The purpose of the study was to answer the following questions:

1. What features, tools and methodologies are currently used in assessment paradigms in courses in post-secondary education?

2. Which of these methodologies provide authentic assessment appropriate for an online learner assessment paradigm in an introductory computer science or information technology course?

This section identifies those methodologies instructors reported using that provide authentic assessment and the reasons they reported for judging them effective. Authentic assessment differs from traditional assessment in that it measures what learners can do with the knowledge they have gained. Wiggins’s (1998) characterizes authentic assessment as follows:

[Authentic assessment] is realistic,... requires judgment and innovation,... asks the student to “do” the subject, replicates or simulates the context in which adults are “tested” in the workplace in civic life and in personal life,... assesses the student’s ability to efficiently and effectively use a repertoire of knowledge and skill to negotiate a complex task,... and allows appropriate opportunities to rehearse, practice, consult resources, and get feedback on and refine performances and products. (p. 23)

• Attributes of authentic assessment were found in 58% of the assessment methodologies described in the literature
• Attributes of authentic assessment were found in 50% of the assessment types presented in the survey
• Attributes of authentic assessment were found in only 31% of the reasons for using specific online assessment types
• 88% of the assessment types used for online assessment were found to be effective
  
• Ojective questions
  • Found to be popular in all categories
• An online CMS allows easy distribution of objective type questions in quizzes, practice tests, and exams
• However, this methodology is not seen in the literature as a good alternative or authentic assessment type
  
• Projects or assignments submitted electronically
  • Strongly favored by instructors who assess learners online
  • Seen in the literature as an effective alternative online assessment type
  • Strongly favored by instructors who teach hypbrid courses
    
• Collaborative testing as an assessment methodology
  • Recommended in the literature
  • Deemed effective in the survey data
  • Few instructors reported using it in an online environment
  • These data seem to indicate that in introductory computer science, information technology, or similar computer applications courses, instructors either do not often assign group activities to their students or do not use these activities for assessment purposes.
    
• Outcome- or performance-based assessment is strongly recommended in the literature as an effective alternative and authentic assessment methodology and was also highly favored by the survey group for online assessment
  
• Interactive assessment ranked high as an effective online assessment type among instructors in the survey group and is also strongly recommended in the literature.

The finding that collaborative testing is seldom used in introductory computer science, information technology, or similar courses is surprising in light of the extensive literature on collaborative learning and learner-centered education at the post-secondary level. According to the literature, collaborative learning is taking a foothold in post-secondary curricula as the current trend in learner-centered education. Team work in the market place is so prevalent that this assessment methodology appears to be a logical stepping stone to learner career development. In the field of computers and technology, the team approach is used extensively in developing new products and services.

It was not surprising to find that outcome- or performance-based assessment is widely used and strongly recommended for an introductory computer science or information technology course which requires extensive student interaction, project development, and online assignments. Neither was this finding surprising in light of the knowledge and skills students must acquire for performing numerous interactive tasks in the field of computer technology.