TECHNOLOGICAL FIXES AND SOCIAL PROBLEM-SOLVING.
HSS 408-002 Syllabus Professor James M. Lipuma Spring 2005
STS
408-002, “Technological Fixes and Social
Problem-Solving,” is a Humanities and Social Sciences Capstone course that
focuses on general problem-solving and ways of examining and researching
current global problems/issues. In
addition, the students will examine several modern technological fixes that
have been employed to remediate and mitigate social problems today. Each student will be asked to research and
present a current problem that is solved with technology as well as propose
alternative solutions for the class to discuss.
The course has no specified text because the issues examined are
current. As a result, students will be
asked to conduct research and provide articles from current periodicals for
discussion. These issues will be
examined, discussed, and debated in class.
In addition, material will be made available at the Copy Shop on
Attendance
will be taken randomly throughout the semester.
A greater emphasis is placed on participation rather than simple
attendance; however, you cannot participate if you do not attend. Absences and late work are excused only by
prior arrangements with the instructor.
Any late assignment is assessed a 10% reduction of grade per class day
after the due date. Throughout the
semester, there will be homework and paper assignments that each student must
complete in order to receive a grade in the class. There is an in-class presentation and a final
that is required for this class.
The
papers handed in for this course are to be college-level research papers. A college-level paper is type written, has
page numbers, contains references to research and includes a reference page at
the end for works quoted or otherwise referenced to in the document. Citations for the research used needs to be
included with the paper and should follow the APA format for citations. This means parenthetical citations within the
text with a reference page at the end of the document. Only works that are actually quoted from or
referenced directly should be cited. Do
not list all works that were read for the creation of the paper. This is not a bibliography but rather a
“Reference Page.” Please remember,
simply lifting text from a dictionary or encyclopedia is something found mainly
in high school. Though it may be
necessary to quote from these types of sources, rarely are they the only works
used for references.
It should be stressed that the work for this class
should be formal research papers. There should be no contractions, spelling
errors, punctuation errors, or mistakes in grammar. Please be consistent within the paper with
abbreviations and other acronyms.
Double-space the paper. Please
use Times New Roman 12-point font, as it is clear and easy-to-read. Your margins should be a uniform 1-inch on
all sides and the paper should minimize large areas of white space within the
text. If you wish to have assistance
with writing, the HSS department has a writing tutor who can be contacted for
assistance with all aspects of the paper.
The lead contact is Dr. Janet Bodner (Bodner@njit.edu).
You may also ask your professor, Dr. James Lipuma,
for further assistance or more detailed information.
All assignments handed in for this course should be
original and the sole work of the student.
The rules and procedures set down in the student handbook as
administered by the Dean of Students office will be used to judge
plagiarism. DO NOT PLAGIARISE. If you
are unclear about the rules, please see the NJIT student handbook.
Turnitin.com will be used to check for plagiarized work. All major writing assignments must be submitted to this page for review. You will be able to view the report and make revisions for the rough drafts of your work. You must register for an account and then log into our class using the class ID and password provided on the syllabus. All papers must be submitted to http://turnitin.com {Class ID: 1239239 enrollment password: fixes}
Students are required to submit a portfolio of their work in the class at the end of the semester. All the work for the class should be kept in the binder with the reader available at Processing Professionals (copy shop next to Warren Pizza across from Tiernen hall). The binder is to be submitted at the end of semester and contain tests, quizzes, papers, and other work completed in the class along with the completed front matter. A Table of Contents should be included that lists all the material contained in the portfolio along with the grade received (if any) on the assignment. A copy of the syllabus and assignments for the class should also be included at the beginning of the portfolio. All work submitted should be arranged from most recent to least recent within the portfolio. The portfolios will be collected at the end of the semester and reviewed by the department administration to assess the continuity between and among different sections of the course as well as different courses. Students wishing to have their portfolios returned should contact the department at the end of the semester to make arrangements for pick-up of the work once the review has been completed by the department. Part of your course grade will be given for completion of the portfolio according to the guidelines given in the binder. In addition, students should keep their work in a series of word files in one folder with the student’s name as its title so that if a problem arises, the electronic portfolio can be submitted to Dr. Lipuma. It is also helpful if a student wishes to discuss a course grade with the professor.
A number of PDF and Word files will be posted for
this class on the professor’s web page: http://web.njit.edu/~lipuma
under the introductory material section and must be downloaded. It is suggested that these files be brought
to class as a printout or with a laptop.
Most will be used during the first few weeks of class and should be read
prior to coming to class. Any additional
posts will usually be handled through WebCT. Some are
quite large and so students may not wish to print out the entire work. Most will be used as reference and background
for assignments, preparation for class discussion or used for class exercises.
GRADING
GRADE BREAKDOWN
CONTACTING THE PROFESSOR
Office: Culimore—Room 420 Phone: 973-642-4743
njitlipuma@comcast.net Fax: 973-642-4689 http://web.njit.edu/~lipuma
SYLLABUS
WEEK |
SUBJECT MATTER |
ASSIGNMENT DUE |
|
1 |
Introduction |
Journal 1 Assignment |
|
2 |
Reviewing the Basics |
Journal 2 Definitions |
|
3 |
What are Technological
Fixes |
Journal 3 Academic
Integrity Summary |
|
4 |
Problem-solving Example
(Plagiarism) |
Journal 4 Topic &
Thesis |
|
5 |
Become Aware |
Journal 5 Definitions
& Parameters |
|
6 |
Research &
Understanding |
Journal 6 Question |
|
7 |
Research &
Understanding |
Submit Journal for Review |
|
8 |
Decision-making |
Journal 7 Explain Criteria |
|
SB |
Spring Break |
Spring Break |
|
9 |
Selecting Between Options |
Journal 8 Explain
Solutions |
|
10 |
Judging What is Next |
Written Proposal (Steps 1-7) |
|
11 |
Developing a Plan |
In-class Orals |
|
12 |
Project Reviews—In-class
Orals |
In-class Orals |
|
13 |
Project Reviews--In-class
Orals |
In-class Orals |
|
14 |
Project Reviews--In-class
Orals |
Proposal Final |
WebCT will be used to
handle some homework submissions along with out-of-class communications and
participation. You must register for a WebCT account and log yourself into this class. This can be done at Http://webct.njit.edu
with your UCID. These assignments are
part of the class participation grade.
Some class files and assignments will also be posted on WebCT for you to download.
You should write all posts for WebCT in MS
Word or another word processing program before posting and then paste them into
a blank submission page as well as keep the file with all your posts so that
the file can be placed in your journal and portfolio. Do not attach assignments to WebCT or use it as an email to contact the professor. It is designed for class interaction and
discussion.
Throughout
the course, you will be maintaining a writing journal. You must write your journal entries electronically
using Microsoft Word and save your entries in one continuous file dated at the
start of each new entry. Each journal
entry should be approximately 500 words.
You must write an entry each week, in preparation for class, covering
the material listed on WebCT or assigned as part of
the semester project. In addition, you
should reflect on the previous week's group or class discussion and how the
lessons covered throughout the semester tie together so that your learning and
understanding are shown. It is
imperative that you write each journal entry before coming to class, because it
will be drawn on for group and class discussions. DO NOT neglect your journal and write all of
your journal entries all at once when it is to be reviewed; you should be writing
one entry each week. Journals should be submitted as an MS Word
file attached to an email to Dr. Lipuma’s account njitlipuma@comcast.net Journals will be reviewed
and evaluated on your 1) conceptual clarity 2) writing and expression 3) degree
of reflection and depth of discussion on the assigned topics.
Initial
Entry, Autobiography—The first entry in your journal should be a brief history of your academic
and personal life to explain what has brought you to this class. Afterwards, give an evaluation of your own
strengths and weaknesses along with how you approach and solve problems.
Journal 1—Define the following terms in your own words: Society, Technology, Technological Fixes, and Problem Solving. You may use outside sources but I do not want you to just copy and paste or retype what they have written.
Journal 2—Define the following terms: Academic Integrity, Cheating, & Plagiarism. You may use outside sources but I would like you to give your own idea of what these words mean. If you use a source, please indicate it properly using the APA style of citations.
Journal 3—You will write and post an article summary on WebCT. Explain why you chose the article, how it relates to the class and what is your opinion of the topic discussed in the article.
Journal 4—Discuss the topic you have chosen and the thesis for your
work. Give insight into how you became
aware of the topic and why you chose the thesis.
Journal 5—List, define and explain the definitions, parameters and assumptions
you chose for the paper. Discuss why
these have been selected.
Journal 6—List the question in proper format that you will use for
the topic and thesis selected. Discuss
why it has been selected and provide any terms and parameters not discussed in
the last entry.
Journal
7—List and explain the
criteria along with why each has been selected and what each will
evaluate.
Journal 8—List and explain each solution you have created, discuss
what it will do and why you feel it is a good solution.
Other Journals—Feel free to write about the group presentations or more about your own work. In either case, the journals should show your thinking and learning during the class.
Final Journals—The last journal entry you write should cover what you feel you have learned in the class and what you feel the class has provided you as a student. Also, give any other comments or criticisms you would like.
PROPOSAL
Each
student will be required to submit a final written report at the end of the
semester. This project will utilize the
general problem-solving process to examine and attempt to solve the issue
related to technological fixes and society. Beforehand, the proposal will
present a review of steps 1-7 of the problem solving process for the topic chosen.
This written proposal report is a description of the problem solving process
along with the research conducted during it. It is expected that a clear
justification for the solution that will be chosen will become apparent by the
review given during the paper.
Though all the
details will not be included at this time, the proposal should include a
separate Title Page, an Abstract, and a Table of Contents that lists
corresponding section headings along with a separate list of tables, charts,
and any other figures used in the paper.
In addition, an annotated bibliography should be included which gives
each reference being used in the paper along with summary of what information
that reference provides. Remember, this
is a research paper and must contain citations.
This means parenthetical citations within the text with a references
page at the end of the document. The
paper is expected to be approximately 8-12 pages long. It can be longer, if necessary, in order to
accomplish the objective of persuading the reader of your points. The proposal must be submitted to
turnitin.com as well as submitted as an
MS Word file attached to an email to Dr. Lipuma’s
account njitlipuma@comcast.net
ORAL
REPORT
Each student will be
required to make an oral presentation discussing the issue addressed in the
proposal and final written paper. The
oral presentation will explain the issue chosen by the student and the
pertinent details related to that topic and the class. The intent of the oral presentation is to
inform the class and promote discussion.
Each presentation will last for approximately 20 minutes including
Questions.
Group Reviews/QA
Each student will be assigned a group to work with throughout the semester. Each group will be responsible for assisting other group members with the process as well as working on in class assignments and exercises. These group activities can be commented on in the journal for the class. In addition, during the oral report portion of the class, each student will need to comment on and critique the presentation of the other group members. The comments will be posted on WebCT as well as submitted as a report to Dr. Lipuma as an MS word File attached to an email to njitlipuma@comcast.ent as well as sent to the other group members.
FINAL EXAM
Each
student will be required to submit a final written report based upon the
proposal submitted earlier in the semester. This project will utilize the
general problem-solving process to examine and attempt to solve the issue
related to technological fixes and society. The paper will include all steps
(1-10) of the problem solving process. The written report is an argument based
upon the problem solving process along with the research conducted during it.
It is expected that a clear justification for the solution that was chosen will
become apparent by the review given during the paper.
The paper will be
approximately 12-20 pages long. It can
be longer, if necessary, in order to accomplish the objective of persuading the
reader of your points. Due to the length
and nature of the work, it should contain a separate Title Page, an Abstract,
and a Table of Contents that lists corresponding section headings along with a
separate list of tables, charts, and any other figures used in the paper. Remember, this is a research paper and must
contain citations. You must use the APA
format for citations. This means
parenthetical citations within the text with a references page at the end of
the document. The final draft needs to
be submitted to turnitin.com as well as should
be submitted as an MS Word file attached to an email sent to Dr. Lipuma’s account njitlipuma@comcast.net