Instructional Design Tip of the Week

Learning Objectives: Why use them and how to design them.

“By the end of this lesson/course, students will be able to…”

When creating courses and lessons, we start at the end by defining what students will be able to do upon successful completion. Identifying clear learning objectives will allow you to create lessons and assignments that lead students to meet those goals. Learning objectives should be specific, measurable, and written from the learner’s perspective.

Specific & Measurable

It is important to create specific learning objectives that can be measured. Common vague learning objectives include,
“Understand X”
“Obtain a working knowledge of X”
“Gain an appreciation for X” (Design & Teach, 2024).

Use action verbs to create specific and measurable learning objectives.

Action Verbs

Using action verbs makes the learning objective clear and measurable. Bloom’s Taxonomy breaks down learning objectives into six dimensions from lower order thinking, to higher order thinking,

1. Remembering
2. Understanding
3. Applying
4. Analyzing
5. Evaluating
6. Creating

(Writing Measurable, 2024)

In each dimension there are several verbs to choose from. Download the Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy Action Verbs list below to use when creating learning objectives.

The Center for Teaching and Learning at UNC Charlotte came up with a helpful fill-in-the-blank example to help you generate specific and measurable learning objectives.

(Writing Measurable, 2024)

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What is the difference between Course Learning Objectives and Module Learning Objectives?

Course learning objectives have a more broad scope, whereas module learning objectives are more focused. You can think of course learning objectives like a stage and module learning objectives are the stairs that you must climb to get to the stage. One course learning objective may have multiple module learning objectives. For example,

Course Learning Objective
Compose and deliver professional presentations.

Module Learning Objectives
1. Analyze Audience and Purpose: By the end of this module, students will be able to identify the target audience and define the purpose of their presentation, tailoring their content and delivery to meet the audience’s needs effectively.

2. Organize and Structure Content: By the end of this module, students will be able to develop a cohesive presentation outline that incorporates relevant research, key points, and transitions, ensuring a logical flow and clear communication of ideas.

3. Demonstrate Effective Visual and Verbal Communication: By the end of this module, students will be able to create visually engaging slides and practice clear verbal delivery techniques, including tone, pace, and body language, to enhance audience understanding and engagement during the presentation.

The assignments and assessments will be designed to align with those objectives.

Alignment and Course Mapping

It is essential to align assignments and assessments with the course and module learning objectives to ensure students meet those goals. Avoid extraneous assignments or assessments that may distract from the objectives or be seen as “busy work”.

For the example above, a series of assignments may be,

1. Research two jobs in your area of study. Identify the job titles, descriptions, qualifications/credentials, salary ranges, and what a day-in-the-life looks like.
2. Research your audience of high school juniors. Identify their problem your presentation will solve and what you want them to think, feel, and do by the time you are done speaking.
3. Design a presentation by organizing your information/content using the Presentation Outline.
4. Deliver a five minute presentation for high school juniors about your chosen major and include information about potential jobs within the field.

Structure assignments to guide students through the process and align with the module and course level objectives. In the example above, we have created a few low-stakes assignments (1-3), and one high-stakes assignment (4).

Use the Learning Objectives Mapping Template to align your lessons, assignments, and assessments with course and module objectives.

Contact the instructional design team with questions or to work on learning objectives for your courses.

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Sources

Design & teach a course. (2024). Cmu.edu. Retrieved November 13, 2024, from https://www.cmu.edu/      teaching/designteach/design/learningobjectives.html

Writing measurable course objectives. (2024). Teaching.charlotte.edu. Retrieved November 13, 2024,      from https://teaching.charlotte.edu/teaching-guides/course-design/      writing-measurable-course-objectives

Zhu, R., Loser, R. C., Gunder, A. C., & Osborne, J. J. (2014, February 6). Novaonline.nvcc.edu.      Retrieved November 13, 2024, from https://novaonline.nvcc.edu/TOTAL_Workshops/      LearningObjectives_v4/index.html