Data Systems and Networks

Masters in Business Administration

MBA 632

Breyer State University
Instructor: Maureen Taylor MS

SYLLABUS

COURSE OVERVIEW: Businesses continue to evolve to find new and innovative ways to meet their client’s needs.  Many of the outcomes of this evolution point to an increasingly strategic role for data communication and computer networking.  Increased emphasis on productivity, the dawn of the mobile professional, the flattening of managerial hierarchies and the downsizing of corporate information system all depend on well-designed corporate networks.  Besides that, the internet has become a stable infrastructure for most corporations and is increasingly being used to connect people worldwide.  

As a result, there has been a corresponding increase in the demand for data/internet communications professionals who understand the business as well as technology aspects of network computing.

TIME FRAME: This is a five-semester hour course. This course is allotted 10 weeks of time. You must complete all of the requirements for the course successfully by the end of the 10-week period. The first day of week one will begin the day that you register for the course, or the day which you notify me that your textbooks have arrived and you are ready to begin your studies.

Please be cognizant of the time frame. It is rare that extensions of time are permitted, unless you have good justification. Upon successful completion of this course, you will be awarded five semester hours of credit.

TEXTBOOKS: There is one (1) required textbook for this course--

Book 1: Data Communications & Computer Networks: A Business User’s Approach (5th ed.).  White, C.  M. Boston, Ma: Course Technology. (2009). ISBN # 1-4239-0303-X.

This text may be found at your local bookstore. Your local bookstore most often will order them as a special order for you. Or, you may purchase this book online from:

RESOURCES AND SUPPLIES:  

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

1). Weekly written assignments.
2). Class Project.
3). Written Exam.

CLASS PROJECT: In order to fully understand data systems and computer networks, an applied project is used to illustrate the concepts.  The class project will be broken down into two phases—Phase One: Technical Document—“Requirement Analysis”, using the SDLC (System development life cycle)—a series of steps to develop a data system; Phase Two:  Network Modeling and the actual design/layout of a company’s proposed network configuration.

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS: There will be weekly written assignments that will be assigned based on your readings.  In addition, there will be individual activities that will guide you through the process of developing a Technical Document--Requirement Analysis--and creating the actual layout of a company’s network configuration. Each activity will build upon the other.

EXAMINATIONS: There is only one written exam for this course--a final exam. The final exam covers the materials in the book, "Data Systems and Networks" by Curt M. White.

The final examination must be taken by the end of the 10th week in the course. The exam is programmed and is located in the classroom for this course. The final exam is an "open book" objective type. You will have one (1) day to complete your exam, once you access it from the classroom.

To access the exam, you must send me an email and request to have access to the exam. Upon registration, you will receive your email address. I will then program your access in. You will receive an email back from me telling you that you are now authorized to go ahead and to access your exam.

To access, you will come into the classroom, click on testing, and click on the exam you are taking. You will need your User ID and PASS WORD to access the exam. The exam will appear on your screen. Once you access the exam, you have 24 hours to submit your answers. The program provides me the exact date and time that you accessed the exam. The program also notifies me of the exact date and time that you submitted your answers. Thus, the program is timing you.

When you are ready, go back into the classroom and click in your responses and then click submit. Shortly, you will receive the exam in your email box with your computed score. You will also know what questions, if any, that you missed, and what the correct answer is. I also receive a copy of your exam and your score.

GRADING: The grading scale for this course is as follows:

90-100%    = A
80-89%      = B
70-79%      = C
Below 70% = Fail

COMMUNICATION: You are encouraged to communicate with me. I am available as a teacher, coach, and mentor to assist you in meeting your goals for this course. Primarily, communication is through email

Our classroom for this course has a "chat" room. I am also very willing to meet with you one-on-one in the chat room at your request. From time to time, depending on how many students are enrolled in this course at a particular time, we will have some scheduled group chats. You will receive more detailed information at the time such chat sessions are scheduled.

Please keep my email address handy so that you can contact me whenever necessary. If at any time during this course you change your email address, please be sure to notify me right away.

ABOUT YOUR INSTRUCTOR: Maureen Taylor, MS, BS, holds a degree in Masters in Computer Science Education and a Bachelor of Science in Behavioral Science. 

In addition to teaching at Breyer state University, I am currently a full-time faculty at American Intercontinental University (AIU) at the Weston, Florida campus in the School of Information Technology and EBusiness.  There, I have been teaching courses such as—Information Systems, Project management, Website Design and Development, Programming Logic, Visual Basic, VB.NET, Scripting Languages, Relational Database Concepts, Computer Applications, etc. I teach in both environments—online and face-to-face.

Prior to working at AIU, I worked in the health care industry for approximately 20 years+ in a variety of management positions.  I also taught courses in the allied health care field.  For approximately ten (10) years I have owned my own educational and management consulting firm in which I provided training for those who wanted to start-up their own businesses.

I have also had the opportunity to co-author an article on "Virtual Team Learning" published in the (1996) May/June Issue of Performance & Instruction, Volume 35, No. 5.

On a final note--I hope you will enjoy this course.  Please learn as much as you can as you progress through each chapter or major topic, as it does lay down a solid foundation for understanding Data Systems and Computer Networks.  It is my pleasure to have you in the course.

COURSE STRUCTURE: This course is structured to present the concepts of Data Systems and Networks; and to understand the concepts by:

1). Preparing written assignments that will give you the opportunity to think more deeply about the concepts read in the text.
2). Using the “hands-on” approach by applying these concepts learned to a live project.  The project will focus on one of the network configurations used in organizations today.

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course is aimed to provide a broad introduction to data systems with a focus on network design and management issues.  The course will cover the following areas:

1). Introduction to Computer Networks and Data Communications
2). Data and Signals
3). Conducted and Wireless media
4). Making connections with data, computer and peripheral devices
5). Error detection
6). Various local area network architectures, hardware and software including LAN operating systems
7). Internet protocols and the world wide web
8). Voice and data delivery networks
9). Network security issues
10). Network management and design

COURSE OBJECTIVES: Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

1). Understand the concepts of data systems.
2). Understand various computer networks.
3). Understand communications protocols and the advantages of each.
4). Understand the architecture, functioning, protocols of the internet.
5). Understand the working of communication devices.
6). Enumerate the various transmission media commonly used in carrier systems, i.e. coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, microwave radio, as well as the carrier systems overall operating characteristics.
7). Recognize the basics of data communications, including data, signals, conversions between data and signals, encoding techniques, multiplexing, and modems.
8). Delineate the integration of voice technologies with data technologies.
9). Identify the basics of T-carrier systems, frame relay, asynchronous transfer mode, DSL , cable modems, and ISDN and be able to compare and contrast their characteristics.
10). Describe the basic operating procedures of the Internet and how it relates to data and voice communications.
11). Enumerate the differences between the wireless telephone systems AMPS, D-AMPS, TDMA, CDMA, and GSM.
12). Document the characteristics of local area networks, including bus, star and ring topologies.
13). Evaluate the impact of new network hardware and protocols in a variety of settings.
14). Develop new (or modify existing) network designs to optimize performance for particular applications or environments.
15). Complete a class project in which, given a minimum set of requirements, you will recommend network solutions.

INFORMATION: If you have any questions regarding this program, you may contact the instructor at admassistant@breyerstate.com.

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