Fact, Fiction and Fraud in the Digital Age: Assessment

SUBMITTING ASSIGNMENTS

• Students must keep a copy of all assignments submitted.
• Work submitted must be the student's own.
• Any resources used must be cited properly.
• University of Melbourne regulations prohibit plagiarism in any form.
• Allowing or enabling other students to copy from one's own work is not allowed.
• Work submitted by fax or on disk is not acceptable. Hard copies must be received by the due date.
• All pieces of assessment should include a History and Philosophy of Science Cover Sheet (mauve), available from the plastic pockets outside the History and Philosophy of Science office in Old Arts.
• The research paper and project should be submitted via the essay chute located outside the History and Philosophy of Science office in Old Arts.
• Class papers should NOT be placed in the essay chute and must be handed in to the tutor in the class the paper is given.

CLASS PAPER (10% of total assessment)

Focus of class paper

You are required to give a 10 minute talk on an aspect of the lecture topic in the week chosen, based on selected readings from the tutorial/laboratory reading list OR present your findings of the tutorial exercise in some weeks (speak to the tutors beforehand).

Requirements

• Class papers will begin in week 3, with two per class (depending on class size). Topics will be assigned in the first week of tutorials (week 2), and we suggest you read the course outline on the Web prior to this tutorial.
• You must adhere to the timeslot chosen for your class paper. If you wish to change, you will need to swap with another student and inform your teacher.
• Talks should be no longer than 10 minutes. You must not go over the time limit.
• You are required to lead a discussion for up to 5 minutes after your talk.
• At the beginning of the talk, you must give a clear statement of your topic and state the sources you used when preparing the material.
• You must hand in a summary of your talk (500 words) and a list of sources used. This material must be submitted on the day of your talk, in the class given.

Assessment

• The class paper is worth 10% of the assessment and must be handed in to the tutor at the end of class.
• You will be assessed on your understanding of the topic and ability to present the topic to the class in a clear, audible and interesting way within the time limit; your ability to lead and continue discussion after your talk; and your ability to supply and successfully handle any equipment/materials you wish to use.
• The ability to work to a deadline is the most critical part of this assessment. If you do not give your talk at the scheduled time you will receive a fail grade (N), unless you provide your tutor with a medical certificate.

RESEARCH PAPER (50% of total assessment)

Focus of research paper

You are required to undertake a critical analysis of an aspect of the digital age which particularly interests you. Below are some suggested topics - you may choose one of them or form your own.

Suggested topics

1. What impact is the WWW having on information in traditional media? Discuss and analyse.
   (Think about what radio was like before the Web and SMS. If you don't know, do some research or ask someone who was there!)

2. Why do basic research principles seem to 'go out the window' on the Web? What markers are required to distinguish fact, fraud and fiction?

3. How are rumours and myths promulgated on the Web? Track and analyse the history of a world wide rumour. (See the sources for Lecture 3 for some possible starting points)

4. Every day people are making decisions based on information on the Web. What impact does this have for the delivery of government information over the Web? Where do the obligations for government and the citizen lie?

5. Restriction versus freedom. Can/Does Internet legislation work? Comment on the Australian experience.

6. What legislation is necessary for the effective utilisation of digital information in a particular domain, e.g. government, business, etc? What are the implications and what obligations does it place on the providers/suppliers/producers and their 'customers'?

7. Scholarly publishing on the Web. Select a discipline and analyse the impact of digital publication in that area. What is the balance between traditional and electronic publication? What factors are promoting/hindering the uptake of Web publishing?

8. Recordkeeping in the network environment. Thirteen functional requirements for recordkeeping have been identified (see the Pittsburgh Project Report - Lecture 5). Does any IT system meet these requirements? Can any IT system maintain compliance over time?

9. Topic of your choice - As a suggestion you may like to look at the Higher Education and IT supplements of The Australian and/or The Age and select an issue to analyse and explore.

Requirements

The research paper is the major piece of assessment for this subject. It should demonstrate your ability to undertake research, i.e. to find, select and reference sources to support your arguments. It should also reflect your engagement with the issues raised in the lectures, tutorials and labs. You are required to analyse material and construct an argument rather than just write a descriptive piece. Your essay must be fully referenced and include a bibliography.

You should provide an indication of the topic you will be covering by the end of week 3 (i.e. by Friday 13 August 2004). Time will be set aside in the tutorial in week 2 and 3 to discuss the paper. Once you have decided on your topic, you should send an email to tfac@austehc.unimelb.edu.au with the details of what you propose to do. This will helps us identify any projects that may be over ambitious. Note: All emails with attachments will be deleted, unread.

Assessment

• The research paper is worth 50% of the assessment and must be submitted, with the appropriate signed cover sheet, via the essay chute outside the History and Philosophy of Science office in Old Arts.
• You will be assessed against the requirements listed above.
• Marks will be deducted for late submission (5% per day)

PROJECT (40% of total assessment)

Focus of project

You are an information consultant and are required to submit an expression of interest for the design and construction of a subject gateway in <insert your domain here>. Alternatively you may submit an expression of interest for the redesign of an existing gateway or for an organisation's intranet. The gateway will cover both online and print, primary and secondary resources in the selected domain.

Requirements

Your Expression of Interest must be for a subject gateway and should:

• demonstrate knowledge of the existing state of play in your chosen domain;
• identify the benefits the gateway will deliver;
• describe the basic systems architecture, such as structures, search and retrieval protocols;
• describe the content management requirements - e.g. identification and selection of content, maintenance tasks, etc.;
• identify any key technologies - hardware, software, standards etc.

The project will be discussed in the tutorials from week 9. You should email tfac@austehc.unimelb.edu.au by Friday 18 October with details of the subject gateway you wish to work on. All emails with attachments will be deleted, unread.

For more details of the requirements for the project, see http://www.austehc.unimelb.edu.au/teaching/tfac/course/projectassessment.htm

Assessment

• The project is worth 40% of the assessment and must be submitted via the essay chute outside the History and Philosophy of Science office in Old Arts.
• You will be assessed against the requirements listed above.
• Marks will be deducted for late submission (5% per day).