Measuring Online Students\u27 Ability To Apply Programming Theory: Are Web Courses Really Working?

As a response to troubling doubts about the success of Web-delivered courses that include problem solving and critical thinking skills, the authors gathered data from two online sections of the CIS Application Programming with Visual Basic course at Metropolitan State College of Denver over two semesters and compared it with the data from classroom sections. T-tests showed a significant difference in the means of student projects and tests that required application of theory learned. All sections of the course used, the same syllabus and assignments and were taught by the same instructor. Internet students scored signifcantly lower in theory portions of exams and in projects. The authors conclude that more study is needed, but design and delivery of problem solving courses via the Web needs careful attention

Is The Computer The Medium And The Message? A Comparison Of Student VB Programming Performance In Three Delivery Modes

As a third stage of research on delivery of a popular programming course at Metropolitan State College of Denver, the authors gathered data from an online section of CIS Application Programming with Visual Basic, two interactive classroom deliveries in campus smart classrooms, and in two traditional lecture-based sections of the course. The authors had previously completed research which showed significant differences in student ability to apply concepts learned in online sections and classroom sections of the Visual Basic programming class. The addition of interactive classrooms on campus allowed them to reexamine the relationship between performance and style of delivery.  The three modes of delivery--1) Web 2) Interactive Classroom and 3) Traditional Classroom--provided a rich source of data on student ability to apply theory. Data was gathered on a lab exam, a three phase semester-long programming project, and essay/coding problems on three in-class exams.  Data from the five sections of the Visual Basic course were analyzed. Although the results were not as conclusive as the authors had hoped, an analysis of variance showed significant differences in one of the three measurements of students ability to apply theory— the programming project.  A Fisher's pairwise comparison indicated that the Internet students performed significantly lower than students receiving the traditional classroom or interactive instruction method. The attrition rate for the Internet section was more than twice that of the other modes of delivery. Although the Interactive Classroom mode of delivery was not found to be significantly different, students did score slightly higher. All sections of the course used the same syllabus and assignments; the instructors used common examinations and rubrics for grading student assignments.  The authors conclude that an interactive environment, within an instructor-led "smart classroom ", is preferable to Web based delivery, and perhaps the traditional lecture-based method of delivering programming classes. This style of delivery is more apt to produce a student who can apply theory and produce working code.  As evidenced by performance on projects and subjective tests, students who participated in the interactive classroom sections were better able to apply programming theory to new situations. The authors caution that while traditional classroom delivery methods are well-established, Web courses and the interactive classrooms are still in their infancy. Further research is needed to verify their conclusions

Do Students Get Enough Information Systems Education in the Business Core?

Information Systems/Technology is a key component in today’s business infrastructures with a myriad of ever-increasing and innovative applications fuelling the drive for competitive advantage. Therefore information systems education should be a critical element in business schools programs today to appropriately prepare students to be competitive. As our university was seeking AACSB accreditation we wanted to investigate what other programs were doing for the information systems area in the business core. Therefore data was acquired from 61 peer institutions, 89% of which are AACSB-accredited. Data about the components of the business core were collected from the university websites and analysed to determine the amount of the business core curriculum devoted to information systems. Analysis indicates that 85% of the peer institutions had one information systems course and only three percent had two information systems courses

Factors That Impact Student Performance in a Course Sequence

On-line courses have become an important component of the delivery of courses in all areas of education. The validity of online delivery is challenged if Web students perform poorly in subsequent major courses. This paper investigates the effect of mode of delivery and other factors on the level of success, failure, potential, and limitations of web delivery in course sequences. This study was conducted on a two-course sequence in the Computer Information Systems Department at Metropolitan State College of Denver. The result of this research identifies important factors impacting student success in this two course sequence

An Exploration Of The Impact Of Online Delivery In Prerequisite Courses On CIS Majors Course Sequence

On-line courses have become an important component of the delivery of courses in all areas of education. The validity of online delivery is challenged if Web students perform poorly in subsequent major courses. This paper investigates the level of success, failure, potential, and limitation of on-line delivery in the CIS area at MSCD. The result of this research will provide a framework for developing a methodology for this kind of study, allowing academic institutions to evaluate the success and utility of online courses