Copyright (c) 2009 All rights reserved. http://works.bepress.com/kenneth_pierce Recent documents in Kenneth R Pierce en-us Sun, 31 May 2009 08:08:50 PDT 3600 http://works.bepress.com/kenneth_pierce/2 http://works.bepress.com/kenneth_pierce/2 Wed, 10 Oct 2007 16:17:10 PDT One of the most interesting topics in the educational circles today is the use of gaming and simulation techniques for instruction. We have created a society of children and adults who are growing up in an environment where continued stimulation is the norm. Look at students who are in need of staying in touch through their cell phones, laptops, instant messaging, text messaging, and email. This stimulation and constant bombardment of communication plays a significant role in their learning. Traditional methods of teaching this new generation of children and young adults are going to have minimal effect on their learning if not augmented by the use of and inclusion of various other stimulations that can keep them engaged. Kenneth R. Pierce Pre-Published Documents http://works.bepress.com/kenneth_pierce/3 http://works.bepress.com/kenneth_pierce/3 Wed, 10 Oct 2007 16:17:10 PDT Kenneth R. Pierce Children's Reading http://works.bepress.com/kenneth_pierce/4 http://works.bepress.com/kenneth_pierce/4 Wed, 10 Oct 2007 16:17:10 PDT The purpose of this report is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the current Harvard University web site (http://www.harvard.edu). Through the course of this report, utilization of several analytical methods has determined whether the site successfully fulfills the business goals and objectives of Harvard University. Kenneth R. Pierce Research Papers for Master's Courses http://works.bepress.com/kenneth_pierce/1 http://works.bepress.com/kenneth_pierce/1 Wed, 10 Oct 2007 16:17:09 PDT As web sites become more and more the primary face of universities, it is essential that they provide a consistent, stable view to the user. Unlike many corporations with large web sites, universities have historically had difficulty in gaining the cooperation needed across their campuses to provide a uniform user experience. Colleges, departments, and programs are usually in charge of their own web site design and content, therefore consistency, usability, and reuse are of little consideration. Were there a catalyst to entice a university to consolidate its web infrastructure, it would most likely fall upon the university's Information Technology (IT) department to implement and support it. Given this responsibility, it is imperative that the IT department choose an appropriate foundation for the web infrastructure, and employ proven software development processes. One university, The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), recently made this major paradigm shift in preparation of its accreditation review from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). It now successfully hosts nearly 1000 integrated web sites in an infrastructure that is built upon an open source portal technology, and this technology infrastructure has assisted UTEP's IT department in formalizing and implementing key software engineering practices for their web infrastructure. UTEP's IT department has seen improvements in requirements gathering, coding standards, design templates, code reuse, testing, deployment, and project management. A thorough investigation of the deliberate technology decisions made by UTEP, and the process changes they made following these decisions, reveal dramatic increases in the UTEP development team's capability levels as measured by the Software Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI). This document recommends that all universities implement technology and processes that mimic those of the University of Texas at El Paso in order to establish a concise road to process maturity. Kenneth R. Pierce Research Papers for Master's Courses Pre-Published Documents