Resources:
ILS 244 Syllabus
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Use of Information Sources
ILS 244W SyllabusSummer 2008
Tuesday, May 27 - Friday, June 27
NOTE: Please print a copy of this page and keep it nearby for ready reference.
REMEMBER: ILS 244W requires an ongoing routine of involvement through reading, planning, doing, and thinking. Plan ahead; Make appointments with yourself for work sessions; Do something everyday toward coursework; Be prepared to use idle time (standing in grocery lines, waiting for a train) to write ideas or read and edit portions of a working paper.
REQUIRED TEXT
List-Handley, C. J. (2008). Information literacy & technology (4th ed.). Dubuque, IO: Kendall/Hunt Publishing. ISBN: 978-0-7575-4676-1
COURSE DESCRIPTION
The range of media, technology and services available to students in the modern library is examined and applied. This is a W-course, which requires a minimum of 20 pages of writing and work on improving writing content and style. Application for this W-course will be in the form of short term-style papers which will be researched and written over the course of the semester and a reflective diary of research methods used. This course fulfills one of the GE requirements for SCSU in the W-course category. Enrollment in this course is limited to 20 students.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
The student will:
- Become familiar with the library as a tool for independent learning
- Become familiar with specific departments of the library and their function
- Utilize library facilities to solve practical problems
- Develop research skills through specific assignments
- Utilize various media to produce a specific product
TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE
[NOTE: Click on week number to link to detailed assignment, lecture, and related activities (quiz, etc.)]
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- Week 1 (May. 27-June 2)
- TOPICS: Information Problem-Solving Skills; Organizing Information; Reference and Information Sources
- READINGS IN TEXT: Chapters 1 and 2 (pp 1-46) in List-Handley
- OTHER READINGS: Read ONE of the following:
- DUE: 2-3 page paper on one of the following:
- Working in 2016
- Communicating through handwritten letters versus text messaging
- Week 2 (June. 3-June 9)
- TOPICS: Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, Indexes
- READINGS IN TEXT: Chapters 3 and 4 (pp 51-91) in List-Handley
- OTHER READINGS: Read PAGE 19 of the following:
- DUE: 2-3 page draft on the relevance of the following values in shaping a responsible, healthy and contented citizen:
- Excellence in personal pursuits
- Access to opportunities
- Understanding and appreciation of diversity
- Personal success
- Life-long learning
- Community involvement
- FEEDBACK: on Week 1 baseline writing
- Week 3 (June. 10-June 16)
- TOPICS:Biographical Dictionaries, Atlases and Gazetteers, Yearbooks and Handbooks
- READINGS IN TEXT: Chapters 5-6 (pp 99-152) in List-Handley
- FEEDBACK: on Week 2 draft writing
- DUE: 5 daily 1 page papers on Points of View:
- DUE: 3-5 page revision paper on The relevance of Excellence in personal pursuits, Access to opportunities, Understanding and appreciation of diversity, Personal success, Life-long learning, and Community involvement in shaping a responsible, healthy and contented citizen
- Week 4 (June. 17-June 23)
- TOPICS: Bibliographies, Non-book Information Sources, Government Publications
- READINGS IN TEXT: Chapter 7 (pp 159-176) in List-Handley
- DUE: 5 daily 1 page papers on Figurative Language:
- FEEDBACK: on Week 3 revision writing
- Week 5 (June. 24-June 27)
- FEEDBACK: on revision of Week 4 writing
- DUE: 5-7 page final paper on The relevance of Excellence in personal pursuits, Access to opportunities, Understanding and appreciation of diversity, Personal success, Life-long learning, and Community involvement in shaping a responsible, healthy and contented citizen.
- DUE: Critical reflection on writing
GENERAL POLICIES
Each student will
- assume responsibility for your learning
- use the provided learning guides and resources; conduct data
searches when necessary
- manage your time effectively (plan a schedule and practice
time management)
- ask for assistance when you need it; avoid unnecessary frustration
and confusion
- remain active in the Message Center, Email, threaded discussions and
other activities
- prepare all work at graduate performance levels
- follow good online etiquette
The instructor will
- provide assistance/knowledge in facilitating understanding of the
course content
- guide students through the course
- facilitate discussion through questioning, probing, examples, etc.
- provide feedback
- maintain records
- mark exams/assignments and maintain records within 15 working days
- respond to messages on Tuesdays and Thursdays
GRADING POLICIES
W-courses require a minimum of 20 double-spaced printed pages of writing. and work on improving writing content and style. Each student will write a series of short papers over the term. The daily themese (graded 1/0 for completed/missing) count 10% of your course grade. The Week One (baseline) paper and the Week Two draft and Week Three revision will EACH count 10% of your course grade. The final (Week Five) revised paper will count 20% of your course grade.
Each student is to prepare a Resource Guide to his or her major or primary minor area of academic study. The Resource Guide will 1) help you, and possibly other students, identify resources in a broad area of study and 2) list specific tools and sources in a given library (such as Buley Library) that may help locate books, magazine, journal, and newspaper articles for research in this area. The Resource Guide counts 30% of your course grade.
Each student will take a chapter quiz that covers reading material from the required textbook. The quizzes counts 20% of your course grade.
Each student is asked to make specific entries into their course journal. The journal does not counts toward your course grade.
Each student will write a critical reflection on his/her learning at the end of the course. The reflection is expected to demonstrate application of the focused correction areas (FCA) as well as assess how well the final paper (Week 5) met the FCA compared to the baseline paper (Week 1 writing). The critical reflection may be used as extra credit to raise the course grade one step (such as from B+ to A-).
Attendance is automatically monitored and recorded by the Blackboard/Vista courseware and all entries are stamped with date and time of posting. While it is expected that every student will participate regularly, there may be times when illness, official university activities, etc., force a student to miss a day(s) of online activity. Final course grades may be lowered for each unexcused absence from online activity. Attendance for the purpose of this course is defined as frequency. A student who does not participate in any one week can expect to have their final grade lowered by 10% for each week of "absence" from the course. For example, a student does not participate for a week and has not received written permission from an
official university office for the absence; if the student's grade would otherwise be an "A" (4.0), it is now a B+ (3.6) and if the student's grade would otherwise be an "A-" (3.7), it is now a B+ (3.3). [A=4.0; A-=3.7-3.9; B+=3.3=3.6; B=3.0-3.2; any average below 3.0 (B) is below expected level of performance.]
I believe in providing reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities on an individualized and flexible basis.Ê If you are a student with a disability, the university's Disability Resource Center (DRC) determines appropriate accommodations through consultation with the student. Before you may receive accommodations in this class, you will need to make an appointment with the Disability Resource Center,Ê located in EN C-105A (or call 1-888-500-SCSU, then press 0 and ask for the Disability Resource Office) to arrange for approved accommodations. However, if you would like to speak with me about other information related to long term or short term special needs please contact me, Dr. Brown, brownm6@SouthernCT.edu, and give specific instructions on adaptions or accommodations needed. Reference:
Accommodating Students with Disabilities: A Guide for Teaching and Administrative Faculty is available on the web at: www.southernct.edu/drc
On this class site, every effort has been made to acknowledge the work of others. Any omission is unintentional. If anyone finds an oversight, please contact me at brownm6@southernct.edu immediately so that any error can be corrected.
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