Assessment Methods of Student Learning in Web-Based Distance Courses: A Case Study

Abstract

Higher education has been challenged for several years now to show with empirical evidence that it is committed to improving student learning. The United States Department of Education’s Commission on the Future of Higher Education issued a report in 2006 titled A Test of Leadership: Charting the Future of United States Higher Education. The report makes recommendations for educational reform. A portion of a summary in the report states that “improved accountability is vital to ensuring the success of all the other reforms we propose. Colleges and universities must become more transparent about cost, price, and student [learning] success outcomes, and must willingly share this information with students and families” (U.S. Dept. of Education, 2006, pp. 4, 14-15). The Commission’s report has had a significant impact on campuses across the United States.