Computer-aided learning and assessment for spreadsheet modelling of critical path analysis

In many universities, courses in quantitative methods for business are provided for students from a variety of disciplines. Student numbers on these courses can be very large and, for such non-specialist courses, there can be a wide range of student ability. The purpose of this study was to develop computer-aided learning and assessment programs which overcome the difficulties of teaching a very large group of mixed ability students and provide a fast, error-free and consistent method of marking. It is intended to provide a more satisfactory experience for students, who can vary their practice time to suit their own individual needs, and also to save a lot of time for lecturers in setting and marking assignments. The specific aim of this study was to develop a modelling task for such a group that would be less mechanistic than the network analysis tasks previously reported. Thus, students are required to construct a complete spreadsheet model for a critical path network, starting from a table of predecessors. The model has to be constructed with formulae so as to enable experimentation and sensitivity analysis in traditional operations research style. A program has been developed which generates an apparently endless sequence of different tables of predecessors, then checks for mistakes in the students' formulae as well as identifying poor presentation such as unnecessary crossing or right-to-left pointing arrows. Two forms of the program are available. The first provides feedback to the students so that they can learn how to construct the model. The second provides no feedback, but prints some coded information to assist lecturers with marking. There is also a spreadsheet tutorial for the students to help them get started. The program has been used with great success by a group of 351 students, who reported that the approach was not only more effective than traditional pencil-and-paper approaches to learning, but was fun to use as well.