Most undergraduate business students simply do not appreciate the elegant mathematical beauty of inventory models. So how does an instructor capture students' interest and keep them engaged in the learning process when teaching inventory management concepts? This paper describes a competitive and energizing in-class simulation game that introduces…

Critical Chains project management focuses on holding buffers at the project level vs. task level, and managing buffers as a project resource. A number of studies have shown that Critical Chain project management can significantly improve organizational schedule fidelity (i.e., improve the proportion of projects delivered on time) and reduce…

This article presents a queuing model simulation of scientific productivity utilizing critical path analysis. Creativity is found to have a large positive effect, a negative effect, or no effect on productivity, depending on the stage of the problem-solving process to which it is applied and the nature of the bottlenecks inherent to the specific…

The implications of computer technology and architecture are discussed with reference to school building design. A brief introduction is given of computer applications in other fields leading to the conclusions that computers alone cannot design school buildings but may serve as a useful tool in the overall design process. Specific examples are…

Explains details behind some of the new planning and building terms that represent concepts designed to generate high quality school structures at more reasonable costs than previous traditional methods. (Author)

Discusses eight computer assisted planning models that are amenable to the improvement of decisionmaking; explains the feasibility of involving systems analysis and operations research in educational decisions; and suggests a minimal program designed to prepare educational planners with knowledge of computer assisted planning models. (Author/JF)

Any general systems approach has five basic elements, which serve as the tasks for the researcher using systems analysis. The five are (1) the objectives, (2) the alternatives, (3) the costs, (4) the model (or models), and (5) the decision rule. With these five steps, the researcher should be able to specify the objectives, select alternatives,…

Through computer simulation activities, building designs can be tested and evaluated before construction begins, alternatives developed, and cost-benefit ratios analyzed. Annotations of 15 publications in the ERIC system that involve the use of computers and school planning are contained in this digest. (Author/MLF)

This bibliography on the tools and applications of operations research, management science, industrial engineering, and systems engineering lists many entries which appeared between 1961 and 1966 in 186 periodicals and trade journals. Twenty-six texts in operations research are also listed along with an indication as to which of 37 techniques or…

A systems approach to college administration and planning is probably the most valuable tool available for coping with the complex problems facing institutions of higher education today. A system is defined as a set of interrelated elements, units, or subsystems that work together toward a common goal. If a college functions as a system, the…

A survey of the use of eight decision-science techniques was conducted in a stratified random cample of school districts in the United States. The purpose of the study was to determine the relative use frequency of these techniques in 14 application areas and the potential uses of the techniques in the school districts. The amount of formal…

The RMC Model A (norm-referenced) for evaluation of Title I programs is based upon the equipercentile assumption--that students maintain their percentile rank over a one-year period, provided that no special instrucional intervention is introduced. The control group, essentially the sample used to standardize the achievement test, represents the…

A survey investigated the use of seven computerized decision-science techniques in public school systems. A stratified random sample of 128 12-grade school districts of varying sizes was drawn; a questionnaire was sent to the respective superintendents asking them to report the current and potential applications of the following techniques in…

A demand for more and better education has driven educators to seek the help of systems analysis in the process of decision making. Basic to the entire systems notion is the concept of a model, a simplified but controllable version of the real world. The systems approach, once the problem is defined, is to specify the subfunctions and…

The implementation of year-round schools requires careful planning and management. An activity plan provides an effective technique for implementation and action by necessitating the outlining of goals and the identification of procedures and activities to achieve those goals. Additionally, it provides techniques for monitoring ongoing plans and…