INFO 281-14
Seminar in Contemporary Issues
TOPIC: OPEN ACCESS
Fall 2017 Syllabus

Ann Agee
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Office Hours: Advising by phone or Blackboard Collaborate by appointment.


Syllabus Links
Textbooks
CLOs
Competencies
Prerequisites
Resources
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Canvas Information: Courses will be available beginning August 23rd, 6 am PDT unless you are taking an intensive or a one-unit or two-unit class that starts on a different day. In that case, the class will open on the first day that the class meets.

You will be enrolled into the Canvas site automatically.

This course runs from Monday, October 23 to Tuesday, November 21, 2017.

This course will be available beginning October 23, 6 am PDT. This course ends on November 21, 2017, but this and all other course sites will close at the end of the semester. 

Course Description

Open access is disrupting the traditional structure of scholarly publishing by ensuring "the free, immediate, online availability of research articles coupled with the rights to use these articles fully in the digital environment" (SPARC). This course examines the current state of the open access movement and how it affects librarians and scholars. As you move through the course, you will learn about the different models of open access; how to advocate for open access on campus; and how to support researchers as they make the transition from fee-based to open access journals. For your final project, you will create an open access advocacy plan specific to a campus of your choice.

Course Requirements

Assignments

1. Article Critique (Supports CLO1, CLO3)

Students will select and critique an article discussing the gold or green open access model. 

2. Online Repository Analysis (Supports CLO2)

Students will choose two online repositories in the sciences, social sciences, or humanities, compare them, and present their analysis. 

3. Open Access Advocacy Video (Supports CLO2, CLO3)

Students will create a video advocating for open access tailored to a stakeholder group on their campus. 

4. Publisher Copyright Policy Analysis (Supports CLO2)

Students will research the copyright policies of three journals popular with their campus faculty. 

5. Open Access Advocacy Plan (Supports CLO3)

Students will create an open access advocacy plan specific to their chosen university or college campus. 

6. Online Discussions  

Further information about the assignments is given on the Canvas course website.

Additional Course Requirements

Course readings will consist of articles from the professional literature and chapters from the assigned textbook. Webinars and videos will also be assigned.

Course Calendar

Dates

Topic

Activities

Module 1

October 23

Welcome!
Open Access Overview

 

Personal Profile

#1 Article Critique 
Due 10/26/17

Discussion Response
Due 10/28/17 

 

Module 2

October 30

Economics of Open Access


#2 Online Repository Analysis 
Due 11/2/17


Discussion Response 
Due 11/4/17

 

Module 3

November 6

Open Access Advocacy

(Veterans Day, Nov. 10)

#3 Open Access Advocacy Video 
Due 11/9/17

Discussion Response
Due 11/12/17

Module 4

November 14

Copyright & Open Access

#4  Publisher Copyright Policy Analysis 
Due 11/17/17


#5  Course Project: Open Access Advocacy Plan
Due 11/21/17


Grading
 

Assignment

Points

 

 

1. Article Critique

10

2. Online Repository Analysis

10

3. Open Access Advocacy Video

10

4. Publisher Copyright Policy Analysis

10

5. Open Access Advocacy Plan

45

6. Online Discussions (3 x 5 points)

15

 

 

TOTAL

100


All assignments must be submitted by midnight (Pacific Time) on the day the assignment is due. Late assignments will not be accepted.

Course Workload Expectations

Success in this course is based on the expectation that students will spend, for each unit of credit, a minimum of forty-five hours over the length of the course (normally 3 hours per unit per week with 1 of the hours used for lecture) for instruction or preparation/studying or course related activities including but not limited to internships, labs, clinical practica. Other course structures will have equivalent workload expectations as described in the syllabus.

Instructional time may include but is not limited to:
Working on posted modules or lessons prepared by the instructor; discussion forum interactions with the instructor and/or other students; making presentations and getting feedback from the instructor; attending office hours or other synchronous sessions with the instructor.

Student time outside of class:
In any seven-day period, a student is expected to be academically engaged through submitting an academic assignment; taking an exam or an interactive tutorial, or computer-assisted instruction; building websites, blogs, databases, social media presentations; attending a study group;contributing to an academic online discussion; writing papers; reading articles; conducting research; engaging in small group work.

Course Prerequisites

INFO 281 has no prequisite requirements.

Course Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:

  1. Describe the different types of open access publishing and current business models.
  2. Identify ways to support researchers in their move to open access publishing.
  3. Create an open access advocacy plan for a college or university.

Core Competencies (Program Learning Outcomes)

INFO 281 supports the following core competencies:

  1. F Use the basic concepts and principles related to the selection, evaluation, organization, and preservation of physical and digital information items.

Textbooks

Required Textbooks:

  • Suber, P. (2012). Open access. MIT Press. Available as free eBook through King Libraryarrow gif indicating link outside sjsu domain

Grading Scale

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

97 to 100 A
94 to 96 A minus
91 to 93 B plus
88 to 90 B
85 to 87 B minus
82 to 84 C plus
79 to 81 C
76 to 78 C minus
73 to 75 D plus
70 to 72 D
67 to 69 D minus
Below 67 F

 

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 or undergraduate (for BS-ISDA);
    For core courses in the MLIS program (not MARA, Informatics, BS-ISDA) — 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 if you wish to stay in the program. 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.

Graduate Students are advised that it is their responsibility to maintain a 3.0 Grade Point Average (GPA). Undergraduates must maintain a 2.0 Grade Point Average (GPA).

University Policies

Per University Policy S16-9, university-wide policy information relevant to all courses, such as academic integrity, accommodations, etc. will be available on Office of Graduate and Undergraduate Programs' Syllabus Information web page at: https://www.sjsu.edu/curriculum/courses/syllabus-info.php. Make sure to visit this page, review and be familiar with these university policies and resources.

In order to request an accommodation in a class please contact the Accessible Education Center and register via the MyAEC portal.

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