Assignment 2
Research topics in DBA
Semester 2 2019
1. Introduction
Database Administration is fundamental to modern day business: without good database administration, database designs can become outdated, performance may become suboptimal, user needs are less likely to be met over time, data loses integrity, and the whole system may completely fail.
All mainstream DBMS require ongoing maintenance. It is the role of the Database Administrator to keep database systems online, up-to-date, and functioning efficiently, and delivering on user demands. They can play a role in evaluating new systems or updates, designing the database, establishing use and access policies, tuning the database, ensuring backup and recovery, and planning for future developments. Database Administrators and tools for administering databases have been around as long as databases: new tools emerge over time, as do specialist roles – these developments depend on both the technological opportunities and business needs of the day.
In this assignment, working in teams, we challenge you to explore some of the contemporary challenges and opportunities facing organizations and database administrators. To this end, each group will focus on a specific DBA research topic to independently and critically analyse relevant literature and tools, and communicate findings via a group report and presentation. The aim is for students to better understand database administration in the context of modern organizations, in terms of performance requirements, monitoring approaches, available tools, and improvement strategies,
2. Activities and Requirements
To successfully complete this task, you and your group will need to complete the following tasks and requirements. If you’re unsure about any of the steps please consult your lab instructor or the course convenor.
i. In Week 3 of the unit, your lab instructor will help organize you into groups of 4 students
ii. Each group will either select or be allocated a topic (see Canvas folder for assignment 2). Each topics consists of brief background that needs to be understood and researched.
iii. In addition to the above, each group should ensure they’ve answered the following general questions, relevant to all topics: 1) Critically examine the societal and/or organizational trends driving the uptake of the DBA-related technology; 2) Explore and explain the technical nature of the DBA-related technology (i.e. hardware, software, networks, models, standards/protocols) and how these complement or compete with conventional DBA tools; 3) Explain the approaches and potential challenges for implementing the DBA technology within organizations; 4) Identify and articulate any changes to the role of DBA – or new roles a DBA might be required to undertake; 5) Hypothesize what the impact of your topic area will be on DBAs (individuals and the industry), organizations, and society more broadly – in the next 5 to 10 years (you might develop multiple scenarios); 6) If possible, identify a real case study organization or individual and use it help further demonstrate and justify your answers to the first five questions (note: you can use DBA industry contacts here, or make use of grey literature, or even academic literature from the library)
iv. Before commencing the research, the team must decide and record how it plans to work together.
The following should be completed: a) decision on whether to appoint a team leader;
b) outline of when, where, and how often the team plans to meet; c) a code of set of rules to which all team members must adhere to, including incentives or penalties in cases where team members fail to adhere to the code; d) articulation of the tasks than need to be completed by the team; e) clear allocation of which team members will complete what tasks; f) justification that the allocation of tasks is equitable; g) a timeline or Gantt chart identifying when each task is to be completed. This team plan should be recorded by the group and submitted as an appendix to the final report. Minutes of each meeting should also be kept and submitted in the appendix.
v. Using iii as your guide, investigate and research your allocated topic area. You can make use of academic literature, grey literature, web resources, and case studies. You can also speak with industry experts and/or leaders within the field. If you do this, be sure to seek their permission to be recorded (verbally or written) and make clear that the information they provide you will only be used within your group report. Your topic might also require you to analyse, test, and apply different database administration tools – either online or available from within Swinburne’s ICT suite of hardware and software. When undertaking these investigations remember you’ll need an approach for assessing the tools and record your findings.
vi. Synthesize your research findings into a structured report. The report should be no longer than 3000 words. It should be written in English and make use of correct spelling and grammar. Include a title page, executive summary and contents page. You may structure the sections however your group prefers, but, it should be logical and well organized. If necessary, you may
include SQL statements and/or scripts as needed. These should be added as an appendix. The report should, where necessary, cite the relevant literature used to make arguments and arrive at conclusions. A reference section (or bibliography) should be provided at the back of the report: be sure to use a standard and consistent approach to referencing. Likewise, if you used interviews with industry contacts, you should disclose and provide citations in the appropriate places within the report. The backend of the report should include sections covering discussion, recommendations (if any), and conclusions. Each group member should make a contribution to the report. The report should be submitted in hardcopy at the end of Week 8. The group report is marked out of 20 (or 20% of the final unit grade).
vii. Your group should also convert the report into presentation format. Your group will present your topic during Week 7 or 8 of the course. Your group can choose the format of the presentation, however, it should run for 20 minutes and allow for 10 minutes of questions. You can make use of MS Powerpoint or other presentation software and tools. Ambitious groups might like to include (and even create) videos, animations and other form of multimedia. Each group member should be available to answers questions during question time, although, not all group members necessarily need to present during the presentation. The group presentation is marked out of 10 (or 10% of the final unit grade). Combined the presentation and report are marked out of 30 (or 30% of the final unit grade).
3. Topics
List of topics is attached to assignment 2 folder on Canvas. You and your group will be assigned one of these topics. For each of the topics, you need to do research around that topic. Also your report and presentation should cover the general questions (see Section 2, part iii).
4. Submission and Marking Rubric
The group report is submitted in Week 11 (Friday 25th October @ 17:00 AEST), once all presentations have been completed. The report should be submitted online, by one group member, using the submission instructions provided on Canvas. The report will be assessed for plagiarism.
The group presentation is completed at an allocated slot during the lecture sessions in Week 12. The lecturer will allocate your group a time prior to those weeks. The presentation slides (or files) should be submitted online on Canvas, following the instructions provided, by one group member, by Friday 25th October @ 17:00 AEST.
A single mark out of 30 (30% of total unit grade) is provided for the whole assignment, however, it is made up of two main components: the presentation and the report. The marking rubric for these components is provided below. All criteria carry equal weighting for both the report and presentation components.
INF30010 Assignment 2
Criteria Fail Pass Credit Distinction High Distinction
Report
Context: Appreciation of organizational or societal contexts within which DBAs operate None provided Superficial or little shown or articulated Several issues identified and impact on DBAs explained Clear articulation of key issues - explained and justified Excellent organization, articulation and explanation
Technical: Identification and explanation of technical aspects in DBA development No technical DBA aspects covered Limited to no covered of DBA technical aspects Key technologies and tools explained Good breadth of relevant technical aspects Excellent breadth of relevant technical aspects
Analysis:
Evidence of critical examination and fusion of contextual and technical DBA issues No analysis or fusion evident Analysis is superficial, siloed, and/or includes minimal synthesis Good effort to synthesize technical and contextual aspects Excellent coverage and fusion of technical and contextual aspects Evidence of contribution to knowledge in the specific topic area
Communication:
Approach to conveying written message to target audience Report is incomplete or several elements are unsatisfactory All required elements of the report are provided. Some structure. Good structure. All required elements.
Easy to read. Professionally presented and structured. Well written. Good use of aids. Industry standard report – all elements excellent
Teamwork:
Level of organization, comradery, and shared vision across group No evidence Evidence provided. Some coherence in report Evidence provided.
Report is coherent. Detailed evidence provided – backed by professional report Industry level evidence of teamwork + reporting
20 marks
Presentation
INF30010 Assignment 2
Context Appreciation of organizational or societal contexts within which DBAs operate None provided Superficial or little shown or articulated Several issues identified and impact on DBAs explained Clear articulation of key issues - explained and justified Excellent organization, articulation and explanation
Technical Identification and explanation of technical aspects in DBA development No technical DBA aspects covered Limited to no covered of DBA technical aspects Key technologies and tools explained Good breadth of relevant technical aspects Excellent breadth of relevant technical aspects
Analysis
Evidence of critical examination and fusion of contextual and technical DBA issues No analysis or fusion evident Analysis is superficial, siloed, and/or includes minimal synthesis Good effort to synthesize technical and contextual aspects Excellent coverage and fusion of technical and contextual aspects Evidence of contribution to knowledge in the specific topic area
Communication
Approach to conveying written message to target audience Presentation is incomplete or several elements are unsatisfactory All required elements of the presentation are provided. Some structure. Good structure. All required elements.
Easy to follow. Professionally presented and structured. Good use of aids. Industry standard presentation – all elements excellent
Teamwork
Level of organization, comradery, and shared vision across group No evidence Evidence of coherence and comradery in presentation Presentation is highly cohesive and
consistent Professional transitions and interactions amongst group Industry level teamwork
10 marks
Total 30 marks
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