LSCI 100:
INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION RESEARCH
COURSE
SYLLABUS
Course Goals - Student Learning Outcomes - Course Mechanics - Class Meetings
Research Question - Final Project - Final Exam – Grading - Academic Integrity
Welcome to LSCI 100, “Introduction
to Information Research.” The first step toward success in this course is to
understand how the course operates and what is expected of you. Therefore,
please take a few moments to read this course syllabus.
The purpose of this
course is to introduce you to the basic conceptual and technical skills
involved in the information research process. You will learn important concepts
and procedural skills that will help you understand how information is
recorded, organized, accessed, and evaluated. By mastering the basic concepts
and tools presented in LSCI 100, you will become a confident and discerning
researcher, fully capable of conducting research for term papers and essays
required in college-level courses. The ultimate aim is that you retain the
intellectual curiosity and critical thinking skills of the research process
long after the course ends.
Each lesson will offer
you hands-on practice with information access tools in which you’ll be asked to
apply conceptual as well as technical knowledge.
II.
Student Learning Outcomes
Upon
completion of the course, students will be able to:
1. Formulate a precisely-worded and appropriately focused research topic.
2. Explain the purpose of and differences among the basic
online search tools and be
able to select appropriate tools for finding various types of information
sources.
3. Conduct effective basic and advanced searches using online search tools in
order
to locate and retrieve relevant information from books, periodicals, and
websites.
4.
Evaluate the relevance, quality and credibility of a wide variety of
information
sources using critical thinking and problem solving skills.
5. Applying correct documentation style, compile a
bibliography of various types of
information sources on a specific research topic.
INSTRUCTORS
The course is team taught
by
(brenner@smccd.edu)
(wolbers@smccd.edu)
Reference Desk, Skyline
Library: (650) 738-4312
Please ask the librarian on duty at
the Reference Desk any time you have a question or problem regarding the
course. Our goal is to help make the course an enjoyable,
as well as a challenging, learning experience.
ONLINE LESSONS:
Course content is
presented in a series of 6 online lessons. The lessons are accessed via the
LSCI 100 course home page.
If you are using a computer in the Skyline Library, access the course by
clicking on the "Library Homepage" icon on the desktop. From the
Skyline Library home page, click on the LSCI 100 link in the left yellow
margin. [NOTE: If using your home computer, or another computer on campus, go
to the
Each lesson has a reading and an assignment. Many of the
lessons also have a tutorial to
read.
·
Begin
by reading the Learning Objectives,
Table of Contents, and Key Points to
Remember first.
TUTORIALS:
·
Tutorials
give you explicit instructions on how to use the search tool(s) in each
assignment. It is very important that
you read the tutorials.
ASSIGNMENTS:
·
Each
assignment is worth a certain number of points. Please type your name on the
assignment.
·
Read the directions and questions carefully. Mistakes are often made simply
because a student has not read carefully. Also, pay special attention to any
type of “HINT” or “NOTE” that may be given within a question.
·
Email your
answers to the instructor. Your score
will be emailed to you usually within 3 days.
·
If you are asked to make any corrections to your work,
please do before moving on to the next lesson. Your score for each lesson is only
given when all the work is done, including any necessary corrections.
If you are uncertain
about anything in the reading, unsure about how to handle a particular
question, or confused about how to use a search tool, don’t hesitate to ask the
instructor.
DEADLINES
Deadlines for the
completion of each lesson are listed on the course website and on your handout.
You may submit your work one day late if you cannot meet the deadline. However, after this one-day grace period, you will
lose 5 points for each day past the deadline, up to half the total number of
points possible for the lesson. For example:
1 day late = no penalty
2 days late = minus 5 points
3 days late = minus 10 points
Etc. up to half the number of points possible for the assignment
If you are having
difficulty keeping up with the due dates because of unusual or difficult
circumstances, you must contact the instructor immediately.
PLEASE NOTE: IF
YOU SUBMIT MORE THAN ONE LESSON PAST THE GRACE DAY AND YOU DO NOT CONTACT THE
INSTRUCTOR BEFORE THE DEADLINE WITH A VALID EXPLANATION, YOU MAY BE DROPPED
FROM THE COURSE.
IV. Class
Meetings
Three class meetings will be held
on the dates and times indicated on the course calendar. You will receive 10 points credit for each of
the meetings you attend. These classes
offer you a preview and explanation of important and challenging concepts
covered in lesson 3 (during class meeting #1), lesson 5 (during class meeting
#2) and lesson 6 (during class meeting #3).
V. Your Research Question
Early
in the semester, you will choose a research topic (worded in the form of a
question) that you will work on for the entire semester. You will be finding
books, periodical articles, and websites for the topic you select. Your
topic should be relatively academic in nature and must be approved by the
instructor. It is acceptable to use a topic that you are researching in another
class.
VI. Final Project
The
final project assignment will be e-mailed to you one week before it is
due. You will be given a research question and asked to find several
sources on that topic. Questions about your search process will also be
included. The final project is worth 100 points. The due date is listed on the
course
schedule.
VII. Final Exam
The final exam is an open
book paper exam that must be done in the library. Allow yourself approximately 1 -- 1.5 hours to finish the exam. The exam is worth 100 points and must be
completed by the date listed on the course schedule.
This course can be taken for a letter grade or credit/no-credit.
If taken for a letter grade, your final grade is determined as follows
(*approximate and subject to change):
|
3 class meetings Final Project Final Exam (open
book) Total points possible |
30 points 100 points 100 points 430 points* *approximate and subject to
change |
To earn an A, you must earn 90% to 100% of the total points possible.
To earn a B, you must earn 80%-89% of the total points possible.
To earn a C, you must earn 70-79% of the total points possible.
You will be expected
to do your own work in this course and avoid academic dishonesty. The Skyline
College Student Handbook defines academic dishonesty as an attempt by
a student “to show possession of a level of knowledge or skill which he or she
does not possess. The two most common kinds of academic dishonesty are cheating
and plagiarism” . Copying answers from someone else’s assignment is cheating
and will not be tolerated. Pretending that someone else’s work is your own is
plagiarism and will not be tolerated. Giving your work to another student to
copy is also academic dishonesty and will not be tolerated.
The consequences of
academic dishonesty depend on the seriousness of the infraction and may
include:
[For a complete explanation of academic integrity, consult the Skyline
College Student Handbook. If you have any uncertainty about what might constitute
academic dishonesty in this course, please contact the instructor.]
last revised: 4-9-08 by
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the author and cite the source as: LSCI 100: INTRODUCTION TO
INFORMATION RESEARCH.
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