When and Where
Zoom for the first two weeks (link will be available on Canvas-please note that the class materials will only be available here, NOT on Canvas )
Starting January 25, Alter 607 (hopefully)
9:30 – 10:50am, Tuesdays and Thursdays
Course Description
We are all drowning in data, and so is your future employer. Data pours in from sources as diverse as social media, customer loyalty programs, weather stations, smartphones, and credit card purchases. How can you make sense of it all? Those that can turn raw data into insight will be tomorrow’s decision-makers; those that can solve problems and communicate using data will be tomorrow’s leaders. This course will teach you how to harness the power of data by mastering the ways it is stored, organized, and analyzed to enable better decisions. You will get hands-on experience by solving problems using a variety of powerful, computer-based data tools virtually every organization uses. You will also learn to make more impactful and persuasive presentations by learning the key principles of presenting data visually.
Course Objectives
- Describe how advances in technology enable the field of data science
- Locate sources of data relevant to their field of study
- Identify and correct problems with data sets to facilitate analysis
- Combine data sets from different sources
- Assess the quality of a data source
- Convey meaningful insights from a data analysis through visualizations
- Analyze a data set using pivot tables
- Determine meaning in textual data using text mining
- Identify when advanced analytics techniques are appropriate
- Predict events that will occur together using association mining
Webcam Policy
The MIS Department wants to ensure you have a positive, engaging online experience. Therefore, during class, you are expected to keep your webcam video on with your face clearly visible – with or without a virtual background – and your microphone muted unless you are speaking. If you do not have your video turned on during a class session, you may be removed from that session at the instructor’s discretion. To request an exception to this policy, please consult your instructor.
Required Textbook
There is no required textbook for this course. However, there are a set of required readings available for free either online or from the bookstore. Refer to the schedule and reading list for more detail.
Class Structure and Participation
You are expected to be an active part of the learning process. In the first part of each class session, we’ll discuss the readings. This will be followed by an in-class activity.
Preparation for class
Carefully read the assigned material prior to each class. You may find it helpful to take notes on the major points of each reading, noting how the readings for that session relate to each other.
Most weeks there will be a short pre-class quiz, taken online (check the course schedule). The quiz will cover all readings to be discussed that week. Your instructor will provide the link to the quiz through a post to the Community Site.
You must complete the quiz by yourself before the start of class. It is “open book” – you can use the readings to take the quiz.
So I saw this online and I’m trying it out this semester. Let’s see how carefully you guys read the website. If you see this and email me a picture of a basset hound (I have one so I’m partial) by 1/18 before class, you will receive 2 extra credit points at the end of the semester. Please do not tell others about this or ask about it in class (email me), just enjoy the fact that you did what I asked and you are receiving something for it. Let’s see how many I get.
Participation during class
We will typically start each session with “opening” questions about the assigned readings. Students called on to answer should be able to summarize the key issues, opportunities, and challenges in the reading. All students should be prepared to be answer these questions. While you’re not expected to say something in every single class meeting, simply showing up for class does not qualify as participation.
Classroom Etiquette
The environment you and your fellow students create in class directly impacts the value gained from the course. To that end, the following are my expectation of your conduct in this class:
- Arrive on time and stay until the end of class.
- Have your camera turned on during class.
- Turn off cell phones and alarms while in class.
- Limit the use of electronic devices (e.g., laptop, tablet computer) to class-related usage such as taking notes. Restrict the use of an Internet connection (e.g., checking email, Internet browsing, sending instant messages) to before class, during class breaks, or after class.
- During class time speak to the entire class (or breakout group) and let each person “take their turn.”
- Be fully present and remain present for the entirety of each class meeting.
Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty
Plagiarism and academic dishonesty can take many forms. The most obvious is copying from another student’s exam, but the following are also forms of this:
- Copying material directly, word-for-word, from a source (including the Internet)
- Using material from a source without a proper citation
- Turning in an assignment from a previous semester as if it were your own
- Having someone else complete your homework or project and submitting it as if it were your own
- Using material from another student’s assignment in your own assignment
If you use text, figures, and data in reports that were created by someone other than yourself, you must identify the source and clearly differentiate your work from the material that you are referencing. There are many different acceptable formats that you can use to cite the work of others (see some of the resources below). You must clearly show the reader what is your work and what is a reference to somebody else’s work.
Plagiarism and cheating are serious offenses. Penalties for such actions are given at my discretion, and can range from a failing grade for the individual assignment, to a failing grade for the entire course, to expulsion from the program.
Student and Faculty Academic Rights and Responsibilities
The University has adopted a policy on Student and Faculty Academic Rights and Responsibilities (Policy # 03.70.02) which can be accessed through the following link:
http://policies.temple.edu/getdoc.asp?policy_no=03.70.02
Temple and COVID-19
Temple University’s motto is Perseverance Conquers, and we will meet the challenges of the COVID pandemic with flexibility and resilience. The university has made plans for multiple eventualities. Working together as a community to deliver a meaningful learning experience is a responsibility we all share: we’re in this together so we can be together.
Attendance Protocol and Your Health
If you feel unwell, you should not come to campus, and you will not be penalized for your absence. Instructors are required to ensure that attendance is recorded for each in-person or synchronous class session. The primary reason for documentation of attendance is to facilitate contact tracing, so that if a student or instructor with whom you have had close contact tests positive for COVID-19, the university can contact you. Recording of attendance will also provide an opportunity for outreach from student services and/or academic support units to support students should they become ill. Faculty and students agree to act in good faith and work with mutual flexibility. The expectation is that students will be honest in representing class attendance.
Technology specifications for this course:
Every student should have a laptop or a desktop that is capable of running the required software for this course.
- You will need to download Tableau for this course. Directions for accessing Tableau can be found on the MIS community site.
- You will have need to access Excel and the internet for this course.
- A practice test using Proctorio through Canvas will be given in the beginning of the semester. Please complete the practice test to ensure that your computer can run Proctorio for all exams.
- Limited resources are available for students who do not have the technology they need for class. Students with educational technology needs, including no computer or camera or insufficient Wifi-access, should submit a request outlining their needs using the Student Emergency Aid Fund form. The University will endeavor to meet needs, such as with a long-term loan of a laptop or Mifi device, a refurbished computer, or subsidized internet access.
Remote proctoring statement
Zoom, Proctorio or a similar proctoring tool may be used to proctor exams and quizzes in this course. These tools verify your identity and record online actions and surroundings. It is your responsibility to have the necessary government or school issued ID, a laptop or desktop computer with a reliable internet connection, the Google Chrome and Proctorio extension, a webcam/built-in camera and microphone, and system requirements for using Proctorio, Zoom, or a similar proctoring tool. Before the exam begins, the proctor may require a scan of the room in which you are taking the exam.
Statement on recording and distribution of recordings of class sessions
Course sessions will be recorded via zoom. You are expected to attend every class via zoom but you will have access to the recorded sessions should you want to review something. Recordings should not be downloaded or distributed to any other individuals. Doing so is a violation of the academic policy.
Expectations for Class Conduct
In order to maintain a safe and focused learning environment, we must all comply with the four public health pillars: wearing face coverings, maintaining physical distancing, washing our hands and monitoring our health. It is also important to foster a respectful and productive learning environment that includes all students in our diverse community of learners. Our differences, some of which are outlined in the University’s nondiscrimination statement, will add richness to this learning experience. Therefore, all opinions and experiences, no matter how different or controversial they may be perceived, must be respected in the tolerant spirit of academic discourse.
Treat your classmates and instructor with respect in all communication, class activities, and meetings. You are encouraged to comment, question, or critique an idea but you are not to attack an individual. Please consider that sarcasm, humor and slang can be misconstrued in online interactions and generate unintended disruptions. Profanity should be avoided as should the use of all capital letters when composing responses in discussion threads, which can be construed as “shouting” online. Remember to be careful with your own and others’ privacy. In general, have your behavior mirror how you would like to be treated by others.
Disability statement
Please bear in mind that COVID-19 may result in a need for new or additional accommodations.