Master of Arts (Instructional Design & Technology)

We are living in an unprecedented breakthrough in technology and change, and never before have educators been challenged so much to equip graduates with problem-solving skills that enable them to adapt to fast-changing environments and knowledge-based economies such as Singapore. The traditional approach to curriculum, teaching and learning promotes rote or surface learning with the result that students face difficulties in applying knowledge learned in school to the working world. This practicum examines how the Diploma in Business Information Technology sought to improve the teaching and learning experience of its students in the study of E-Business Management, using a different strategy through Problem-Based Learning (PBL) by providing students with authentic, real-life problems to solve, with an emphasis of the use of Information Technology (IT) in applying the knowledge learned through creation of a virtual storefront using a software. It traces the journey the teaching team took in its preparation of the curriculum, and investigates the methods of evaluation carried out in ensuring that the desired objectives and outcomes were met. It examines how the teaching team used both quantitative and qualitative methods of evaluation, to collect the data. The analysis of results showed that the learning experience was on the whole positive, with students happy with the PBL mode of instruction, and benefiting from group work as they worked together to solve problems. Students also were positive about the use of IT in their project work of creating a visual storefront. They also felt that they had acquired other skills such as researching and communication skills. It concludes by recommending further strategies for improvement to equip students with independent and collaborative learning in order to have the ability to innovate and create new knowledge and solutions.