Overview

CMIS 311 is a three-credit, senior-level course on end-user information systems that blends business concepts with software solutions using a case study approach. In CMIS 311, you study a variety of concepts, grouped according to their relationship to four main areas of end-user information systems: organizational and technical foundations, business solutions, implementation and support, and impact on workplace performance. The case study approach followed in this course allows you to experience these concepts in the context of today's business world. As well, learning activities are included that will expand your knowledge of desktop software products and teach you to apply the business concepts and theories you have studied. Specifically, you will work out solutions to the cases using presentation software, databases, spreadsheets, and Web development tools.

Outline

This course has been organized into 13 lessons, as follows:

Evaluation

To receive credit for CMIS 311, you must achieve a grade of at least 50 percent on the final examination, and an overall course grade of at least a “D” (50 percent). If it is necessary to improve your course mark, you may resubmit assignments for which you have received less than 50 percent. All assignments must be submitted (or resubmitted) and marked before you may write the final examination. Weighting of each component is as follows:

To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University's online Calendar.

Note: All examinations for this course are taken online, and must be taken at an invigilated location. It is your responsibility to ensure a computer with an Internet connection and Internet Explorer 5.0 or higher is available for your use at the invigilation centre.

*Student Participation: Students are expected to participate actively in discussion of the course materials. They are encouraged to share their answers to the discussion questions provided in the lecture notes and draw to the attention of their colleagues and instructor additional articles or reports. Responses for each assignment will be reviewed and marks for participation awarded by an academic expert.

Course Materials

Textbook

Regan, E. A., & O'Connor, B. N. (2002). End-user
information systems: Implementing individual and work group technologies (Second ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Other materials

All other materials (assignments, lecture notes, case studies, and additional readings) will be available to students online.

Special Course Features

This course and the learning activities within it have been designed specifically for use with Microsoft Office 2000 and 2003 and, if possible, students should use these versions of software to complete their course work. Students with Office 2007 will require special instructions from their academic expert on adapting course learning activities to Office 2007.

CMIS 311 also requires that students have previous knowledge of Microsoft Office applications--Word, Excel, Access and Powerpoint---and a basic understanding of how to construct Web pages, either by coding directly in HTML or by using Web-building software such as FrontPage.