About this Lesson

When we design a lesson, we usually start from learning objectives. We need to know what students will be able to do upon their successful completion of the lesson in order to decide what should be taught. Sometimes learning objectives are given to us. Sometimes we need to write our own learning objectives. No matter what, identifying and writing good learning objectives are the important skills that we, as educators, should have. The purpose of this lesson is to sharpen your skills of identifying and writing good learning objectives.

At the beginning of this lesson, we will briefly define learning objectives, and explain their importance. Then we will illustrate the three important components of a useful learning objective, and clarify some common misconceptions. There are six sections in this lesson. Self-check quizzes are provided to help you monitor your own learning. You may either click on the "Next Page" link at the bottom of the screen to go to the next section or use the drop down menu at the top to go to a section of your choice. We highly recommend that you go through the lesson following the order of the sections if this is your first time working on the lesson.

Learning Objectives

Upon your successful completion of this lesson, you will be able to

• Define learning objectives;
• Explain the importance of learning objectives;
• Identify the three components of a useful learning objective;
• Differentiate between student performance and instructor performance;
• Differentiate between learning objectives and learning activities;
• Identify measurable verbs;
• Identify the six levels of intellectual skills in the cognitive domain;
• Identify valid conditions that can be included in learning objectives;
• Identify valid criteria that can be included in learning objectives;
• Identify good learning objectives.