Abstract: Teaching Introduction to Management Information Systems (MIS) courses is a formidable challenge because such teaching entails covering a relatively large, ever-changing subject, as well as finding the right balance between audiences with different expectations and levels of knowledge. The literature suggests cooperative learning as a viable strategy to teach MIS effectively. In a cooperative learning environment, students can bring their expertise to the table and work together as teams to solve business problems. One strategy to support cooperative learning in an MIS class is teaching through case studies. Since cases tend to be too long to be used during a regular class session, this paper proposes the use of mini-cases to enhance cooperative learning. The paper also provides a procedure to write minicases based on one of the thinking processes within the Theory of Constraints.

Keywords: Cooperative learning, Theory of constraints, Cloud, Mini-cases, MIS

Download this article: JISE - Volume 13 Number 4, Page 351.pdf

Recommended Citation: Sirias, D. (2002). Writing MIS Mini-Cases to Enhance Cooperative Learning: A Theory of Constraints Approach. Journal of Information Systems Education, 13(4), 351-356.