Writing Effective Learning Outcomes

One of the most important steps in the assessment process is determining meaningful course learning outcomes (CLOs).  Without appropriate CLOs, it is difficult, if not impossible, to collect relevant or equitable information about student learning that can be used for instructional and program improvement.

CLOs typically concern three broad types of student learning:

  • Content knowledge or understanding (cognitive – what will students know?)
  • Abilities, skills, or competencies (behavioral – what will students be able to do?)
  • Values, dispositions, or attitudes (affective – how will students model discipline-specific professionalism?)

CLOs should be

  • Consistent with the program goals and learning outcomes
  • Comprehensive (i.e., collectively cover the main program goals)
  • Focused on student learning (not teaching or some other aspect of the program)
  • Clearly stated
  • Realistic (can potentially be achieved by a significant portion of students)
  • Measurable
  • Actionable (can be used to produce data to assess program effectiveness)

When writing CLOs, it is easy to fall into the Goldilocks trap; we want to steer away from outcomes that are too broad to be measurable or too narrow to fit coherently into the program goals.  Creating great CLOs can be challenging, but it gets easier with practice and never be afraid to ask for examples from past iterations of the course.

Measurable and Actionable

When we talk about Outcomes being measurable and actionable, what does that actually mean? When we design outcomes, we need to be purposeful in the action verbs that we use, to ensure that what we are requiring is an accurate representation of necessary skills–and also appropriate to the academic level that our learners are at right now. Bloom’s taxonomy can be a helpful tool for framing your outcomes statements. Typically, it is shown in a pyramid format, although Benjamin Bloom never designed it that way!

The image below (click to zoom in) shows the taxonomy in a star formation with spirals through the levels. This is actually how we typically learn content. We need multiple exposures at various levels of depth to really learn knowledge, skills, and dispositions.

Bloom's Taxonomy illustration with sample verbs and actions.

UMPI Learning Outcome Language

General Education Learning Outcomes, or the Gen-Ed, are often abbreviated to the acronym GLOs.  GLOs are the form the cross-disciplinary and broad-reaching liberal arts education that all UMPI majors (across programs) can depend on.  For more information about the GLO rubrics or to read the full philosophy, please see the most current course catalog.

For help with reporting on student GLO performance, please see your college administrative specialist, or the most recent GLO reporting instructions.

Program Learning Outcomes or PLOs are the holistic learning outcomes that are woven throughout each individual program (informed by program leadership, industry standards and workforce requirements as applicable) and ensure that the students in each program are adequately prepared to succeed in their discipline.  You can ask your program coordinator if your course has any PLOs associated with it, as well as what level of performance (ie: at the level of your course, is the goal to introduce, reinforce, demonstrate mastery or capstone assessment level).

Course learning outcomes or CLOs are the learning outcomes that are course specific for each individual course.  They need to be able to actively identify what students will know and/or be able to do by the time they finish your course.  Your course may already have CLOs that the program wants you to use, or you may have to write your own.  To determine if your course already has specific CLOs, contact your program coordinator, and if you have do have to write your outcomes, your IDs can help you brainstorm measurable language.

How to Develop Great Outcomes

  1. Determine existing outcomes. Ask your program coordinator: “Does my course have GLOs or PLOs associated with it”, and “Does it have existing CLOs”?
  2. Consider the end game. What, specifically do student who have taken this class need to know, and be able to do by the end of the class
  3. Make it Measurable. Assess your outcome language, is it measurable? How will you know students have met the outcome? How will students know they have met the outcome?

Behavioral Objectives

Behavioral objectives include a performance, a condition, and criterion. Watch this video for an explanation. This format can really help to make your learning outcomes observable, measurable, and actionable.

Goal, Outcome, or Objective?

At UMPI, faculty work hard to work through the process of creating transparent, measurable outcomes that clearly let the students know what is expected of them. You may have seen the terms outcomes, goals, and objectives used interchangeably–but at UMPI the terms are used very specifically. Check out this brief intro:

Ready to Revise?

This short video walks you through a sociology professor revising his learning outcomes to be more observable and measurable.

Fink’s Taxonomy of Significant Learning

Faculty at UMPI care about more than just delivering their course content. They want to make an impact on student lives and help them grow a love for their discipline. Fink’s taxonomy of significant learning includes the foundational knowledge and application levels that you will find in Bloom’s taxonomy, but he goes on to describe additional categories:

  • Integration: making connections between ideas especially beyond the walls of the classroom and between school and life.
  • Human dimension: how the course content relates to and impacts humans.
  • Caring: developing an interest or value for the course content.
  • Learning how to learn: building the skills to continue learning more about the course content beyond the course.
CategoryDefinitionActions
Foundational KnowledgeRecall and demonstrate understanding of information and ideas.Remember · Recall · Identify · Explain · Predict · Describe · Define · Summarize · Recognize · Arrange · Indicate · Classify
ApplicationDemonstrate skills. Engage in critical, practical and creative thinking.Use · Critique · Manage · Solve · Assess · Judge · Do [skill] · Imagine · Analyze · Calculate · Coordinate · Communicate
IntegrationPerceive connections between ideas, experiences, disciplines and realms of life.Connect · Identify the interaction between · Relate · Compare · Contrast · Integrate · Identify the similarities between · Determine the cause
Human DimensionGaining a new understanding of themselves and others. Determine personal and social implications.Interact with others · Compare viewpoint · Discuss (world events) · Identify the impact · Plan (a change) · Determine (why actions occurred) · Advocate · Collaborate · Support · Resolve · Share
CaringAcquire new interests, feeling or values about what they are learning.Get excited about · Prepare to · Increase interest · Value · Reflect · Change · Adjust (beliefs) · Commit · Develop (a plan) · Explore · Express · Pledge
Learning How to LearnLearning about the process of their particular learning and learning in general.Develop (a plan) · Identify resources · Construct knowledge about · Frame useful questions · Analyze · Inquire · Reflect · Research · Self-assess · Self-monitor
Fink’s Taxonomy of Significant Learning

Adapted from Fink, L. D. (2013). Creating Significant Learning Experiences: An Integrated Approach to Designing College Courses. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.