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Journal of Education for Business

ISSN: 0883-2323 (Print) 1940-3356 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjeb20

Using Real Datasets for Interdisciplinary Business/
Economics Projects
Rajni Goel & Ronald L. Straight
To cite this article: Rajni Goel & Ronald L. Straight (2005) Using Real Datasets for
Interdisciplinary Business/Economics Projects, Journal of Education for Business, 80:5, 259-268,
DOI: 10.3200/JOEB.80.5.259-268
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/JOEB.80.5.259-268

Published online: 07 Aug 2010.

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Using Real Datasets
for Interdisciplinary
Business/Economics Projects
RAJNI GOEL
RONALD L. STRAIGHT
Howard University
Washington, D.C.

T

he global, data-intensive, and

dynamic nature of our current
workplace both allows for and necessitates new approaches to delivering business and economics education to undergraduates. There is extensive literature
on efforts to improve general business
education by increasing coursework’s
relevance and interest for students.
Some commentators have suggested
that independent research projects
(Siegfried, 2001) and electronic discussion can foster critical thinking skills
(Greenlaw & DeLoach, 2003). In this
article, we build on these efforts by presenting a framework for developing a
portfolio of student-centered projects
that integrate nontraditional, real-world
datasets into the curriculum. The incorporation of such datasets, particularly if
they are of high interest to the students,
can powerfully enhance the curriculum
and contribute substantially to realizing
business schools’ overall objectives.
Business schools typically attempt to
enrich students’ analytical abilities and
research skills as well as their problemsolving and communication (written

and oral) capabilities.
Exposure to and problem solving
with actual data representing current
business and economic conditions will
provide more benefits to the business
student than would using manufactured
or simulated data specifically created to

ABSTRACT. The workplace’s global
and dynamic nature allows and
requires improved approaches for providing business and economics education. In this article, the authors explore
ways of enhancing students’ understanding of course material by using
nontraditional, real-world datasets of
particular interest to them. Teaching at
a historically Black university, the
authors used one such database, the
ING Gazelle Index, which measures
the business confidence of small, fastgrowing African-American firms.
Instructors reviewed student papers
based on this Index and analyzed a

postproject survey taken by the students. There are a variety of lesserknown economic indices and other
data sources that can be used in a similar manner.

fulfill classroom teaching objectives.
Business schools can no longer afford to
ignore the vital and revolutionary nature
of the vast quantities of information that
are now routinely being collected and
the role that this information plays in all
business disciplines. Business professionals must be familiar with subject
matter relating to data, the knowledge
that can be derived from such data,
information flow, and data mining.
Today’s students need to learn how this
information is collected, stored, analyzed, presented, and strategically used
in the various business disciplines.
In this article, we suggest that business course designers and instructors

improve students’ business understanding by providing them with a unique
learning experience closely aligned with

a body of information of particular
interest to them. We created a specific
set of projects and considered their
value for some of business education’s
stakeholders: students and companies.
Our objective was to test whether projects relying on real business datasets
can effectively introduce “real life” conditions into the business curriculum.
These projects allow students to apply
their knowledge of core business skills
in the same manner that they will need
to apply that knowledge when using
datasets in the organizations that they
join. With this approach, the aim is to
use relevant data and more fully engage
the students by providing resources of
high interest to them. The individual
projects constitute assignments in economics and across multiple business
disciplines, and they facilitate the integration of course concepts, communication, research skills, writing skills,
information technology (IT) skills, and
critical thinking skills.

While teaching at Howard University,
one of the historically Black colleges or
universities (HBCUs), we tested the
effectiveness of using real business
datasets of particular interest to our students by relying on the ING Gazelle
Index (the Index), which measures the
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confidence felt by small, fast-growing
African-American businesses. This
index formed the basis for a series of
interdisciplinary studies performed by
students from economics, finance,
information systems (IS), marketing,
and management backgrounds. Individual projects required different tasks that
varied by discipline. Suggested topics

included matching Gazelle results to
those of better-known indices, understanding the nature of indices, mining
the data and its attributes, and understanding and identifying any leading
series. Instructors of three courses (one
course had two sections) reviewed
resulting papers and surveyed the students regarding their attitudes toward
the projects and their goals.
Literature Review
In light of the business field’s dynamic
nature, business school educators are
continually seeking advances in delivering business curriculum. Previous educational research efforts include experimental learning exercises, the use of live
cases, interdisciplinary projects, and the
incorporation of information technology
(IT). Because IT has become vital to
today’s businesses, researchers are
developing new ways of integrating it
into the curriculum—for instance, in
marketing (Benbunan-Fich, Lozada,
Pirog, Priluck, & Wisenblit, 2001).
Several authors have described

attempts to enhance learning and its
retention by making their coursework
more relevant to the students. The use of
student-centered research projects—
ones that are process based rather than
teacher centered and product based
(Kennedy, Lawton, & Walker, 2001)—
is a key method for providing positive,
well-rounded academic experiences and
for developing basic core competencies
and essential professional skills. So is
allowing learners to assume primary
responsibility for their own choices
(Gremler, Douglas, Keaveney, &
Wright, 2000). Siegfried (2001) suggested that independent research projects can improve economics education
by making classwork more relevant and
therefore more interesting, and other
researchers have suggested using online
methods and technologies such as elec260

Journal of Education for Business

tronic discussion to develop critical
thinking skills (Greenlaw & DeLoach,
2003). Others have used real business
data as well as projects commissioned
by local businesses to teach problem
solving and provide exposure to “real”
business issues (Chen, 2000; Laughton
& Ottewill, 1998).
Expanding on these independent
efforts to find ways to improve students’
skills, we designed a portfolio of student-centered projects that combines the
goals of several of them into one classroom activity. We call them “student
centered” because the students appeared
to already have the specific skills needed
to complete the projects with only limited guidance, allowing most of their
learning to come from their actual
accomplishment of the work.
Our tasks are data-intensive and provide all of the following: interdisciplinary work requiring analytical skills,

exposure to real-world business conditions and issues, and the opportunity to
incorporate IT into various business
disciplines.
Method
We designed and implemented a
cross-discipline, student-centered approach by developing a template for a
set of student research projects that use
a nontraditional dataset. These projects
ranged across multiple business disciplines (finance, marketing, management, accounting, and information systems) and economics. Although the
projects’ complexity was established by
the level of the undergraduate curriculum, instructors can easily adjust them
to suit MBA-level courses.
We designed the assignments to provide an understanding of the Index and
the measures of comparison with it and
improve written and oral communication skills. Thus, the assignments are
applicable to a wide variety of business
disciplines. Unlike traditional term
papers, which involve assigning a topic
to each student, student-centered projects give the student the responsibility
for defining the actions and process

toward completing an activity. Creativity and flexibility in overcoming obstacles (as occurs in the real-world business environment) are a part of the

process controlled by the student and
assessed at the completion of the project. Other students and the instructors
provide suggestions upon the request of
each individual student. Depending on
the business discipline or the curriculum
in which the project is integrated, different assignments may be developed from
each index or dataset.
We separated the projects into two
distinct categories: technology-oriented
and business- or economics-based
projects. The IT projects allowed students to explore technologies that are
integrated into various business functions, and they exposed them to a more
computer-enhanced curriculum. The
business- or economic-based projects
focused more on forecasting and the
analysis of trends based on the data.
Interestingly, commonalities existed
between the two categories: Regardless
of the category, each project directly or
indirectly enhanced and reinforced the
students’ data-analysis abilities and
research and presentation skills, and
thus all the projects supported our
motivation to keep the curriculum current and relevant. Faculty members can
imitate the structure that we used to
create and use each project to incorporate any real-world dataset and can
adjust the structure to match the interests of their students or to fulfill the
requirements of their courses.
Datasets
We chose the datasets (indices) to
provide an understanding of and exposure to current economic conditions and
situations. There are a wide variety of
lesser-known economic indices available from trade associations as well as
from government agencies. The projects
call for the application of subjects or
business skills that are taught in the curriculum. Many require the students to
handle messy data that need data cleansing. The projects present ill-structured
problems of the types actually faced in
the business community, as opposed to
the kinds of cleanly structured problems
currently presented in college classrooms (Chen, 2000).
Instructors can teach the business and
economics curriculum by using projects
or assignments for which a dataset (we

used the ING Gazelle Index, but other
datasets can be employed) provides the
foundation. We present the following
possibilities:

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1. Using the chosen dataset as a basis
for comparison with other business and
economic indicators, such as
• Conference Board’s CEO’s Confidence Index
• Conference Board’s Index of Consumer Confidence
• University of Michigan’s Index of
Consumer Sentiment
• Conference Board’s Index of Leading Indicators
• Institute for Supply Management’s (ISM’s) Report on Business for Manufacturing (and NonManufacturing)
• Black Enterprise Magazine’s
Largest Black Companies
• Fortune Magazine’s list of America’s Fastest-Growing Small Companies (Fortune Small Business
[FSB] 100)
• Actual Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) growth data reported by the
Bureau of Economic Analysis
(BEA; also investment data)
• Census Bureau data
2. Using datasets to train students to
use statistical packages and data-mining
tools as they are used by businesses
3. Using the Index as a measure of
African-American business growth and
comparing or contrasting it with other,
similar indicators
4. Having students analyze the
dataset itself to understand its composition, underlying assumptions, data
sources, sampling methods, statistical
conventions, and so forth
5. Using the dataset for an understanding of how decision-support systems for businesses are developed
Process
We began by designing the template
with the following components: educational and professional skills enriched,
prerequisites, implementation, deliverables, and teaching notes that explain
how we expected each project to reinforce student learning. In the Appendix,
we provide two sample projects illus-

trating the format and structure for each
student assignment. Each project outline also includes suggested disciplines
in which that project can be applied as
part of the instructor’s resources. Each
project description is stored in a database containing business-related projects (in our case, each using the ING
Gazelle Index). Included with each individual project outline is a summary
indicating the implementation plan
using a specific dataset. Though our
experiment required individual class
members to complete each project,
teams could be used if the students
remain responsible for the project management, division of work, and monitoring and logging of the deliverables. This
procedure reinforces the teamwork
skills that are needed for success in
business. Students recorded outcomes,
analyzed findings, and critiqued the
Gazelle Index and its validity by using
current data. During our research, we
developed a total of 34 projects across
various business disciplines. One project required designing a Web site to display all the projects effectively. To adapt
the projects to the school’s and the students’ needs, we gathered feedback,
including the students’ evaluations of
their assignments and descriptions of
the difficulties or issues that they faced.
The benefits gained from designing
and completing these projects can be
considerable. Implementing the projects requires various skills and competencies that are aligned with those of the
business school and are relevant to the
business community. Every project
develops the students’ data analysis,
research, and communication skills and
exposes them to various current concerns and issues in business. Some projects require calculating mathematical
results and making inferences, thus
improving students’ professional skills.
The skills gained from preparing written reports and giving oral presentations
not only help students in their learning
at the university but also have a broader
impact on their knowledge of information resources and on their decisionmaking abilities as business leaders. All
of these skills are core competency
goals in the Howard University School
of Business as well as in the general
academic community.

Experiment
We used the ING Gazelle Index as the
key measure for all the student work. We
received 15 completed reports from students in the business and economics
classes and over 50 from those in a variety of disciplines such as information
systems, international business, accounting, marketing, finance, and management. We assigned a set of students to
undertake an additional ING project; for
some, this was an extra assignment. We
used the additional assignments to test
projects that had been refined on the
basis of a review of comments on the
first set of completed projects. Students
completing these assignments were
freshman business majors (some were
from the Honors Program), whereas others were seniors in the School of Business who had taken micro- and macroeconomics, mathematics through
calculus, and statistics. All had had a
basic course in computing that taught
them to use a PC for word processing or
for working with a spreadsheet program.
However, not all students had academic
research experience.
As questions and concerns developed,
we had to redirect or redefine the projects, keeping the students’ interests and
the project’s learning objectives in perspective. It became clear that several of
the projects as originally designed would
need to be dropped because of difficulties in obtaining or using the data of other
comparative datasets. Others, it became
apparent, would need certain revisions to
be more valuable learning tools. During
the review process, we constantly identified and logged the changes and difficulties; after the course, we redesigned the
assignment as necessary. Because we
assessed the students’ performance on
the basis of their success in handling the
assigned project and its challenges (as in
a real business undertaking, the outcomes were unknown at the outset), they
understood the need for revisions as the
course progressed. We also surveyed the
students regarding their reactions to the
ING Gazelle Index and the project that
they had completed.
Business and Economics Projects
The class started with 19 projects
through which we compared the ING
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Gazelle Index with some common and
better-known indexes, such as the Conference Board’s Index of Consumer
Confidence. The students were to find
the data for each index, discuss the background and makeup of each, and create a
graphical comparison to identify any
obvious situations in which the Gazelle
Index “led or lagged” the comparison
index.
Some projects did not work well,
generally as a result of difficulties in
obtaining the data for the comparison

data only annually and do not appear to
update the data more frequently.
The assignments that were most successful were based on comparisons of
data that were reported monthly. We
show the Gazelle Index and a sample of
other indices in Figure 1. Although each
student did only one comparison, in
Figure 1 we present a composite sample
of comparisons of the Gazelle Index
with the University of Michigan’s Index
of Consumer Sentiment, the Conference
Board’s Indices of CEO and Consumer

ING Gazelle Index. Although the handling of the monthly and quarterly data
did require some initial instruction on
the need for summarization, this task
seems to have been easily accomplished
by all.
Fifteen projects were completed.
They ranged in quality from the marginal (graded at 67%) to the excellent
(98%), with a mean and median score of
81% and modes of 81% and 85%. The
project represented 20% of the course
grade. Students were allowed to do a
second assignment, which could count
as 15% of the course grade, replacing a
lower grade; seven chose to do so. The
student with the original grade of 98%
granted permission so that the successful
project was shared with the other students. We noted that grades on the second projects were slightly better overall,
ranging from 60% to 95%, with a mean
of 84% and median and mode of 85%.

The assignments that were most successful
were based on comparisons of data that
were reported monthly.

IT Projects
index. For instance, when one student
was assigned to use a series reported
by economy.com on CEO confidence,
the data could not be found on the Web
site even after the student had signed
up for the 2-week free trial offer. A few
projects (using data sources such as the
Fortune magazine list of the 100 fastest
growing companies or Black Enterprise’s list of the 100 biggest Blackowned companies) did not work well
because these publications release the

Confidence, and the Institute of Supply
Management’s Report on Business for
Manufacturing. Although students
noted some similarities between the
ING Gazelle Index and their assigned
indices over the given period, they were
unable to identify any firm pattern.
Because the economic data sources
graphed in Figure 1 (like others that
proved useful) are issued monthly or
semimonthly, the students had to summarize the data by quarter to match the

Realizing that many business functional areas have become very data
intensive, we devised a set of projects
focused on IT applications for proper
use, analysis, organization, and mining
of data (as appropriate for the dataset of
student interest). The Management
Information Systems (MIS) classes
(over 45 total students), consisting of
mostly freshmen and some sophomores,
completed a project on “Organizing
Data into a Database Using the ING

120
100
80
60
40
20
0

ING Gazelle Index
UMich Index of Consumer Sentiment
Conference Board CEO Confidence
Conference Board Consumers’ Confidence
Institute of Supply Management’s Report on Business
for Manufacturing
FIGURE 1. Index comparisons.

262

Journal of Education for Business

2Q2002 3Q2002 4Q2002 1Q2003 2Q2003 3Q2003 4Q2003
37.9
67.7
44
52.8
55.1
56.8
49.5
80
94.1
83.8
89.3
89.3
92
87.3
61

54

58

53

60

67

66

108.4

94.6

81.3

68.5

92.8

78.2

88.5

54.4

50.6

51.8

50.2

48.2

53.4

62

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Gazelle Index Report.” Each student,
individually, needed to design a way to
organize the information into a database
in tabular form (database style). This
requirement involved the exercise of
creativity and analysis in designing the
database’s architecture and deciding
how to populate it.
To carry out their assignments, the
students had to answer the following
questions:
• What are the data items that can be
formalized or presented?
• Which data can be put in tabular
form, and which cannot?
• How many attributes would the
database have?
• Can the material be organized into
just one database, or do we need more
than one?
• Are there pieces of data that are
missing from the report?
Interestingly, the student questions
and comments related to the Gazelle
Index and the project indicated a high
interest in the topic of this Index, which
led to active discussions in the classroom. We provide the following observations, noted in the discussions and
evaluations:
• None of the students were familiar
with the ING Gazelle Index before they
started their project (this also was evident from the survey).
• All found the ING Gazelle Index to
be very interesting and of educational
value.
• They were pleased that the ING
Gazelle Index highlighted the existence
of African-American entrepreneurs.
• They were generally mystified as
to how the firms were identified.
• Many hoped to see more details
about the companies, products, and
services.
• They found it unusual that the most
recent survey included so many of the
same firms that were covered in the earlier quarter’s survey.
• Many wished that there were more
data periods, but they understood that
that problem would decrease with time.
• Many found the information within
each quarterly report to be repetitive.
There were concerns about the
dataset and its composition. Students

wanted to see the raw survey data for
each quarterly survey, rather than just
one aggregated statistic. The students’
suggestions for improvement included
assessment of the validation of the raw
data. For example, instead of the ING
Gazelle Index being limited to companies of 10–50 employees, they asked
whether comparing these smaller companies’ data with those of companies
with 50–100 employees would show
some significant differences; and if so,
how much. The students would have
preferred a more detailed list of data
from which to extract information and
would have liked to have the data organized in a better format.
Such questions and concerns added
considerable value to the learning
process, principally because the students encountered obstacles similar to
those faced by business professionals in
real-world situations. The students were
creative and tried various approaches to
overcome the difficulties; some communicated the problems and worked in
groups to come up with ways to achieve
the objective. When we discussed the
fact that these same issues are constantly dealt with by those handling data and
information in business, we had the
opportunity to describe technologies
that can help resolve such issues.
The additional student projects for
the MIS course investigated methods of
disseminating knowledge about these
ING Gazelle Index projects. One
assignment required students to develop
a Web site, Designing a Web site
Explaining Research Project Funded by
ING, to host all of these projects so that
educators in business schools could visit
and use the site as an instructional
resource. The project goal was for students to understand the multiple business functionalities of a Web site as well
as the technical complexities in implementing the design. The site had to provide information about (a) the index in
use and the projects being conducted
through it, (b) relationships to other
indices that measure growth, and (c)
other appropriate information and
graphics. The Web site could be interactive if the students wished, but their
principal goals were to attract educators
and have proper links to related sites.
Having learned about search engines, e-

commerce marketing, and customer
relationship management (CRM) from
an IT perspective, the students were
able to draft some ideas for a design that
was user-friendly and inviting, yet content driven. The ING Gazelle Index
projects’ Web-site ideas provided basic
preliminary concepts and designs that
had potential. Sample copies of several
interesting ideas for Web sites were presented, and one was posted through an
internal server. With additional resources,
the students could complete the prototype
and implement such an educational
resource site. If projects were integrated
over disciplines and semesters, students
would also have an opportunity to develop and host a Web site providing information about this project. Also, we
reviewed possible opportunities for placing the ING Gazelle Index in a database
at our local School of Business library.
Another project, titled Analysis of the
Characteristics of Business Owners:
Small African-American Business Versus Others, also initiated interest. Students working on it enhanced their
research capabilities and developed a
better understanding of business ownership challenges.
Student Evaluation
After students had completed their
first round of projects, but before their
papers were returned (to avoid the influence of the grade), we surveyed them to
evaluate their experience with the
dataset to determine their appreciation
of the project. We provide the results,
based on 62 responses, in Figures 2 and
3. Each graph first shows the percentage
of respondents who agreed or strongly
agreed with the statement presented,
and the graphs are rank ordered by this
result. The middle category is the percentage of respondents who neither
agreed nor disagreed; the right-hand
portion shows the percentage who disagreed or strongly disagreed with the
statement.
Overall, except for the first item, the
levels of complete agreement or disagreement were fairly low, with several
statements marked by high neutral
scores. Although almost no students
had previously heard of the ING
Gazelle Index, 50% found working with
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263

I was unaware of the ING Gazelle Index before this project.

0.95

Working with the ING Gazelle Index was interesting.

0.00 .05

0.50

Five pages for the project write-up is about right.

0.40

Gathering the ING Gazelle Index data was easy.

0.40

Overall, learning about the ING Gazelle Index was worthwhile.

0.32

0.27
0.39

0.37

10% 20%

0.42

0.23

30% 40% 50% 60%

Percentage
Neutral

Percentage
Positive

0.21
0.40

0.23

0.35

0%

0.34

0.26

0.40

The information on the ING Gazelle Index
Web site was clearly explained.
Appropriate ING Gazelle Index projects should be
repeated in future classes.

0.27

0.23

70% 80%

90% 100%

Percentage
Negative

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FIGURE 2. ING Gazelle Index Survey Results: Fall 2003 (Part 1).

The information on the ING Gazelle Index Web site was easy to follow.

0.35

The amount of information on the ING Gazelle Index Web site was about right.

0.34

Use of the ING Gazelle Index should be a part
of the regular business curriculum.

0.32

The class ING Gazelle Index project enhanced my research and analytical skills.

0.31

I will most likely revisit the ING Gazelle Index site during my business career.

0.23

10% 20%

0.32
0.39

0.32
0.39

0.24

0%

0.44
0.37

0.27

I will likely discuss the ING Gazelle Index site with others
(students or nonstudents).

0.27

0.37

0.29

Gathering the other data (alternative to the ING Gazelle Index) was easy.

0.37

0.27

0.50

0.26

30% 40% 50% 60%

Percentage
Positive

0.34

Percentage
Neutral

70% 80%

90% 100%

Percentage
Negative

FIGURE 3. ING Gazelle Index Survey Results: Fall 2003 (Part 2).

it to be interesting, and 40% believed
that, overall, working with it was worthwhile.
The data in Figure 3, representing a
continuation of the results in Figure 2,
are also rank ordered by percentage of
agreement. For these statements, the
levels of agreement were relatively
lower, with higher neutral levels,
although most of the percentages of disagreement were not substantially
increased.
About one third of the students
thought that use of the ING Gazelle
Index should be a part of the regular
business curriculum or that they would
be likely to revisit it during their business careers. About one quarter thought
that they would be likely to discuss the
Gazelle Index with others.
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Journal of Education for Business

Survey Results: Analysis and
Recommendations
First, 73% of the students in the business economics class, composed primarily of 1st-semester seniors, found
the information on the ING Gazelle
Index Web site to be clearly explained.
Furthermore, 67% found that working
with the Index was interesting, that gathering the ING Gazelle Index data was
easy, and that the Web site was easy to
follow. Interestingly, despite the great
diversity in ages and majors, close to
30% of the students in our sample
thought that they would most likely
revisit the site during their business
careers (with another 53% undecided),
and 40% thought that learning about the
ING Gazelle Index was worthwhile

(with another 40% undecided). As
instructors, we were pleased that such a
high percentage of students were so positively affected by just one set of assignments. As we continue to modify and
improve the projects, we are hopeful
that these positive percentages will rise.
Less supportive, however, was the
finding that only 7% (one student)
would likely discuss the Index with others. Also, only 20% of the business economics students thought that their project enhanced their research and
analytical skills (with 67% undecided),
and only 20% of the business economics students thought that it should be a
part of the regular business curriculum.
A majority of the projects in our survey were IT projects performed by a
class composed primarily of freshmen

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with a few sophomores (rather than
seniors). The students in the management
information systems (MIS) class were
majors in international business, finance,
management, marketing, accounting,
information systems, or insurance. Thirty
percent of the students in the MIS class
were confident that they would likely discuss the Index with others; this was a
much higher percentage than the corresponding one for students completing
business and economics projects. But
only 26% (with 30% undecided) felt that
the information on the ING Gazelle
Index Web site was easy to follow. This
percentage was much lower than the corresponding overall one; we attribute this
result to the nature of the MIS projects,
which required much more detailed
research within the Web site, as well as to
a greater lack of experience among those
students. About 35% of the MIS students
responded favorably to the statement that
the ING Gazelle Index project had
enhanced their research and analytical
skills; these students stated that they
would recommend making it part of the
regular business curriculum. Again, this
approval level was relatively higher than
that for the senior-level economics students. We attribute the differences to the
project type and to the fact that the lowerlevel students had less research experience and therefore valued the project
more as an enhancer of research skills.
As we discussed this work with other
professors in economics, they suggested
that identifying the student level appropriate for the project would also be helpful. Labeling the project as freshman/
sophomore level versus junior/senior
level would add value for the instructor
as well.
Although we did not ascribe great
educational goals to the project, we
believed that it would be of exceptionally high interest to students. An alternative to further increase interest would be
to have the students select the data
source, limiting the population to new,
less well-known collections. Perhaps
students would have found data from a
particular trade association or other
industry group to be more interesting.
Or perhaps there is no index of data that
would be of higher interest to undergraduates. We suggest that instructors of
business and economics classes and IT

classes undertake a similar survey in
which the students would perform projects based on assigned topics (a
term-paper-type situation) rather than
real-world data. It would be interesting
to analyze the differences between that
survey’s results and those from our survey of the ING Gazelle Index projects.
Conclusions and Future Work
We hope that researchers will help to
identify ways that educators can
improve upon current classroom materials and personalize the business curriculum by including relevant content for
discussion that will develop students’
educational and professional skills. We
feel that the project described in this
article has been important and successful in introducing college students to
actual, current business-related data and
conditions about which they had little or
no previous awareness. Such projects
can help instructors achieve their educational objectives. The projects provided
us with the opportunity to incorporate
IT into a number of business disciplines, exposed students to real-world
business conditions and issues, called
for interdisciplinary research that is data
intensive, and fostered the development
of analytical skills.
Even with a diverse set of majors and
levels of students, 50% of the students
in our sample felt that the index chosen
was interesting. With further development of the projects, faculty members
and students could arrive at datasets that
produce even more positive results.
Working with the ING Gazelle Index
gave our students a chance to identify
with success stories within a common
cultural realm to better understand how
minority businesses can succeed. They
learned how companies use indices in
making business discussions and how
well African-American companies are
competing with other small businesses.
Instructors must choose appropriate
datasets according to student body interests and course objectives. Instructors
can teach data-mining skills to marketing and IS students via this technique of
using real-world indices. The class could
use a consumer-response or click-stream
dataset, which would enable students to
better understand how to develop an

effective Web site. In an entrepreneur
class, students, having chosen a dataset
of interest to them, can benefit from
learning how to use information technologies and data to guide a business to
success. In one possible project, students
would use historical data and research
current economic trends and predictions
to write a computer program predicting
the level of African-American business
owners’ future confidence in our economy. One can find similar examples for
using IT applications and data in other
business disciplines. These projects can
be coordinated (interwoven) through a
number of disciplines so that team
teaching could also be effective. Each
template identifies how the project
relates to a specific business course curriculum and where in the syllabus it
could be integrated. Furthermore, business school faculty members would validate the effectiveness of these projects
and outline the expected outcomes and
benefits.
Disseminating material on interdisciplinary real-data projects (such as those
based on the Gazelle Index) via academic presentations, publications, and
Web-site availability can greatly benefit
business and economics education.
When projects are proposed and completed in additional college environments, and their designs and outcomes
are evaluated, it may be appropriate to
use similar indices related to various
ethnic or specific-interest communities.
Importantly, as projects are executed,
Web sites can be created; they would be
of educational value, provide further
exposure for the Index, and assist professors who might wish to use similar projects in the classroom. Also, the assignment sheets and teaching notes could be
continuously revised and shared with
instructors in a variety of settings. This
procedure would serve two purposes: to
introduce other educators to the usable
datasets and to obtain their feedback on
the suggested assignments.
Instructors desiring to enhance the
classroom experiences of their students
may benefit from the findings of this
study. The framework allows educators
to find alternative sources of data that
will be well aligned with their students’
interests and their schools’ unique missions and goals. To generate a broader
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impact for this entire effort, students
from the IS department could create a
Web site providing the template for all
the projects. In the future, researchers
could detail additional efforts on
redesign or amplification of the projects, explore other avenues for disseminating the information on college campuses, or evaluate the Index itself in a
more formal manner.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We would like to thank ING for support and Dr.

Thomas Boston for insight provided on the ING
Gazelle Index.
REFERENCES
Benbunan-Fich, R., Lozada, H., Pirog, S., Priluck,
R., & Wisenblit, J. (2001). Integrating information technology into the marketing curriculum:
A pragmatic paradigm. Journal of Marketing
Education, 23(1), 5–15.
Chen, C. (2000). Using realistic business data in
teaching business problem solving. Information, Learning, and Performance Journal,
18(2), 41–50.
Greenlaw, S., & DeLoach, S. (2003, Winter).
Teaching critical thinking with electronic discus-

sion. Journal of Economic Education, 36–52.
Gremler, D., Douglas, H., Keaveney, S., &
Wright, L. (2000). Experiential learning exercises in services marketing courses. Journal of
Marketing Education, 2(1), 35–44.
Kennedy, E., Lawton, L., & Walker, E. (2001).
The case for using live cases: Shifting the paradigm in marketing education. Journal of Marketing Education, 23(2), 145–151.
Laughton, D., & Ottewill, R. (1998). Laying foundations for effective learning from commissioned projects in business education. Education and Training, 40(3), 95–101.
Siegfried, J. (2001, Spring). Principles for a successful undergraduate economics honors program. Journal of Economic Education, 169–177.

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APPENDIX A
ECONOMICS PROJECT TEMPLATE USING REAL DATASETS FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY BUSINESS/ECONOMICS PROJECTS: ING GAZELLE
INDEX
Project No. 1
Title: Compare the Results of the ING Gazelle Index to Those of the Conference
Board’s CEO Confidence Survey
Assignment
The ING Gazelle Index is based on quarterly surveys of rapidly growing AfricanAmerican businesses. The Conference Board’s CEO Confidence Index is based on a
quarterly survey of senior executives.
Where sufficient information is available, investigate whether the two indices are
coincident or whether one leads the other. Use Excel or a similar worksheet program
to tabulate and graph each index with the data available. Use correlation analysis to
determine the relationship. Visually inspect for leads in one index.
Information Sources
Below are listed a couple of sources to get you started. Additional sources are expected to be cited.
ING Gazelle Index—http://www.inggazelleindex.com/
CEO Confidence Index—http://www.conference-board.org/economics/indicators
Expectations.cfm
Deliverables
In a 3- to 5-page report, discuss the theoretical and practical (for business decisions)
results of your findings. Tables and graphs may be used in addition to the text of the
report. An oral presentation may also be required.
Due Date
All deliverables are due 14 days after the assignment is given.
Instructors’ Resources
This assignment introduces the students to two (or more) indices that may report on
the same or similar factors but use different sources of data. The students examine
the similarities/differences between the two (or more) reports. It may be the student’s
first analysis of leading, lagging, and coincident indicators. At the instructor’s discretion, the project may be used as the basis for an oral presentation in addition to the
written paper. In some classes it could be used as the basic information to be posted
to a business Web site. This may be used as an individual assignment or as a small
group project.
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APPENDIX A (Continued)
Suggested Disciplines
Such a project may be relevant for studies in economics, general business conditions,
business and economic forecasting, survey research, and marketing and management.
Educational/Professional Skills Enriched

Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 22:43 12 January 2016

This project should help develop skills related to
• Identifying business data resources
• Performing analytical analysis
• Using Excel tables and graphs
• Understanding leading, lagging, and coincident indicators
• Developing business judgment
• Communicating in writing and by oral presentations
• Developing a Web-site presentation

APPENDIX B
INFORMATION SYSTEMS (IS) PROJECT TEMPLATE
USING REAL DATASETS FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY BUSINESS/ECONOMICS PROJECTS: ING GAZELLE INDEX
Project No. 3
Title: Design a Web Site Explaining the ING Research Experiment (Phase 1)
Assignment
The ING Gazelle Index is based on quarterly surveys of rapidly growing AfricanAmerican businesses. It examines African-American business leaders’ sentiments.
CEOs of African-American businesses were asked questions regarding the business
strategies they have employed to cope with the current economic conditions.
Visit the site: http://www.inggazelleindex.com/
Read about and familiarize yourself with the index by visiting the various links.
Your assignment is to design a Web site that provides information about the ING
Gazelle Index, about the projects being conducted using it, and about its relationships
to other indices that measure growth. Other appropriate information and graphics
may be included. The Web site can be interactive if you wish, but most of all it should
attract students and businesses as well as have proper links to related sites.
Information Sources
Below is listed one source you must use. Additional sources are expected to be cited.
ING Gazelle Index—http://www.inggazelleindex.com/
Deliverables
A design of a Web site and links to relevant information and data sources that it would
include. Also, in a 2–4 page report, you should discuss the problems and issues that
you had when completing this exercise (what more information would have been
helpful). An oral presentation may also be required.
Due Date
All deliverables are due 21 days after the assignment is given.
Instructors’ Resources
This assignment introduces the students to the skills needed to design a Web site,
from an information dispersion viewpoint and as a marketing tool. The students examine similarities/differences among other successful sites. It may be the student’s first
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APPENDIX B (Continued)
exposure to understanding basic technologies needed to design a Web site. At the
instructor’s discretion, the project may be used as the basis for an oral presentation in
addition to the written paper. In some classes it could be used as the basic information
to be posted to a business Web site. This may be used as an individual assignment or
as a small group project.
Suggested Disciplines
Such a project may be relevant for studies in marketing, information systems, survey
research, and risk analysis.
Educational/Professional Skills Enriched

Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 22:43 12 January 2016

This project should help develop skills related to
• Identifying appropriate Web resources
• Using Excel tables and graphs
• Developing business judgment
• Communicating in writing and by oral presentations
• Developing a Web-site presentation

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Journal of Education for Business