Search

When faced with a decision to acquire and install a networking lab for business students, the question looms as to the purpose and the learning objectives for such a lab. In addition, the technology is expensive and the effort required to set up the lab, define its pedagogical focus and prepare experiments that help achieve this focus can be a daunting task. However, modern business colleges must incorporate state of the art networking technologies into its curriculum and provide an opportunity for students to learn by doing. This paper presents the results of the creation of a networking lab including its physical setup, discusses the obstacles faced during its implementation and how they were overcome, and provides a roadmap for educators interested in adding a similar lab to their school. (Funding for the lab was generously provided by a group of alumni with a match from their employer for the specific purpose of creating a networking laboratory.) The lab is intended for business students majoring in Information Systems who must be prepared to make decisions concerning the acquisition and implementation of networking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]