Student Assesment in a Technological Framework

Fabrizio Iozzi (Universit`a Bocconi, Istituto di Metodi Quantitativi, 
Milano, Italy)

Following one year's experience of lecturing Calculus to undergraduate students at
Universit` Bocconi, Milan, Italy, we have investigated the way students collaborate
among themselves and with the lecturers when using an e-learning software (for
further information see also the papers by M. Impedovo and G. Osimo); then we
studied several approaches to the problem of the assessment of students' knowledge.
In the first part we have focused on the subjects (which are the preferred topics
among students and why), the way the discussions are brought on (which kind of
discussions are more popular and how the students discuss the subjects) and the
impact of the discussions on the performances of the students (are they related to
the way the students are involved in the collaborative environment?). In the second
part of this research, three methods to assess students' performances have been
compared: a particular mathematical software, the evaluation sections of an
e-learning software and a software, developed by the author, specifically designed
for lecturers. In the latter case, the technological framework is explained in
detail. In particular we discuss: a) the choices made for the interface; b) the
intranet set up to guarantee maximum security before, during and after the
examination and c) the modularity of the software developed. We consider these
aspects interesting by themselves and because the problems they pose are too often
neglected.