CMIS 270: Systems Analysis and Design
Course Information:
Web
Page: www.siue.edu/~apowell
Office: FH 2311
Email: apowell@siue.edu
Phone: 650-2590
Required Textbook: Hoffer,
J., George, J., and Valacich, J., 2005
Modern Systems Analysis
and Design, 4th Edition Prentice Hall,
Other readings my be assigned during the semester.
This course prepares you to become an information systems analyst, either internal to a corporation or as a consultant, and to manage systems development projects. Because these jobs are crucial to the IS field, the concepts and skills developed in this course are central to a career in information systems, i.e., this is a course for your career prospects. The course covers concepts of information systems, methodologies, and techniques used for systems analysis and design, and technologies used during the development of information systems. The course will take an applied approach. You will demonstrate your mastery of the material by applying what you learn in class and homework exercises, in exams, and in a running project, which simulates interaction with a client. You will not implement an information system in this course. Rather, you will follow the process of systems analysis from inception of a project through the specification or what the system is to do.
The overall course objective is for you to develop the concepts and skills needed to define the information requirements to solve a business problem. Although the course addresses the whole of the systems development life cycle, it focuses on the early phases of the development process including project identification and selection, analysis and design. Detailed objectives are:
· Develop an understanding of “systems”.
· Build an understanding of the Systems Development Life Cycle – the processes required to develop information systems.
· Analyze a business need for information and develop an appropriate strategy to solve the problem and hence provide the required information service.
· Prepare and use various information-gathering techniques for eliciting user information requirements.
· Use a number of relevant analysis techniques (e.g., process, logic, and conceptual data models) to aid in defining information requirements.
· Produce appropriate systems documentation at each phase of systems development.
· Communicate systems design specifications effectively and persuasively in both written and oral forms.
· Develop personal goals to facilitate the continuous learning that is central to the information systems profession.
Class sessions will vary in using lectures., hands-on-tutorials, in-class exercises, demonstrations, and other classroom experiences. Classes are designed to supplement the textbook and other readings. Because of the nature of the material in this course, the focus of the class sessions will be on integrating the material into the course as a whole. For this reason, classes will most often take a higher-level perspective than the text readings for that day, i.e., lectures will not necessarily address text directly, and they will not cover all of the detail in the text; they will build on what is presented in the text. Bottom line: Read your textbook.
Final course grades will be determined using the following fixed percentage cutoffs:*
A = Excellent work. 91-100. Assigned work is clearly presented, thoughtful,
insightful, and creative. The student has demonstrated that the course material has been thoroughly learned. The student has demonstrated the creative application of the course material to novel situations. The student has gone above and beyond the class requirements.
B = Good work. 82-90. Assigned work is clearly presented and thoughtful. The student
has clearly demonstrated that the course material has been learned. All work has
been done correctly.
C = Acceptable work. 73-81*. Assigned work is complete and the course standards are
met. The student has clearly demonstrated that much of the course material has
been learned.
D = Marginally acceptable work. 64-72*. Most of the assigned work is completed in a
way that meets the course standards. The student has clearly demonstrated that
some of the material has been learned.
F = Unacceptable work. Under 64. The student has not clearly demonstrated that the
course material has been learned.
*In addition, to receive a C grade for the course, your average on exams and homeworks must be at least 64%; to receive a D grade for the course, your average on exams and homeworks must be at least 55%.
| Exercises: | %
of grade |
Indiv/Group |
Project Mgt Chart |
2% |
Individual |
Interview |
2% |
Individual |
Data
Flow Diagram |
3% |
Individual |
E-R
Diagram |
2% |
Individual |
Design
homework |
2% |
Individual |
| Professionalism/Participation | 4% |
Individual |
| Project: | ||
Midterm Project Report |
10% |
Group |
Final Project Report |
20% |
Group |
Presentation |
5% |
Group |
| Exams: | ||
Test
1 (SA&D
environment) |
10% |
Individual |
Test
2 (Analysis) |
20% |
Individual |
Final
(Design) |
20% |
Individual |
Exercises
There are five assigned homework exercises for this course. Project Management Chart, Interview, Data Flow Diagram, Entity-Relationship Diagram, and a Design assignment. Each exercise will draw directly from the material presented in the textbook and covered in the class sessions. Each exercise is directly relevant to the project. For example, data flow diagrams and E-R diagrams will be required for the Project Final Report. You will complete these assignments individually. Details on these exercises and their grading will be given in class.
Bottom line on exercises: These are designed to help you learned the “nuts and bolts” of what systems analysts and systems consultants do on the job. These shouldn’t be too difficult to do and they prepare you nicely for the project.
Class Participation
/ Professionalism
In this course, you share with me the responsibility of
your learning. Thus, you are expected to
read the material, work diligently toward the completion of assignments, attend
sessions regularly and participate in all discussion, presentations, and
activities constructively. In addition,
you are expected to show respect, collegiality, and good citizenship toward
others is the class. You will be
evaluated based on the quality and quantity of constructive participation on
all aspects of the course. Class
participation is not the same as class attendance.
Project
A semester long team project represents a major element of this class. Details will be provided in a separate document. We will be discussing how to work effectively in systems development teams. It is your responsibility to make your team work well.
You are strongly encouraged to think carefully about project member assignments, project management roles, and communication mechanisms. You may want to schedule regular weekly tem meetings (perhaps very short) at which you coordinate what you are each doing.
Team members will be asked to submit a peer evaluation of themselves and other team members at two times during the project. You are expected to take the peer evaluations process seriously and to provide constructive feedback on each team member’s professionalism and contribution to the project. The purpose is to help the tam deal with any problems that might arise, and to provide guidance to your colleagues for their improvement. The results of the final peer evaluation will be used to adjust each individual’s points earned on the team project. Your final grade could be affected (up or down) based on peer evaluations. Coordinating the work for group project may be the most difficult part of the class. You are encouraged to thing about when you meet with a team when filling out the personal student profile.
Exams
There will be three exams given in class. If English is not your first language, and you encounter words or phrases you do not understand on the exams, please do not hesitate to ask the instructor for clarification.
Timeliness: If you want full credit for a written assignment, you will have to turn it in at the beginning of class period on the day it is due. Late work will be accepted – at a 5% reduction per day. Once the homework assignment has been returned to those making the original deadline, no further homeworks will be accepted. If you have obligations that conflict with exam or assignment due dates you should make arrangements with the instructor as soon as possible. I make it a point to return all homeworks and exams within one week.
Missed Exams/Assignments: Make-up exams will be given only in extraordinary circumstances. If you expect to miss an exam or to be unable to meet assignment deadlines, please discuss this with the instructor prior to the scheduled date. If an unexpected illness or family death occurs, I will need documentation for you to make up the exam.
Deadline Policy: Meeting deadlines for class assignments is important. Thus all assignments are due at the beginning of class on the date indicated on the schedule.
Accommodations for Students with Special Needs: Any student in this class who has a documented visual or physical impairment, hearing disability, or any other disability covered by the University Services for students with Disabilities should contact the instructor during the first week of class to discuss and arrange any instructional accommodations that may be necessary.
Academic Conduct: This goes without saying, but I will anyway. You are expected to abide by the Undergraduate Honor Code in this course. Further, you are expected, especially as information systems professionals in training, to respect campus computer resources and to use them productively and wisely. For example, you should not illegally copy software and you should refrain from sending abusive electronic mail messages.
|
Date |
Topic |
|
Notes |
|
1. |
Course Introduction Instructor Introduction Ice Breaker Activity |
|
|
|
2. |
Succeeding as Systems Analyst |
Appendix 1 |
|
|
3. |
System Development approaches, CASE tools |
Chapter 1 pp. 3-9; Appendix 2 |
|
|
4. |
SDLC |
Chapter 1 pp. 10-29; Chapter 2 |
Request team members |
|
5. |
Identifying and Selecting Systems Development Projects |
Chapter 4 |
|
|
6. |
Project Management Phases |
Chapter 3 |
Teams formed |
|
7. |
Project Scheduling |
Chapter 5 |
Choose Application |
|
8. |
Project Feasibility, Test Review |
|
TEAM PICTURES! |
|
9. |
Exam 1 |
Appendices 1, 2; Chapters 1-5 |
|
|
10. |
Analysis – Requirements Collection |
Chapter 6 |
Choose presentation date |
|
11. |
Analysis- Data Flow Diagrams (pre-survey) |
Chapter 7 |
Project Mgt Exercise DUE |
|
12. |
More DFDs (2 ex + survey 1) |
|
|
|
13. |
Lab – VISIO – more DFDs Meeting place TBA (1 ex) |
|
Interview exercise DUE |
|
14. |
And still more DFDs (survey 2 then, 1 ex) |
|
|
|
15. |
DFDs once again (1 ex + survey 3) |
|
|
|
16. |
Analysis – Entity Relationship Diagrams |
Chapter 9 pp. 266-285 |
|
|
17. |
Finish up ERDs Midterm presentation if needed |
|
Midterm paper DUE for all |
|
18. |
Midterm Presentations |
|
|
|
19. |
Finishing up analysis – Alternative Design |
Notes in Class |
DFD exercise DUE |
|
20. |
Review for Test 2, DFDs/ERDs review |
|
Last Day to Withdraw |
|
21. |
Exam 2 |
Chapters 6,7,9, Notes |
|
|
22. |
Design – Human Computer Interaction |
Chapter 11 |
|
|
23. |
Design – Inputs and Outputs |
Chapter 12 |
ERD exercise DUE |
|
24. |
Design – Files and Databases Data Dictionary |
Chapter 10 pp. 351-354 |
|
|
25. |
Development & Testing |
Chapter 15 pp. 506-518 |
|
|
26. |
Implementation |
Chapter 15 pp. 518-543 |
|
|
27. |
Maintenance Final Review |
Chapter 16 |
Homework #5 DUE |
|
28. |
Catch-up |
|
|
|
29. |
Project Presentation |
|
|
|
30. |
Project Presentation |
|
Final Project Papers DUE |
|
FINAL: |
|
Chapters 10-12, 15-16 |
|