I have learned many principles and tricks from some of the most innovative teachers, such as Don Plane and Sam Savage, that I would not have acquired on my own in several decades of practice. But as with all innovation, every discovery opens up new questions. A lively debate is in order about what the appropriate content of a management science course should be now that we have a technology that allows our students to be active modelers. And as I mentioned earlier, a related debate is needed as to the proper role of specialized software. Another important question is how to integrate the teaching of management science with the teaching of statistics, now that both can be taught with spreadsheets.
Most business programs devote more time to statistics than to management science.
Rarely are the two courses integrated in terms of software, modeling approach or applications. My belief is that it is time for the management science community to rethink the artificial division between management science and statistics, and to push for these topics to be effectively integrated in the curriculum. Another area where innovation is needed is in exploiting the graphics capabilities of the spreadsheet to improve both our teaching and end-user modeling itself. This is just a sample of some of the issues that will be debated at next summer's workshop. As with all innovation, the rate of change is slow, and communication among all elements of the teaching fraternity is disorganized and faulty.