Focusing on IS Skills for the Middle and Senior Level Manager: A New Approach to the MBA Core IS Course

The core information systems (IS) course in an MBA program (the foundations IS course required for all students) is typically one of the hardest to teach. The wide range of student skills and the differing opinions on the content make this course a perennial problem. Who is the target audience? What should be the focus of the course? What is the appropriate course content? What is the proper balance between technical and managerial topics? To help answer these questions this paper investigates the problematic issues surrounding the core IS course and the current pedagogical approaches. An examination of past studies on IS skills seems to suggest academia should consider redesigning the MBA level core IS course. The paper proposes a new IS managerial approach to the course that may better fit the needs of middle and senior managers. This approach differs from previous approaches by making the central focus of the course the skills/knowledge needed by management, particularly general management, for exploiting information technology. A detailed description of a course example following this proposed new approach is provided along with a discussion of the flexibility that this approach offers MBA level IS instructors in achieving various pedagogical objectives. The paper concludes with some limitations associated with the approach and how these limitations can be overcome

A Study Of Gender Differences With Respect To Internet Socialization Of Adolescents

This study investigates the differences between adolescent males and females in the perceived amount of knowledge regarding internet usage provided by various socialization agents (i.e. parents, school, media, and peers).  Further, it examines whether there is a significant difference in the amount of knowledge regarding internet usage provided by various socialization agents within gender.  The study takes a social learning perspective to examine the gender differences

Socialization To The Internet: Who Is Teaching Our Children?

The introduction of technology into 21st century life has been fast and ubiquitous. The 2000 United States Census is filled with examples of increasing proportions of the American family who have access to computers and the internet. The issue of changes in our culture and the socialization of all parts of society bring logical questions about our children and technology. Where are they learning about the internet? Is the popular press correct in stating that there is a generational gap between parents and their children in socialization of technology? Where are they learning about the various uses of the Internet? This paper attempts to answer the question concerning who is teaching our children (about technology). Who is actually doing the socializing to technology

Developing Social Responsibility: Impact of IS Service Learning Projects

Research has shown service learning to have an impact on the development of students\u27 professional knowledge and skills as well as their social awareness. However, there has been limited empirical research conducted regarding the benefits of service learning in the area of IS. Unlike service learning projects in other disciplines, where the service activity facilitates direct contact between the student and the individual being helped; IS service projects tend to focus on helping the organization better service the individual in need of assistance. Thus the student has an indirect, rather than direct, impact on the individuals being served. Given the indirect nature of these IS service projects, it is not clear if these projects generate any additional benefits over other pedagogical approaches and/or provide students an increased social awareness. Therefore the goal of this research project is to investigate whether IS service learning projects increase students\u27 sense of social responsibility