What do you want your students to know and be able to do as a result of taking your course? What do you want your student to know and be able to do as a graduate of your program?

Having learning outcomes focuses on the most important aspects of your class/program, and also helps students understand what your learning goals are for them and what they should be working toward.

Four to seven outcomes are a good number for a course or program. More than seven outcomes and it becomes very difficult to track. Focus on the most essential learning aspects of your class.

Outcomes should all start with: "As a result of taking this course, students will be able to...." followed by skill/knowledge and the level to which they should achieve that skill/knowledge.

• EXAMPLE: By the end of this course, students will be able to design studies for obtaining data whilst avoiding common design flaws that incur bias, inefficiency, and confounding.

Using measurable verbs in outcomes makes it possible to track the extent to which students are learning. It is difficult to measure how much students "know" or "understand" so it is best not to use these verbs.

The following documents can be used to help guide you in creating learning outcomes.

• Blooms Taxonomy - This document illustrates a number of ways of representing Bloom's Taxonomy. We often consider the levels of Bloom's Taxonomy to be on a spectrum from Lower Order Thinking Skills (LOTS) to Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS). What is the right mixture of levels appropriate for your course?
• Learning Outcomes as Study Guide (EXAMPLE) - This example of comprehensive set of learning outcomes can be used as a helpful study guide. If students are confident in their ability to complete the listed tasks, then they should do well on the assessment, which should be measuring their ability to complete these tasks.
• L. Dee Fink's Guide to Course Design - This is a summary of the process outlined in L. Dee Fink's book, Creating Significant Learning Experiences: An Integrated Approach to Designing College Courses. Fink not only incorporates Bloom's Taxonomy in course design, but goes beyond it for a holistic approach that takes into account metacognition and other human dimensions besides the "cognitive domain" in Bloom's Taxonomy.

It can be challenging to create well-crafted learning outcomes. If you would like to consult with CAFE about writing learning outcomes, please click the button below to schedule a consultation: