STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF THE USE OF A COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION IN TEACHING MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS Developments in Business Simulation & Experiential Exercises, Volume 8, 1981 168 STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF THE USE OF A COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION IN TEACHING MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS Robert L. Stokes, University of Southwestern Louisiana Charles R. Stoner, Bradley University ABSTRACT Student perceptions of the management information system course, taught with a computer simulation, are examined. In two Sections, the simulation was used along with lecture and in one section, the simulation was used with lecture and cases. All sections perceived the use of simulation in a very favorable way. The students appear to feel that the simulation was a very valuable part of the course. Only a few significant differences existed between the students which used the simulation as well as cases and those students which used the simulation, but no cases. INTRODUCTION Many computerized simulations have been developed for use in teaching several different business courses. In the last few years, some researchers have suggested the use of simulation in teaching management information systems or decision support systems. The purpose of this study is to examine student perceptions regarding the use of computerized simulation In teaching management information systems. Courtney, Bierer, Luckow and Kables [2] described the use of management games in teaching management information systems design. These researchers found that by using simulation, some of the difficulties in conveying the interrelationships between decision making and information systems were overcome. The students became aware of information needs through their participation in the simulation's decision process. Jensen and Courtney [5] described how simulation could be successfully used in a policy course to illustrate decision support systems concepts. Couger [1] also described this approach and recognized its use in the MIS course as well as in the policy course. McLeod [7] suggests the use of a computerized manage- ment decision game as an aid in teaching management information systems concepts related to the marketing function. None of the above research has dealt directly with student perceptions of the use of simulation in teaching MIS. Little research in this area appears to exist. Hopefully, this paper will enable those who are considering the use of simulation in teaching MIS to develop a more accurate prediction of what might be expected from the students if simulation is used. USE OF THE SIMULATION The Business Management Laboratory simulation was used in the management information systems course, taught from a managerial perspective. A large majority of the students taking the course were junior or senior business majors. Also, nearly all of these students had taken a programming oriented computer science course prior to taking the MIS course. The study is based on data collected from students in three different sections of the course, all of which were taught by the same teacher. In one of these sections, students were required to read and analyze management information systems cases. Of the total class time available for lecture or discussion, approximately twenty percent was spent discussing these cases. It is difficult to allocate the remaining time precisely, as much of the time involved relating systems and information systems concepts to the decision making process of the simulation. Perhaps about twenty-five percent of class discussion and lecture time was devoted to a “pure” discussion of MIS concepts, with the simulation noticeably involved in the remaining fifty-five percent of the time. In the two other sections, no cases were used. In these sections, about one-third of class discussion time was devoted to a ‘pure” discussion of MIS concepts and about two- thirds of class discussion time involved the simulation to a noticeable degree. Again, all of these figures should be considered as approximations. The Business Management Laboratory can be implemented with one or two products and one or two market areas. Up to eight firms can compete in the production and distribution of the same basic product. Quarterly decisions are made in three functional areas~ 1) production, 2) marketing, and 3) finance and administration. Some decisions, such as the plant expansion decision, have a long-term impact. However, most decisions seem to primarily have a short- term impact. The simulation was implemented with the one product, one market area options in all three sections. In one section, eight teams of about three students each competed, in another, eight teams of about four students each competed and in the third section, seven teams of about three students each competed. All teams had three major objectives: 1) maximize profits, 2) maximize market share, and 3) maximize the shareholders’ wealth. The students’ textbook [6] provides a diagram which illustrates the determination of the planning approach for the MIS development project. According to the diagram, the question, “Does firm have good objectives?” should be asked. Provided the answer is yes, the next question should be “Is firm meeting objectives?” If the answer to this question is yes, the diagram shows the firm should then "operate existing MIS.” This philosophy was followed with the simulation. The team which was best achieving the three above objectives was deemed to have a good, operable management information system. All other teams were deemed to have information systems in need of improvement and were required to develop a written analysis of their firm's management system, information needs and data sources. Also a basic information system design was required. These written analyses were optional for the team which best achieved the three objectives. Developments in Business Simulation & Experiential Exercises, Volume 8, 1981 169 METHOD All students were surveyed on the final day of classes. The questionnaire asked their opinions regarding the simulation, Instruction, the textbook, tests and grading, and the course as a whole. To accomplish the pur- pose of the current study, student perceptions regarding the simulation, instruction and the course as a whole were examined. Table One provides a listing of the twenty-three items examined. With twenty-two of the items, students were asked to indicate their relative degree of agreement or disagreement with each item. On the final item, they were asked to give a perception of the value of the course as a whole. FINDINGS A summarization of the student responses to the twenty- three items is provided In Table One. The first ten items provide an indication that the students perceive the simulation as a very valuable part of the management information systems course. A very large majority of the students indicated that the simulation helped them to improve their analytical and decision making skills (item 1), provided a vivid illustration of the usefulness of the systems approach (item 4), helped them develop an understanding of how and why subsystems In an organization are integrated (item 5) and helped them to better understand the relationship Developments in Business Simulation & Experiential Exercises, Volume 8, 1981 170 between decision making and its informational inputs (item 8). It is particularly interesting to note, while these accomplishments were being achieved, the students were enjoying working on the simulation (item 3). Thus, it appears that the simulation enables the students to accomplish several of the major objectives of the course in an enjoyable way. The "no cases’ student perceptions were also compared with the cases student perceptions for these ten items. The chi- square statistic was computed to determine if any significant differences between the two groups’ perceptions existed. There were no differences which were significant at the .05 level. Comparison data, the chi-square statistic and associated significance are provided in Table Two. Several, if not all, of the items listed under the heading of “Instruction” also involved student perceptions of the simulation. Three of the items involved comparing the simulation to the typical management case.” (Virtually all of the students had become familiar with cases in management courses taken prior to taking the MIS course.) By an overwhelming majority, students felt the simulation was more interesting (item 11), created more involvement (item 13) and was more useful in developing analytical and decision making skills (item 17). Students also gave a strong indication that the simulation was not less effective than the case method (item 12). Thus, there appears to be a clear perception among most students that simulation is to be preferred to the case method in teaching MIS. Students also evaluated the desirability of spending more time discussing cases (item 16). The chi-square statistic indicates that the two groups did have significant differences in perception regarding this item. It appears that students feel the best amount of class discussion time to allot to cases lies somewhere between zero and twenty percent. There also may be an indication that the preferred amount lies closer to zero than to twenty percent, as students were somewhat indifferent about spending more than zero percent of their time on cases, but strongly rejected the idea of spending more than twenty percent. Student perceptions involving class lecture were the subject of three items. These items present somewhat of a puzzle as students indicate the simulation is a more effective way of teaching MIS than lecture (item 15), but they also indicate that lectures are a good approach (item 18) and more class time should be devoted to the lectures (item 21). The puzzle is compounded when it is noted the students also feel the number of decisions in the simulation should be increased (Item 20). Decisions can be made completely outside of class. However, as currently implemented, the collection of decision forms, distribution of the print-outs of the results and the answering of questions which invariably accompany the first two activities do require a considerable amount of class time. Two items involved student perceptions of the teacher. The students appear to have perceived the teacher to be quite knowledgeable (item 19) and quite effective (item 22), however the degree of these perceptions differs between the ‘case’ group and the no case” group. The no case’ group appears to perceive the teacher as somewhat more knowledgeable and somewhat less effective than the "case" group. The chi-square statistic indicates that both of these differences are significant. CONCLUSIONS AND SUMMARY The simulation is perceived as a valuable educational tool by an overwhelming majority of the students. It was rated very highly by the students in virtually every area and it also compares very favorably with the use of cases. Lecture also certainly appears to have its place in the management information systems class. The use of cases appears to be much more questionable. Cases suffer sharply in direct comparisons with the simulation. If the students’ desires Developments in Business Simulation & Experiential Exercises, Volume 8, 1981 171 for more time to be devoted to lecture and the simulation are to be considered seriously, obtaining the time by dropping the cases certainly appears to merit strong consideration. Very few significant differences existed between the perceptions of the “no case” group and the “case” group. Two of the three significant differences occurred when students judged the teacher, with the teacher being perceived as somewhat more knowledgeable, but somewhat less effective when cases were not used. However, a very large majority of the students deemed the teacher to be both knowledgeable and effective, so the differences were only a matter of degrees. REFERENCES [1] Couger, J. Daniel, “Computers and the School of Business -- Approaches to Teaching DSS,” Decision Line, Vol. 10, No. 4, pp. 5-6. [2] Courtney, James F., Julia M. Bierer, Thomas C. Luckew, and John J. Kabbes, “Using Management Games as an Aid in Teaching MIS Design,” Decision Sciences, Vol. 9, pp. 496-509. [3] Jensen, Ronald L. and David J. Cherrington, Participant’s Manual - The Business Management Laboratory, rev. ed., (Business Publications, Inc., Dallas), 1977. [4] Jensen, Ronald L., Administrator’s Manual -- The Business Management Laboratory, rev. ed., (Business Publications, Inc., Dallas), 1977. [5] Jensen, Ronald L. and James F. Courtney, “Incorporating MIS/OSS into Policy Courses Via Simulation,” in Insights into Experiential Pedagogy, Samuel C. Certo and Daniel C. Brenenstuhl (editors), (Association for Business Simulation and Experiential Learning), 1979. [6] McLeod, Raymond Jr., Management Information Systems, (Science Research Associates, Inc., Chicago), 1979. [7] McLeod, Raymond Jr., Instructor’s Guide -- Management Information Systems, (Science Research Associates, Inc., Chicago), 1979. Table of Contents Volume 8, 1981 The Promotion: Human Sexuality in Organization The Simulation of Chaos Leadership Development in a Simulated Urban/Suburban (U/S) Environment Tomed: A Computer Game Emphasizing Social Responsibility/or/why the Pop-Top Can? Integrated Brain Activity and the Manager's Job: Utilizing the Troika Model What does R2 Have to do with a Product Management Course? An Analysis of the Effects of Jungian Problem-Solving Style Dimensions on Marketing Decisions Bargaining Behavior in Personal Selling and Buying Exchanges Extending the Simulation Product Life Cycle A Generalized Algorithm for Designing and Developing Business Simulations Operationalizing a Test of a Model of the Use of Simulation Games and Experiential Exercises Pygmalion and Perception: An Experiential Exercise Behavioral Consequences of Reward Regarding Employee Absenteeism in an Industrial Setting: An Operant Conditioning Approach The Simlab Program: The Use of Experimental Simulation and Process Analysis for the Development of Management and Organizations Designs for Research on Simulation-Games, Cases, and Other Experiential Exercises The Role of Students in The Case Method Weaknesses in Research Design Critical Variables in Research on the Educational Value of Management Games Research Questions for Cases Research on the Learning Effectiveness of Business Simulation Games - A Review of the State of the Science The Effects of Valuation Techniques on Holding Cost During Inflationary Periods: A Simulation Exercise The Operations Simulation - A Study in Game Development Applying Guided Design to the Production/Operations Management Course: A Progress Report and Evaluation Terminal Data Entry and Retrieval Systems Simulations and Microprocessors Microcomputers and Related Technology for Simulation Gaming Microcomputers - A New Technology for Innovations in Business Simulations Microprocessor Controlled Interactive Video Simulation Business Game Design: From Theory to Practice The Success of a Computerized Simulation in Microeconomic Pedagogy The Test Preview Game: Applying the Game Show Format Providing a Real World View of the Personal Function: A Simulation Finding an Effective Means of Teaching Managerial Behavioral Skills: Two Different Experiential Teaching Methods Compared A Management Development Program Based on the Experiential Learning Model Participant Type Differences in Response to Experiential Methods: An Informal Look Preparing Student Groups to Participate in Experiential Group Projects: An Organizational Development Approach An Instrument for the Assessment of Learning Dimensions: A Progress Report of the Learning Dimension Scale (LDS) An Empirical Analysis Relating the Learning Style Inventory to Memory and Logical Ability Teaching Styles in Simulation Experiential Learning Versus Traditional Teaching Styles Student Perceptions of Effective Teaching Behaviors Problems in Evaluation of Experiential Learning in Management Education Students' Perceptions of Learning by Simulation A Relative Evaluation of Experiential and Simulation Learning in Terms of Perceptions of Effected Changes in Students Overview of Computer Based Business Games in Business Policy Classes Behavioral Decision Theory and Business Policy Giving Accounting Students Writing Experience as Job Preparation Getting to First Base with MBO: An exercise for Writing and Evaluating Objectives Dimensions of Conflict in Experiential Learning Consumer Alienation and Perceived Relevance of the Business Simulation Using the Self-Reference Criterion to Simulate Culture in Internationalized Business Course Experiential Learning in a Cross Cultural Setting- The Practice of Simulation Approach to Business Education in Japanese Universities Student' Perceptions of the Use of a Computerized Simulation in Teaching Management Information Systems Using the Case Study Approach to Develop a Microcomputer Bases, Fully Integrated, Data Base Driven, Management Information System The Case Study as a Tool for Organizational Change: Applying the Steel Ax to the Designers of Management Information Systems Toward a Theory of Teaching Business Policy A Case Study in the Use of Experiential Learning (A Management Game Simulation) to Enhance Student Understanding of Strategy Evaluation and Policy Formulation Suggestions for Integration of the Business Administration Core Publishing Opportunities and Requirements for Business Simulation and Experiential Learning Materials How do we Apply Experiential Learning Intercollegiate Case Competitions for M.B.A. Students: Initiation and Implementation Teaching Business Policy and Strategy Using the Incident Process The Learning Co-Op Approach to the Core Policy Course Meeting the Managerial Skill Shortage - Is Academia Up to It? An Empirical Analysis of Experiential Learning Reinforcement International Experiential Learning: Experience is the Best Teacher Encouraging Student Participation During International Academic Programs European Summer Study Program: Can you, Should you, What Does it Take? Travel Seminars in Europe: How can I Direct One? International Experiential Learning: Student Evaluation ABSEL: Empirical Findings on the State of the Association Sensitivity of Performance Scores in Business Simulations Improving the Learning of a Business Simulation Game by Increasing the Process Content Student Participation in Deciding Performance Criteria for Grading in an OB Course: An Exercise and a Case Study Markup for Profit: A Simulated Self-Administered Experience in Retail Pricing The Investment Decision Game: An Experiential Learning Approach to Stock Market Decisions Through Gaming CHIPS: A Marketing Channels management Game External Validation: An Experimental Approach to Determining the Worth of Simulation Games Teaching Performance Appraisal Skills: An Experiential Approach In Support of Experiential learning: Results of a Follow-Up Survey The Introductory Management Course: Taking Theory Application One Step Further Decision Efficiency and Effectiveness in a Business Simulation The Implications of Cognitive Processing Variables and the Complex Decision Simulating the Simulation for Enhanced Player Rationality Simulation/Experiential Learning Audit