CS 306  Synthesis of Ethics and Law for the Computing Professional, 3 units
GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY
Department of Computer Science
Course Description -- Fall, 2008

Sec. -001    Tues.   10:30 a.m.-1:15 p.m.    Innovation Hall, Room 203
        Class Dates: 8/26-12/02;  Final Exam: Tues., 12/16/08 from 10:30 a.m - 1:15 p.m.

Sec. -002    Tues.   4:30-7:10 p.m.    S&T 1, Room 224  
        Class Dates: 8/26-12/02;  Final Exam:  Tues., 12/09/08, from 4:30-7:15 p.m. 

Instructor:    Tamara A. Maddox            Email address: tmaddox@cs.gmu.edu
    Telephone:    (703) 993-1525                Office:    Science & Tech. 2, Room 369
    Office Hours:    Tuesdays 2:30-4:00 p.m. and by Appointment
    Instructor's Home Page:    http://cs.gmu.edu/~tmaddox

Online Class Syllabus:  http://www.cs.gmu.edu/syllabus/syllabi-fall08/CS306MaddoxT.html
Class Schedule:  http://www.cs.gmu.edu/~tmaddox/cs306/Class_Schedule.html
WebCT Link: https://courses.gmu.edu

Undergraduate Teaching Assistant: Shahrum Amiri     Email address: samiri2@gmu.edu

Course Prerequisites:   CS 105; Completion of at least 60 credit hours;  Concurrent enrollment or completion of all other general education requirements.

Required Textbooks:    Herman T. Tavani, "Ethics & Technology," 2^nd Ed,. 2007;  Maddox, Tompkins, Maddox, "Supplementary Cases and Materials," 2008.

Students will investigate the role of ethics for the computer professional in various situations through individual and group work. Students should be prepared to participate during class activities and to interact with their classmates. Students will refine their personal points of view on various ethical issues and consider how such issues - and their own views - impact on professional colleagues, clients and the general public.

Course Outcomes:

1. Understand the historic development, purposes and importance of law and ethics.
2. Be able to identify, describe, discuss and critique traditional theories of philosophical ethics, and to apply those theories to various types of problems and situations in a systematic manner, in order to evaluate their relative merits and compare their resulting conclusions.
3. Understand historic and contemporary views of professional ethics, including whistle blowing and the use of professional ethical codes.
4. Be able to recall and discuss specific issues and technologies in various substantive areas of computer law and ethics as presented in class or in assigned readings, particularly intellectual property rights generally and copyright law specifically.
5. Enhance oral communication and public speaking skills.
6. Enhance written communication and persuasive writing skills.
7. Be able to work with a partner and/or group to satisfy a complex task.

Writing Intensive Component:    CS 306 is a Writing Intensive (WI) Course that, together with CS 421, meets the GMU WI Requirements for the BS CS Program. Accordingly, each student in CS 306 is required to write a minimum of 1750 individual words, which will be graded by the instructor and returned to the student with feedback.  This requirement will be fulfilled by the individual legal/ethics persuasive memo requirement for the course.  Students will also be required to write additional materials for the group project. 

    1.    Draft & Final Individual Research Memorandum (min. 1750 words) (20%)  
    2.    Two Midterm Exams (15% total)
    3.    In-Class Mock Trial {To be scheduled during weeks 10/21, 10/28 and 11/04} (15%)
    4.    Original Group Scenario (including drafts and meetings w/ UTA or instructor) (20%)
    5.    Homework, Class Participation, In-class Exercises & Instructor Evaluation (10%)
    6.    Final Exam (20%)

Students should plan to attend class regularly, prepared to participate. Failure to do so will be reflected in your class participation grade. Group project grading may include a confidential review of participating group members by each student. All major assignments require inclusion of the Class Honor Code Pledge found here, or they will not be accepted. (For WebCT submissions, a typed name will be accepted as the student signature.)

Honor Code: The Persuasive Research Memo is to be an individual effort.  Certain homework and portions of group or team assignments may require individual efforts as well.  Failure to give proper credit by using quotes and cites constitutes plagiarism.  See here for an explanation of quotes and cites for this class.  If you have any questions about proper citation method, contact your instructor.  Plagiarism is governed by the GMU Honor Code and will not be tolerated.  Suspected honor code violations will be referred to the Honor Committee.

Special Accommodations:    If you are a student with a disability and you need academic accomodations, please see your instructor and contact the Disability Resource Center (DRC) at (703) 993-2474.  All academic accomodations must be arranged through the DRC.

General Education: This course is approved to satisfy the GMU Synthesis General Education requirement.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: None of the information presented in this course should be considered specific legal advice. Each situation is unique and requires individual attention. Students with individual legal concerns should not rely on information obtained in this course in making any legal decisions. Should you have a problem or concern requiring legal attention, you should seek specific advice from an attorney of your choosing.