Anil K. Aggarwal

Web-based learning and teaching technologies: opportunities and challenges

During the past two decades, telecommunication technologies combined with Web-enabled technologies have created a new technology-based focus, Web-based learning and teaching. This new area has changed the concept of education around the world, creating new challenges and opportunities offered by this new technology-based concept.Web-Based Learning and Teaching Technologies: Opportunities and Challenges addresses many issues, trends, opportunities and problems facing colleges and universities in the effective utilization and management of Web-based learning and teaching technologies.

Quality management applied to web-based courses

Abstract In this paper we develop a total quality management model to apply to web-based courses development. The model is based on the concepts suggested by quality leaders Deming and Juran. Throughout the paper we supplement the discussion with our own and our colleagues Web teaching experiences. We believe this is the pioneer attempt in this direction.

Institutionalizing Web based education: a case study

Web-based education, started about 6 years ago, is growing by leaps and bound and is expected to reach almost 5 million students by 2006. Many players have already been eliminated but many more are emerging. Many institutions are at a cross road and in many cases their survival depends on how successfully they handle WBE. In this regard they can learn from early adopters of WBE and learn from their experiences both good and bad. This paper discusses WBE at one university, an early WBE adopter, and discusses their experiences and forthcoming challenges with WBE.

Virtual science centers: a new genre of learning in Web-based promotion of science education

The opening of a virtual annexes by science centers has given rise to a new genre of learning in Web-based education. Seeking to enhance the outreach effectiveness of non-formal science education initiatives among students and the public, these virtual science centers fulfill a useful role in promoting the public understanding of science. The types of content which can be hosted in these sites are discussed. A commentary is also presented on some of the unique issues encountered in this new learning environment, including some suggestions on possible solutions in the light of our experiences.

Continuous Improvement Process in Web-Based Education at a Public University

Web-based education (WBE) is growing by leaps and bounds and is expected to reach more than 5 million people in 2006. The survival of institutions providing WBE depends on how successfully they deliver value to their customers. This paper presents a case study of the introduction and continuous improvement of a Web-based business program at a professionally accredited school of business in a public university. This school is one of the early pioneers in offering online education among public, professionally accredited schools of business. The paper discusses the schools motivations for introducing Web-based education, the process it utilized to launch the program, some of the challenges it encountered at different phases of the programs implementation, and the continuous improvement approach it utilized to overcome these challenges. This institutions experience may provide invaluable insight to other public universities that are considering launching online programs.

Decision Making in Diverse Swift Teams: An Exploratory Study

In the digital age swift teams are becoming the new norm. These work groups are ad-hoc and have very little knowledge or previous interaction with other group members. Dynamics of these groups are complicated because of the group members diversity and short duration of the projects. Diversity studies have focused on categorization such as ethnicity, gender, culture, sexuality differences on one hand and functional diversity which relates to task-related knowledge, skills, opinions and perspective on the other hand. This paper goes a step further and studies group productivity in term of social diversity of group members in the context of face-to-face groups. The members of a typical swift group are different in race, gender, nationality and backgrounds, different in relation to task-related expertise and initial familiarity with each other. Groups in face-to-face classes mimic diversity that is often related to real life swift teams. Instead of re-inventing the wheel, we can learn from groups used in face-to-face courses and extend those experiences to swift groups. Our research revealed that diversity is associated with decision making in swift groups. We also found evidence that social diversity creates sub-groups which is associated with group decision making. Future research areas are also discussed.

Case Study- Web-Based Education Diffusion

Web-based education is diffusing across universities, disciplines, globes and educational levels. Many institutions are at the crossroad whether or not to adopt web-based education (WBE). In many cases their survival may depend on how successfully they can adopt WBE. In this regard, they can learn from the early adopters of WBE and, from their experiences, both good and bad without reinventing the wheel. This paper has two specific purposes: the first, describe WBE diffusion at a upper level university in the U.S., and, the second, is to discuss its diffusion experiences so that other universities can benefit from it. This paper relates diffusion of innovation theory and the 4 “P’s†of marketing to discuss Web education diffusion. We feel this is a first attempt in this direction. This paper should be useful worldwide for universities planning to start WBE and are looking for some guidance on “how†, “where†and “what†to follow to initiate the process.

Policy implications of organizational decision support systems

Many organizations are consolidating their data, models and information resources to create an organization wide system, called organizational decision Support system (ODSS). The paper discusses issues related to ODSSs and their policy implications. Issues are identified from ODSS definition. Specifically, we group the issues as data, model/tool and overall systems and consider policy related to each of these in the context of ODSS.

A Hybrid Approach for Selecting a Course Management System: A Case Study

The Internet is creating exciting opportunities for universities and their stakeholders. Universities are experimenting with different modes of education. E-learning is one such mode, where students can learn from any place at any time, as long as they have an Internet connection. A course management system (CMS) facilitates e-learning, making it critical to select a system that can meet the needs of all its stakeholders. This paper addresses a hybrid approach used to select a course management system for a mid-Atlantic university. The resulting product is the outcome of faculty input, inputs from the program manager of e-Learning, students, and other stakeholders. The authors have experienced four different CMSs over twelve years of teaching online. Instead of re-inventing the wheel, universities planning to venture into e-learning or trying to revamp their current CMS can learn from our experiences. The case study could assist current and future Web course faculty in selecting a CMS to suit their teaching needs. In addition, by increasing their awareness of various capabilities that might be present in their current CMS, the discussion in the paper could also encourage the faculty to revamp their courses.

Asynchronous Learning: Emerging Issues for the 21st Century

This paper presents a discussion of emerging pedagogical, technical and regulatory issues in asynchronous learning. Based on discussions with several faculty members with more than 6 years of e-teaching experience, as well as administrators and business advisory board members, the paper presents several ongoing experiments and discusses the authors’ experiences with asynchronous learning. The paper should be useful for universities considering asynchronous learning, as well as businesses entering the asynchronous learning software market. The paper discusses the needs and opportunities for developing products compatible with emerging standards such as shareable content object reference model (SCORM), up-and-coming mobile broadband network technologies like 4G and identification technologies such as active RFID.