A TOOLBOOK COMPUTER-PROGRAM TO DEVELOP COURSE OBJECTIVES AND ASSESSMENT MEASURES

College courses are generally developed because of current fashion in the field and/or student and faculty interest in some topic without re ference to departmental or programmatic goals. Current calls and needs for accountability in higher education demand a more organized approa ch. A computer program, ToolBook 1.53, which provides information to t he instructor about systematic development of courses and assessment o f student outcomes, is described. The program supports the constructio n of outcome-oriented learning objectives and corresponding assessment techniques. Instructors who used this program to learn about how to c onstruct such objectives showed an increase in knowledge and evaluated the program positively. Using the information provided in this progra m leads to an integrated approach to course design and development in which course objectives are linked to the college mission statement th rough departmental or program objectives.