by Jerry Curtis

Created on: November 14, 2009   Last Updated: January 10, 2011

THE STEPS IN DEFINING COURSE OBJECTIVES

Adult learners want to know "what's in it for me?" The course objectives are not much more than statements of what the course intends to teach, along with stated learning of skills-acquisition goals. What the the adult also wants to know is this: "After I pay my tuition, buy the book, and do the work, will it be worth it?" It is important, then, that the course objectives be honest and achievable. Here are some steps:

1. Do not "reinvent the wheel." Somewhere there is a well-crafted course objective for a similar course. Check around. Your Dean's or Director's assistants are vast resources of "corporate memory" when it comes to defining new or updating existing course objectives. Reading similar course outlines that have been approved by your Curriculum Committee sets in motion a process of synthesis that will lay out the path for defining your own course objectives.

2. Write out as clearly as possible your educational goals and objectives.

Goals

Your goals are the broad themes that will guide your instruction. For example, in teaching adults how to use a database application you might want to bear in mind the need to keep the level of instruction geared to the inexperienced end-user. One of your goals would be that at the end of the course everyone, regardless of experience level, will have a good knowledge on how to operate the software.

Objectives

Your objectives are statements that tell your students exactly what you expect them to learn. They also let the students know what skills you hope they will acquire during your course. An example objective statement for a database software course might be, "Students will become thoroughly familiar with techniques for navigating (i.e., moving through) the database application."

3. Goals come first.

Write out your educational goals first, and your objectives will pretty much naturally follow. Your goals, naturally, will depend on the subject matter, how difficult course is - and most importantly - your own scope of experience and personal interests. Returning to the database course example, course goals written by an adjunct instructor to teach a night course for adults would be geared towards enhancing workplace computer skills. The goals should clearly state that taking this course will make the adults more competitive by adding database skills to their repertoire of qualifications.

4. Objectives follow as "statements of expectation."

Applying Benjamin Bloom's taxonomy, there

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