Using Information Technology in Learning: Case Studies in Business and Management Education Programs

Abstract

The use of information technology to support learning (or technology-mediated learning [TML]) is now a major trend in postsecondary management education in North America and elsewhere. Yet, educational institutions are reinventing the wheel each time they implement technology-mediated education programs. Relatively little sharing of knowledge and experience occurs when it comes to these initiatives. We address this issue by reporting the results of five in-depth case studies of TML initiatives in business and management education programs in the United States. Results indicate that relatively high levels of cultural change and high levels of institutional resources are required to implement and to operate technology-mediated learning programs, and that few objective assessments of the performance of these programs are initially undertaken. Administrators from the five institutions that participated in this study often had underestimated the cultural change and resource requirements of the TML initiatives.