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D e p a r t m e n t o f E d u c a t io n a l S c ie n c e s , C e n t e r f o r T e a c h e r T r a in in g a n d R e s e a r c h , U n iv e r s it y o f L e u v e n , V e s a liu s s t r a a t 2 , 3 0 0 0 L e u v e n , B e lg iu m G. Moerkerke C e n t e r f o r E d u c a t io n a l T e c h n o lo g y a n d E x p e r t is e , O p e n U n iv e r s it y , H e e r le n , T h e N e t h e r la n d s M. Segers D e p a r t m e n t o f E d u c a t io n a l D e v e lo p m e n t a n d R e s e a r c h , F a c u lt y o f E c o n o m ic s a n d B u s in e s s A d m in is t r a t io n , U n iv e r s it y M a a s t r ic h t , T h e N e t h e r la n d sThe paper outlines different issues concerning the use of prior knowledge state assessment for enhancing learning. Assessing prior knowledge by means of measuring a set of personal and contextual variables does not seem an effective track for further research and development. Therefore, the use of instruments like prior knowledge state tests and progress tests is discussed. As a cost-benefit analysis, different studies are carried out. The results indicate that beginner students are especially willing to use prior knowledge state assessment for different purposes, stressing the importance of regular feedback on the results of the assessment. Concerning the actual use of the assessment instruments, the findings suggest that beginner students need more external pressure to use the assessment instruments than advanced students. When it comes to attending final examinations, it seems that beginner students benefit more from prior knowledge state assessment and progress assessment than experienced students. The students who actually took the prior knowledge state assessment and received feedback and study advice, had higher scores on final examinations than the non-respondents.

In this contribution we concentrate on the features of a particular item format: items having as the last option "none of the above" (NOTA items). There is considerable dispute on the advisability of the usage of NOTA items in testing. Some authors come to the conclusion that NOTA items should be avoided, some come to neutral conclusions while others argue that NOTA items are optimal test items. In this article, we provide evidence to this discussion by conducting protocol analysis on written statements of examinees while answering NOTA items. In our investigation, a test containing 30 multiple-choice items was administered from 169 university students. The results show that NOTA options appear to be more attractive than options with specified solutions in those cases where a problemsolver fails. Also, a relationship is found between the quality of (incorrect) problemsolving and the choice of NOTA items: the more qualitative the incorrect problemsolving process is, the more likely the student is to choose for NOTA items. Overall, our research supports the statement that 'the more confidence an examinee has in his worked solution, which is inconsistent with one of the specified solutions, the more eager he seems to choose "none ofthe above".

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Marketing specialists have recently redefined the roles customers and enterprises play in the economy. Modern customers are connected, informed, mobile, educated and internationally oriented. They seek enterprises that empower them to co--construct personalized experiences. This view of the customer-enterprise relationship has a great impact on the ways markets function. Open universities can apply developed principles in marketing to optimize the value of their degree programs. A capita selecta course within the Open University of the Netherlands has given students the opportunity to personalize learning. Within the limits of the formal Master program, students were encouraged to define personal learning goals, study tasks and work to be delivered and formally assessed. In this paper, the course is analysed according to the principles of customerenterprise relations, and I explore the question: Can open universities develop a course model in which students become the co--creators of value? 2 IntroductionOpen universities have played an important role in providing access to higher education to those without a previous degree. In developed countries, this traditional target group of students is shrinking-sometimes dramatically, as was the case at the Open University of Hong Kong (Butcher, 2013), sometimes gradually, as is the case at the Open University of the Netherlands (OUNL) (Moerkerke, 2014). At the same time, the need for lifelong learning for professionals is growing, and this has been a long--term global trend (World Bank, 2003). Recently, the Dutch Minister for Education emphasized the need for courses and degree programs that will optimally prepare professionals for the roles they aspire to or already hold (Ministerie van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschappen, 2014). Some of these learners may enrol in bachelor's programs, but more are aspiring to enrol in master's programs or postgraduate courses relevant to their professional development.This paper addresses the question whether educational services for professional development demand a change in course models. From an economic perspective, open universities course models have been traditionally part of a product--driven relationship with the students. However, according to marketing theories for modern customers, this product--driven customer-enterprise relationship should be replaced by a service--oriented relationship. In order to survive in the modern global economy, enterprises need to see the individual customer as a partner. According to Auvinen and Smith (2012), the standard instructional design methodologies for professional online education are challenged by the concept of a service--oriented relationship between universities and students. They claim that economic value in lifelong learning is not created by effective provision and planning of courses but rather through a continuous dialogue with learners.I explore first grounding theories on the relationship between customers and enterprises in a modern web--based society. These econo...