A stunning image of a long, winding, mountain bridge welcomes you when you enter the "Cross Cultural Psychology" course at Skidmore College's University without Walls. The image of the bridge introduces every page of the course web as each page unfolds ways for thinking about the meaning of culture. Professor Virginia Murphy-Berman uses theory-driven, evidence oriented, assessment of course process and impact to understand how well students manifest the learning outcomes she hypothesizes. In this course, she poses a question for students to answer before and after assigned readings; then, student groups collaborate to lead and summarize class discussions about each of the readings. Later in the course, students choose their own sources - novels, films, books - to report insights about culture to the class. Judging from the quality of class discussions, "Cross Cultural Psychology" is a bridge to the lifelong, life-changing sensibilities educators want.

Virginia Murphy-Berman's name was randomly drawn as the winner of a gift certificate when she responded to Sloan-C's survey [http://www.sloanconsortium.org/impactsurvey/] about member services and activities. She studies children's rights, assessment and cross cultural psychology and says "I am interested in talking with anyone else who is examining the impact of online learning in a similar (or a very different) way!" Thus, she volunteered to help collect effective practices so that Sloan-C members can benefit from each others' expertise.