Balancing instructional techniques and delivery formats in capstone business strategy courses

Pages173-193
Published date04 April 2016
Date04 April 2016
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1108/QAE-04-2014-0016
AuthorJeffrey W. Alstete,Nicholas J. Beutell
Subject MatterEducation,Curriculum, instruction & assessment,Educational evaluation/assessment
Balancing instructional
techniques and delivery formats
in capstone business
strategy courses
Jeffrey W. Alstete and Nicholas J. Beutell
Hagan School of Business, Iona College, New Rochelle, New York, USA
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contend that collegiate programs should carefully plan their
capstone courses in light of the educational mission, pedagogical content knowledge, instructional
techniques and delivery formats.
Design/methodology/approach – This is a concept paper with elements of theory building from the
case of business strategy courses. After an overview of relevant research along with past and current
practices, capstone course content projects and assignments are discussed in relation to delivery
formats such as on-campus, hybrid partial online and full distance education.
Findings – Faculty and academic departments choosing project assignments should seek to create an
integrative learning experience for students using carefully balanced delivery methods and content.
Each of the instructional methods and delivery systems have certain advantages, and the use of these
techniques is not mutually exclusive, in that some faculty members may choose to teach course sections
using multiple learning systems.
Originality/value – As colleges and universities increase the range of instructional techniques and
delivery formats, it is especially important to harmonize these methods with learning objectives for
capstone learning experiences. Concepts for balanced integration and synthesis of topics are proposed
for different instructional methods and delivery formats that can be applied in other disciplines. Using
pedagogical content knowledge as a basis for improving teaching and learning is necessary to achieve
balanced integration.
Keywords Distance education, Strategic management, Case method, Action learning,
Simulation game, Capstone course, Consultancy project, Hybrid delivery
Paper type Conceptual paper
Introduction
Completing a college degree can be a time of uncertainty and anticipation for students as
they prepare for the next step in their personal and professional lives. Some students will
enter the workforce immediately; some will pursue additional studies; while others may
choose self-employment. Regardless of the choices that students make, academic
programs such as business administration have a special opportunity to produce
graduates who are ready for the workforce with the abilities and knowledge needed.
However, while colleges and universities seem to have acknowledged their
responsibility in preparing graduates, there is substantial confusion as to how the
capabilities, skills and attributes of graduates should be identied and applied (Green
et al., 2009). Theoretical misperceptions joined with various external forces and internal
organizational issues have helped to create a situation where some colleges, universities
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0968-4883.htm
Capstone
business
strategy
courses
173
Received 27 April 2014
Revised 9 December 2014
10 September 2015
Accepted 10 December 2015
QualityAssurance in Education
Vol.24 No. 2, 2016
pp.173-193
©Emerald Group Publishing Limited
0968-4883
DOI 10.1108/QAE-04-2014-0016
and employers have underestimated or inadequately addressed the types of educational,
institutional and strategic changes needed to improve the important attributes required
by graduates today. It is known that learning, as a process of synthesizing different
types of information, tends to follow a curve and is not merely a collection of facts and
procedural knowledge (Schacter et al., 2011). To nish the learning process effectively,
meaningful and valuable culmination of experiences in the nal year of the curriculum
is often achieved in a required capstone course. The business capstone course can be
viewed as an example of a unique and effective means to help students solidify prior
learning and demonstrate their best performance and enable the college or university an
opportunity to measure and assure student learning in a widely offered program using
traditional and modern instructional techniques. For example, an important and
common learning objective in business programs is cultivating oral and written
communication ability. The capstone course is a suitable vehicle for evaluating
students’ abilities in oral communication, content, delivery, use of technology and
writing abilities. However, to be effective, this task requires careful consideration
because of the variety of teaching methods and delivery formats that are available to
faculty amid rapid changes in higher education institutions, business and society today.
Figure 1 depicts a “macro” view of the business management strategic capstone
course environment. The institution’s mission, history and location are critical to
informing the curriculum as a whole and are important for developing and delivering
the capstone experience. Institutional support and resources also need to be considered.
In addition, the B-school’s mission and objectives are critical for capstone course design
particularly in light of faculty resources, capabilities and life cycle. We mention the
faculty life cycle because many schools have aging faculty cohorts that may inuence
elements of course design and implementation (Baldwin, 1984;Hill, 2009). Based on a
review of the capstone course literature, new instructional methods, learning theory and
many years of experience as both faculty members and administrators, we have
identied that it is important to think about students’ abilities, expectations,
instructional methods and life cycles. Further questions also arise. Have the abilities of
students changed signicantly over time? What do students expect from the capstone
course? And, the age and level of the students affect course design. Finally, schools need
•Student
Expecations
•Accreditation
Standards
•Employer
Input
Business
School/College
Mission and
Objectives
•Institutional
Mission,
History,
Location
o
n
al
,
n
Institutional
Support
B
u
n
S
c
hoo
M
i
ssi
o
O
b
j
e
c
t
Faculty
Resources,
Capabilities,
and Lifecycle
S
t
u
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x
p
e
c
Student
Abilities and
Lifecycle
t
a
t
i
o
n
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e
r
Best
Practices in
Strategic
Management
Instruction
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a
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Figure 1.
Overall components
of the capstone
course environment
QAE
24,2
174

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