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Programs->
Masters of Information Science
Degree | PhD
| Theses and Dissertations
Detailed course contents
Masters Level Courses (700
Level)
FSC 711: Introduction to Information Science (C)
Definitions of basic terminology; Distinguishing information from
communication, data, knowledge; Its role and value in society (local, national, global);
Origins and growth of information science; Relationship to other disciplines; Educational
innovations; Career prospects for information scientists; Overview of the MInfSc
programme. (2 Units)
FSC 712: Research Methods in Information Science
(C)
Nature and forms of research in information science; Research
principles and techniques: model building, theory development, and problem solving; Types
of research design: experiment, quasi-experiment, sample survey, census, historical
approach, case study, participant observation, and bibliographic research; Methods of data
collection: direct observation (unobtrusive measures), interview, questionnaire, diary
methods, and automated procedures. Presentation of research findings: organization of
reports; grammar, punctuation and word usage; publication standards; and preparation of
manuscripts; Writing a research proposal: planning an investigation, cost and budgetary
considerations. (2 Units)
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FSC 713: Quantitative Methods for Information
Science (C)
Basic descriptive and inferential statistical techniques; use of a
computer statistical package. Regression and correlation: simple linear,
multilinear,
nonlinear - exponential and logarithmic; Analysis of variance: one-way design, block
design, two-way design, multi-factor design, and nested design; Introduction to symbolic
logic; Introduction to operations research: queuing theory, modelling and simulation,
inventory control, and clustering. (2 Units)
FSC 714: Informetrics (E)
Quantitative approaches to information and its use:
Informetrics,
bibliometrics & scientometrics; Informetric variables and measurement: quantitative
versus qualitative indicators, theoretical versus operational variables, and measurement
problems in informetrics; Informetric methods: descriptive statistics, exploratory data
analysis, empirical generalization, theory construction, and types of models; Bibliometric
distributions: rank versus frequency approaches, Zipf, Bradford, Lotka and general models,
and assessing and comparing models; Natural language, indexing language, and Zipf's law;
Journal productivity and Bradford's law; Author productivity, co-authorship, and Lotka's
law; Citations: productivity versus impact, citation indexing and cited reference
searching, citation measures and citation analysis, and co-citation; Inequality:
descriptive measures of inequality and concentration, and 80/20 rule and Price's law;
Scientific and scholarly communication: publishing, peer review, invisible colleges, and
gatekeepers; Growth of literatures and collections; Obsolescence of literatures and
collections; Use of information centre materials; Impact of information and communication
technologies. (2 Units)
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FSC 715: Organization of Information and Data
Sources
(C)
Fundamentals of classification and organization of documents:
general principles, LC, UDC, Colon; automatic classification, Bibliographic record
standards: MARC, ISO; subject indexing: general principles, semantics and syntax; assigned
indexing; pre-coordinate and post-coordinate indexing; indexing language: design,
vocabulary control, construction and use of thesaurus; derived indexing; abstracting
techniques: general principles, types of abstracts, automatic abstracting.(2 Units)
FSC 716: Principles of Information Retrieval (C)
Definitions and basic concepts: What is an information retrieval
system (IRS)?, Differences between IRS, hypermedia systems and DBMSs, and Components of an
information retrieval system and their inter-relationships; Query negotiation; Models of
IR systems: Boolean, vector space, natural language; Evaluation of retrieval products from
both end-user and systems' points of view; Recall, precision, and other measures;
Optimization of the retrieval process; Networking and distributed IRS: IRS on the
Internet, transfer protocols for IRS, e.g. Z39.50, and use of metadata (2 Units)
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FSC 721: Information Systems Analysis, Design and
Evaluation (C)
Basic concepts associated with information systems; general
procedure for the development of an information system; user needs assessment; Techniques
for describing systems; Development of design specifications, selection of hardware and
software; other methods for implementing the system; determination of records structure;
Determination of search procedures; Development of system-user interface; Provision for
backup; Provision for evaluation of records, files, databases; Techniques for evaluating
systems. (2 Units)
FSC 724: Introduction to Programming (C)
Introduction, background, history and development of programming
languages; Flow-charting and programme design techniques; Syntax; Variables; Assignment
and control statements; Basic routines and functions; Sub-routines and sub-routine
libraries; Procedures; Structured programming concepts; Techniques appropriate to the
handling of textual and bibliographic data: Harrison keys for duplicate to matching, left
hand truncation, etc.; Debugging and programme optimization techniques; Practical
application of concepts using an appropriate programming language; Programme
documentation: Capabilities of other programming languages; Processing of non-Roman
scripts; Issues in programming, such as code level vs. programme maintainability. (2
Units)
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FSC 725: Database Management Systems (C)
Introduction/rationale: Brief history, pros and cons, data
independence; Data Modelling: Conceptual data model, entity-relation model; Logical data
modelling: Relational, hierarchical, network; Relational data model: Normalization, 1st,
2nd, 3rd and Boyce-Codd normal forms, relational algebra, and SQL; Query optimization
techniques; Physical storage organizations: Basic (sequential, direct, indexed) and Higher
level (list, multilist, ring, inverted); Database Management Issues: Transactions and
integrity, failure and crash recovery, concurrency control, serialisability, and privacy
and security; Distributed database systems: Transparency, fragmentation, heterogeneity,
and querying; Object-oriented database systems: Concepts, inheritance, polymorphism;
Practical systems: Database design, implementation using commercial database software. (2
Units)
FSC 726: Advanced Programming and Data Structures
(E)
Categorization of data structures: arrays, linked lists, stacks,
and B-trees; File structures: sequential file, inverted file, hashed file, and
ISAM;
Methods of interrogation for each file structure; Organization of files into a database;
Database models: relational, hierarchical, and network; Data manipulation: interrogation,
updating; Relationship of data structures to retrieval and maintenance; Object-oriented
programming: classes, objects, inheritance, polymorphism, and containment; programme
design: top-down approach, parameters, functions and subroutines, procedures, programming
decisions; File and text processing; Searching; Sorting; Matching; Practical applications
using an appropriate programming language. (2 Units)
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FSC 727: Man-Machine Interface and Ergonomics (E)
Issues affecting users of information, equipment and systems;
User-friendly developments; Impact on workers; Sociological effects of emerging
information technologies; New training methods and needs for standardization; Concepts of
ergonomics, physical work environment, hardware factors, optical requirements,
psychological and social factors. (2 Units)
FSC 729: Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
and Expert Systems (E)
Definition of artificial intelligence; Historical background of
artificial intelligence; Research areas within AI: natural language processing, expert
systems, image processing, machine learning, game playing, search, problem solving,
theorem proving and logic programming, etc.; Introduction to expert systems: Types and
components; Knowledge acquisition and representation; Building tools for expert systems;
Evaluation of expert Systems. (2 Units)
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FSC 731: Information Users, Sources and Systems (R)
Uses of information; The information user: characteristics,
contexts and environment, information needs, and user groups; Information sources: formal
and informal sources, primary and secondary sources, databases and databanks; Information
dissemination and diffusion: publication cycle, scholarly communication, information
gatekeepers, invisible colleges, theories of diffusion, etc; Information seeking:
behaviours, strategies and approaches, and factors influencing behaviour; User studies:
types, application and evaluation; User education, sensitization and orientation: content,
target groups, evaluation and management. (2 Units)
FSC 736: Technical Writing and Presentation (R)
Review of information products and services that involve technical
presentation; Factors affecting the sequencing, expression, exposition and presentation of
ideas; Editing, layout and related matters; Review of printing and publishing practices
and criteria; Management issues. (2 Units)
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FSC 738: Electronic and Multimedia Publishing (E)
Introduction; Electronic and multimedia publishing products and
areas of application; Design and production aspects of electronic and multimedia
publications; Capture, storage, retrieval and delivery of electronic documents; Hypertext
and hypermedia; Electronic copyright and intellectual property; The importance of
standards; Industry and business issues relating to the emergenceof electronic and
multimedia publishing; Impact of electronic and multimedia publishing on the information
industry. (2 Units)
FSC 741: Management of Information Resources and
Centres (C)
Basic systems components; Nature of information and information
technologies, the convergence phenomenon; Productivity and information; Quality control;
Financial control, including: basic budgeting, present value, sunk cost, opportunity cost,
etc.; Personnel (interpersonal) communication; Environmental and other constraints,
including the legal; Tradeoff analysis; Failure analysis; Risk analysis; Contingency
planning; Economic issues. (2 Units)
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FSC 744: Design and Marketing of Information
Products (C)
Concepts of data versus information; Information products, services
and systems; Information life-cycle: value-adding processes; Information age, society and
economy; Typologies of information products; Design, packaging and customization of
information products; Types of information services; Assignment of information
product/service categories for research and review; Review of world-wide trends in the
design, development and marketing of information products and services; Current trends in
the Nigerian information industry; Costing and pricing of information products and
services; Marketing of information products and services; Evaluation of information
products and services; Legal, social and ethical issues in the provision and marketing of
information products and services. (2 Units)
FSC 746: Management Information and Decision
Support Systems (E)
Introduction: history and development of DBMS, MIS, and
DSS,
dependence of MIS/DSS on DBMS; The MIS/DSS spectrum: problems types, data types, audience,
system capability; Decision making and management style: information overload, data
presentation; Information requirement determination; Strategic planning; Enterprise
analysis; Critical success factors; Review of data structuring (normalization); Retrieval
query languages and query formulation; Database administration, role of data
dictionary/directory; "What if" capability, including simulation; Applications
of MIS/DSS; Problems and opportunities in the integration of external data;
Knowledge-based systems and expert systems as extensions of MIS/DSS. (2 Units)
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FSC 751: Office Information Systems (E)
Introduction to office information systems
(OIS); Principles of
automation in offices; Office technology: Computer systems, workstations, printers, local
area networks, optical storage, etc.; Applications software for office management: word
processing, spreadsheet, integrated environments, electronic mail, etc.; Needs analysis
for OIS; Implementation of OIS; Evaluation of OIS; Societal impacts of OIS: Job
displacement, job security, job mobility, data security, and privacy; Organizational
impacts of OIS. (2 Units)
FSC 753: African Development Information Sources
and Systems (R)
Concepts of 'growth' and 'development'; Origins and applications of
'development information'; Africa's development priorities as sources of development
information; Components of an information and communication technology (ICT)
infrastructure; Orature in African development; Major African sources of information on
African development: UNECA, IDEP, UNEP, IITA, ILRI, ICRAF, ARCT, ARCEDEM,
CAFRAD, ADB, CODESRIA, ARCIS, SISA, ESI, CASIS, IFAA, ACDESS, etc; Criteria for determining major
African sources of information on African development; African regional information
initiatives: PADIS, ANAI, CASIS, and AISI; Information for African policy analysis and
development management; Information for African rural development; Resources and skills
for an African Information Society; and activities; PADIS and other African development
information systems; International information systems: INIS, AGRIS, DEVSIS,
INFOTERRA,
etc. (2 Units)
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FSC 755: Information Technologies (C)
Data and information processing system; Convergence of
technologies; Computer technologies: Basic architecture; Storage devices; Input/Output
devices; Performance parameters; Micrographics; Electronic copiers; Communications
technologies, telecommunications standards; Computer communication; Principles of data
transmission, Line discipline and protocols; Network configurations; Systems and
applications software, Operating systems; System-user interface, ergonomic factors;
Information technology and society, Policy issues, Security and ethics; Constraints to the
use of information technologies in the African context. (2 Units)
FSC 756: Telecommunications and Electronic
Networking (R)
Introduction: Convergence of computers and telecommunication,
information transmission techniques, objectives of networks, and information network
components; Transmission links & procedures: Links, switched and leased line
connections, point-to-point & multi-point broadcast, and asynchronous &
synchronous transmission; Network equipment: Computers, terminals, modems, concentrators,
multiplexers, front-end processors, line controllers, network nodes,
reuters, gateways,
bridges, etc.; Network Technology: WAN and LAN; Network protocols and standards: Open
system interconnections (OSI), X.25, SDLC, X.21, HTTP, etc.; Information networks and
network services: Internet & Intranets, E-mail, Gopher, WAIS, WWW, FTP, Telnet,
Usenet, etc; Social issues: Relevance and problems of information networks (2 Units)
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FSC 761: Industrial Attachment (C)
Practical experience of one semester in information systems and
services departments of approved organizations. (6 Units)
FSC 762: Project (C)
Each student will be required to collect, analyse and interpret
appropriate data on an approved topic in information science, or study a specific
information-flow problem and design an appropriate system. (6 Units)
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MPhil and PhD (800-Level) Courses
FSC 801: Advanced Statistical Methods (C)
Review of elementary quantitative methods; Analysis of variance;
Regression and correlation; Factor analysis; Multidimensional scaling; Cluster analysis;
Cross-classified categorical data; Discriminant analysis; and Non-parametric statistics.
(3 Units)
FSC 802: Information Policies (E)
Introduction to the policy sciences; Development trends affecting
national information policies and sources of information; National information policies;
Issues in the protection of intellectual property and cultural heritage;
Telecommunications and information implications; Access to external information as
governed by national/international laws and other instruments; Profession-related
policies; The New World Information and Communication Order; Scholarly communication; Case
studies by country, region and/or specific policy issues. (3 Units)
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FSC 803: Planning and Implementation of Information Systems (E)
The participatory planning process; Identifying key participants;
Development of a mission statement setting goals and objectives; Conflict negotiation and
crisis intervention, setting priorities; Developing strategies for change; risk analysis;
tradeoff analysis; Feasibility analysis; Phased implementation approaches; Sequencing and
timing of implementation approaches; Development of implementation plans; Evaluation of
progress in implementation; Preparation for implementation; Overcoming resistance to
change; Planning an integrated national information system. (3 Units)
FSC 804: Economics and Marketing of Information (E)
Economic and non-economic definitions of information. Information
economy - evolution, trends, measurement and modelling. Theories of rational choice and
utility applied to information products and services. Demand for information products and
services. Production economics of specific information technologies, products and systems.
Cost theory. Models of value of information and information products - production
(value-added), exchange, use and expectational value. Supply and demand functions. Pricing
in different types of markets: price discrimination. Pricing strategies. Pricing and
impact evaluation of information products and systems: NPV, benefit-cost ratios,
IRR.
Special topics: public/private access, free/fee debate, copyright, print/online/CD-ROM
comparisons, trade marks, information policy, etc. Feasibility analysis of specific
information products, services and systems.(3 Units)
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FSC 805: Information Personnel Management (E)
Principles of personnel management; Staff development and training
and their application to libraries, archives and information centres; role of the
personnel administrator; Functions of a personnel department; Communication in management.
(3 Units)
FSC 806: Linguistic Applications in Information Retrieval (E)
Characteristics of indexing languages; syntax, semantics, thesauri,
pre-coordination; Relevance of linguistics to automatic analysis of language text;
Automatic classification, indexing and abstracting; Online search for fact retrieval. (3
Units)
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