Preparing Learning Objectives

1. Preparing Learning Objectives • A learning objective is a statement which specifies in behavioral (measurable) terms what a learner will be able to do as a result of instruction.

2. Hallmarks • learner not teacher centered. • outcomes not process driven. • objective not subjective measures. • specific not vague behaviors.

3. Procedures • A. Audience • B. Behavior • C. Condition • D. Degree

4. Audience • This should remind you that the focus is on the learner • What do you want the learner to learn?

5. Behavior • Action verb • Specifies what action the student is expected to perform • Content reference • specifies the specific content to be treated

6. Conditions • Specify the situation within which the expected behavior must occur • They are givens or constraints the students employ during learning

7. Degree • Specifies minimum acceptable performance standard • Can employ terms such as quality quantity or time • Must state if less than perfect performance is acceptable

8. Four Criteria for Completeness in Instructional Objectives • 1. The specific performance required to demonstrate successful accomplishment of the instructional objective (e.g., to write, to name, to compare and constrast, to debate, to decide, etc.)

9. Four Criteria for Completeness in Instructional Objectives • 2. The learning outcome or product by which successful accomplishment of the objective can be determined (e.g., a statement, an essay, a poster, a journal entry, etc.)

10. Four Criteria for Completeness in Instructional Objectives • 3. The conditions under which the behavior is to be performed (e.g., during a cooperative activity, after reading the story_______ )

11. Four Criteria for Completeness in Instructional Objectives • 4. The criterion or standard used to determine successful performance or achievement of the instructional objective (e.g., correct to the nearest mile, four out of five correct, list three examples, state two differences, etc.)

12. Good Examples • When given nine Styrofoam balls, each labeled to represent a planet, and a basketball on the table to represent the Sun (condition), the child (audience) will correctly place the Styrofoam balls in order as the planets are from the Sun (the measurable performance), with 80 percent accuracy (the criterion).

13. Good Examples • Given a scrambled list of capital cities and states (condition), each student will match (performance) at least 8 out of 10 (criteria) state capitals with corresponding states (product/outcome).

14. Good Examples • The student is to be able to complete a 100 item multiple choice exam on the subject of marine biology. The lower limit of acceptable performance will be 85 items answered correctly within an examination time of 90 minutes.