LIBR 204-20
Information Organizations and Management
Spring 2012 Greensheet

Dr. Carol H. Sawyer
E-mail (I check e-mail each day unless I am traveling; I will alert you to any travel I have.  My preferred email address is csawyer527@gmail.com)

Office Hours: I will schedule, by appointment, a telephone conversation if our email correspondence needs that additional connection. Mornings are preferred, because I am a SLIS adjunct professor; I teach evenings in my full time position at another university.  At this time I anticipate that most of my reading/grading of your work will be scheduled into Mondays and Wednesdays of each week.

This course is conducted completely on line using D2L.  Plan to access the course site two or three times each week, and watch for frequent email messages from me.

Course Description

Identifying distinguishing characteristics, culture and relationships of information organizations. Emphasizes the role and responsibilities of managers and leaders, orchestrating people in achieving organizational goals

Note:  Effective spring 2009, LIBR 204 must be completed with a grade of B or higher.

Course Prerequisites: Students will have the specified minimum hardware and software to participate fully in the course.

Course Objectives

Assignments are designed to enhance these student learning outcomes:

• To develop personal managerial skills and a philosophy about management
• To compare management theories, principles and practices;
• To recognize the complexities of context, culture and collaboration in
  managerial work.
• To apply analytical and strategic planning processes and skills;
• To review and use the professional and research literature of management;
• To identify the roles and activities of managers and the central roles they play in
  promoting innovation in an organizational context;
• To examine issues of diversity in the workplace;
• To learn about, experience and assess working in teams;
• To demonstrate good collaborative skills in working with classmates and
  the instructor in this course to make it an effective and efficient learning
  environment.
• To understand portfolios as a means of performance assessment;
• To prepare and post a resume and use the services of the SJSU Career Center.

LIBR 204 supports the following SLIS Core Competencies:

• apply the fundamental principles of planning, management and marketing/advocacy;
• demonstrate oral and written communication skills necessary for group work, collaborations and professional level presentations;
• evaluate programs and services on specified criteria.

Course Requirements

Complete LIBR 203: Online Social Networking: Technology and Tools
This is a mandatory 1 unit course that introduces students to the various e-learning tools used in the SLIS program, including Blackboard, Elluminate and Second Life. This course must be completed by all new SLIS students within the first 4 weeks of their first semester. If you have questions about this course, e-mail Debbie Faires or Dale David.

For more information, see http://ischool.sjsu.edu/classes/coursedesc.htm

Requirements
Threaded throughout our time together we will be attentive to context, culture and collaboration as these are impacting and shaping 21st century organizational management theory and practice. Identify an information center or library with which you are familiar or with which you can connect during the course; some assignments will relate to your observations and interactions with that organizational setting and its people.

After more than twenty-five years of university graduate teaching, I have learned that frequent short assignments with prompt feedback are most likely to result in student success. Therefore this course includes assignments each week (with the exception of holiday weekends), with the goal of frequent faculty feedback to support growth and skill development.

Here are my expectations of enrolling students. Scroll further down for a paragraph to learn my commitment to what you can expect from me.

Expectations of Students
An online assignment is due almost every week of the Spring 2012 special session.  Assignments are always due on Sunday evenings at 11:59 pm  [late assignments will not receive credit (points)]. See the "rows & columns" schedule of readings and assignments below. Details on each week’s assignments, and criteria for excellence to earn the possible points, are posted on the D2L online course site, week by week.  See the weekly folders under Content.  I will open the folders gradually over the course of the term; you will not see all the folders at once as the class begins.

A  discussion forum titled "Questions About This Course" is a location in which you can post any question you have after first reviewing the course details online. If you have a question or need clarification, almost certainly another student will have that same query. This approach will help me manage my email (!), and will provide a place where all students can see both the question and my answer.

Every online course requires discipline and regular attention. Students will need to access the course site several times each week for information and to post weekly assignments, as well as being attentive to frequent email messages and online-based announcements from faculty.

Because I am an adjunct professor for San José State University, no incomplete grade is possible in this course. All work must be submitted by the specified due date, using care to follow assignment guidelines, use of APA academic formatting when appropriate, and professionalism in the presentation of ideas.  No work submitted late will receive credit/points.

Excellence in written work is expected for a graduate course; we will not have the advantage of nonverbal communication to support our understanding of one another. Therefore, it is essential to use care in preparing and posting all assignments, including discussion board postings. A writing rubric is posted on the course D2L site and will be used to assess and grade the individual papers and study group assignments in the course. Please always use the proofreading features of Word to prepare even discussion board postings. This will help ensure that your work is of appropriately high quality for a graduate program.

If work is submitted as a file attachment, use care to name the file with fewer than 30 characters, including the file extension in the compatibility format (.doc, please, NOT .docx).  Include your name in the file name (example:  sawyerinterview.doc).

A variety of assignments will provide an opportunity to demonstrate course mastery and the application of ideas to the world of practicing managers. There are a number of weeks when short discussion board postings and interaction with classmates are required. In addition, several times you will prepare research-based assignments to explore more deeply into the details and value of concepts in course readings. Over a five-week period (beginning February 12), each student will keep an individual personal journal (off line) to record experiences related to an important Harvard Business Review article on management. Brief summary journal postings will be built from these personal journals; the postings will be confidential and available for only faculty to read.

Organizational management is not "solo" work. Study group projects will ensure experience in working with others to achieve a common goal/develop a product and provide for reflection on the nature of such collaboration.

The course will conclude with an individual philosophy of management essay.

Course Calendar
Overview of Course Calendar and Schedule (please note that no assignments are due on April 1 or April 8).

Expectations of Faculty
As the faculty person for this course, I am committed to the success of every student, while holding all of us to high standards appropriate for a graduate program of study. I will be prepared each week, and I anticipate accessing the online course site at least three times weekly, unless I am on travel (I'll let you know if I have travel that keeps me away from D2L for a day or two). I will comment on or grade assignments promptly with the goal of returning them to you within seven days of the due date, with feedback to help you continue to lift the quality of your work. By appointment, I can be available for a telephone call if that is needed in addition to any email communication; I am usually available mornings for such a telephone conversation, as I teach other courses during the evenings.   I believe that together we are responsible for creating and sustaining a safe environment that facilitates learning, openness, personal growth, and mutual trust and respect. I am passionate and positive about teaching and learning, with a life mission to recognize and realize possibilities, and to facilitate that growth for others.

Textbooks and Readings

Additional Readings
Additional reading assignments may be posted on D2L or readily accessed through the Internet.

Required Textbooks:

• Evans, G. E., & Ward, P. L. (2007). Management Basics for Information Professionals (2nd ed.). Neal-Schuman. Available through Amazon: 1555705863.

• Pink, D. H. (2006). A whole new mind: Why right-brainers will rule the future. Riverhead Trade. Available through Amazon: 1594481717.

• Pink, D. H. (2009). Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us. Riverhead. Available through Amazon: 1594488843.

• Wagner, R., & Harter, J. K. (2006). 12: The elements of great managing. Gallup Press. Available through Amazon: 159562998X.

Grading Scale

The standard SJSU School of Information Grading Scale is utilized for all iSchool courses:

In order to provide consistent guidelines for assessment for graduate level work in the School, these terms are applied to letter grades:

• C represents Adequate work; a grade of "C" counts for credit for the course;
• B represents Good work; a grade of "B" clearly meets the standards for graduate level work;
  For core courses in the MLIS program (not MARA) — INFO 200, INFO 202, INFO 204 — the iSchool requires that students earn a B in the course. If the grade is less than B (B- or lower) after the first attempt you will be placed on administrative probation.  You must repeat the class the following semester. If -on the second attempt- you do not pass the class with a grade of B or better (not B- but B) you will be disqualified.
  
• A represents Exceptional work; a grade of "A" will be assigned for outstanding work only.

Students are advised that it is their responsibility to maintain a 3.0 Grade Point Average (GPA).

University Policies

General Expectations, Rights and Responsibilities of the Student

As members of the academic community, students accept both the rights and responsibilities incumbent upon all members of the institution. Students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with SJSU's policies and practices pertaining to the procedures to follow if and when questions or concerns about a class arises. See University Policy S90-5 at http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/S90-5.pdf. More detailed information on a variety of related topics is available in the SJSU catalog at http://info.sjsu.edu/web-dbgen/catalog/departments/LIS.html. In general, it is recommended that students begin by seeking clarification or discussing concerns with their instructor. If such conversation is not possible, or if it does not serve to address the issue, it is recommended that the student contact the Department Chair as a next step.

Dropping and Adding

Students are responsible for understanding the policies and procedures about add/drop, grade forgiveness, etc. Refer to the current semester's Catalog Policies section at http://info.sjsu.edu/static/catalog/policies.html. Add/drop deadlines can be found on the current academic year calendars document on the Academic Calendars webpage at http://www.sjsu.edu/provost/services/academic_calendars/. The Late Drop Policy is available at http://www.sjsu.edu/aars/policies/latedrops/policy/. Students should be aware of the current deadlines and penalties for dropping classes.

Information about the latest changes and news is available at the Advising Hub at http://www.sjsu.edu/advising/.

Consent for Recording of Class and Public Sharing of Instructor Material

University Policy S12-7, http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/S12-7.pdf, requires students to obtain instructor's permission to record the course and the following items to be included in the syllabus:

• "Common courtesy and professional behavior dictate that you notify someone when you are recording him/her. You must obtain the instructor's permission to make audio or video recordings in this class. Such permission allows the recordings to be used for your private, study purposes only. The recordings are the intellectual property of the instructor; you have not been given any rights to reproduce or distribute the material."
  • It is suggested that the syllabus include the instructor's process for granting permission, whether in writing or orally and whether for the whole semester or on a class by class basis.
  • In classes where active participation of students or guests may be on the recording, permission of those students or guests should be obtained as well.
• "Course material developed by the instructor is the intellectual property of the instructor and cannot be shared publicly without his/her approval. You may not publicly share or upload instructor generated material for this course such as exam questions, lecture notes, or homework solutions without instructor consent."

Academic integrity

Your commitment, as a student, to learning is evidenced by your enrollment at San Jose State University. The University Academic Integrity Policy F15-7 at http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/F15-7.pdf requires you to be honest in all your academic course work. Faculty members are required to report all infractions to the office of Student Conduct and Ethical Development. The Student Conduct and Ethical Development website is available at http://www.sjsu.edu/studentconduct/.

Campus Policy in Compliance with the American Disabilities Act

If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, or if you need to make special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible, or see me during office hours. Presidential Directive 97-03 at http://www.sjsu.edu/president/docs/directives/PD_1997-03.pdf requires that students with disabilities requesting accommodations must register with the Accessible Education Center (AEC) at http://www.sjsu.edu/aec to establish a record of their disability.

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