ERIC Number: EJ1137338
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2015-Sep
Pages: 8
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1545-679X
EISSN: N/A
Using a Balance Scorecard Approach to Evaluate the Value of Service Learning Projects in Online Courses
Schwieger, Dana
Information Systems Education Journal, v13 n5 p4-11 Sep 2015
Service learning projects serve as a valuable tool for applying course concepts in a way to benefit both the students and community. However, they often require a significant amount of additional effort beyond that required of assigning conventional homework problems. When the projects take place in an online course setting, the level of complexity subsequently increases. Valuing the overall contribution of such projects, in light of their additional instructor and course costs, can be difficult. Such valuations are further complicated with the measures being subjective. In 1992, Drs. Robert Kaplan and David Norton published an article in Harvard Business Review detailing a model for measuring the effect of multiple perspectives, both financial and subjective, on business performance (Kaplan & Norton, 1992). The Balanced Scorecard approach provides both an internal (process based) and external (outcomes based) standpoint to evaluating an organization utilizing four perspectives: (1) Learning and Growth, (2) Business Process, (3) Customer and (4) Financial (Kaplan & Norton, 1996). With its thorough approach to evaluating objective and subjective measures of business performance, the model serves as a potential framework for use in the educational setting. In this article, the author developed and applied a modified version of Kaplan and Norton's Balanced Scorecard model to evaluate the value generated by a service learning project in an online course.
Descriptors: Service Learning, Instructional Effectiveness, Online Courses, Student Projects, Models, Outcomes of Education, Management Information Systems, Experiential Learning, College Students, Student Evaluation
Information Systems and Computing Academic Professionals. Box 488, Wrightsville Beach, NC 28480. e-mail: publisher@isedj.org; Web site: http://isedj.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Missouri
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A