by:
  Joni E. Spurlin,
  Sharon Pitt,
  Allen Dupont, and
  Donna Petherbridge

  Introduction

In May of 2005, technology across the curriculum (TAC) programs from five institutions gathered for a TAC Symposium to discuss aspects of systemic transformation of teaching and learning through technology. Claremont McKenna College, DePauw University , George Mason University, North Carolina State University, and The University of Massachusetts Amherst, are very different institutions, representing different Carnegie categories. They are public and private, large and small, undergraduate and graduate, and commute and non-commuter campuses.

Despite the differences, all these institutions' TAC programs are focused on enhancing teaching and learning through the use of technology in a manner that transforms the entire institution (see Figure 1). At the symposium, each institution presented dimensions of transformation. Representatives from North Carolina State University focused on assessment.

Assessment, for this article, is defined in terms of student learning. As stated by Palomba and Banta (1999): “Assessment is the systematic collection, review and use of information about educational programs undertaken for the purpose of improving student learning and development” (p.4.). (1) Assessment is cyclical, as shown in Figure 2.

• Introduction
• Developing Assessment Questions, Goals and Outcomes: Step 1
• Refinement of an Assessment Question
• The Optimal Learning Environment
• A Case Study at North Carolina State University
• Defining Assessment Methods To Gather Data about Questions, Goals or Outcomes: Step 2
• print version