beSMART

A THEORETICAL STUDY OF THE SAND CONE MODEL AND KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT FROM MALAYSIAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES PERSPECTIVE

This paper outlines the previous research on the theoretical study for Knowledge Management. The current study of this paper seeks to explore whether knowledge creation, knowledge acquisition, knowledge capture and knowledge sharing possibly have a significant impact and gaps in knowledge management practice at Malaysian university libraries. Therefore, this paper adopts the “Sand Cone Model” approach to gauge its feasibility to be incorporated into this research. The knowledge contribution of this research will be employed to elaborate and integrate using Structural Equation Model (SEM) for some of the confirmatory factors that can influence the knowledge management practices. The expected outcome and gaps of knowledge in theoretical model could also provide some direction for future research.

Knowledge management, Knowledge creation, Knowledge acquisition, Knowledge capture, Knowledge sharing, Structural Equation Model (SEM), Sand Cone Model

DYNAMIC SHIFT FROM PRINT TO ELECTRONIC RESOURCES

The study assesses and evaluates use of e-resources by 240 subjects, namely post graduate students, research scholars and faculty members at Ratan Tata Library (RTL) of the Delhi School of Economics (DSE) and Faculty of Management Studies Library (FMSL), University of Delhi (DU), Delhi.  Highlights problems encountered by the users and suggest remedial measures for their improvement. Authors investigate the use of e-resources through a survey based on a structured questionnaire. Various statistical methods used for data analysis. Study confirmed that all the three classes of subjects are aware of various types of e-resources, e-databases, e-books and e-journals. Suggests for improvement in the access facilities with more computer terminals, high internet speed, including Wi-Fi connectivity and subscription to more e-resources by the Delhi University Library System (DULS). Also finds out whether there is any shift in approach in using electronic resources over print, including internet, websites of RTL and FMS, OPAC, etc. by the users of RTL and FMS. The paper provides some insights concerning the benefits of electronic resources over print resources, i.e., technical ability for a single copy to be made accessible by multiple users; their durability; their use in preservation; the fact they don’t go out of print; their ability to support distance learning; and their potential to provide users with access 24/7

Delhi School of Economics (DSE), Delhi University Library System (DULS), e-books, e-databases, e-journals, e-resources, Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), Faculty of Management Studies Library (FMSL), Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC),  Ratan Tata Library (RTL), University of Delhi (DU).

THE STUDY ON THE EFFECTS OF THE QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS USED IN THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY UNITS/FIRMS IN TURKEY

It is considered several quality management systems (QMS)peculiar to the information technology (IT) to manage IT processes systematically.There are a lot of expected effects and benefits from these systems in the literature. In this study, these expected benefits were grouped according to literature research as increasing in product and service quality, increasing in the satisfaction and loyalty of customers, increasing in project management performance, increasing in the team management and motivation, financial benefits, managerial benefits. After that, it was tried to figure out whether or not the mentioned benefits are made by comparing the firms which were classified into three groups. Firstgroup firms have quality management systems peculiar to the information technology. Secondgroupfirms usegeneral purpose quality management systems,andlast group firms don’t applyany of these quality systems. As a result of surveys and analyses, such differences were observed in some expected effects.

INVESTIGATE INTO INVARIANCE PROPERTIES OF ITEM RESPONSE THEORY (IRT) BY TWO AND THREE PARAMETER MODELS

G. Mallikarjuna, Dr. V. Natarajan

Despite the well-known theoretical differences between item response theory (IRT) and classical test theory (CTT), research examining their empirical properties has failed to reveal consistent, demonstrable differences due to usage of samples with errors, incorrect assumptions & incorrect calculations. Dr. Natarajan (India, 1984) had proved the item invariance with his classic 20 X 76 test data and group invariance with 25 X 1000 test data. However, this research will investigate the invariance property of IRT using real live data and also find out how far is this IRT theory an enabler of accurate estimation of parameters over and above the classical test theory (CTT)properties? The objectives of the present research will be: a) to demonstrate through an illustration, the classical test theory (CTT) is a group dependent statistical analysis and bring out its limitations b) to ascertain group invariance of item parameters and item invariance of ability parameters in IRT c) to hypothesize that IRT based item parameter/ability parameters are invariant and more accurate than CTT characteristics. A large scale country wise computer based test (CBT) examinations assessment data is used for this research. The current findings indicate that in CTT, the facility value and index of difficulty are group dependent. Studies are being carried out on invariance property, the core and critical characteristic of IRT for which results are expected in next one year.

Classical test theory, facility value, index of difficulty, item response theory,
item parameters, ability parameters, invariance.

CONFIDENCE LEVEL RATING IN MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST LEADING TO INCREASE IN RELIABILITY AND DECREASE IN STANDARD ERROR OF MESUREMENT

Ms.NiyatiKapoor, Dr.V.Natarajan

In the present scenario, whenever any test taker is measured, evaluated and assessed, the number of right answers that a test taker provides, forms the basis of his assessment without understanding the fact that for responding a particular test item how much sure s/he has been. Also to be sure about the knowledge of the test taker, it is important to understand whether the test taker is confident about answering it or has the correct answer been the result of mere guesswork. This Classical Test Theory, applied Test and Item Analysis has a very low reliability and high standard error. A new and innovative technique can be introduced in the normal testing scenario which is called the Confidence Level Rating (CLR) which indicates the confidence s/he has in her/his response. Thus the purpose of this paper is to present how beneficial the confidence level rating is in the multiple choice test items and how this technique leads to increase in reliability and thereby reducing the standard error of measurement. Also this research paper is a by-product of an illuminative research project done by the first author and guided by the second author which offers various innovative practices in the field of learning and assessment which are conducive to the learning process of a learner in school education or otherwise ,one of it being Confidence Level Rating.

Confidence level rating, Confidence-based learning, Assessment of learning.