BSAD 145 Semester Research Paper

The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write,
but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn. --Alvin Toffler

 

Approved Topics

The purposes of this paper are:

Paper Topic: a contemporary issue of interest to IT managers

Stumped for a topic? Check out these prototype IS management issues.

Research Paper Writing Guidelines

I expect your papers to be thoughtful, concise and well-organized. Here are some further guidelines and expectations:

TITLE: Please include a title that identifies both the general topic and the issue being analyzed, for example,

Internet 2: The Future Internet or Expensive Boondoggle?

SUBSECTION HEADINGS: These are highly recommended since they can help the reader and clarify paper organization. Make sure your subheading accurately identifies or leads into the section material.

EXAMPLES:

What Is Internet 2?

Who Uses Internet2

Internet 2 Applications

Is Internet 2 Worth the Expense?

Summary And Recommendations

UNCOMMON WORDS & ACRONYMS: Try to introduce/define uncommon terms before using them. Remember that acronyms that are familiar to you, may not be familiar to your readers. If you use acronyms or abbreviations (it's hard not to), try to spell them out the first time you use them, for example:

asynchronous transfer mode (ATM)

This is especially important for those that have multiple meanings, such as ATM. If you simply starting using "ATM" in a paper or article, many readers will wonder what "automated teller machines" have to do with your paper.

SPELLING: Should be perfect. Spell checkers help, but watch out for homonyms (there/their/they're, to/too, cite/site/sight, etc.) and inadvertent typing of another correctly spelled word (e.g., "of" for "off").

APOSTROPHES: For contractions (it's) and possessives (except some possessive pronouns like my, your, his, hers, its, etc.).

QUOTES & REFERENCES: You must reference any source you use. I'm not too fussy about reference indicator formatting. References can be indicated by the Modern Library Association (MLA) convention for sources in books, (name, page), footnotes or endnotes. I think most people like to use Word's footnotes or endnotes (as I do), but you can use the same practice as our text if you prefer, referring to the endnotes/bibliography by the number of the reference in brackets, like this [4]. It's your choice. What is important that you include the normal bibliographic information (author, article, publication, and volume/issue/date).

In the case of Web references(which I expect to dominate in this class, though other reference use is fine), the bibliography/endnotes/footnotes should include the:

the author's full name,

the name of the article,

the publication(e.g. CIO or Wired),

date of publication and

the full URL.

Here is an example:

4. Joy, Bill, "Why the Future Doesn't Need Us." Wired Magazine, April 8, 2000; http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/8.04/joy.html

In some cases, not all this information will be available, in which case, you should include a parenthetical comment, such as [no date given] or [author unspecified] so that I don't conclude that you left it out.

References to personal interviews should include the person's name, position or other basis of authority, and the date of the interview. These research papers should not be based entirely upon personal interviews.

CAPITALIZATION: In the body of the paper, proper nouns [the Web, the Internet] should be capitalized, and abbreviations [IT, AI] should be upper case. Common nouns and adjectives [e.g., information technology, e-commerce] should not be capitalized -- unless, of course, they are part of a proper noun, title, or similar.

A common error is to assume that a phrase that is commonly abbreviated should be capitalized. Unless there is some other reason for capitalization (e.g., proper name or being part of a title), it should not be. Examples:

DSL = digital subscriber line
ASP = application services providers
EDM = electronic document management
PDA = personal digital assistant
VPN = virtual private network
TLA = three letter acronym

but for proper nouns:

WAP = Wireless Application Protocol
IBM = International Business Machines
ISDN = Integrated Services Digital Network
VPNC = The Virtual Private Network Consortium

Not sure if the word or phrase is a proper noun, look it up! Many cannot be found in the dictionary, but almost all can be found on the Web. Note that there are also many, many errors on the Web -- so don't assume that the first use you find is correct. Look for consistency from a reliable source.

 

Spelling and Grammar Checkers

I do not expect to see spelling, punctuation or grammatical errors in your final paper. In the business world such errors can convey an impression of ignorance or, perhaps worse, carelessness. Using spelling and grammar checkers is fine, but remember that they are only advisors and do not always give good advice -- you are the final judge. You should carefully read your drafts while scanning for errors and the smooth flow of ideas. Since it can be difficult to read/edit your own paper (especially after you have been working on it for a while), trading your final drafts with a friend for a final edit is a great idea. Another student will be "marking up" and commenting on your paper. You should not rely upon, or necessarily even accept, the advice of your fellow student. YOU are responsible for your final draft.

Submissions Activities:

  1. Topic Due: The issue you propose to address in your paper needs to be posted to the BSAD145 list for class review by the "paper topic due" deadline indicated in the class schedule. Each student is required to post a unique issue.
     
  2. Comment Due: Each student must post comment and/or reactions (within one week of the topic due date) on issues posted by 3 other students in the class. Detailed information on submission requirements will be posted to BSAD145.
     
  3. Instructor Approval: The instructor must approve the issue you have selected.
     
  4. Outline Due: A one-page (or 2 "screen") outline of the instructor-approved issue must be posted to BSAD145 by the "paper outline due" date listed in the class schedule. This outline should be as detailed as possible and should include at least 2, and preferably 3 or more, references you plan to use. Your outline should be properly formatted. If you have forgotten how to format an outline, check the MLA Handbook.
     
  5. Draft Due Your research rough draft must be submitted in electronic form to the instructor (not the list). Drafts should be submitted as Word attachments to me and your editor, not the list, with your last name in the file name, e.g. "BSAD145.draft.lastname.doc". Note that you will be graded on your outline and draft. Perfection is not expected, but the draft should be reasonably complete and include a bibliography.
     
  6.  Draft Markup Due Each student will be required to "mark-up" the Word draft of one other student's paper. You must use the Word "track changes" so you (and I) can tell who wrote what. Edited drafts should be submitted as Word attachments to the author and me, with both your last names in the file name: "BSAD145.edit.origname-editname.doc" e.g.,
    "BSAD145.edit.smith-jones.doc"

    The person whose paper you edit will not be the one who edits yours. You will be graded on your revisions, suggestions and edits. You should not blindly follow the edits of your editor -- he or she may be wrong. You are ultimately responsible for the content, readability and correctness of your language and content.
  7. Paper Due: Your final research paper must be submitted in printed (NOT electronic form) to the instructor by the "final paper due" date.

References and Source Materials

Your paper needs to integrate multiple references to journal articles (interviews and other sources are also fine). Do NOT rely on one or two sources for the principal material behind your issue paper. Depending upon the issue you have chosen, 8-12 unique references is typical. Separate references all from the same general site are ok, but do not add towards unique references. Watch out for Web references that are trying to sell something. They are ok, but you must explore both sides of an issue. For example, if you are comparing technological alternatives, using Websites promoting a particular solution as a primary resource is not acceptable unless you also include Websites promoting the alternative solution(s).

Although there is no absolute length requirement, a thoughtful, concise, well-organized paper of 2000-4000 words is a reasonable expectation (use the word-count tool if unsure of length). You should not write a paper that stops abruptly at the 2000-word (or any other) threshold.

Grading

Your research paper efforts will be scored on the following:

See semester research scoring for details.

Hints:

WARNINGS: