Abstract
Knowledge, Innovation and change in business schools have not been researched as
intensively as business and industrial organizations anywhere. If these three are to flourish
in B-schools it is critical that the mechanism which can sustain and encourage should be
understood clearly. The significance of these three raises the need of new teaching and
potential improvement and to improve the quality of teaching and learning models. An
attempt is made in this paper to address the new challenges and emerging issues for both
Introduction
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issues and solve managerial problems. The models used can often be
represented mathematically, but sometimes computer-based, visual or
verbal representations are used as well or instead. The range of problems
and issues to which management science has contributed insights and
solutions is vast. It includes, deciding the appropriate place to site new
facilities such as a warehouse or factory, identifying possible future
development paths for parts of the telecommunications industry,
establishing the information needs and appropriate systems to supply them
within the health service, and identifying and understanding the strategies
adopted by companies for their information systems.
Objectives
Methodology
The methodology used was secondary data sources and survey of literature
available on the internet, journals, newspapers and the proceedings of the
Annual Conventions conducted by AMDISA, South Asian Management
Forum, AIMS, IAMD and ICUBER. This gave a broad overview of what has
been happening in the areas of management education in different business
schools.
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Quality of Management Education - challenges of changing scenario
The world around us is changing and changing very fast. The speed of
change is so fast that we cannot turn back. The changes are visible in
multiple forms and in multiple directions. The qualitative aspects of
management education are as important as its technical aspects. It should
equip students with management skills and expertise and develop in them
the right attitude.
1. Course Curriculum
i) International Orientation
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ii) International Marketing
Internet is just not one more point in the long continuum of inventions,
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but a moment of real transformation that is now beginning to be
appreciated. Development of Internet is a real boon for
internationalization of management education.
The internet education facilitates not only e-learning process but utmost
needed to understand a new trading practice i.e. electronic commerce (e-
commerce). The objectives served by Internet in learning process are.
Apart from the above, the business schools in the country must also
continuously upgrade themselves by comparing themselves with their
counterparts in other parts of the world. Infact they should benchmark
their course curriculum against such Institutes overseas.
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d) offer electives like global money, market games, Asian management
models, Lab in group dynamics and the like over the traditional
electives offered.
2. Teaching Methods
Paradigm Shifts
Pedagogical Changes
Old paradigm of teaching and testing New paradigm of continuous learning
and improvement
1 Success is artificially limited to a few 1 Unlimited, continuous improvement
"winners." All others are made to and successes are the aims of the
consider themselves and their work as school and community.
mediocre or inferior.
2 Competition-based 2 Cooperation-based.
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Old paradigm of teaching and testing New paradigm of continuous learning
and improvement
5 The system and its processes don't 5 The integrity and health of the system,
matter, as long as the ends are its processes, and its people must be
achieved. maintained, or the system will be
suboptimized and will eventually fail.
7 Teachers are isolated from each other 7 Teachers work together on school time
by time and space. to build success with each other and
with a manageable number of students
in a cohort group.
12 External validation of truth and the 12 External and internal truths are
"one right answer" for every question discovered through teachers' and
asked by teacher, text, test. students' questioning together.
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Old paradigm of teaching and testing New paradigm of continuous learning
and improvement
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In the Learning Paradigm, learning environments and activities are learner-
centered and learner-controlled. They may even be "teacherless." While
teachers will have designed the learning experiences and environments
students use-often through teamwork with each other and other staff-they
need not be present for or participate in every structured learn activity.
i) Interactive Teaching
The two way flow of information will always be more fruitful than a
traditional way of teaching. Interactive teaching is the best techniques
of understanding the subject.
The tasks of Institute just not end at educating the students once for a
life time. Institute should educate their students on continuous basis.
Life long education should be made available to all, at all places and
all times. The student access centres should be built up all over the
world. These centres will facilitate in providing a copy of related
material as well as copies of information databases in CD-ROM format
also.
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v) Global Study tours
Global study tours should be made part and parcel of the course, the
leading business school in India and abroad send the groups of
students to take a review of business environment in various parts of
the world. In the recent news the California University sent a group of
students to India to study the Indian Business environment.
3. Teaching Faculty
i) Core Faculty
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day to day problems which the managers were facing in running the
affairs of corporate world and to develop a deep theoretical insight
among them.
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5. Industry- Institute Linkages
6. Foreign Collaborations
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Future challenges of Decision Sciences
Today's instructors are finding that their "tried and true" teaching methods
are no longer effectively reaching today's students. Instruction must
respond to students' changing learning needs and this response can be
accomplished with continuous improvement through teaching
innovations.
The new learning environments for this Net Generation should be active,
collaborative, experiential, team based and a self- paced. The NetGen
student prefers to learn at his own pace. They like and are comfortable with
an online environment for testing, lectures and assignments. They are
informal learners, preferring "any time any place" learning to traditional
classroom. Class time is most effective for these students when it involves
interaction, demonstration and social networking.
3. Peer-to-peer learning
Why do you think they are always asking you if they can "work together"
on an assignment? They like to brainstorm and spend considerable time in
online discussions boards and blogs. In fact some of the most popular
learning environments today involve the use of Wikis (on -line editable
web encyclopaedias) and blogs. This is a culture that is very social and
thrives in on-line communities.
Gaming and simulations are also comfortable modes of learning for today's
students. Games have the true potential to excite students through
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competition, exploration, preparation, chance encounters and the thrill of
the unknown. Participating in games and simulations perceive them to be
fun and a useful learning activity.
Students need to be "sold" on what you are making them to do for a class,
so be a marketer and sell! Students value skill-building with applications
so as you teach them how to use software, simulations or other tools to
complete an assignment, remind them to put that skill on their resume.
6. Learner Expectations
Students must be engaged using the three H's: 1) Head 2) Heart and 3)
Hands. Most NetGen students do not question the instructor's knowledge
on the subject - to the contrary- they expect the instructor to be an expert in
the topic ("head") and be able to pass that knowledge on to them. NetGen
students also need to feel that the instructor has a heart and cares for the
students, including responsiveness and the empathy for them and their
problems. It also includes an enthusiasm for the topic and teaching in
general. Finally, good teaching skills are necessary. Use of the "hands" to
convey ideas at the right level, in a clear and systematic manner, which
stimulates their interests and learning, is vital.
The NetGen learner is here to stay and a new type of learner will be here
tomorrow. As instructors, we need to acknowledge and adapt to new
learning styles, lest they "tune us out" and find the material irrelevant.
Today's student is more technology savvy than ever before and their
comfort with the digital environment presents some challenges for teachers
who are often less than comfortable with this new paradigm. If you have
not already done so, begin looking at your course delivery methods and
incorporate some of the technologies and methods discuused.
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A key factor is finding multiple solutions for learning. Engage yourself in
teaching blogs, read journal articles about marketing teaching innovations
and interact with peers at conferences to exchange teaching ideas. Think
about a single class that involves brainstorming, peer exchange, debate,
concept mapping, case involvement and an authentic project. The
multidimensional approach is the path to success.
There are several learning outcomes that remain over time such as
communication skills, critical thinking, problem solving and collaboration.
The major change factor involves how these concepts and ideas are
communicated to the students. Business School is the place to allow
students to learn and explore new ideas and topics as they prepare for a
future that has never been more uncertain, but also one that has never
had as many possibilities. Teaching is a process of continuous improvement
, not one finding a single teaching method and staying with it forever, so
you should also continue to engage and explore the possibilities in
innovative marketing education.
Conclusions
References
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of Higher Education, 51 (June), B33.
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21. Naik B.M. (2000), "Industry - University partnership, Global trends and
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