Module 18519 (2005)
Syllabus page 2005/2006
06-18519
Communication Skills & Professional Issues
Level 2/I
Jim Yandle:2.5
William Edmondson (coordinator)
Links | Outline | Aims | Outcomes | Prerequisites | Teaching | Assessment | Books | Detailed Syllabus
The Module Description is a strict subset of this Syllabus Page. (The University module description has not yet been checked against the School's.)
Relevant Links
The British
Computer Society is concerned about professional issues, accreditation of courses, professional development of software engineers, and so forth. This link is worth some attention.
Professor Kevin Bowyer's website has many useful sources on various professional aspects -- such as hacking, privacy, whistle-blowing, intellectual property, environmental and health concerns, and etc.
Easter Eggs are those silly things which unprofessional engineers stick into their software -- unspecified, unrequested, unnecessary and not guaranteed to be benign. There are many of these, which perhaps shows how unprofessional many engineers are? The topic should not be hidden like an Easter Egg -- so here are a couple of links: Computer Easter Eggs Database, Easter Eggs.
JILT is an electronic journal devoted to computing and legal issues.
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility have an interesting site, very professionally set out, with a focus on socially responsible uses of computing.
SWECC -- this is a reference site for professional software engineers -- there is a comprehensive code of practice document.
The Foundation for Information Policy Research is an independent body that studies the interaction between information technology and society. Their goal is to identify technical developments with significant social impact, commission research into public policy alternatives, and promote public understanding and dialogue between technologists and policy-makers in the UK and Europe.
The Data Protection Act is the legal framework within which data protection in UK is managed. The Information Commissioner is the person with whom people/companies must register. Have a look at the Commissioner's website for up-to-date information.
Outline
The module introduces students to ethical, social, legal and professional issues in computing in combination with report writing skills. Student participation is an important component of the module, both in researching and presenting material. Some lectures are given by external speakers with appropriate professional experience.
Aims
The aims of this module are to:
- encourage consideration of ethical, social, legal and professional issues in computing
- improve students' report writing skills
Learning Outcomes
| On successful completion of this module, the student should be able to: | Assessed by: | |
| 1 | identify and describe ethical, social, legal and professional issues in computing | Continuous Assessment |
| 2 | discuss these issues in a balanced and lucid way | Continuous Assessment |
| 3 | make good presentations of views in a formal report format | Continuous Assessment |
Restrictions, Prerequisites and Corequisites
Restrictions:
None
Prerequisites:
None
Co-requisites:
None
Teaching
Teaching Methods:
Formal lecture-format presentations by module staff and visiting lecturers, group work.
Contact Hours:
Assessment
- Supplementary (where allowed): As the sessional assessment
- Individual report; group presentation material.
Recommended Books
| Title | Author(s) | Publisher, Date |
| The Essence of Professional Issues in Computing | Robert Ayres | Prentice Hall, 1999 |
| Ethics for the Information Age | Michael J. Quinn | Addison Wesley, 2005 |
| A Gift of Fire | Sara Baase | Prentice Hall, 2003 |
| Students Must Write | Robert Barrass | Routledge, 1995 |
| Plain English | Diane Collinson, Gillian Kirkup, Robyn Kyd and Lynne Slocombe | The Open University, 1992 |
| The Macmillan Guide to English Grammar | Rosalind Fergusson & Martin H Manser | Macmillan, 1998 |
| English Grammar | Richard Hudson | Routledge, 1998 |
| The Age of Access: Information Technology and Social Revolution. Posthumous Papers of Colin Cherry | Edited by William Edmondson | Croom Helm, 1985 |
| Professional Issues in Software Engineering | Frank Bott, Allison Coleman, Jack Eaton & Diane Rowland | UCL Press, 1996 |
| Introduction to Computer Law | D I Bainbridge | Pitman, 1996 |
| Ethics and Computing | Kevin W Bowyer | IEEE, 1995 |
| Intellectual Property Rights in Software | N/A | BCS, 2000 |
| Data Protection -- a practical guide | N/A | BCS, 2000 |
| Hackers: Crime and the Digitally Sublime | Paul A Taylor | Routledge, 1999 |
Detailed Syllabus
Not applicable
Last updated: 5 Nov 2004
Source file: /internal/modules/COMSCI/2005/xml/18519.xml
Links | Outline | Aims | Outcomes | Prerequisites | Teaching | Assessment | Books | Detailed Syllabus