Learning objectives have been around for a long time. With roots in behaviorism and the response of subjects to external stimuli, learning objectives were introduced into public school classrooms to define the impact that teaching had on what students learn. Beginning in 1962 with the publication of Robert Mager’s Preparing Instructional Objectives, learning objectives have been a popular topic for both education researchers and reformers. From “SWBATs” to “Aims” to “Learning Targets,” learning objectives are often seen as an entry point for improving classroom instruction.
While there are arguably multiple ways to write strong objectives, I think there is power in choosing one method and using it across the school as a united adult community. My personal preference is the Learning Target approach as I find it the most student-friendly. Below, I share some of the key components of strong objectives, drawing on the work of Moss et. al (2011).
The objective should specify what a student can do as a result of a lesson/project task
Ex. “I can define evolutionary theory and identify examples from nature that support the theory.”
Ex. “I can introduce myself to another student in Spanish.”
Note the student friendly “I can” language used to introduce the objective. Moss et. al (2011) argue that students “can’t see, recognize, and understand what they need to learn until we translate the learning intention into developmentally appropriate, student-friendly, and culturally respectful language.” When we write our objectives we should repeat it back to ourselves and ask whether it makes sense from a student’s perspective.
The objective is also not too broadly defined. Instead of outlining what a student can do as the result of an entire unit of study, these objectives are narrow enough to inform students about what they will be able to do as the result of a lesson or project task. Leahy, et. al (2005) refer to the ideal objective as a lesson-sized amount of learning.
It is important to note that in a PBL setting, student learning will be informed by broad essential questions that guide the entire unit or project, as well as the more focused objective (written using the Learning Target approach) associated with each project task. When writing an objective, make sure that it is written narrowly enough to be completed within a typical lesson period. Let’s look at an example:
Ex. “I can create my own cartoon character”
This objective might be appropriate for a single lesson or project task. However, if the teacher envisions this as a project that occurs over several days, then the teacher would need to craft a series of objectives or project tasks that could be assessed in smaller chunks. Using more narrowly written objectives helps inform the teacher’s instructional design and provides students with more opportunities for feedback and reflection through each lesson or task associated with the project.
Ex. “I can outline an original cartoon character in pencil”
Ex. “I can add color to an original cartoon character outline”
Ex. “I can add shading and contour to an original cartoon character”
The objective should be used/referred to with students during class
Moss et. al (2011) openly admit that objectives “have no inherent power,” but are only effective to the degree that “educators commit to consistently and intentionally (share) them with students.” We all know that having an objective written on the board does not ensure that students will understand the purpose behind the lesson. Two powerful ways to refer to the objective are to frame the lesson using the objective during the introduction, and to refer back to the objective following the outcome of the lesson.
Ex. “I can define evolutionary theory and identify examples from nature that support the theory.”
Teacher (during introduction): “Okay everyone, I’m going to quickly define evolutionary theory for you to jot into your notebooks, and then we will watch a short 10 minute clip that contains multiple examples from nature that support the theory. While it is important to know what evolutionary theory is, you also have to prove that you can find real life examples that support the theory. Remember, at the end of the period I’ll show another clip and you’ll have to spot the examples of evolutionary theory on your own.”
Teacher (following outcome assessment): “All right, you’ve all had the opportunity to choose an example from the clip and defend your selection on your exit slip. Joey, can you remind us what our goal was for class today? student reads the objective. That’s right, you were supposed to be able to define evolutionary theory and find examples of it in nature. With a thumbs up or thumbs down, how many of you think you reached our goal for today?”
The objective should be assessed
I often refer to the formative assessment at the end of each lesson or project task as the “outcome” of the lesson. Since the objective should be backwards-mapped to the desired outcome of instruction, a well-written objective gives students clear information about how the learning of the day will be assessed.
Ex. “I can introduce myself to another student in Spanish.”
Using this objective, students can clearly see that at the end of the lesson they will be asked to introduce themselves to another student entirely in Spanish. Teachers should not only take care to write objectives that can actually be assessed, but they should also plan time in their lesson to carry out the assessment.
Teacher (introducing formative assessment at end of lesson): “While the rest of you get started on the homework assignment I’ve listed on the board, I will be coming around and listening to you introduce yourselves in Spanish with no notes. I’ll be assessing how well you perform based on the oral expression rubric that we use regularly.”
Some teachers ask if it is truly necessary to include an assessment at the end of every lesson or project task. The short answer is yes. However, an accomplished teacher can use a wide variety of formative assessment techniques, both formal and informal, to assess the learning of the day. There is no need to always rely on a lengthy or time-consuming assessment strategy.
While we desire that students be able to consistently articulate both what they are learning and how they will be assessed for that learning, we also want students to understand why it is important in the broader context of the class. Our ultimate goal is to get students to go even one step further as they learn to recognize and explain the importance that the learning has to the development of their academic identity and future success.