Affiliate Courses

Spring 2020 WISE Course Descriptions

Information Assurance

Description: Information assurance is a broader concept than (computerized) information security. It deals with aspects of data integrity, privacy, paper and human security issues, and security from several perspectives: legal issues, technical tools and methods, social and ethical concerns, and organization’s policies and procedures, and standards.

Digital Tools Trends & Debates

Description: Overview of information and communications technologies (ICT), digital media, and standards in relationship to information agencies, within the context of current societal controversies. Promotes technical knowledge of ICT and critical analysis of controversies surrounding ICT development, use and modification.

Copyright for Information Professionals

Description: Geared for library and information professionals, this course provides a firm foundation in the fundamental rules of American copyright law, and equips them with the tools to make informed decisions about copyright issues.

Fall 2019 WISE Course Descriptions

Information Assurance

Description: Information assurance is a broader concept than (computerized) information security. It deals with aspects of data integrity, privacy, paper and human security issues, and security from several perspectives: legal issues, technical tools and methods, social and ethical concerns, and organization’s policies and procedures, and standards.

Museum Collection Development

Description: This course will cover the essential elements of the management of museum collections including collection policy, legal and ethical concerns, artifact handling, documentation, information management, preservation, exhibition and access. Museum collections that will be studied include collections of art, history, natural history, science and moving image/multimedia. Course topics will be demonstrated through videos, discussions, case-studies, reading, and various activities. Assignments include researching various topics and discussing them in online forums, a research paper about preservation, a museum exhibit evaluation, creating an online collection record through E-Hive, and two exams. Field trip to a museum exhibit is required.

Resources and Services for Adults

Description: Survey of materials in a variety of formats of interest to and importance for adults, with an emphasis on popular resources, utilization of resources and program development.

Spring 2019 WISE Course Descriptions

Project Management: Strategy and Applications

Class Description: This course is a broad introduction to project management principles, tools, and strategies intended for use in a variety of applications. Topics include project planning tools, project life cycle, risk assessment, budgeting/cost estimation and team management. Through the use of readings, videos, assignments, and forum discussions, students will have the opportunity to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the strategy behind successful project management and problem resolution.

Technologies for Data Preservation and Data Forensics

Class Description: Students will learn about the technologies used frequently in data forensics.

Fall 2018 WISE Course Descriptions

Copyright for Information Professionals

Class Description: Geared for library and information professionals, this course provides a firm foundation in the fundamental rules of American copyright law, and equips them with the tools to make informed decisions about copyright issues.

Motivational Aspects of Information Use

Class Description: Theories of motivation and behavior affecting information use in learning, workplace, and virtual environments. Emphasis on applying motivational theories and models to management practices in information organizations and to the design of information resources and presentations.

Project Management & Systems Analysis

Class Description: This course is designed to teach students to understand systems broadly, including hardware, software, and the people who use them, and develop the ability to conduct an analysis to identify a problem, collect user requirements, and propose possible solutions. We will cover the basics of systems analysis and system design and project management and planning. We will also cover the use of some typical tools used in systems analysis & project management such as data flow diagrams & GANTT charts. These analysis and planning skills are highly relevant in libraries, archives, museums, organizations, businesses, and many other information management settings and will prepare students to innovate information services in those settings.

Spring 2018 WISE Course Descriptions

Gender and the Global Information Technology Sector

Class Description: The growing trend toward outsourcing, off shoring, and dispersion of work across national boundaries means that students entering the workforce in the twenty-first century must be prepared to deal with a global client base and global colleagues. Part of this preparation includes understanding the gender diversity of colleagues, clients and users with whom you will be working — both virtually and face-to-face — to develop, deploy and use information technology solutions. This course takes a cross-cultural examination of gender as it relates to STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields in general, and the information technology field, in particular. Understanding the gender and cultural diversity of both colleagues and users will have ramifications for the way in which work is accomplished, user requirements for technology are understood, and interaction with computer-based tools is accomplished. However, to varying degrees around the world, women are underrepresented in the in STEM, generally, and in the IT field, in particular. They are under represented both in the IT workforce and in the conceptualization of the IT user. Similarly, a dominant model of masculinity is associated with technology development, deployment and use. For these reasons, it is necessary for those working in STEM fields to have an understanding of gender issues in order to have a complete understanding of users, and to work productively with colleagues.

Research Data Management

Class Description: This topical course is designed to introduce students to the conceptual and practical challenges of research data management and takes a highly innovative approach by “immersing” the participants in disciplinary research settings in subject domains beyond LIS, as part of the learning process. The seminar will explore disciplinary data diversity, but will also examine how universities and other organizations are developing policy, roadmaps, plans and tools to facilitate good research data management practice. The seminar will investigate roles, responsibilities, and relationships of key stakeholders engaging with legal and ethical data issues, advocacy and training methods, and the costs of providing such research data management services in institutions. A pragmatic approach will be supported by reference to case studies and exemplars, which show how researchers, librarians, technologists, administrators, and others are responding positively to the data challenge.

Systems Analysis & Project Management

Class Description: This course is designed to explore the concepts and practical implementation of project management principles. In a practical sense, students will examine the use of project management to successfully initiate, plan, execute, control and close a project. Special attention is given to the current standards of the Project Management Institute.

Fall 2017 WISE Course Descriptions

Information Analytics

Class Description: This course introduces analytical techniques to deal with very large data sets. Students will become familiar with predictive modeling, clustering, data mining, and paradigms such as map resource.

Transformative Library Leadership

Class Description: This course will prepare library students to assume formal and informal leadership positions to guide libraries through continual change. Students will explore topics essential for effective library leadership, understand leadership theories and principles, interpret and apply library foundational values that underpin library practice, learn about and observe best practices in the field, and address topical issues in libraries. Students will gain awareness about their own leadership style, develop a personal leadership philosophy to guide their professional career, and become confident transformational leaders.

Information Sources and Service: Science and Technology

Class Description: Study and application of reference, bibliographic and other information sources in science and technology; techniques and procedures for serving the needs of various clientele; criteria for evaluating these sources and this service and for developing appropriate collections.

Big Data Analytics and Management

Class Description: As the prevalence of advanced web and storage technologies, more and more data are produced in massive amounts at a rapid rate. The data that come from instruments, sensors, Internet transactions, emails, click streams, and/or all other digital sources require a new way of analyzing, interpreting, learning, and managing data efficiently. As a result, “big data” analytics and management has gained increasing attention and become one of the most significant, emerging fields in many disciplines, ranging from business intelligence to scientific discovery. In this course, students will explore important big data technologies, trends, infrastructure, and management issues that enable users to make informed and strategic decisions with the presence of large-scale data sets. Specifically, the course will consist of three main parts: Big data infrastructure: Students will focus on learning big data technologies and trends, including large-scale databases, map-reduce paradigm, and big data mining. Big data hands-on practice: Students will gain hands-on learning experience with the software “Splunk”. Students will be able to conduct big data analysis and visualization in Splunk with real-world data sets such as Twitter data (i.e., “tweets”). Big data real-world uses: Students will discuss how big data analytics and management skills can be applied to different real-world fields, such as libraries and health science, and various issues including opportunities and challenges.

Class Disclaimer: Students must meet the school’s home computing and technology literacy prerequisites. See http://ischool.sjsu.edu/current-students/technology-support/home-computing-environment.

Medical Librarianship

Class Description: Resources and Information Services in Medical Librarianship, will offer contemporary knowledge and skills on topics such as health sciences library history, medical subject classification, finding quality health information, consumer health programming, evidence-based health care, and cooperative medical library programs. Collaborative learning and assignments are featured. Several facets have been added to this course in recent years, based on student feedback: All assignments will have immediate submission deadlines, with immediate grading and deduction for late submission. This will provide students with immediate performance feedback and is intended to insure that students will not fall behind covering material. Groups formed for group assignments will pick their own facilitator. Facilitators will receive extra credit for satisfactory performance. Peers will provide confidential facilitator performance feedback. Attendance at weekly topic lectures is optional, but attending or watching the recording is required. Extra credit will be awarded for live attendance, provided that the attendee is actively participating. Extra credit will be awarded for appearing in Office hour and asking questions. Only one extra credit attendance counts for any week, either the Presentation or the Office Hour. Class participation creates a rich learning environment. 10% of the course grade will be explicitly determined by class participation in discussion forums, using this rubric that will be available in CANVAS

Class Disclaimer: Students must meet the school’s home computing and technology literacy prerequisites. See http://ischool.sjsu.edu/current-students/technology-support/home-computing-environment.

There are several ALA-accredited institutions that offer international travel courses, such as the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, the University of Southern Mississippi, and the Pratt Institute. Many institutions offer the same travel course every year with a slightly different timetable. Students are encouraged to review the offerings and consider how they may fit into their program of study. If you choose to apply for such a course at another institution, please submit the International Travel Course Petition Form in order to obtain Simmons credit for the course.