Syllabus Ba 305

BA305 Business Information and Communication Course Syllabus Summer Session 2013 Lecturer: E‐mail: Course Schedule: Room: Office Hours: Ulrich Werner ulrich.werner@iis.ru.ac.th April 20, 21, 27, 28, and May 4, 5, and 11, 2013 (09:00 to 16:00 hrs) Noppamat Building, room 302 All course days and by appointment

1. Course Description: 3 Credits According to the curriculum, this course is “A study of various forms of business information and communication; the uses of technical terms and enable the students to understand business idioms used in each business division; analysis of business articles in various media in order to enhance the students to know the direction and change in various aspects of business.” The credit value of this course is 3 credits. Since information systems are a most important issue to any organization today, this course focuses on understanding the interaction between people and information technology, rather than training students in using the right vocabulary.

2. Textbooks

Required Textbook Stair/Reynolds: Information Systems Essentials, Cengage, 6th ed., ISBN 0‐324‐82926‐4 Each student has to read the textbook chapter according to the course schedule at the end of this syllabus before coming to class.

Additional Readings
Will be handed out in class.
Institute of International Studies (IIS‐RU), Ramkhamhaeng University RU Printing Press, Ramkhamhaeng Road, Huamark, Bangkapi, Bangkok 10240 International phone and fax +66 2310 8897, e‐mail info@iis.ru.ac.th

Complementary Web Site
Course Webpage at http://studyinthailand.org/ba305.html Every student is responsible to fetch information published on the course page within 24 hours. Not knowing any information from this page, therefore, is not an excuse.

3. Principles and Objectives
Principles
The value of information is directly linked to how it helps decision makers achieve the organization’s goals. Knowing the potential impact of information systems and having the ability to put this knowledge to work can result in a successful personal career, organizations that reach their goals, and a society with a higher quality of life. System users, business managers, and information systems professionals must work together to build a successful information system. The use of information systems to add value to the organization can also give an organization a competitive advantage.

Learning Objectives
• Distinguish data from information and describe the characteristics used to evaluate the quality of data. Identify the basic types of business information systems and discuss who uses them, how they are used, and what kinds of benefits they deliver.

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Identify the major steps of the systems development process and state the goal of each. Identify the value‐added processes in the supply chain and describe the role of information systems within them. Identify some of the strategies employed to lower costs or improve service. Define the term competitive advantage and discuss how organizations are using information systems to gain such an advantage. Define the types of roles, functions, and careers available in information systems.

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IS personnel is a key to unlocking the potential of any new or modified system.

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4. Class Attendance 80% class attendance is required in accordance with the Ramkhamhaeng University Curriculum. Students who twice come later than 9.30 a.m., extend their breaks generously, or attend class for only half a day at two class days, fail the course. In case a serious reason prevents you from joining the class, submit a request form signed by the director of IIS or a medical doctor’s note. In these cases, you make take the review test and submit the assignment to a later date, according to the period of time for which you are excused.

Syllabus BA305 April/May 2013

Ulrich Werner

5. Class Hours Classes begin at 9 a.m. and end at 4 p.m. Classes may end earlier in order to give students more time to do assignments.

6. Academic Honesty Since you will have to write assignments in this course, please note that following the rules of academic honesty is crucial. Academic honesty is central to the educational process. Acts of academic dishonesty are serious offences and can result in academic penalty. Therefore, no student shall:
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Claim or submit the academic work of another as one's own. Procure, provide, accept or use any materials containing questions or answers to any examination or assignment without proper authorization. Complete or attempt to complete any assignment or examinations for another individual without proper authorization. Allow any examination or assignment to be completed for oneself, in part or in total, by another without proper authorization. Alter, tamper with, appropriate, destroy, or otherwise interfere with the research, resources, or other academic work of another person. Fabricate or falsify data or results. Commit plagiarism if you submit as your own work: a) Part or all of an assignment copied or paraphrased from another person's manuscript, notes or talk; b) Part or all of an assignment copied or paraphrased from anything published. Act as an accomplice in plagiarism if you: a) Allow your work, in outline, draft or finished form, to be copied and submitted as the work of another; b) Prepare an assignment for another student which he/she submits as his/her own work; c) Keep or contribute to a file of papers or presentations which anyone other than the author adopts and submits as his/her own work.

The policies of Ramkhamhaeng University and the Institute of International Studies do not accept any plagiarism or copyright violation. Please be aware of the plagiarism policy in the IIS Student Handbook, which is available for download on the IIS Web site (http://www.iis.ru.ac.th). Any violation results in failing the course.

Syllabus BA305 April/May 2013

Ulrich Werner

7. Examinations There will be 6 Review Tests, 6 Written Assignments, and a Final Examination. A Review Test is every morning from 9 to 9.30 a.m. The questions are taken from the Review Questions at the end of any textbook chapter. The Review Tests test the understanding of the content of the previous class. A Written Assignment prepares for the next coming class. It is printed on white A4 paper, single‐line spacing, 12 point Arial font, and carries the student’s name and ID (if available) and the date of writing on the top. The 2‐hour Final Examination will be held on the last day of the course. Questions come from the Review Test section at the end of each chapter. No in‐class review will be held prior to the final examination since all questions are available in the textbook.

8. Re-Grading and Re-Examination In case you attended the course completely but don’t write the final examination, you can request re‐grading by a request form signed by the director. The best possible grade in re‐grading is ‘C’. There is no administrative fee for re‐grading. In case you failed the course for any reason, you can request a re‐examination by a request form signed by the director of IIS. The re‐examination for this course consists of multiple‐choice and fill‐in questions out of the self‐assessment questions at the end of chapters 1 to 6. The best possible grade in a re‐examination is, according to the IIS policies, grade ‘B’. The administrative fee for a re‐ examination is 1,500 Baht.

9. Grading and Evaluation Criteria The maximum number of grade points available in this course is 100 points: • • • Up to 30 points come from 5 Review Tests with 6 points each. Up to 30 points come from 3 Written Assignments with 10 points each. Up to 40 points come from the Final Examination.

Syllabus BA305 April/May 2013

Ulrich Werner

The following grading scale applies:

Percentage

Grade

GP Value 4.0 3.5 3.0 2.5 2.0 1.5 1.0 0.0

Comment Excellent Very Good Good Above Average Average Below Average Poor Fail

88‐100 84‐87 75‐83 71‐74 62‐70 58‐61 50‐57 0‐49

A B+ B C+ C D+ D F

10. Other Course Policies Students are expected to complete the assignments by themselves as much as possible and encouraged to ask the lecturer when assistance is needed. Students, especially the absent ones, are responsible for receiving all announcements and changes made in class.

a. Laptop Policy With the given course design, you don’t need a laptop computer in class. If you want to use yours anyway, it’s important that you don’t cause distraction to students sitting around you. You can use your laptop only when sitting in the last row with nobody else sitting behind you.

b. Mobile Phones Mobile phones must be switched off before entering the classroom at and all times during lectures and lab sessions. The students shall not use mobile phones during lectures or examinations. In case of not maintaining this rule or if your phone emits any sound during class session, you will be invited to leave the classroom and not return; you will be considered as absent for the day.

Syllabus BA305 April/May 2013

Ulrich Werner

c. Food Certainly, students should come to class after they have had enough food. You are kindly requested to refrain from bringing your food and drinks to the classroom, except there is a medical reason for it for which you certainly can offer a proof.

d. Leaving the Classroom If you wish to leave the classroom, please wait until the break, except there is a medical reason for it.

11. Important Dates
The following is a tentative course schedule. The lecturer may revise part of the outline to conform to the background, knowledge, and interests of the students.

Week

Topics Introduction to course BA305 Chapter 1: Introduction to Information Systems in Organizations Chapter 2: Hardware and Software

Assignments

Exams

20.04.2013

Review Test 1 on Chapter 1 Review Test 2 on Chapter 2 Review Test 3 on Chapter 3 Review Test 4 on Chapter 4

21.04.2013 27.04.2013

Assignment 1

Chapter 3: Database Systems, Data Centers, and Business Intelligence Chapter 4: Telecommunication, the Internet, Intranets, and Extranets Chapter 5: Electronic and Mobile Commerce and Enterprise Systems Chapter 6: Information and Decision Support Systems Chapter 7: Knowledge Management and Specialised Information Systems Final examination (3 hours) Assignment 2

28.04.2013

04.05.2013

05.05.2013

Assignment 3

Review Test 5 on Chapter 5

11.05.2013

Final Exam

Syllabus BA305 April/May 2013

Ulrich Werner