Internal Consistency in Components of International Management/International Business Syllabi

Abstract

The course syllabus is a contract between instructor and students, a schedule of course assignments and activities, and a roadmap delineating objectives and checkpoints in the course. It is also a planning and reference tool for both students and instructor, and it models professors' expectations for their students. This study investigated whether a sample of 191 international business/international management syllabi showed consistency between skill development objectives cited in the syllabus and actual topic areas covered in reading and other assignments, as well as with teaching methods employed. It also examined congruence between teaching methods and grading policies. The findings reveal a significant lack of consistency in the items examined. Potential problems likely from the resulting mixed messages are discussed.

Key Words:

• Syllabus internal consistency
• course objectives
• topic areas
• teaching methods
• grading policies