A Case Study in Project-Based Learning: An International Partnership

As our world becomes more integrated, international business students should develop skills that match corporations' needs. Moreover, students need hands-on, problem-solving, team-based, critical-thinking skills that companies demand. Students need international business experience but many of them lack the funds or support to study or intern abroad. This article explains how one program developed a project-based course that addressed these skills by partnering with a local consulate office. It lays the framework for using a project-based course, explains the course's development, outlines the necessary and important skills addressed, and provides an agenda for other schools considering such a course.     

Undergraduate Education: The Implications of Cross-Functional,Relationships in Business Marketing–The Skills of High-Performing Managers

ABSTRACT

Like other specialty areas in the business school curriculum, marketing management classes emphasize an analytical perspective and provide students with a valuable set of strategy tools, but fail to come to grips with other facets of the managerial work of marketing-namely, the relational skills that are required for managing across functions, reconciling diverse interests, and creating integrated strategies and customer solutions. By serving as an advocate for the customer at various levels of the organizational hierarchy and across functions, the business marketer must initiate, develop, nurture, and sustain a rich network of relationships with multiple constituencies within the firm and within customer organizations. To effectively perform this challenging interdisciplinary role, a unique set of relationship management skills are required. This article explores the collaborative skills that high-performing managers have mastered and examines the resulting implications for the business marketing course. Recent research is examined that reveals the characteristics of reputationally effective managers, isolates the factors that define effective cross-functional exchange episodes, and details the specific behavior that top-performing account managers employ. By exploring the relational competencies that are instrumental to the work of marketing managers, the business marketing course can fill an important gap in the marketing curriculum.     

Investigating Graduate Business Students' Perceptions of the Educational Value Provided by an International Travel Course Experience

Abstract

Researchers agree that students' critical thinking and decision making skills are enhanced through exposure to new cultures and global markets. Thus, one way of bringing about improvement in these areas is through international travel courses. The purpose of this study is threefold. One, to describe the process involved in the creation of a required for-credit international travel course; two, present the findings of a research study designed to investigate graduate business students' perceptions of the educational value provided by an international travel course; and three, describe the ongoing process of closing the assessment loop as it relates to the internationalization of MBA and MACC curricula. The results of this study are encouraging. In general, students perceived that the international travel course added value to their educational experience and enhanced their relationships with other students. Items receiving weaker support were concerned with “thinking skills”, such as multi-disciplinary integration and improved decision-making. These results have important implications for future improvements to the international travel course.     

Associations Between Epistemological Beliefs and Moral Reasoning: Evidence from Accounting

We investigated associations between moral reasoning and epistemological beliefs in an accounting context using the sample of 140 senior accounting students from a public university in Midwestern U.S. We found no significant correlations between accounting students’ principled reasoning about Thorne’s ethical dilemmas and their beliefs about knowledge measured by administering Schommer epistemological questionnaire. We conducted post-hoc power analysis and present the evidence that the lack of associations should not be attributed to the lack of power. Overall, our results suggest that reflective thinking and moral reasoning represent separate dimensions of cognitive process which develop at a different pace. Thus, a stand-alone course of ethics in accounting education is warranted since higher moral reasoning does not automatically follow from extended technical education and improved critical thinking skills.     

Teaching basic marketing accountability using spreadsheets: An exploratory perspective

Extant literature suggests that a key problem with marketing is a lack of financial accountability, and a possible way of improving the situation is to use spreadsheets to inculcate marketing accountability among future marketing executives. This study attempts to enhance our understanding of how to impart spreadsheet skills and encourage an accountability mindset among undergraduate marketing students by focusing on a course called Marketing and Money. Assessment data indicate that the course, which captures the spirit of the behavioral model of learning, does in fact enhance students' spreadsheet skills in a consistent manner. In addition, the analysis suggests that in order to increase students' self efficacy, instructors ought to try to make the course perceptually more useful rather than try to reduce its difficulty.     

Teaching information technology alongside business analytics: Case study

Business analytics can be described as the statistical analysis of data to make decisions and meaningful conclusions. As the demand to advance the curriculum of undergraduate business education increases, courses in business analytics aim to provide students with fundamental skills in critical thinking. Educators have found that spreadsheet applications that include statistical features are easy to use and facilitate student learning. The authors analyzed student performance in an introductory business analytics course that used Microsoft Excel as a statistical tool by comparing scores from this introductory course with those from an information technology course in which only Excel skills were learned.     

Of Fallacies and Curricula: A Case of Business Ethics

One of the main objectives of the undergraduate business school curriculum is to develop the students' critical thinking and decisionmaking skills. Official documents such as the school's objectives usually state this as part of its social contract. However, university processes sometimes break the most elementary rules of logical reasoning which, in turn, may lead to questionable decisions. This paper discusses the specific case of the mandatory stand-alone business ethics course as an instance of flawed reasoning in curricular processes. Educational institutions model the students' decision making patterns, not only by formal courses but by the example their own decision making processes set. Academicians should be aware of these processes' underlying values and vices. This should lead to better decisions and set a proper example for our students.     

Business Marketing Education: A Distinctive Role in the Undergraduate Curriculum

ABSTRACT

By extending their knowledge of markets beyond the consumer-goods domain, by deepening their understanding of how organizations make buying decisions, by strengthening their grasp of cross-functional processes, and by providing them with decision-making skills in this important area of marketing, the business marketing course makes a special contribution to undergraduates and the undergraduate marketing curriculum. Moreover, the content and focus of the business marketing course are closely tied to important themes that are transforming business practice. This article isolates the distinct contribution of business marketing education and examines important trends that are reshaping this domain. The central knowledge areas that comprise the undergraduate business marketing course are detailed and linked to specific course design strategies that can be pursued to strengthen the skill set of marketing students and respond to the needs of important constituents.     

Critical approaches in undergraduate marketing teaching: investigating students' perceptions

For some years now, marketing educators have been exhorted to adopt more critical approaches in teaching and learning. Such approaches are purported to bring numerous benefits to students, including improved appraisal skills, self-awareness, and enhanced abilities to deal with the uncertainties and ambiguities of marketing practice. To date however, there has been very little empirical study of how students respond to critical approaches, and whether they perceive any of the proposed benefits themselves. This study addresses the gap by investigating the perceptions and experiences of students on two modules, both of which take similarly designed critical approaches. In practice, students were found to perceive the modules as more labour intensive and intellectually challenging than others, due primarily to the volume and depth of required reading. The task of being critical was itself perceived as difficult, due to the need for a different mindset, and for students to have confidence in their own ideas. However, overall evaluations of the modules were positive, and students identified a number of benefits and personal rewards from their experiences, at least some of which matched with those proposed in the literature. The paper discusses factors influencing students' perceptions and concludes with some practical recommendations.     

Enriching Student Experiences: Multi-disciplinary Exercises in Service-learning

This paper offers two unique service-learning approaches to developself-efficacy toward service and motivation for civic participation incollege business students. The exercises utilize methodologies providinghands-on experiences for students to meet social needs. They alsoprovide real-world settings for students to develop skills and personalgrowth relevant to their business careers. One exercise was used in anorganizational behavior course and the other in a legal environment ofbusiness course. Instructors may easily adapt either methodology toother business courses.     

Are key marketing topics adequately covered in strategic management?

Most business schools have a capstone course called strategic management. Students in these courses are often required to assess organizations’ functional areas of business, including marketing. Students determine marketing strengths and weaknesses of firms, and develop strategic plans for case companies. Students formulate strategies, make recommendations, and determine the expected marketing impact of those recommendations. Although marketing plays an important role in strategic planning, the present research shows that most strategic-management textbooks provide little to no marketing coverage. In study 1, a content analysis of six leading strategic-management textbooks reveals 10 marketing topics being discussed, although scantly. In study 2, a survey of 167 business students nearing graduation examines the relative importance of the identified topics in strategic planning. Findings of this research suggest that the capstone business course needs to be more integrative. Implications for business courses, faculty, textbook authors, as well as practicing marketers and managers are discussed.     

A note on the teaching of ethics in the MBA macroeconomics course

While there is general agreement on the need to teach ethics in the MBA classroom, there are great difficulties in completely integrating such material within the confines of an actual MBA program. This paper attempts to address these difficulties by focusing on the teaching of such issues in one particular class — MBA macroeconomics.Ethical dilemmas often arise due to failures of the market place or due to inappropriate assumptions regarding the market model. Thus, specific suggestions are offered in regard to the integration of ethical issues into the traditional macroeconomic curriculum. Suggestions are even offered as how to scale back the basic macro material so that the additional material may be accommodated.In addition to fulfilling the mandate to develop a well educated citizenry with regard to issues of ethics and economics, the course may be structured so as to emphasize writing skills, speaking skills, and critical analytical thinking skills.John D. Abell is an assistant professor at the Department of Economics. His areas of research are: The economics of defense, international trade/finance monetary vs. fiscal policy, disaggregated employment effects of government policy.     

Developing critical thinking through student consulting projects

The authors present survey results from faculty at 44 universities on the role of student consulting projects in developing business students' critical thinking. They conclude that students can improve critical thinking by engaging in guided primary and secondary research to inform their business assumptions that underpin business planning and financial modeling in consulting projects. Results also suggest that instructors newer to the practice of using student consulting tend to emphasize objective results (e.g., application of disciplinary skills and research methods), whereas experienced users seem to focus on the subjective consulting process (e.g., managing client relationships and evaluating information quality and fit for the project).     

Coordinating manufacturing and marketing in international firms

In this article, the authors argue that manufacturing experiences much of the turbulence and conflict imposed by the dynamic global marketplace through its relationship with marketing, because marketing is usually responsible for introducing changing competitive priorities and demand patterns to the organization. Through a survey of manufacturing and marketing managers within international firms, the authors develop a profile of manufacturing-marketing conflicts experienced in each of four international strategy environments: export, multidomestic, global, and transnational. As international strategies became more complex, firms made use of more techniques for coordinating between marketing and manufacturing, with more use of decentralized and informal approaches. Coordinating techniques included individual MBO-reward systems, joint task forces for problem-solving, and direct involvement of manufacturing and marketing in establishing the competitive priorities of the firm.     

Integrating Knowledge and Developing Critical Thinking in a Capstone International Business Course: A Never-Ending Work in Progress

More and more is heard from scholars, accrediting institutions, and the business world about the importance of developing critical thinking and written communication skills in college graduates. This is perhaps especially true, in a business school, for international business graduates who lack a traditional functional major. Often, the development of these skills is thought best accomplished through courses that integrate knowledge, take a problem-based approach, and include a signature work for each student. In this article, we discuss one institution’s international business capstone course, illustrating how it adheres to these ideals. From the standpoint of informal assessment, we discuss how student results from the course are used to tweak feeder courses to the capstone. We also discuss the more formal assessment of the course learning objectives, which we are just beginning.     

Relationship marketing: Back to basics?

Relationship marketing, however defined, has received considerable attention recently. To its advocates, relational exchange between buyer and seller represents a paradigm shift away from the traditional focus on individual transactional exchanges. Critics of relationship marketing argue that the concept is poorly defined and is merely a new way of describing what businesses have been doing for a long time.

This paper recognizes that the need to develop long‐term relationships between an organization and its customers is becoming greater. It is however questioned whether marketing educators are providing students with the abilities to take a mature approach to relationship marketing issues, in line with the changing nature of employers' business. Suggestions for introducing relationship marketing to the undergraduate syllabus are made at a number of levels, from an additional module for an introductory “principles of marketing course” to a multi‐disciplinary degree majoring in relationship marketing.     

Teaching International Business via Social Media Projects

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the outcomes of an experiential learning technique coupled with social media in an international marketing course. It was conducted among 155 students placed in groups that were assigned to develop a YouTube video for use as a country branding marketing tool. Measured evaluations of the students’ perceptions of the experience reveal that it was both beneficial and positive, and it helped to promote an understanding of the importance of teamwork and the uses of technology. Factor analysis grouped the perceptions and attitudes regarding the exercise into four categories.The differences in perception are evaluated based on gender, country of study, and level of education. The study highlights the importance of incorporating experiential learning pedagogies with social media to teach country branding.     

Relationship between the curriculum system and the understanding of nutritional terms in elementary school children

To clarify the relation between the curriculum system and the understanding of nutrition terms, 944 students aged 8–12 years living in Japan, the USA and the UK, were asked about the recognition, medium for recognition, and understanding of nutrition terms. The effect of nutrition education from an early stage in elementary schools in the UK and the USA was confirmed. These results suggest the possibility of beginning nutrition education earlier in the elementary school in Japan. American students had paid attention to food labels. These results showed that a learning and teaching strategy founded on comprehensively based subjects in the USA had influenced good behaviour for dietary life. On the other hand, there was not a relationship between an understanding of nutrition terms and a developmental stage. Many students in three countries were influenced by television commercials to buy candy or soda. We think that it is important to develop a curriculum that includes practical learning and ensures hours of teaching for the purpose of acquirement of nutritional knowledge. It is also necessary to encourage critical thinking skills to evaluate television commercial messages through school lessons.     

Is brain hemisphericity a correlate of performance in problem-solving courses? A case study from an HBCU

The authors set out to determine the brain dominance characteristics of students enrolled in business statistics courses in a historically Black university in a major southeastern Texas city. Thereafter, the authors investigated the relationship between a student’s brain hemispheric preference and academic performance in college courses, which emphasize problem solving. The results reported in this study reveal that left brain– and right brain–dominant students are at parity when it comes to performance in a problem-solving course. Moreover, both left brain– and right brain–dominant learners perform better than whole-brain dominant learners in a problem-solving course.     

高职校税务模拟实验教学存在的问题及对策研究

实验教学是培养学生的创新能力、提高学生的科学思维能力和动手能力的重要手段.税务专业由于自身的一些特点,需要进行模拟实验教学.同时,模拟实践教学对于提高学生的动手能力和综合素质,适应市场对人才的需求都有着十分重要的作用.本文分析了高等职业学校开展税务模拟实验教学的意义,分析了目前税务模拟实验教学中存在的问题,并且从软硬件投入、教学体系的完善、师资力量的加强和实习基地的完善等多个方面提出了一定的解决措施.