Final Written Report Form for Learning Outcomes Assessment Grants 2010
(Submit by Monday, May 30, 2011 to the Director of Assessment)
Instruction: Please type your answers in the respective text areas.
Part A: General Information
Date: 5/26/11
Project Title: Addition of Open Source STEM-appropriate Assessment Tools to
Purdue's CMS
Primary investigator:
Laurie Iten
Program and college or unit:
Email: liten@purdue.edu
Department Biological Sciences, College of Science
Other directly involved collaborators and their programs and colleges/units:
Dept. Biological Sciences (Peter Hollenbeck); Dept. Electrical and Computer Engineering Technology
(Robert Herrick); Dept. Medicinal Chemistry & Molecular Pharmacology (Marc Loudon); Dept Biochemistry
(Clint Chapple)
Part B: Description of the Assessment Project
1) Which learning outcome(s) of your college or unit did this assessment project focus on?
The learning outcome this assessment project focused on was improved academic performance of students
in large-gateway STEM classes.
2) What was the purpose of your assessment project? That is, what did you wish to find out about student
learning? As you began, what did you actually expected to find?
Our multidisciplinary project was for the installation of the LON-CAPA assessment system as an add-on to
Purdue's Course Management System (Blackboard), or any other local CMS. We think LON-CAPA assessment
tools are more suitable for STEM classes than what Blackboard or other CMS offer. LON-CAPA is a complete free
open-source distributed learning content management and assessment system, we proposed to only use LONCAPA's assessment system as an add-on to Blackboard. Minimally, our project was for a Purdue installation of
the LON-CAPA's assessment tools so more STEM classes could use them to improve student learning (plus save
teaching resources, i.e., money) by adding these assessment tools to our classes.
3) What activities comprised this assessment project? That is, what did you do in order to investigate your
hypothesis? If you could do it over, what would you change or not do?
We installed LON-CAPA at Purdue (loncapa.purdue.edu) last summer, and Purdue classes used the LON-CAPA
assessment tools fall and spring ’10-’11 semesters (plus it is being used this summer) by a total of 12 classes
with a total of > 2,250 students.
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(#3 continued)
4) What did you actually find out about student learning? What data support your conclusion?
Our 2010 Learning Outcomes Assessment Grant project awarded last spring is a resounding success. Here are
a couple examples of successful learning outcomes from our initial 2010 Learning Outcomes Assessment
Grant award (we received another Learning Outcomes Assessment Grant for 2011). One class that's been
using LON-CAPA assessment tools every semester for a number of years (BIOL 13500) took the opportunity of
having our own Purdue installation of LON-CAPA to double the number of questions/problems students did
each week. This increase in number of questions/problems, i.e., increased practice with class content
contributed to a significant improvement in student performance (see also). Another continuing successful
learning outcome is illustrated by BIOL 23100 taught by Professor Hollenbeck. This large-enrollment class
started having students do weekly LON-CAPA problems/questions Fall 2009, and since then there continues to
be improved student performance compared to preceding years when LON-CAPA assessment tools were not
used.
5) What next? Based on what you found, what next steps or interventions to improve student learning do you
plan to take? When and where do you plan to do this?
We have an ITEA Service Request with ITaP, and they are working with us to integrate LON-CAPA with
Blackboard. We hope to have this integration complete before the start of fall ’11 classes , or spring ’12 classes.
Additionally, we have more faculty adding LON-CAPA assessment tools to their STEM classes for use beginning
fall ’11 semester.
6) Appendix: Please attach publications and presentation abstracts resulting from this work.
I am the sole (or primary) collaborator on this project. My collaborators (if appropriate) and I are available at a
mutually acceptable time to present an oral report, with our findings and data, to the University community.
Signature of Investigator