what is the course outcomes

by Lillian Kuhn 10 min read

Course outcomes should:

  • State what students are expected to know or be able to do upon completion of a specific course;
  • State clearly and relate specifically to the topics, assignments, exams, and assessments in the course;
  • Be observable and measurable in some way; and
  • Contribute or map to program‑level learning outcomes.

Course Learning Outcomes are statements clearly describing the specific type and level of new learning students will have achieved – and can reliably demonstrate – by the end of a course.

Full Answer

What is the difference between course objectives and learning outcomes?

  • Goals, aims, objectives and outcomes are terms that are often used in educational settings. ...
  • Learning Outcome refers to the expectations kept from the student at the end of the course. ...
  • Learning objective is described as what the student can expect from the teacher at the end of the course. It is actually the opposite of the outcome. ...

How to write course learning outcomes for your syllabus?

Writing Student Learning Outcomes

  • Steps for Writing Outcomes. The following are recommended steps for writing clear, observable and measurable student learning outcomes.
  • Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy of Learning: The “Cognitive” Domain. ...
  • Examples of Academic Program Learning Outcomes. ...
  • Examples of Course Learning Outcomes. ...

How to write course objectives?

Writing Objectives. A learning objective contains three major components: 1. The skill or behavior to be performed. This component of the objective should contain an action verb relevant to the domain of the activity (cognitive, psycho-motor or effective). It’s important to stay away from generic verbs such as “understand” or “know ...

What are some examples of learning outcomes?

What are some examples of learning outcomes? Example: This class will explain new departmental HR policies. Learning outcome: States what the learner will be able to do upon completing the learning activity. Example: The learner is able to give examples of when to apply new HR policies.

What is an example of course outcomes?

For example, having students "explain" or "discuss" a concept will demonstrate their understanding (lower-level), and having students "calculate" or "justify" will demonstrate their ability to analyze and evaluate (higher-level).

What is course outcome of a subject?

Course Outcomes are the statements that help the learners to understand the reason for pursuing the course and helps him to identify what he will be able to do at the end of the course.

How do you make a course outcome?

Steps to Writing Course Learning Outcomes for Your Course. Select an action verb using Bloom's Taxonomy: ... Levels of Achievement. A level of achievement identifies how proficient students need to be in a task. ... Conditions of Performance. ... Tips and Tricks. ... More information.

What is course objectives and course outcomes?

Learning goals and objectives generally describe what an instructor, program, or institution aims to do, whereas, a learning outcome describes in observable and measurable terms what a student is able to do as a result of completing a learning experience (e.g., course, project, or unit).

Why is course outcome important?

A good learning outcome contributes to the learning management system of an institution. It aims in focusing on applying and integrating the knowledge and skills acquired in a particular unit of course program. Hence it is crucial in any part of any institution, which cannot be dodged when developing a course content.

What does PLO mean in education?

Program learning outcomes (PLO) assessment is an iterative process of evaluating the extent to which students have developed certain key skills through coursework and learning activities within the program curriculum.

What are the 5 learning outcomes?

What are the five learning outcomes of the early years learning framework?Children have a strong sense of identity. ... Children are connected with and contribute to their world. ... Children have a strong sense of wellbeing. ... Children are confident and involved learners. ... Children are effective communicators.

What are the 7 learning outcomes?

7 Learning Outcomes7 Learning Outcomes1Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth2Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process3Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience4Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences3 more rows

What are outcomes in education?

Outcomes are about what happens to students as a result of objectives and outputs. They convey students' overall satisfaction with a course or program, transformative experiences gained, notable achievements, and tangible indicators of career readiness and improved performance.

What is the meaning of learning outcome?

Learning outcomes are measurable statements that articulate at the beginning what students should know, be able to do, or value as a result of taking a course or completing a program (also called Backwards Course Design).

What is the importance of the learning outcome in teaching and learning process?

Learning outcomes help faculty and students come to a common understanding about the purpose and goals of a course or academic program. By providing clear and comprehensive learning outcomes, faculty begin to provide a transparent pathway for student success.

What is learning outcome?

Learning outcomes are measurable statements that concretely formally state what students are expected to learn in a course. While goals or objectives can be written more broadly, learning outcomes describe specifically how learners will achieve the goals. Rather than listing all of the detailed categories of learning that is expected, ...

Why should learning outcomes be shared?

Learning outcomes should be shared with learners for the purposes of transparency and expectation setting (Cuevas & Mativeev, 2010). Doing so makes the benchmarks for learning explicit and helps learners make connections across different elements within the course. Consider including course learning outcomes in your syllabus, so that learners know what is expected of them by the end of a course, and can refer to the outcomes throughout the course. It is also good practice for educators to refer to learning outcomes at particular points during the course; for example, before introducing new concepts or asking learners to complete course activities and assignments.

How can learning outcomes be strengthened?

Learning outcomes can be strengthened by more explicitly articulating what it looks like when learners understand . A more explicit outcome statement using action verbs might be: Learners should be able to compare and contrast US political ideologies regarding social and environmental issues.

Is assessment an iterative process?

Assessment is an iterative process and it is good practice to revisit your learning outcome statements regularly – particularly as you change the way the course is being taught and/or the content of your course (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005).

What are the learning outcomes of a course?

Course Learning Outcomes are specific and measurable statements that define the knowledge, skills, and attitudes learners will demonstrate by the completion of a course. Learning Outcomes are written with a verb phrase and declare a demonstrable action within a given time frame, such as by the end of the course. Ideally, they should be observable, measurable, and achievable within a specified time period. For some, this definition describes what they have already understood to be Learning Objectives. Read more about Learning Outcomes vs Learning Objectives.

Is "understand" measurable?

Note that not all actions or processes are measurable. For example, "understand" is a category label for the lower-level thinking skill of comprehension; however the verb understand itself is difficult to observe and cannot be easily measured. Learners can demonstrate understanding by their ability to define, describe, or explain. Use these kinds of observable action words in place of understand. It is often helpful to consider how you will assess the evidence of learning and how you will measure levels of mastery in order to determine the learning outcome you expect at the end of a course.

What is the meaning of outcome in learning?

Effective learning outcomes are student-centered, measurable, concise, meaningful, achievable and outcome-based (rather than task-based).

Where are learning outcomes used?

Outcomes are used on many scales, from developing curriculum for a program of study to creating lessons for a single class activity. At the highest level, learning outcomes can be established at the university level. You can review the learning outcomes for DePaul graduates at the institutional level or program level.

What happens to learning outcomes as the level of analysis becomes smaller?

As a general rule, as the level of analysis becomes smaller, from course to module to assignment, the learning outcomes tend to be more specific and easily quantifiable.

How to write learning outcomes?

Why Write Learning Outcomes? 1 describe to students what is expected of them 2 plan appropriate teaching strategies, materials and assessments 3 learn from and make changes to curriculum to improve student learning 4 assess how the outcomes of a single course align with larger outcomes for an entire program

How do learning outcomes help instructors?

describe to students what is expected of them. plan appropriate teaching strategies, materials and assessments. learn from and make changes to curriculum to improve student learning. assess how the outcomes of a single course align with larger outcomes for an entire program.

What is learning objective?

Learning Objectives. Learning objectives are statements of what you intend to teach or cover in a learning experience. They tend to be. More specific than learning goals. Not necessarily observable nor measurable. Instructor-centered rather than student-centered. Useful in helping you formulate more specific learning outcomes.

What is the meaning of "as a result of participating in an educational unit"?

As a result of participating in (educational unit), students will be able to (measurable verb) + (learning statement). If the educational unit is implied, based on the context in which the learning outcomes are shared, you might leave off the first portion of the learning outcome statement.

What is the objective of a course?

Course objectives and Outcomes. Objective — A course objective describes what a faculty member will cover in a course. They are generally less broader than desirable goals and more broader than student learning outcomes. Outcome — A detailed description of what a student must be able to do at the conclusion of a course.

What is OBE in education?

However, we’ll just go over the concept briefly here. OBE is an educational theory that bases each part of an educational system around goals ( outcomes). By the end of the educational experience, each student should have achieved the goal.

Can instructors set targets for each CO?

Instructors can set targets for each CO of his/her course. Attainment gaps can therefore be identified. Instructor can plan to reduce the attainment gaps or enhance attainment targets enhance attainment targets. If the assessment is in alignment with COs, the performance of the students indicates the CO at tainment.

Is there a single style of teaching or assessment in OBE?

There is no single specified style of teaching or assessment in OBE ; instead, classes, opportunities, and assessments should all help students achieve the specified outcomes. The role of the faculty adapts into instructor, trainer, facilitator, and/or mentor based on the outcomes targeted.

Course Aims and Learning Outcomes

Course aims and learning outcomes are important aspects of curriculum design. Often, they are assumed to be synonyms and will be used interchangeably. However, it is important to understand their individual purpose and how they are employed in the design of a course.

Why are they important?

Faculty and learners benefit from engaging with Aims and Outcomes. They support curriculum design by:

Program Learning Outcomes

By the completion of a degree program, students should be able to demonstrate these learning outcomes—either as integrated into the capstone as a demonstrable task—or as documented by key tasks across a program.

Course-level Learning Outcomes

Course-level outcomes reflect what students will learn by the end of the course. Certainly, each course will reflect either an introduction to a concept, practice at gaining competence in this outcome, or demonstration that a student knows and/or owns the knowledge/concept/skill/ability.

Class-level Learning Outcomes

Class-level outcomes reflect what a student will learn in one (or several) particular class periods. Constructing daily class-level outcomes can guide an instructor through a particular topic and align with course-level (and thus program level) outcomes.

What are the four methods used to calculate student mastery?

When users create an outcome, users can set one of four calculation methods used for student mastery: Decaying Average, n Number of Times, Most Recent Score, and Highest Score. Calculation methods are used in conjunction within the Learning Mastery Gradebook.

What is grading student work?

Grading student work automatically collects and compiles data on student progress for the Outcomes.

Can you change the calculation method in Common Core?

If a user imports an outcome but does not have permission to modify the calculation method, the calculation method cannot be changed. Common Core outcomes are always calculated as Highest Score; however, the calculation method can be modified using the Outcomes API by any user with appropriate admin permissions.

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Curriculum

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Learning outcomes describe the learning that will take place across the curriculum through concise statements, made in specific and measurable terms, of what students will know and/or be able to do as the result of having successfully completed a course. 
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Goals

  • These terms are often used interchangeably and they are all related to the teaching and learning that is expected to take place in the classroom. However, the difference between goals or objectives and outcomes lies in the emphasis on who will be performing the activities. Learning goals and objectives generally describe what an instructor or program aims to do; i.e., This cour…
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Introduction

  • Writing learning outcomes should be a reflective process. Many departments find the following steps to be helpful as they begin the process of creating learning outcomes for their courses.
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Characteristics

  • If your department already has learning goals that it would like to develop into outcomes or is examining its current learning outcomes there are several characteristics to look for:
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Availability

  • The Center for Teaching & Learning is available to consult with departments and individual faculty members on developing learning outcomes.
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Assessment

  • As mentioned, identifying the most important things students should learn within your course is the first step in deciding what should be assessed, but learning outcomes have other uses as well; they:
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What Are Program Outcomes and Course Outcomes?

Course Objectives and Outcomes

Outcome Based Education

Program Outcomes

Course Outcomes

  • POs are attained through program specific Core Courses, which has their own previously set outcomes to attain. These course-specific outcomes are called Course Outcomes. Each course is designed to meet (about 5–6) Course Outcomes Course Outcomes. The Course Outcomes are stated in such a way that they can be actually measured. COs are set by the ins...
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Program Educational Objectives

to conclude…