ITCD 373

ETHICS AND CURRENT ISSUES

in Communication Science and Technology
Spring 2015
Assignment 06: ePaper
worth 20% of semester grade
Purpose: Research and write a comprehensive paper (equivalent to a minimum 12 pages double-spaced) that is
presented as a web site (design and template provided). The paper should explore and define an ethical issue that
is relevant to the Information Technology profession. As an ePaper, the writing should exploit hypertext links within
the text as an alternative to the conventional bibliography. The writing of the paper will be iterative--each week
you will present to the class a draft of the content for a specific section and you will receive immediate feedback
as to what needs to be improved. As you continue to write subsequent sections you will be revising and improving
the previous sections. The ePapers will also be interactiveeach student will be part of a cadre and will read and
respond to discusion questions of their cadre mates ePapers. NEW THIS SEMESTER: Cadre members will present
other team members sections
Choosing an appropriate topic:
It is important to select a topic that looks at ethical choices currently being made by IT professionals and/or users
of Information Technology. The research and conclusions of the ePaper should help your classmates become better
prepared to deal with these ethical choices when they become working IT professionals. The ePapers that have
been the most successful in the past featured topics that were closely linked to the students individual interests,
capstones, and career choices.

ePaper sections:
Introduction
History
Media Views
Other Views
Ethical Perspectives
Discussions
Future Challenge
My Reflections

Choosing the best topic:

As you explore potential topics, look for those that are a good fit with the ePapers
specific sections. A topic with a limited history or no media coverage will make it
more difficult for you to successfully complete the assignment.
You will submit three potential topics (each with a research question) to iLearn
and the instructor will select the one best suited for the collective learning of the
entire class.

Below each section/link title is a set of questions to be explored during the development and writing of that section.
Assessment of the paper will be based on how well and how thorough each question is addressed.
INTRODUCTION
In this section briefly introduce yourself as a student in ITCD 373, a CD or CSIT major, and a member of the CSUMB
community. Include a recent photograph of yourself (optional) and any additional material that will help the reader
get to know you better. Then introduce the topic by stating something like In these pages I will explore the ethical
issues relating to.... The personal and societal values at stake are.... I am interested in this topic because.... This
issue is worth studying because....
HISTORY
In this section describe the history of your issue. What cultural and technological events have preceded it? Who
were/are some of the key players? How were attitudes and behaviors different in the past and what caused them
to change/evolve? What are the laws that govern our behavior relating to this issue? When were these laws made?
From what country were they derived? Are these laws currently being challenged? Do other cultures/nations honor
the same rules?

MEDIA VIEWS
How is this issue represented in the mass media? Give examples from the present and the past (include archived
video, print and/or audio files). Do you see patterns in the way the story is being told? How is the media
packaging the story and do you see any bias?
OTHER VIEWS
Who besides the media is concerned with this issue? Who are these people and what are their concerns? Do their
attitudes change as a result of ethnicity, income, region, age, education, etc? What individuals or groups define the
popular viewpoints? What individuals or groups define the dissenting viewpoints? Why do these people disagree?
Describe and illustrate how (effectively) these groups use the Internet and other current technologies such as blogs
to communicate.
ETHICAL PERSPECTIVES
Choose at least three different ethcial frameworks to analyze your topic. Compare and contrast how these individual
ethical perspectives require you to rethink your attitudes and assumptions relating to your issue. Use the Ethical
Frameworks link in the External Links section of the course web site as a starting point. You may choose other
frameworks not listed there.
DISCUSSION
In this section ask 3-5 questions which require the reader to make a choice, specifically to take an ethical stand,
on your ePaper issue. Ideally, the questions should focus on scenarios of IT users and the IT professionals who
serve them. Ask for specific responses. Encourage people to respond with more than yes or no answers. Think
carefully how you frame your questionsyour goal is to enlicit insightful responses. Once the questions have been
answered and posted, you need to summarize the responses and highlight any patterns you find insightful.
FUTURE CHALLENGES
Discuss the future of the issue. What will the issue be like 5, 10, 50 years from now? Will it be less of a problem?
Or will it be a bigger problem? What statistics can you cite that demonstrate trends or patterns that are relevant to
the issue? How will we solve the problem? Be sure to cite experts and futurists who have speculated about these
future issues.
MY REFLECTIONS
Finally, in this section state your personal views on the issue. Talk about how your attitudes evolved and how they
may have changed during the process of this investigation. And, finally, make your recommendations for future
social and political changes.

Assessment Criteria:
Chooses an appropriate and thought-provoking topic
Contributes relevant and insightful research
Contributes multiple perspectives
Identifies values at stake
Reaches an insightful conclusion
Communicates clearly and efficiently
Please review the standards for assessing your ePaper on the next pages. You should use the rubric as a checklist for completing the assignment and achieving a passing score. If you wish to get an A in the course you will need to consistently score
an E (Excellent) in this and every assignment. NOTE that this is both a research paper and a personal reflection. The best way
to approach the paper is to think of it as a research paper flanked (think bookends) by personal reflection. The first and final
section should be very personal and reflective. This sections in between should be very academic and research oriented with
little, if any, personal references. Be careful to make it obvious to the reader why you are including a link and how the link
will be useful to further understanding the concepts. Do not simply link to outside sources expecting these resources to make
meaningful connections for your readers. That is your responsibility.

Self-Assessment
ePaper

E: Excellent
S: Satisfactory
NI: Needs Improvement

page 1 of 2
Introduction

History

Media Views

Other Views

Ethical
Perspectives

Discussions

Future
Challenges

Introduces student: Describes personal background and academic interests

N I

Introduces topic: Defines research question and justifies value of study

N I

Defines cultural and technological precedents

N I

Defines key players

N I

States how attitudes/behaviors were different in the past and what caused them to change/evolve?

N I

Defines the laws that govern our behavior relating to this issue, when these laws were made
and from what country they derived. Describes if and how these laws are currently being
challenged. Describes how other cultures/nations honor the same rules.

N I

N I

Describes how this issue is represented in the mass media

N I

Gives examples from the present and the past (includes video, print and/or audio files).

N I

Illustrates patterns in the way the story is being told

N I

Describes how is the media packaging the story and determines if there is any bias

N I

States who besides the media is concerned with this issue

N I

Describes these people and their concerns

N I

Demonstrates how their attitudes change as a result of ethnicity, income, region, age, education

N I

Defines what individuals or groups define the popular viewpoints

N I

Defines what individuals or groups define the dissenting viewpoints

N I

Determines why these people disagree

N I

Describes and illustrates how (effectively) these groups use technology to communicate

N I

Chooses at least three different ethcial frameworks to analyze topic.

N I

Demonstrates how individual ethical perspectives require author to rethink attitudes/assumptions

N I

Asks 3-5 questions which require the reader to take an ethical stand on your ePaper issue.

N I

Priovides responses from cadre members and summarizes them

N I

Illustrates interesting patterns and inconsistencies in responses

N I

Discusses the future of the issue in terms of 5, 10, 50 years from now

N I

Deternines wether it will it be less of a problem or will it be a bigger problem

N I

Uses statistics to demonstrate trends or patterns that are relevant to the issue

N I

Determines how will we solve the problem

N I

Cites experts and futurists who have speculated about these future issues

N I

Self-Assessment
ePaper

E: Excellent
S: Satisfactory
NI: Needs Improvement

page 2 of 2
My Reflection

Overall
Quality of
Writing

States your personal views on the issue.

N I

Talks about how your attitudes evolved and how they changed during the investigation

N I

Makes recommendations for future social and political changes.

N I

Makes explicit connections between complex issues, perspectives, and research.

N I

Uses language appropriate to college-level discourse.

N I

Is void of spelling and grammatical errors and is well written.

N I

Uses an efficient style to communicate, saying what needs to be said without over-writing.

N I