1.   Foogooa, R. & Ferdinand-James, D. (2017), “Use of Facebook for improving student engagement in a higher education blended engineering course”, Innovative Issues and Approaches in Social Sciences, Vol. 10, No. 1

Synopsis:

In spite of the fact that many universities include blended learning in offering their programmes, student engagement in courses remains a challenge. This research started off as an investigation into the use of the Learning Management System (LMS) by students of an engineering course and into ways to improve student engagement. The heavy usage of social media by the students prompted us to find how Facebook could be used in a course in conjunction with an LMS. A closed Facebook group was created by the lecturer and used to interact with the class. Data collection was done through an online survey of the students at the end of the class. A social media analytics software was also used to analyse the interactions on the Facebook group. A journal was also kept for the lecturer’s thoughts throughout the class. To avoid bias, the second author, an educational technologist whose conference paper on Social Media inspired this one, was involved in the analysis and interpretation of the data. The results were very encouraging. A majority of students were actively engaged by the Facebook group. However, this research put into perspective a series of potential issues with the use of Facebook or any other social media in higher education which would warrant further research.

Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.12959/issn.1855-0541.IIASS-2017-no1-art1

2.   Foogooa, R., Bokhoree, C. & Dookhitram K. (2015), “Green ICT Maturity Models – Towards a General Approach”, International Conference on Computing, Communication & Security 2015, Mauritius

Synopsis:

A lot of effort is still required in greening ICT and the use of ICT to green organisations. However, Green ICT initiatives are hard to sustain. In this context, Green ICT maturity models help by providing a benchmarking tool and a roadmap. However, several Green ICT maturity models have been proposed by different researchers over the years with no clear justification. This makes it difficult for companies to choose which Green ICT maturity model to adopt. This research aims at comparing the different Green ICT maturity models. This could help companies manage their Green ICT initiatives in a more sustainable way. It will analyse the evolution of Green ICT maturity models and provide cues for further research in this area.

Access: https://doi.org/10.1109/CCCS.2015.7374163

3.   Foogooa, R. (2008), “IS Outsourcing – A Strategic Perspective”, Business Process Management Journal, Issue 6 (Volume 14)

Synopsis:

The purpose of this paper is to study the different facets of the strategic perspective of information systems (IS) outsourcing, compare strategic IS outsourcing with traditional IS outsourcing and identify research opportunities. This paper is based primarily on a review of the literature. IS outsourcing is now an accepted practice and the market is growing regularly. The initial hype surrounding IS outsourcing has died out and there is now a more rational approach towards outsourcing with an increasing emphasis for a strategic approach towards IS outsourcing rather than just a cost‐cutting motivation. The paper clarifies the definitions of IS outsourcing and strategy, taking into consideration the evolution of the definitions before comparing strategic IS outsourcing with traditional IS outsourcing. The paper is concluded with identification of future research opportunities in the field of strategic IS outsourcing.

https://doi.org/10.1108/14637150810916035