MERLOT - Multimedia Education Resource for Learning and Online Teaching
Home Communities Learning Materials Member Directory My Profile About Us

Peer Review

Become a Member | Log In

E-Kin1: A Case Study

by Beverly Kracher
 

Ratings

Overall Rating:

3 stars
Content Quality: 3.5 stars
Effectiveness: 3.5 stars
Ease of Use: 4 stars
Reviewed: Mar 11, 2003 by Business Editorial Board
Overview: This is a case study of ethical issues that may arise when a newly founded
e-marketing company launches its operation. The site provides linkages to sites
containing articles on ethical issues of marketing on the Internet. The
management team is faced with several ethical issues in regard to internet
security, credibility, intellectual property, and privacy.

Learning Goals: The major goal is to develop an understanding of the antecedents, processes and
consequences of decisions related to launching an operation in the cyberspace.
Target Student Population: Undergraduate Business Students
- Introduction to Business
- Introduction to eCommerce
- Marketing Principles
- Business Ethics
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills: - Principles of Marketing course.
- A basic level of Business Fundementals
- An general understanding of how commerce on the Internet works

Type of Material: Tutorial and drill for use in e-marketing courses.
Recommended Uses: Use the module for take home assignment and in-class discussion.
Technical Requirements: Browser.

Evaluation and Observation

Content Quality

Rating: 3.5 stars
Strengths: The site is dedicated to exploring selected ethical issues of e-commerce and
marketing on the Internet. It provides linkages for supporting sites. These
sites are significant sources of information about the issues raised. The
questions at the end of each section are good and will provide for interesting
class dicussions.
Concerns: It does not provide for comprehensive coverage of all ethical issues.
It does not provide a complete demonstration of the concept.

Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool

Rating: 3.5 stars
Strengths: Efficiency is the strength of the exercise.
- It raises some important issues that students need to discuss.
- It is short enough to be utilized in a short time period.
- It will allow for discussion by most/all students, regardless of business
knowledge.

Concerns: The site lacks learning objectives and a statement of prerequisite knowledge.
It does not reinforce knowledge progressively, and does not demonstrate concept
relationships.

Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty

Rating: 4 stars
Strengths: The module is easy to use.
Concerns: The faculty member might have to provide additional insights about the reality
of business operations in order to extend the discussion to a higher level.

This is a somewhat poor site design and is not engaging nor visually appealing.


Other Issues and Comments:
--%>