future. What services should
they offer? How should they reach their users? How do they find out what
their users want? ·
Update Stager & Shadle’s (1990) article, “Issues in User Services
Management for the 90s” to reflect the issues that you see as important for
the 00s. Are any of the issues discussed in 1990 still relevant? Are some
issues more important or less important? What changes are important to
understand to provide the best user support services? |
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TOTAL
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100% |
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Grade Evaluation |
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A |
90%
- 100% |
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B |
89%
- 80% |
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C |
79%
- 70% |
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D |
69%
- 60% |
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F |
59%
or below |
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Computer Labs:
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Please
be aware of and follow all computer
lab user policies. Burruss Building
The
labs on the fourth floor of the Burruss Building are open 7 days each week as
follows: M-Th 7:45am - 11pm The
Burruss labs are open most holidays. Be prepared to show your current student
ID card upon entering the lab. The telephone number of the Burruss Building
lab is 770-423-6110. Science and
Mathematics Building
The
lab in SC 228 of the Science and Mathematics Building is open as follows: M-Th
9:00 am - 8:00pm The
telephone number of the Science and Mathematics Building lab is 770-499-3351. |
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Owl Printing System: |
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Effective
Fall Semester 2001, the OwlPrint system (student network printing/copying
solution) will be in place in the KSU library as well as all the open labs
and lab/electronic classroom combinations across campus. |
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Student Course Evaluation: |
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Acquiring Final
Grades:
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In
an effort to better utilize our technology resources, Kennesaw State
University has instituted the reporting of end of term grades by phone. This
is in addition to the web version of grades, which has been in effect for
several terms. All current semester term students may call 770-420-4315 and
select Option Number 4 to secure their end of term grades. With this new
development, printed grade reports will not be mailed at the end of the term.
Students needing verification of grades or enrollment should request either
an official transcript or an enrollment verification through the Office of
the Registrar. |
Academic Integrity Statement:
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Every
KSU student is responsible for upholding the provisions of the Student Code
of Conduct, as published in the Undergraduate and Graduate Catalogs. Section II of the Student Code of Conduct
addresses the University's policy on academic honesty, including provisions
regarding plagiarism and cheating, unauthorized access to University
materials, misrepresentation/falsification of University records or academic
work, malicious removal, retention, or destruction of library materials,
malicious/intentional misuse of computer facilities and/or services, and
misuse of student identification cards.
Incidents of alleged academic misconduct will be handled through the
established procedures of the University Judiciary Program, which includes
either an "informal" resolution by a faculty member, resulting in a
grade adjustment, or a formal hearing procedure, which may subject a student
to the Code of Conduct's minimum one semester suspension requirement. Students
are encouraged to study together and to work together on class assignments
and lab exercises; however, the provisions of the STUDENT CONDUCT
REGULATIONS, II. Academic Honesty, KSC Undergraduate Catalog will be strictly
enforced in this class. Frequently
students will be provided with “take-home” exams or exercises. It is the student’s responsibility to
ensure they fully understand to what extent they may collaborate or discuss
content with other students. No exam
work may be performed with the assistance of others or outside material
unless specifically instructed as permissible. If an exam or assignment is designated “no outside assistance”
this includes, but is not limited to, peers, books, publications, the Internet
and the WWW. If a student is instructed
to provide citations for sources, proper use of citation support is
expected. Additional information can
be found at the following locations. http://www.apa.org/journals/webref.html http://www.lib.duke.edu/libguide/citing.htm http://bailiwick.lib.uiowa.edu/journalism/cite.html http://www.cas.usf.edu/english/walker/papers/copyright/ipdummie.html http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/wts/plagiarism.html |