Contributed by EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative, Instructional Technologies, and Assessment and Evaluation

This paper describes a four-step needs assessment process that institutions can use to determine the gaps between current and desired states of technology infrastructure, facilitating rapid decision making. The framework described focuses on aligning learning outcomes and technology tools and can help institutions compare the current state of technology infrastructure with a desired state to best meet identified learning outcomes.

Asking whether technology improves learning may seem straightforward, but the answer is not simple. The challenge begins with defining assessment and is compounded by the complexities of people, technology, and educational organizations. This paper clarifies technology assessment by exploring the definitions, methods, and realistic expectations it can address.

E-portfolios allow students to demonstrate competencies and reflect upon experiences, documenting academic preparation and career readiness. Creating e-portfolios enables students to enhance their learning by giving them a better understanding of their skills, as well as where and how they need to improve to meet academic and career goals. Additionally, the digital artifacts that students accumulate can be used to assess learning at the course, program, department, and institutional level. This report reviews how selected higher education institutions have implemented assessment e-portfolio systems that demonstrate and assess learning.

Update: An earlier version of this document contained an error that has been addressed. If you accessed this file prior to February 17, 2006, please download the corrected PDF.

Wikis are Web pages that can be viewed and modified by anyone with a Web browser and Internet access. Described as a composition system, a discussion medium, and a repository, wikis support asynchronous communication and group collaboration online. Their inherent simplicity gives students direct access to their content, which is crucial in group editing or other collaborative activities. Their versioning capability allows them to illustrate the evolution of thought processes as students interact with a site and its contents. Wikis are also being used as e-portfolios, highlighting their utility as a tool for collection and reflection. They may be the easiest, most effective Web-based collaboration tool in any instructional portfolio.

Issues that arise include how to design to improve student institutional learning, privacy issues, ownership issues, technical standards and interoperability, management of distributed digital repositories, and impact on registrars and student services at institutions of higher education. This article highlights several electronic portfolio projects, including the ePortConsortium (initiated by IUPUI, the Collaboratory at Northwestern University, the Catalyst Project at University of Washington, and University of Wisconsin - Madison. NLII activity in electronic portfolio research is also covered.