MIS 300

DELIVERABLES

There are four components of the deliverables for this course, as follows (all tutorial assignments are due at 9:20 am on the due date and are to be emailed to the tutorial assistant [click here for general procedures for emailing assignments]. Examinations are given in the classroom on announced days and times):

G Tutorial (T) Assignments (6 x 5% = 30%)
· Group Role-Play (R) Assignment (5%)
? Individual Writing Assignment (W) (5%)
& Examinations: Midterm Examination (M) (20%) and Final Examination (F) (40%)

As can be seen by the diagram below (each cell represents 5% of the final grade), group work makes up 35% of the deliverables and individual work the remainder (65%).  Assignments constitute 40% of the work and exams the remainder (60%).  To see how grades are calculated, click here.

General Note on Assignments (IMPORTANT)

Since all non-examination assignments are submitted electronically, you should get into the habit of retaining original copies (electronic or on paper) of everything you submit.  Who knows what goes on in Cyberspace?  We all have read (or even experienced) horror stories about email gone missing, so take some steps to protect your investment in assignments, please.

Tutorial Assignments (First is ungraded; six of the remaining seven count)

The tutorials are self-taught exercises to familiarize you with MS Access and to acquaint you with basic database management functions.  These tutorials are in Microsoft Access 2003, Comprehensive Edition.  Second Edition by Joseph J. Adamski and Kathleen T. Finnegan. We will be using the first eight tutorials, CASE 3. 

The first one is ungraded but a scoring sheet will be returned to you with comments for improvement through feedback.  Only the top six grades among the remaining seven tutorials will count towards the evaluation.  You can choose either to submit only six of the graded  tutorials (in which case only these six will count towards the evaluation) or all seven of the graded tutorials (in which case the grading spreadsheet will automatically remove the lowest grade in its calculations).  In any event, for each submitted tutorial exercise, the the tutorial assistant will return a scoring sheet with comments.  The recorded grade is based on the total "points" on the scoring sheet.  If there are, for example, ten points, the recorded grade will be the raw score divided by two; for fifteen points, the divisor is three; for twenty points, the divisor is four and so forth.  In technical terms, the recorded score is the raw score normalized to a scale of 0 to 5 (see below for an interpretation of this five-point scale).  

The tutorial assignments are to be done in groups of approximately five students, assigned by the instructor at random on September 11.  Submission procedures are spelled out in the course syllabus, as follows:

"Homework Assignments are submitted via email to the tutorial assistant .  For the "Subject", specify which Homework Assignment is being submitted ("Survey", "Tutorial 2", "Tutorial 3", etc.).  Be sure to include the names and e-mail addresses of everyone in the group who participated in the Homework Assignment in your email.  Because the files will be quite large, you should “zip” your files.  You may “zip” your files using WinZip.  Finally, CHANGE THE EXTENSION FROM ".zip" to ".txt", because the OU email clients will not accept attachments named "*.zip". As the Answer Key will be posted at the conclusion of the assignment, no late assignments can be accepted."

Evaluation of the tutorial assignments will be on a five-point scale, as follows:

4.5-5: Excellent, perfect, exactly as required, demonstrates mastery of the concepts
3.5-4.5: Good work, with some errors in non-critical matters.
2.5-3.5: Satisfactory work, with major errors that demonstrate some shortcomings in your grasp of the concepts or use of the tool; use the feedback to increase your facility
1.5-2.5: Poor work, with so many errors that it is clear you are not grasping the important concepts that are key to understanding the tool or its usage
0-1.5: Unacceptable work, with crucial errors or major aspects missing. 

Please note that the earlier tutorials concern basic concepts and that the material becomes increasingly more difficult through the semester.  Lab sessions are held to practice using the tool.  Three sessions are set aside as "open" labs for students' practice.  Generally these sessions are on Fridays (see below).  This is a good time to do the homework assignment and/or to ask questions about MS Access.

These tutorial assignments are due on Mondays at 9:20 following the assigned lab date for the tutorial.  Tutorials will not be accepted late.  The answer key will be posted on the tutorial web page, along with the correct databases needed for the next tutorial, some time on Monday.  Here is the complete schedule of lab dates for tutorials and the corresponding due dates for the tutorials:

Tut'l    Lab Date   Due

1            9/15        9/18
2            9/29        10/2
3            10/6        10/9
4            10/20      10/23
5            10/27      10/30
6            11/3        11/6 
7            11/17      11/20
8            12/1        12/4

In addition, lab time has been reserved for "open" access and practice on Sept. 22 (in this case for repair to ungraded first tutorial), Nov. 10 and Nov. 22 (this is the only Wednesday time reserved; all other lab sessions are on Fridays).  All lab sessions are in EH202.

Check the tutorial web page for additional information about the tutorials.

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Group Role-Play Assignment (Required; Due November 13)

Your tutorial group (see "Tutorial Assignments" above) will conduct this exercise.  Click here for details about the assignment, the "ABS Case".  The deliverable for this case is a 600-word (about two pages of typed material) summary of your experience.  This assignment counts 5% of your grade.  This assignment is due on Nov. 13, 2005 at 9:20 am.  In sequence, it fits between Tutorials 7 and 8.  This assignment is graded as an essay on a 100-point scale.  This assignment may be documented using any word processor, but the text should be copied and pasted into an email sent to the instructor for comment and evaluation (DO NOT SEND YOUR SUMMARY AS AN ATTACHMENT;THE TEXT MUST APPEAR IN THE MESSAGE BODY IN YOUR EMAIL SO THAT COMMENTS CAN BE SENT BACK TO YOU WITH "REPLY"). 

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Individual Writing Assignment (Required; Due September 8)

Click here to visit the webpage describing the assignment.  This is an individual assignment requiring some research, critical thinking, and expression concerning the results of your research.  While this assignment is graded (5%), it is also going to be used during the last sessions of the course, so please keep a copy.  This assignment may be documented using any word processor, but then it should be copied and pasted into an email sent to the instructor for comment and evaluation.  (DO NOT SEND YOUR ASSIGNMENT AS AN ATTACHMENT;THE TEXT MUST APPEAR IN THE MESSAGE BODY OF YOUR EMAIL SO THAT COMMENTS CAN BE SENT BACK TO YOU WITH "REPLY").

Grading is along lines very similar to those of the tutorial assignments:

5: Excellent, perfect, exactly as required, demonstrates good critical skills
4: Good work, with some errors in logic or writing or in content.
3: Satisfactory work, with major errors that demonstrate some shortcomings in your grasp of the concepts, research, or writing; use the feedback to increase your facility
1, 2: Poor work, with so many errors that it is clear you are not grasping the important concepts, or that you cannot express yourself well or do not demonstrate any critical thinking.
0: Unacceptable work, with crucial errors or major aspects missing. 

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Examinations

These examinations will be given in the class lecture venue ODH108.  The midterm, which will have about 50 multiple-choice questions) must be finished within one hour; the final (which will have about 100 multiple-choice questions), within two hours (although three hours are scheduled in the room, only two hours will be allocated to the exam).  Examinations are closed-book.  No materials other than pencils and Scantron forms will be allowed during the examinations.  Student IDs will be checked.   

Midterms are given during regularly scheduled class time.  The final examination schedule is as follows:

Section        Class meets        Examination Date/Time

40304        MWF 9:20            Dec 11/ 9 am - 11 am*
40572        MWF 1:20            Dec 8/ 3:30 pm - 5:30 pm 

*Note change in time for CRN=40304 from original schedule

From the syllabus:

"There will be a Mid-Term and a Final Exam concerning the concepts of Management Information Systems covered in the readings, exercises, tutorials and the class discussions. The exam format will be multiple choice. For both the Mid-Term and Final Exams, you will need Scantron Form No. 882-ES, which is available at the bookstore in the Oakland Center. You will also need a #2 pencil (bring a spare, too) for filling out the form during the test.  Make-up exams will not be given, except in extenuating circumstances." 

The final examination is comprehensive in the sense that there may be questions specifically about material already covered on the midterm examination.  It is also comprehensive in the sense that the concepts covered prior to the midterm are foundational.  Lack of understanding of these concepts will be a serious impediment to understanding the material in the second half of the course.

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Grade Calculation

Calculation of the grade is as follows:

Explanation:
Each tutorial can receive a maximum mark of 5.  The total marks that can be earned from tutorials is therefore 6 x 5 or 30.  This amount actually earned (which may be less than 30!) is multiplied by 5 to get the contribution of 150/500.
The role-play essay is marked out of 100%.  Its contribution is determined by dividing the actual mark by 4 to get the contribution of 25/500.
The individual writing assignment can receive a maximum mark of 5.  The actual evaluation (between 0 an 5 inclusive) is multiplied by 5 to get the contribution of 25/500
The midterm will have 50 questions.  The number of questions answered correctly is multiplied by 2 to calculate the contribution of 100/500.
The final exam will have 100 questions.  The number of questions answered correctly is multiplied by 2 to calculate the contribution of 200/500. 

Example.  Suppose your deliverables were marked as follows:

Tutorials (#2-#8): 4, 5, 4, 3, 4, 5, 5
Role-play essay: 80%
Writing assignment: 4
Midterm: 44 correct answers
Final Exam: 90 correct answers

Your grade would be calculated as follows:

Tutorials : ((4+5+4+3+4+5+5)-3 [dropping the lowest]) x 5 = 27 x 5 = 135 (out of 150)
Essay: 80/4 = 20 (out of 25)
Writing: 4 x 5 = 20 (out of 25)
Midterm: 44 x 2 = 88 (out of 100)
Final: 90 x 2 = 180 (out of 200)
TOTAL = 135+20+20+88+180= 443
Ratio is 443/500 = 0.886
= 3.5 on the Oakland Scale

Click here for Grading Conversion Table from ratios to the Oakland scale.

A spreadsheet available to calculate your Oakland scale grade for you from the raw scores.  Click here to download a small Excel spreadsheet to perform these calculations for you!

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Emailing Assignments

Where the assignment is an essay (i.e., assignments other than the tutorials), it would be easiest and most prudent for you to create the documentation using a word processor. Save your original in a secure place. Then copy and paste the documentation into the body of an email message addressed to the tutorial assistant.  The subject line should indicate which assignment this is ("Individual Assignment" or "Group Role Play").  (DO NOT SEND YOUR ESSAY ASSIGNMENTS AS ATTACHMENTS;THE TEXT MUST APPEAR IN THE MESSAG BODY OF YOUR EMAIL SO THAT COMMENTS CAN BE SENT BACK TO YOU WITH "REPLY")

Where the assignment is a group assignment, include in your "To:" or "CC:" fields email addresses for all members of your group (other than the email address of the actual sender). 

These procedures guarantee (1) an original backup copy of the text and (2) that evaluations will be sent to all group members via a "Reply All" action on the part of the course instructor. In addition, this allows you to create your text in any word processor you desire (only for those assignments that have essays; the tutorials are a bit different since they involve zipping database files) without worrying about whether or not your instructor can read your word processor's documents.

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This webpage last updated on November 20, 2006