There are 14 scheduled class meetings based on SLIS Spring 2010 Course Schedule. Class will meet 4:10 - 6:40 PM every from Monday, January 11 through Monday, April 26, 2009 with the following exceptions:

• No classes on the following Mondays: January 18 for MLK holiday, March 8 for spring break, and April 5 CUA closed after Easter.
• Alternative day for class meeting: Tuesday, February 23
• See the following calendar for more information: CUA's Academic Spring 2010 Semester calendar.

There will be extensive online and out-of-class work. We will use a variety of Web 2.0 tools to communicate and collaborate on ideas and projects with a wiki and blog-like area serving as our central means of online interaction and communication while reducing reliance on non-collaborative forms of communication such as email. Assignments, updates, administrative information and reminders will be posted to the wiki. Frequent, online participation is expected of all students.

Instructor's Contact Information

Karen Huffman, MLS, Adjunct Professor, CUA | Vitae
Email: karen (at) cybersailors (dot) org | Work: 202.857.7061
Office hours: As needed

Description (Credit Hours: 3)

This course provides students with strategies for evaluating, developing, and implementing information technologies and applications in public, academic and special libraries. Technologies covered may include traditional and non-traditional library catalogs; search engines; information, asset and knowledge management systems; and social and collaborative environments. The goals of the course are to provide students with the resources and methodologies they will need to evaluate, select, develop, and manage systems. This course builds on the foundations of the core courses and emphasizes organizational differences and the roles of information professionals. Guest speakers will share their stories and expertise.

Prerequisite: LSC 555 - Information Systems in Libraries and Information Centers (core requirement).

Instructional Methods

This course will use a variety of formats and activities:

• Lecture and discussions based on readings and exercises.
• Live and virtual guest speakers sharing their experience and expertise.
• Collaborative learning through face-to-face and online environments.
• Hands-on exercises for knowledge and skill development using a variety of Web 2.0/3.0 tools such as wikis, blogs/micro-blogs, social bookmarking, etc.
• Projects and team experience designed around particular topics that will be discussed in more detail during class.
  

These course activities will be conducted both face-to-face (in class) and online (primarily using a wiki, discussion forum, and other Web 2.0 tools). Students will need broadband access to the Internet and are expected to be online regularly, participating in online discussions, project-building modules, and virtual meetings.

Course Goals

This course is designed to accomplish the following:

• Develop 21st-century literacy, life-long learning, and critical thinking skills.
• Cultivate students' imagination, creativity, and passion for our profession through innovative learning opportunities.
• Look across libraries as well as related fields to learn (gain knowledge), understand (build comprehension), and synthesize (internalize) teachings through critical thinking and analysis, problem solving, collaboration, communication, and technacy (i.e., a comprehensive prowess in specific technologies as understood in the context of practical application) (Multimedia & Internet @ Schools, p. 21, March/April 2008; Wikipedia, accessed 6/21/2008).
• Build collaborative, investigative and presentation skills and techniques for developing project plans, technology inventories, and business cases for managing, marketing and selling your projects.
• Greening in class: Make majority of information, resources, and readings available online.

Goals for Student Learning

At the conclusion of this course, students will be able to do the following:

• Explain a process for developing a strategic vision and goals for evolving core products and services to best meet shifting user needs while always accounting for people, processes, and technologies.
  
• Incorporate the systems development life cycle model (SDLC) when developing business cases for libraries, weighing the pros and cons of solutions including organizational policies, buy vs. build, hosted vs. locally installed, public access vs. privacy issues.
• Articulate core differences and similarities of how technologies are applied and projects developed by public, academic, special, and school media libraries.
• Examine through practical examples five core themes facing libraries today.

Additional Information

To review additional information about this course as its syllabus, projects, and team experience are being developed, please visit 2010 Spring LSC 757 (742) website: http://cua757.cybersailors.org.