Learning Objectives

The learning objectives are the starting point of the development of a learning activity. They constitute an essential element in the preparation of a training course. The articulation of adequate learning objectives can be one of the most time-consuming tasks in training design. Even though they may be expressed in a single paragraph of a few lines they are the essential foundation of any training course as they relate to the overall training goal.

Characteristics:

• They determine the behavior changes that will occur, setting the targets that are to be reached by the end of the training.
• They provide the trainees with a clear understanding of what they will be expected to know or to do when the course is completed.
• They must be verifiable and measurable even when the training focuses on attitudes.
• They must always have three elements:

• • Performance: What the trainee will be able to do as a result of the training, expressed in behavioral terms with action verbs.
  • Conditions: Circumstances under which the performance occurs, which should be aligned with real-world performance (e.g. role-play, simulation, using job aids, while being observed).
  • Standards: They form the basis for trainee’s evaluation, describing how well he/she will be expected to perform each objective.

1. A description of what the learner will be able to do
2. The condition under which the learner will perform the task
3. The criteria for evaluating learner performance.

Learning objectives differ form learning goals, since the first ones are statements of one of several specific performances, the achievement of which contributes to the attainment of the goal which is a statement of the intended general outcome of an instructional unit or program, and describes a global learning outcome. A single goal may have many objectives. The establishment of learning objectives is part of a process aiming to improve teaching and learning, and include 4 steps;

1. Identify trainee learning goals
2. Design course or curriculum to meet goals
3. Assess learner learning to identify needs, or revisions to courses
4. Use assessment results to revise goals, training methodologies, curriculum, and budgeting priorities. Goals give the content of the course, and underline the skills required for learners. ^[1]