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Learning Outcomes

Learning outcomes are statements that describe the knowledge, skills and attitudes students are expected to develop in your course. For each class you teach, you will want to come up with 3-4 learning outcomes that summarize the overarching expectations of that lesson.

In this way, learning outcomes are central components of your weekly planning and overall course design, which say to students, “I designed the lessons and activities in this course to help you develop these skills or bodies of knowledge. If you do the work and take feedback into account, you will become more practiced at these things. To pass this class, you must illustrate that you have developed these skills.”

Table of Contents

1. Why use learning outcomes?
2. How to write a learning outcome
3. Evaluating your learning outcomes

Why use learning outcomes?

First, constructing and sharing learning outcomes helps to communicate with students what you expect of them – this is fair to students, helps to avoid misunderstandings, and gives a shared reference point should problems arise with regards to course expectations.

Second, explicit learning outcomes set a (high) minimum standard for students to work to meet or exceed.

Finally, thinking through and articulating your course activities, assessments and content helps to ensure that they are aligned in a coherent way; in essence, learning outcomes are the blueprints of course design!

How to write a learning outcome

  1. Start with stem
  2. Choose appropriate level and domain in Bloom’s taxonomy (see below)
  3. Add an ACTION WORD which corresponds with the chosen level and domain (see the table below)
  4. Add specific content/value/attitude/behaviour

For example:

  1. DISTINGUISH between Bloom’s domains of learning.
  2. APPLY Bloom’s taxonomy to write a course-level learning outcome.
  3. ASSESS course learning outcomes against degree level expectations.
  4. DESIGN learning activities appropriate for meeting learning outcomes.
  5. DEVELOP methods to evaluate student achievement of learning outcomes.
  6. INTEGRATE learning outcomes into all courses taught.

How do I choose specific content/value/attitude/behaviour

Begin by asking yourself the following questions:

Bloom’s Taxonomy

Level of LearningCognitive DomainPsychomotor DomainAffective Domain

Higher order skills

↑

Lower order skills

Creating: combines elements to develop new models/ideasCoaching: provides instructions to others to perform taskCharacterizing: integrates and behaves in line with values in new contexts
Evaluating: assesses effectiveness, coherence & rationale and makes strategic judgmentsApplying: adapts criteria with no instruction to perform task and evaluates performance in new contextsOrganizing: prioritizes values and resolves internal/personal conflict
Analyzing: identifies key assumptions & internal relationships; infers main principles; structures informationDeveloping Standards: identifies criteria for optimal task performanceValuing: displays attachment, involvement & commitment in class context/assignments
Applying: relates information to new contextsModeling: reproduces task based on instruction or memoryResponding: changes behavior to reflect attitude; actively reacts to or participates in new attitude
Understanding: knows meaning of & interprets or translates informationObserving: uses sensory cues to guide or define appropriate actionReceiving: becomes open to potential value of a particular attitude
Remembering: recognizes or recalls facts, details & information

Sample action words by level and domain

Cognitive DomainPsychomotor DomainAffective Domain
LevelVerbLevelVerbLevelVerb
Creatingassemble, build, design, develop, formulate, generate, hypothesize, invent, modifyCoachingassess, assist, correct, demonstrate, illustrate, instruct, manage, specifyCharacterizingact, display, embody, influence, plan, practice, propose, represent, solve, validate
Evaluatingappraise, assess, compare, conclude, critique, defend, justify, review, recommendApplyingadapt, assess, build, calibrate, coordinate, design, infer, manipulate, modify, produce, solveOrganizingalter, adjust, arrange, compare, develop, generalize, integrate, modify, order, reconcile, rank
Analyzingbreak down, compare, contrast, differentiate, dissect, extrapolate, investigate, separateDeveloping standardscompose, distinguish, formulate, integrate, judge, perceive, select, synthesizeValuingadapt, balance, challenge, critique, confront, defend, initiate, invite, justify, persuade, seek
Applyingcalculate, compute, demonstrate, discover, execute, extrapolate, implement, manipulate, predict, showModelingcopy, display, follow, execute, mimic, recreate, reenact, repeat, reproduceRespondingbehave, clarify, comply, cooperate, examine, explain, model, practice, present, recite, report
Understandingconvert, describe, explain, interpret, infer, illustrate, paraphrase, translateObservingadhere, choose, copy, detect, follow, identify, observe, relate, repeatReceivingacknowledge, accept, ask, attend, describe, observe, read, recognize
Rememberingdefine, identify, label, list, match, recall, recite, recognize, state

Evaluating your learning outcomes

You can use the SMART checklist below to evaluate your learning outcomes for clarity and specificity. Are your learning outcomes:

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