Integrating Student Groupwork Ratings into Student Course Grades

This article reviews the rationale for groupwork projects, particularly as they apply to business-related courses. It describes some of the pedagogical issues that faculty must address and highlights inherent weaknesses, particularly in the assessment of student effort, that often occur when groupwork is required in a course. The problem of evaluating individual student’s contributions to their group is particularly troublesome given that all students do not always contribute equally to a group’s success. Faculty members normally have little to no data or observations to assist them in valuing one student’s contribution over another student’s contribution to the group’s ultimate success. The evaluation problem can be solved by gathering and using student input regarding the contributions of their peers. This, too, can be problematic if not done in a manner that requires each student to distinguish amongst the different levels of contribution provided by each of their fellow group members. A conceptual solution for solving the ‘group member contribution’ problem and a detailed methodology for implementing the solution is offered for this problem. The solution uses peer evaluations solicited from all group members as a component of each individual student’s groupwork grade. Using a web-based form, student peer assessments are gathered anonymously and are easily integrated into the faculty member’s electronic gradebook

Integrating Traditional Research-Journal Based Sources with Trade and Web-Based Sources in Coursework

Due to the rapidly changing nature of telecommunications, it is challenging to be able to introduce timely topics into this curriculum. At the same time, educators are challenged with preparing students to function in the workplace where change is a given, as on average workers spend an average of 9.25 hours per week looking for or analyzing data [4]. Initiatives to keep instruction relevant and prepare students to be information literate mandate that students be able to discover, digest, and put into context new information about technologies. This skill is developed and enhanced through the use of research projects. This work describes the reengineering of the traditional research paper project for a telecommunications course

An ROI Comparison of Initiatives Designed to Attract Diverse Students to Technology Careers

This study examines two alternative interventions designed to attract diverse students to pursue information technology or, more generally, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) careers from a Return on Investment (ROI) perspective. More specifically, this study examines the effectiveness and efficiency of single-day and multi-day program formats by comparing students’ propensity to pursue computer information systems and technology related careers. Using an ROI perspective of comparing relative costs to students’ perceived outcomes, our findings suggest that the single-day model is equally effective as the multi-day model at moving students’ propensity to pursue information technology careers, albeit at a lower cost. This suggests that the single day model is a better choice from an ROI perspective and offers the best investment opportunity for choosing which program format to use for future interventions. These findings, while specific to a single comparison of two alternative information technology interventions, are useful as they contribute valuable knowledge and may be applicable to the design and evaluation of other STEM-influencing programs

Moving Beyond Integrating Ubiquitous Undergraduate Research Skills

Information systems professionals must be able to recognize and adapt to changing technologies to support evolving business needs. While it is impossible to accurately envision tomorrow’s technologies and business needs, it is possible to develop students’ ability to constantly survey the changing business and technology landscapes and apply critical thinking skills to draw appropriate conclusions regarding which potential trends are worth following and which are less viable. This paper makes the case for preparing undergraduate students with problem-solving and research skills and describes a successful methodology for developing these skills in an undergraduate information systems course

Information Systems Accreditation: A New Criteria Structure and New Flexibility

The Computing Accreditation Commission (CAC) has proposed changes in the structure of the criteria used to accredit information systems programs. The new structure combines so-called “general criteria,” criteria that apply to any computing program, and additional program criteria that apply to IS, IT, or CS programs. This new format allows an emergingcomputing- discipline (e.g., bioinformatics) program to apply for accreditation under the general criteria while the discipline matures to where model curricula develop. This new format begins to move criteria documents to outcome based statements. This session will discuss the new criteria structure, including the proposed general and program criteria, and the timetable for implementation of the new structure. Time will be devoted to Q&A regarding any aspect of IS program accreditation. The session will also discuss accrediting IS programs, overview the IS accreditation criteria and processes, discuss the pros and cons of accrediting IS programs, and review the internal and external steps of the process, identifying bottlenecks and problems and suggesting solutions

Genomic Relationships, Novel Loci, and Pleiotropic Mechanisms across Eight Psychiatric Disorders

Genetic influences on psychiatric disorders transcend diagnostic boundaries, suggesting substantial pleiotropy of contributing loci. However, the nature and mechanisms of these pleiotropic effects remain unclear. We performed analyses of 232,964 cases and 494,162 controls from genome-wide studies of anorexia nervosa, attention-deficit/hyper-activity disorder, autism spectrum disorder, bipolar disorder, major depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, schizophrenia, and Tourette syndrome. Genetic correlation analyses revealed a meaningful structure within the eight disorders, identifying three groups of inter-related disorders. Meta-analysis across these eight disorders detected 109 loci associated with at least two psychiatric disorders, including 23 loci with pleiotropic effects on four or more disorders and 11 loci with antagonistic effects on multiple disorders. The pleiotropic loci are located within genes that show heightened expression in the brain throughout the lifespan, beginning prenatally in the second trimester, and play prominent roles in neurodevelopmental processes. These findings have important implications for psychiatric nosology, drug development, and risk prediction.Peer reviewe

Dissecting the Shared Genetic Architecture of Suicide Attempt, Psychiatric Disorders, and Known Risk Factors

Background Suicide is a leading cause of death worldwide, and nonfatal suicide attempts, which occur far more frequently, are a major source of disability and social and economic burden. Both have substantial genetic etiology, which is partially shared and partially distinct from that of related psychiatric disorders. Methods We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 29,782 suicide attempt (SA) cases and 519,961 controls in the International Suicide Genetics Consortium (ISGC). The GWAS of SA was conditioned on psychiatric disorders using GWAS summary statistics via multitrait-based conditional and joint analysis, to remove genetic effects on SA mediated by psychiatric disorders. We investigated the shared and divergent genetic architectures of SA, psychiatric disorders, and other known risk factors. Results Two loci reached genome-wide significance for SA: the major histocompatibility complex and an intergenic locus on chromosome 7, the latter of which remained associated with SA after conditioning on psychiatric disorders and replicated in an independent cohort from the Million Veteran Program. This locus has been implicated in risk-taking behavior, smoking, and insomnia. SA showed strong genetic correlation with psychiatric disorders, particularly major depression, and also with smoking, pain, risk-taking behavior, sleep disturbances, lower educational attainment, reproductive traits, lower socioeconomic status, and poorer general health. After conditioning on psychiatric disorders, the genetic correlations between SA and psychiatric disorders decreased, whereas those with nonpsychiatric traits remained largely unchanged. Conclusions Our results identify a risk locus that contributes more strongly to SA than other phenotypes and suggest a shared underlying biology between SA and known risk factors that is not mediated by psychiatric disorders.Peer reviewe

Computer Aids to Planning: The Budget and Forecasting Module

The purpose of this paper is to explore a middle ground approach to the process of modeling financial decisionmaking in the “real-world” environment. Existing models, from both academia and practitioners, are seen as limited in the range of application. The proposed approach seeks to address this issue directly by developing a method more reasonably suited to a broad range of organizational applications. Beginning with a core of responsibilities, the basic model is refined to fit a specific sector and organization application. The test situation covers commercial banking for the period 1967 - 1976

A Survey of Existing Online Graduate Information Systems Degree Programs

There is an increasing awareness of online courses offered over the Internet. These courses span a variety of disciplines and are offered by multiple types of institutions. This research examines the current status of graduate online programs. Of particular interest are those graduate online courses that lead to graduate degrees in information systems and related disciplines