Teaching the IS.2 Course—Electronic Business Strategy, Architecture and Design

Moderator:  J. Harold Pardue
School of CIS, University of South Alabama
Mobile, AL 36688
hpardue@jaguar1.usouthal.edu

Abstract

The purpose of this 90-minute panel is to provide for a facilitated discussion of issues related to teaching the IS.2 course in four-year, IS degree programs.  The moderator and panelists are qualified academics involved in teaching, practicing, and curriculum development relating to electronic commerce.  The audience will have an opportunity to ask questions of the panelists.  The remainder of this summary describes the moderator and panelists, and the issues and questions to be addressed.

Keywords:  Electronic Commerce, IS2002 model curriculum, IS curriculum development

	All panelists have an interest in this panel by either teaching an electronic commerce course or by participating in two workshops for developing, reviewing, and critiquing exit objectives and test items for the IS model exam. The panelists are listed below.

	Harold Pardue, University of South Alabama. hpardue@jaguar1.usouthal.edu

	Chris Jones, Utah Valley State University. Christopher.Jones@uvsc.edu
  
	William Owen, University of South Alabama. wowen@usouthal.edu

Panel Overview

A. Ecommerce:  Course Design and Content

1. Approaches to IS.2 learning unit coverage
2. Emphasis on business or programming topics?
3. Project based or lecture based?
4. Doing a “full-scale” hands-on ecommerce project: challenges, pros and cons
5. What type of infrastructure (e.g., labs) is required?

B. Ecommerce:  Model Curriculum and Exam

1. What ecommerce learning unit/skills are missing or inadequately addressed by the model curriculum?
2. What’s outdated in the model curriculum? 
3. How did the IS Exit Assessment Exam perform?
4. Where does the IS Exit Assessment exam need to improve to better assess students on the ecommerce exit skills?



C. Ecommerce in the Curriculum

1. Should ecommerce be the capstone course?  If so, should it be organized as a practicum?
2. Should ecommerce be a free-standing single course?
3. Should ecommerce be a series of courses (an entire major perhaps)?
4. Can IS.2 learning units be covered in existing IS courses?
5. Should the IS.2 course be outsourced to the business school (say the marketing department)?

Intended Audience
* Educators who are interested in teaching and curriculum issues related to the IS.2 course
* Educators who are interested in starting or improving there is.2 course
* Educators who are interested in improving their curriculum through standardized exams

Panel Goals
	The goal of the panel is to facilitate a discussion into the key issues of teaching electronic commerce through a highly structured format.  It is hoped that a focus on specific, key questions will stimulate discussion and debate that will engage the panelists and the audience.

	After introducing the topic and the panelists the moderator will make a brief presentation that overviews the IS.2 course, as defined in the IS 2002 Model Curriculum, and summarizes the ecommerce course and skill results of the recent IS Exit Assessment Exam.   This introduction will take less than ten minutes.

	Following this introduction, the moderator will facilitate a panel discussion of issues related to teaching the IS.2 course.  He will list the issues to be discussed and debated by the panel in three separate segments.  The overview will take three minutes.  

	The moderator will make summary comments at the very end and then the audience can ask questions in the remaining time.

	By the conclusion of this panel, the audience should have a greater appreciation of the key teaching and curriculum issues for ecommerce.  The audience should develop an awareness of the IS model curriculum logical course in electronic commerce and be informed as to the continued development of the national IS exam that includes a section on electronic commerce.