Transcript Developing aims, objectives and leading outcomes

Developing aims,
objectives and learning
outcomes
InfoSkills FOLIO course
What next?
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So, I have completed the
training needs
assessment… what do I
do now?
Choosing the information
skills training courses…
Following the training needs
assessment, you should be able to
identify the types of information skills
training courses that need to be
provided
 If you are unable to create courses for
all the training needs you have
identified, you must prioritise the
training courses that you will develop
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Creating aims, objectives
and learning outcomes
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Now that you know which information skills
training courses to develop, you need to
create aims, objectives and learning
outcomes for the courses
In some cases, your organisation may have
already developed aims, objectives and
learning outcomes for the courses that you
intend to run. However, it is important to
review these to ensure that they are still
valid
What are aims?
Aims are:
“The general statement by the course
organisers of their intentions in designing
and running the course in question. This
will relate to their assessment, or
estimate, of the learning needs of the
participants” (1)
Examples of aims…
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For a literature searching course (2)…
To provide a comprehensive, introductory
overview of core…databases
For a ‘searching the internet’ course (2)…
To provide a comprehensive introduction to
the Internet, particularly the World Wide Web
and an overview of the process of finding and
identifying good quality information resources
For a library induction…
To provide an introduction to the resources
and services that are available in the library
What are objectives?
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Objectives are…
“An expression in concrete and specific
terms of what will happen on the course.
The specific activities which participants will
undertake on the course in order to achieve
the stated aims” (1).
“Note: not what will be learned, (that comes
next), but what will be done” (1).
Objectives usually start with the phrase “By
the end of this training course, participants
will be familiar with…” (or similar)
Examples of objectives…
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For a literature searching course (2)…
By the end of this session, participants will be familiar with:
the names, coverage and content of the core… databases
including <specify>
the types of information that can be identified through
interrogation of these databases
the process of developing a research question into an
effective search strategy including the identification of
keywords, concepts and synonyms
the techniques and skills required to conduct a database
search including the use of a controlled language
thesaurus, truncation, boolean operators and explosion
Examples of objectives…
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For ‘searching for information on the internet’ course
(2)…
By the end of this session, participants will be familiar with:
various components of the Internet, such as electronic mail
and the World Wide Web
basic structure of, and methods of navigating, the World Wide
Web
types of information available through the internet
strengths and weaknesses of Internet as information resource
criteria used to evaluate the quality of internet-based
information
examples of resources used to find evidence to support
research and practice
techniques and skills needed to find resources on the
internet;
Examples of objectives…
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For a library induction
By the end of this session, participants will be
familiar with:
opening hours of the library
resources held by the library (books, journals,
statistics etc) and how to locate them (including
an introduction to the library’s classification
scheme)
their borrowing rights
services offered by the library (literature
searching training, inter-library loans, enquiry
desk etc)
contact details of the library (including email
address, telephone number, web address)
What are learning
outcomes?
Learning outcomes (also known as key
learning activities) are…
“What will be learned. What the participants
will be expected to achieve at the end of the
course - knowledge, skills, and attitudes.
Specifically what achieving the course
objectives should have enabled the
participants to learn” (1)
Writing learning outcomes (1)
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Learning outcomes should specify the
minimum acceptable standards for
students to pass the training course (3)
Therefore, it is important that learning
outcomes are expressed in terms of the
essential learning for the information
skills training course (3)
Each information skills training course
should have between four and eight key
learning outcomes (3)
Writing learning outcomes (2)
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Learning outcomes should begin
with the following phrase (or
similar) (3):
On successful completion of this
training course, students will be
able to…
Writing learning outcomes (3)
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Each learning outcome should be preceded
by an action verb so that students are able
to demonstrate that they have learned or
achieved the outcome (3)
Verbs relating to knowledge outcomes such
as- ‘know’, ‘understand’, ‘appreciate’- tend to
be rather vague and focus on the process
that students have gone through (3)
Instead, where possible, action verbs such
as- ‘solve’, evaluate’, ‘use’, ‘analyse’- should
be used to indicate how students can
demonstrate their knowledge (3)
Writing learning outcomes (4)
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Bloom’s Taxonomy of 1956 is a good aid for
writing learning outcomes (3)
Bloom identified six categories of learning (3):
1. Knowledge 2. Comprehension 3. Application
4. Analysis 5. Synthesis 6. Evaluation
The first two relate to knowledge and
understanding, while the remaining for involve
intellectual skills
It is tempting to concentrate on the first two
categories for your information skills training
session, but it is important to introduce the
higher level activities where possible
Examples of learning
outcomes: Stage 1…
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For an ‘information skills for students’
training course…
Upon successful completion of this training
course, participants will be able to:
Examples of learning
outcomes: Stage 2…
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For an ‘information skills for students’ training
course…
Upon successful completion of this training course,
participants will be able to:
Understand
Develop
Conduct
Evaluate and select
Use
Use
Use
Understand and evaluate
Examples of learning
outcomes: Stage 3…
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For an ‘information skills for students’ training
course [Based on (4)]…
Upon successful completion of this training course,
participants will be able to:
Understand the information seeking process and its role
in research
Develop a search strategy for your research topic(s)
Conduct subject searches and other search tactics
Evaluate and select information
Use traditional library sources
Use on-line databases
Use the WWW for reliable information
Understand and evaluate the range of primary
resources available to you
Linking learning outcomes to assessment
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If you wish to assess students, your
training session should show clear
alignment between learning outcomes and
assessment criteria (3)
This enables you to design appropriate
tasks and to deliver the training course in a
way that enables students to reach the
required outcomes (3)
It also enables you to ensure that there is
coherence in your training session (3)
The alignment between learning outcomes,
assessment tasks and assessment criteria
should be transparent to the students (3)
What are the benefits of
learning outcomes?
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Courses which are designed using learning
outcomes are student-centred (2)
Designing courses in this way marks a shift
from the content of a module or course (i.e.
what trainers teach) towards its outcome
(i.e. what the students are able to do upon
successful completion of the course) (2)
What are the benefits of
learning outcomes?
Learning outcomes can…
 Help to guide students in their learning
because they explain what is expected of
them (3).
 Help trainers to focus on what they want
students to achieve as a result of the
training course provide a useful guide to
inform potential students and employers
about the knowledge and understanding
that a graduate of the training course will
possess (3)
References
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4.
West Midlands Modular Trainers Course. 2004. Curriculum.
http://www.trainer.org.uk/members/theory/planning/curriculu
m.htm (Accessed in March 2007, now no longer avaialble)
Hicks A. Developing information skills training for National
Health Service personnel: experiences at the Trent Institute
for Health Services Research. Program, 1998. 32 (2); 123136
University of Central England in Birmingham. 2004. Guide to
learning outcomes.
http://lmu.uce.ac.uk/outcomes/UCE%20Guide%20to%20Lea
rning%20Outcomes.pdf (Accessed in March 2007, now
password protected and no longer available)
University of Strathclyde. 2004. GAELS.
http://gaels.lib.strath.ac.uk/info_skills
Further reading
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Butcher C. (2004). Bloom’s Taxonomy. SDDU University of Leeds.
http://www.ldu.leeds.ac.uk/ldu/sddu_multimedia/#2
Hesketh EA. (2004). Aims and objectives. NHS Education for
Scotland.
http://www.nes.scot.nhs.uk/nes_resources/ti/AimsObjectives.pdf
Peters J. (2004). Learning outcomes and information literacy.
SCONUL
http://www.sconul.ac.uk/groups/information_literacy/papers/outcomes
.pdf
University of Aberdeen. 1997. Guidance on aims and objectives for
teaching and learning.
http://www.abdn.ac.uk/admin/aimsobs.shtml
Crockett M and Foster J (2005). The Archives-Skills Consultancy on
behalf of the ICA Section on Archival Education and Training.
Training the Trainer Resource Pack. Planning a course: Aims,
objectives and learning outcomes http://www.icasae.org/trainer/english/p4.htm