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Paper (refereed) Current Issues and Trends

Recommended Citation: Hafner, C D and E M Trauth. IS Grows Up and Leaves Home: Situating Educational Programs in the Information Society. In The Proceedings of the Information Systems Education Conference 2000, v 17 (Philadelphia): §606.

IS Grows Up and Leaves Home: Situating Educational Programs in the Information Society

Refereed

Carole D. Hafner    [a1] [a2]
College of Computer Science
Northeastern University    [u1] [u2]
Boston, Massachusetts, USA    [c1] [c2]

Eileen M. Trauth    [a1] [a2]
College of Business Administration
Northeastern University    [u1] [u2]
Boston, Massachusetts, USA    [c1] [c2]

The pervasiveness of computers in modern life has created a need for greater diversity in the educational frameworks for information technology education. We describe a new educational framework (a Bachelor of Science in Information Science) developed at Northeastern University, which focuses on the relationships between information, technology and users, and encompasses today's diversity of application domains. The framework focuses on the design and use of information systems within a science-oriented education paradigm, as contrasted with the professional education offered in schools of business administration. It includes a strong background requirement of technical courses in computer science, along with a strong background requirement in behavioral/ social science. It also addresses the wide variety of domains and contexts in which information systems are now used, including but not limited to business. The study of empirical research methods give students the ability to conduct objective, systematic evaluation of the usability and/or impact of information technology, while an experiential learning requirement enables students to apply their classroom knowledge and skills in relevant productive work. Assessment of learning outcomes is one of the challenges we face as the implementation of the program proceeds.

Keywords: IT education framework, interdisciplinary curriculum, Information Science

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