Bonnie Stivers

Assessment of Student Learning: A Fast-Track Experience

The professional accreditation agencies are making demands for assessment of student learning. These demands are not expected to lessen in the near future. The accreditation agencies are suggesting that educators should shift their focus from what faculty teach to what students learn. The authors show the development and implementation of an assessment of a student-learning framework at one school. This implementation was necessary to bring the school into compliance with new assessment standards and to maintain accreditation with the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International.

Knowledge and innovation focus: a classification of US and Canadian firms

This article examines business practices focused on knowledge and innovation and the relationship of these business practices with other key organisational variables in Canadian and US firms. The article is based on a 1996 study of 103 Fortune 500 and 151 Post 300 firms. The study was sponsored by the Michael J. Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University and funded by the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants. Using cluster analysis, we grouped firms with similar knowledge and innovation-related business practices. Our analysis reveals that firms in each country can be categorised based on their focus on knowledge and innovation as: (1) high focus; (2) moderate focus; or (3) low focus. Results indicate that firms in each of the three categories tend to differ in organisational structure and technology orientation, as well as in the perception of the value of various non-financial performance factors and intangible assets.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities for the Market Economy: An Investigation of Student Perceptions Before and After China's WTO Entry

This exploratory study conducted in the Peoples Republic of China sought to determine the managerial knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) that are perceived as important for the Chinese market economy. Questionnaire responses were collected from 145 business students in 2001 (before Chinas WTO entry) and 141 business students in 2006 (after Chinas WTO entry). The identified set of eight managerial knowledge, skills, and abilities included: business area knowledge and skills, communication skills, creativity/adaptability, ethics, leadership, problem solving, teamwork, and work habits. For each time period examined, the mean score for “importance” of each KSA was significantly higher than the mean score for “presence.” The differences between the importance mean and the presence mean for each KSA was denoted as a “gap.” This study revealed that five of the eight KSAs had a significantly smaller gap in 2006 than in 2001. This suggests that the business education system in China is enabling the development of more effective managers for the Chinese market economy.