|
|
DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE AND
INFORMATION SYSTEMS
|
|
|
Spring 2008 |
|
|
IS 8070/01, Legal and Ethical Issues in
IS |
|
|
*Online* |
|
|
|
|
Course
Description:
|
This course is a survey of contemporary
legal and ethical issues faced by IS professionals. Topics include a review of applicable
statutes and regulations that impact the IS organization. Students will conduct on-line research and
explore ethical issues at the leading edge of the organization's technology
frontiers. |
|
|
|
Prerequisites:
|
Full admission to the MSIS
program or permission of the graduate program director. |
|
|
|
Textbook
& Resources:
|
American
Psychological Association (2001). Publication manual of
the American Psychological Association (5th Ed.). Burgunder, Lee (2007). Legal aspects of managing technology.
(4th Ed.). The
textbooks will be used to support the learning outcomes for this course
through readings, examples and exercises. Online cases, articles and other
resources will be made available on the course web site. |
Instructor:
|
Amy B. Woszczynski (wo-ZIN-ske), Ph.D. |
|
Office: |
CL 3047 |
|
Email Address: |
awoszczy@kennesaw.edu (24/7
availability, preferred form of communication) NOTE: When you send me
e-mail, please use a descriptive subject and include IS 8070 in the subject field. |
|
Phone: |
770.423.6572 (may take 2-3
days to respond) |
|
Office Hours: |
Mondays, 2:00 pm-5:30 pm Wednesdays, 3:00 pm-5:00 pm and by appointment **Please note that occasionally, I
will have meetings or other University activities during scheduled office hours.
Therefore, I strongly encourage you to make an appointment to see me.** |
|
Fax Number: |
770.423.6731 |
|
Website Address: |
|
|
GoogleTalk ID |
awoszczy |
Course Objective:
|
Legal issues such as
intellectual property, privacy, and product liability, permeate the
contemporary IS organization. In many
instances, the velocity of change of the technologies is out pacing society's
ability to formulate policy in the form of statutes and regulations. This rate of change requires organizations
to develop and provide both legal and ethical training to guide employees in
making decisions to deal with circumstances in which there may be no law,
regulation, company policy or precedent.
This course will expose the IS professional to the basic legal and
ethical issues in technology management. |
Learning Outcomes:
|
As a result of completing
this course, students will be able to:
|
|
Online Classroom Policies: |
|
|
Workload: Some students mistakenly
assume that an online class will be “easier” than a traditional, face-to-face
class. That is not the case. Since you don’t physically attend class, plan to
spend the same amount of time that you would spend attending a face-to-face
classroom with online activities. In addition, plan to spend a similar amount
of time completing assignments and activities that are normally completed
outside of the traditional, face-to-face classroom. Assignments are organized
into weekly lessons. All assignments are due on Sundays at 11:45pm. It is
critical that you review the planned lessons and don’t get behind! If
you will be out of time and unable to complete assignments when they are due,
complete them early. Don’t wait until the last minute to submit assignments. Also,
note WebCT Vista scheduled maintenance times for Pre-Assessment Online
courses often suffer from high withdrawal rates because the
student takes the course for the wrong reason believing the course
will be easier and require less time. One of the major determinants
for success is the maturity, motivation and commitment of the student in
your course – qualities which are already evident in most graduate students. The
University System of Georgia has available a Student Online Readiness Tool
(SORT): While
there is no quantitative scoring in the SORT assessment tool,
students are independently assessed in each of 6 areas (technology
experience, access to tools, study habits, lifestyle, goals and purposes, and
learning preference) and are provided with a "profile" rating based
on their responses in each area (i.e., Profile A, B, or
C). Basically, A= likely ready for online learning, B = mostly ready, C
= may not be ready. On the first day of class, please complete this Readiness
Tool. Feel free to contact me for if you have any questions or if your response
from this Readiness Tool in any of the six areas is C (may not be ready). This
tool may help you identify areas you may need to change to be successful in
the course. These instructions are repeated in WebCT. Grading: In most cases, assignments submitted
on time will be returned within 1-2 weeks (excluding holiday weeks). In the
rare cases where I will be unable to return graded assignments during the
specified time period, I will send an e-mail within WebCT alerting students
to the grading schedule. Discussion Groups: You will be assigned to an
online discussion group of 4-6 students. In this group, you will complete
activities and receive the opportunity to analyze viewpoints different from
you own. It is critical that you post discussion board activities in the
prescribed timely manner; otherwise, your group members will be unable to
complete the response portion of the activity. Late postings will be
substantially penalized with a 50% or more deduction from the grade. Make-Up Exams: There will be no make-up
assignments. It is the student’s responsibility to arrange for an excused
absence before the assignment due date. A grade of zero will be assigned for
all assignments missed without an excused absence. If an emergency arises on
the day of an assignment, and the instructor deems that the absence is
excused, then at the discretion of the instructor, either the
weight of other assignments may be increased in place of the missed
assignment or a substitute assignment may be given. Written verification of
the excused absence must be provided to the instructor. Guidelines for Submitting
Work: All assignments are due in
WebCT Vista. You may not e-mail me the assignment instead of uploading
it to WebCT. 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. Note that all
assignments should follow APA guidelines, except where specifically
instructed otherwise. Formatting guidelines will be available on WebCT, and
students should adhere to standards in the APA Guide. Attendance: This is an online class. Students
are expected to regularly check WebCT Vista for updates and to participate in
online activities. Participation: A critical component of all graduate courses
is an active and debate and discussion. Feel free to offer your comments and
to challenge (in a positive way please!) other class members on their
observations through online discussion. Lecture Notes:
All lecture notes,
announcements, assignment guidelines, and the like will be available on the
class Web site: http://vista.kennesaw.edu.
|
|
|
Withdrawal Policy: |
The last day to withdraw without academic penalty is 3/10/08. 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.
|
|
|
Email Policy:
The instructor will
reply to e-mails that list the course number and section in the subject line
of the e-mail (IS 8070/01). E-mails with other subject lines may not reach
the instructor’s mailbox.
Enrollment Policy: |
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.
|
|
|
|
|
Tentative Course Schedule:
Subject to change
Last updated: 1/5/08 |
||||||
|
|
Week |
Due Date |
Topic |
|
|||
|
|
1 |
1/13 |
Introduction to Course US & International Technology
Policy |
B: Chapters 1 & 2 |
|||
|
|
2 |
1/20 |
Patents |
B: Chapters 3-5 |
|||
|
|
3 |
1/27 |
Patents (continued) |
B: Chapters 3-5 (continued) |
|||
|
|
4 |
2/3 |
Protection of Secret Information |
B: Chapter 6 |
|||
|
|
5 |
2/10 |
Introduction to Copyrights |
B: Chapter 7 Research Topic Due |
|||
|
|
6 |
2/17 |
Copyrights (continued) |
B:
Chapters 8 & 9 |
|||
|
|
7 |
2/24 |
Midterm Exam |
Midterm Exam |
|||
|
|
|
3/1-3/7 |
No class, holiday |
|
|||
|
|
8 |
3/9 |
Trademarks |
B: Chapter 10 |
|||
|
|
9 |
3/16 |
Trademarks (continued) |
B: Chapter 11 |
|||
|
|
10 |
3/23 |
Tort Liability |
B: Chapter 12 |
|||
|
|
11 |
3/30 |
Contracts |
B: Chapter 14 |
|||
|
|
12 |
4/6 |
Privacy & Personal Rights |
B:
Chapter 13 |
|||
|
|
13 |
4/13 |
Online activities |
|
|||
|
|
14 |
4/20 |
Research Paper Due |
Research Paper Due |
|||
|
|
15 |
4/27 |
Online activities |
|
|||
|
|
FINAL |
5/5 |
Due at 11:45 p.m. |
Final Exam |
|||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
READINGS/CHAPTERS
LEGEND: B: Legal Aspects of Managing Technology |
|||||
|
|
Special Dates: |
|
|||||
|
|
Last day to withdraw without penalty |
March 10 |
|||||
|
|
|
March 1-7 |
|||||
|
|
Last day of class |
April 28 |
|||||
|
|
May 13-14 (tentative) |
||||||
|
|
Grades Due |
May 7 (10:00 a.m.) |
|||||
|
|
Notes:
|
||||||
Class Format:
|
|||||||
This
class will follow an online only method of instruction. It is critical that
you spend a significant portion of time checking WebCT Vista discussion board
postings and interacting with your classmates.
|
|||||||
|
Diversity Statement:
|
|||||||
Lecture Notes:
|
|||||||
|
Lecture notes will be posted on WebCT Vista. See http://vista.kennesaw.edu. Notes will
generally be in the form of PowerPoint slides. |
|||||||
|
|
|||||||
Assignments:
|
|||||||
|
Students will complete a midterm
exam, final exam, research paper, and online activities. Grading rubrics are available on
WebCT. |
|||||||
|
|
|||||||
Research Paper Requirements:
|
|||||||
|
Details on the project will be
posted on WebCT and discussed in class. |
|||||||
|
|
|||||||
Links:
|
|||||||
|
Department web site: http://science.kennesaw.edu/csis |
|||||||
|
|
|||||||
Computer Labs:
|
|
|
Please be aware of and
follow all computer lab
user policies.
The labs on the fourth
floor of the M-Th 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 Science and
The lab in SC 228 of the
Science and M-Th
The telephone number of the
Science and |
|
|
|
|
|
Owl Printing System: |
|
|
|
|
Assessment:
|
|
|
Online Activities The online activities will
be completed in discussion groups as assigned in WebCT Vista. Detailed
guidelines are available in WebCT Vista. |
20% |
|
Midterm Exam |
25% |
|
Research Paper A paper on a research topic
related to the course objectives is due at the end of the term. The paper should be 10-15 pages in length,
adhere to APA format standards, and include at least 6 references, of which 3
must be scholarly. The final project write-up is due in WebCT Vista at 11:45
pm on 4/20/08. |
30% |
|
Final Exam |
25% |
|
TOTAL |
100% |
|
Grade Evaluation |
|
|
|
|
|
A |
90% - 100% |
|
B |
80% - 89% |
|
C |
70% - 79% |
|
D |
60% - 69% |
|
F |
59% or below |
|
Student Course
Evaluation: |
|
A standard questionnaire
will be administered during the last two weeks of the semester in all
classes. Since this is an online course, students will complete the end of
course evaluation within Additional questions
developed by the college or instructor(s) may be included as well. It is
important that each student provide meaningful feedback to the instructor(s)
so that changes can be made in the course to continually improve its
effectiveness. We value student feedback about the course, our teaching
styles, and course materials, so as to improve our teaching and your
learning. At a minimum, the following two questions will be asked: 1)
Identify the aspects of the course that most contributed to your learning
(include examples of specific materials, exercises and/or the faculty
member's approach to teaching and mentoring), and 2) Identify the aspects of
the course, if any, that might be improved (include examples of specific
materials, exercises and/or the faculty member's approach to teaching and
mentoring). |
Acquiring Final Grades:
|
|
In an effort to better
utilize our technology resources, |
Academic Integrity Statement:
|
|
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 policy of the University 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, KSU Undergraduate Catalog will be strictly enforced in this class. Frequently students will be
provided with take-home exams or exercises. It is the responsibility of the
student 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 |
|
APA Documenting Examples: |
|
All MSIS students are
required to have a copy of the American Psychological Association (APA)
Publication Manual, available in the KSU bookstore and elsewhere. When any portion of another
author’s work is used, whether it be from a course textbook or outside work,
including the World Wide Web, in whole, in part, or paraphrased, that work
must be cited. Proper citation formats are provided on the reverse of this
document. Failure to do so can result in Academic Misconduct Proceedings. Acceptable Reference
Formats (from North and Blade, 1998 (see below) reprinted with permission) |