LIS2004 Strategies for Online Research | Prof. Machado Dillon

​Course Information

Course Prefix/Number: LIS2004 

Course Title: Strategies for Online Research 

Reference Number: 5560

Credit Hours: One (1) Semester Hour 

Class Format: MDC Live

Class Meetings: February 26 - April 26, Mondays and Wednesdays, 8:00 - 8:50 am

Date of Syllabus: Spring 2024 

Instructor Information 

Instructor: Christina M. Dillon 

Phone number: 305.237.8655 

Email: cmachado@mdc.edu 

Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays, 9:00 – 9:50 am in room 1405-01. In-person or virtual appointments are also possible.

Reading Material

There is no required textbook for this course. This Library Guide will serve as your textbook. Each module contains the required reading material. Each module includes links to supplemental reading and source material. 

Objectives

Information literacy has become an essential competency in the current environment of ever-increasing technological change and the resulting information explosion. The American Library Association Presidential Committee on Information Literacy says "Ultimately, information literate people are those who have learned how to learn. They know how to learn because they know how knowledge is organized, how to find information, and how to use information in such a way that others can learn from them. They are people prepared for lifelong learning, because they can always find the information needed for any task or decision at hand." 

An enormous amount of information is available via the Internet, much of it in an unmediated format with no indication as to its authenticity, validity, and reliability. This course introduces students to the concept of using the Internet as an information retrieval tool, and teaches strategies for locating and analyzing information. The course is designed to help students develop the basic information literacy skills necessary for college course work, general research, and for lifelong learning in an information-centered society. 

Attendance/Withdrawal Policies

• Within the first week of the semester, you must make sure that your MyMDC e-mail address and mobile phone number information is updated. To update your personal information, please visit the MyMDC Student Portal. 
• Please do not hesitate to email or call your instructor with any questions or problems.  
• All work should be submitted to your instructor by the due dates as indicated. The Canvas Calendar lists due dates for all course materials. The instructor will communicate due dates via announcements, e-mail, course modules, and lectures. 
• All assignments, tests, exams, presentations, etc. are to be done independently. In other words, there are no group assignments in this course, unless it is otherwise indicated. Unauthorized group work could negatively affect the grade of students involved. 

General Course Instructions

• You must be willing to work independently and be self-motivated. 
• You must have basic proficiency in the following: 
  • Formatting and composing a document in a word processor 
  • Sending, receiving, and replying to e-mail 
  • Accessing a web page by typing the URL into the browser "Location" or "Address" box 
  • Downloading and saving a file 
  • Managing electronic files and folders 
• An exercise follows the reading material for each lesson. Follow the exercise instructions carefully. 
• If you are providing a URL (address for a web page) as an answer to an exercise question, please be very careful. The URL must be correct or you will lose points. To avoid errors in typing a URL, you may want to copy and paste the URL into your message. 
• Although you may work at your own pace, don't wait until the last minute to begin working on lesson exercises or the project. Several of the lessons take some time to complete, as does the course project. 
• Each exercise should be sent to your instructor as soon as you complete it. It is the student's responsibility to make sure all course submissions reach the instructor. 
• You will be allowed to make-up graded work and/or tests at the instructor's discretion. Works that are turned in late (refer to the calendar and specifications in each assign. for deadlines) will be accepted and graded at the professor's discretion and may be penalized with a deduction of 10% per assignment per lateness. No work will be accepted after the final deadline. 
• All answers to exercise questions should be written in your own words. Do not copy and paste text or glossary definitions from the course materials or other sources as answers. Copying and pasting will be considered plagiarism and no credit will be given. 

Methods of Evaluation

The final grade is based upon the satisfactory completion of the following activities:

Attendance	20%
Assignments & Activities	30%
Discussion	30%
Class Project	20%
Total	100%

Grading Scale

                  A = 90 - 100

                  B = 80 - 89

                  C = 70 - 79

                  D = 60 - 69

                  F = 59 and below

Outcomes and Competencies

Upon the successful completion of this course, students will be able to: 

• Demonstrate an understanding of the types of information resources available via the Internet 
• Identify research topics and devise effective search strategies to utilize appropriate Internet resources and Internet-accessible library databases in the research process 
• Demonstrate competence in using keyword and Boolean search techniques as appropriate for Internet search tools 
• Use Internet communication tools, web search engines, meta-search engines, specialized search engines, and subject directories to locate and access relevant information resources 
• Evaluate the credibility, quality, and accuracy of Internet resources for specific information needs 
• Demonstrate an understanding of several social, legal and ethical issues, including netiquette, plagiarism and copyright issues 
• Document Internet resources using MLA and/or APA style guides 

Course Content

The course consists of six lessons and a Course Project. Each lesson requires readings from the course website and the completion of a related exercise. Each exercise is weighted by its relevance to the performance objectives for the course. 

See section under Course Project for the most updated information.

Student Code of Conduct & Academic Dishonesty

Please familiarize yourself with the College policy on the Student Code of Conduct.

The department affirms its commitment to treat cases of academic dishonesty according to Miami-Dade Community College Procedure No. 4035. Students are forewarned that academic dishonesty in any form will be penalized according to this procedure. The instructor has the option to award a grade of “F” for the course. Cheating or any form of academic dishonesty may also result in the student’s being placed on academic probation, suspended from school, or dismissed from the College. You can read more at the College's policy for dealing with Academic Dishonesty.

Statement of Special Needs

If you have special needs as addressed by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and need assistance, please notify the ACCESS (Disability Services) department, or the course instructor immediately. Reasonable efforts will be made to accommodate your special needs. 

Technical Assistance

If you are having any technical difficulties (e.g., logging in, accessing the discussion board, etc.), please contact Canvas Help and inform the instructor. 

Online Behavior

E-mail is considered an official method for communicating with online students. The College expects that e-mail communications will be received and read by online students in a timely fashion. This policy establishes the College's expectation that faculty and other online teaching staff may routinely communicate important information to students using Miami Dade College's established online learning e-mail system. 

All students enrolled in courses at Miami Dade College are provided with an official MDC student e-mail account. Students are expected to check their MDC e-mail account on a frequent and consistent basis in order to remain informed of course-related communications. Your instructor recommends checking e-mail at least twice per week. 

This syllabus may change according to the needs of this class. Any changes will be announced in class and via e-mail to all students. Students are responsible for noticing such changes.