Module II: Lesson Organization (Cont.)

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Learning Objectives

If we compare building a lesson to building a house, learning objectives are the architectural blueprint. While you can build a house without blueprints, the house you end up with may not look anything like the house you had in mind. And while you can certainly teaching without learning objectives, the skills some students attain may not look anything like the skills you expected from them.

Simply put, learning objectives clearly articulate the skills and abilities students will attain as a result of the instruction.

The process of creating learning objectives-and communicating them to students-produces some important benefits.

• Learning objectives help the instructor select the most appropriate content for the lesson.

Because of their expertise and interest in the subject matter, some instructors find it difficult to narrow down exactly what their students need to know about a particular topic. It's easy to overwhelm students with information that may be interesting and related to the lesson, but may not be appropriate for their level of learning or the goals of the course. Thinking about what students should be able to do helps determine what content they need to know.

• Learning objectives help instructors choose appropriate modes of delivery and learning activities.

Once you know what students should be able to do at the end of a lesson, deciding how to present the information should be easier. For instructors preparing a traditional lecture, clearly articulated learning objectives can help the instructor plan the progression of the talk, emphasizing the key information needed to meet the objectives. Learning objectives can also help the instructor select other forms of delivering the content. Perhaps a hands-on demonstration would best communicate information for a particular objective, where a class discussion might serve to meet another objective. Learning activities, both in class and at home, should also be planned keeping in mind the objectives identified for the lesson.

• Learning objectives help students focus their learning and ease anxiety about graded assessments.

It's hard not to cringe at the familiar question "Will this be on the test?" Cultural preoccupation with grades notwithstanding, students who ask this question may be trying to structure and prioritize all the information they are given in textbooks, class materials and lecture notes. By communicating with your students what they should be able to do at the end of the lesson, (and evaluating accordingly), students are empowered to use the information they are provided as tools to perform to your expectations. Knowing what they are expected to do helps them identify what they need to know to do it.

Evaluating student performance is a topic covered in greater detail in a later module, but clearly identifying expectations of student performance at the beginning of a lesson makes evaluation much easier. In a nutshell, the teaching-learning process comes full circle: articulating what students should be able to do, delivering content accordingly, and evaluating students on their performance of those skills.

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