LEARNING OUTCOMES

Learning outcomes are statements of what a student should know, understand and/or be able
to demonstrate after completion of a process of learning.

They must be

simply and clearly described.

capable of being validly assessed.

The emphasis is on

the learner.

and the learner’s ability to do something.

Questions to think about when writing learning outcomes –

What do my students need to know?

Why do they need to know this?

Example 1

• Students will use reference links in order to write with cohesion.

• Students will compare and contrast the characteristics of two pictures in order to differentiate
between them.

Example 2

• Students will be able to identify tonal changes in question tags to be able to give the
appropriate responses.

• Given a (sample) text, students will discuss their opinions and write an essay.

Example 3

• Students will analyze nominal clauses and use them in discussions and writing tasks.

• Students will analyze cross-text multiple matching questions to improve their reading skills
Checklist for writing learning outcomes

 Have I begun each outcome with an active verb?

 Have I avoided terms like know, understand, learn, be familiar with, be exposed to, be
acquainted with, be aware of and appreciate?

 Have I included learning outcomes across the range of levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy (see
below)?

 Are my outcomes observable and measurable?

 Do all the outcomes fit within the aims and content of the module?

Characteristics of SLOs
• Collaborative • Learner centered • Specific • Action oriented • Cognitively appropriate •
Behavioral • Measurable • Observable • Understandable • Achievable • Realistic

Bloom (1956) proposed that knowing is composed of six successive levels arranged in a
hierarchy.

6. Evaluation

5. Synthesis

4.Analysis

3. Application

2. Comprehension

1. Knowledge
Knowledge

The ability to recall or remember facts without necessarily understanding them

Use action verbs like:

Arrange, collect, define, describe, duplicate, enumerate, examine, find, identify, label, list,
memorise, name, order, outline, present, quote, recall, recognise, recollect, record, recount,
relate, repeat, reproduce, show, state, tabulate, tell.

Examples of knowledge

Recall genetics terminology: homozygous, heterozygous, phenotype, genotype, homologous

chromosome pair, etc.

Identify and consider … for e.g. ethical implications of scientific investigations.

Describe how and why … for e.g. laws change and the consequences of such changes on
society.

List the criteria to be taken into account when … for e.g. caring for a patient with tuberculosis.

Define what … for e.g. behaviours that constitute unprofessional practice in the solicitor – client
relationship.

Describe the processes used … for e.g. in engineering when preparing a design brief for a client.

Comprehension

The ability to understand and interpret learned information.

Use action verbs like: Associate, change, clarify, classify, construct, contrast, convert, decode,
defend, describe, differentiate, discriminate, discuss, distinguish, estimate, explain, express,
extend, generalise, identify, illustrate, indicate, infer, interpret, locate, predict, recognise,
report, restate, review, select, solve, translate.

Examples

Differentiate between the active and passive voice

Identify participants and goals in the development of electronic commerce.

Discuss critically German literary texts and films in English.

Predict the genotype of cells that undergo meiosis and mitosis.

Translate short passages of contemporary Italian.

Convert number systems from hexadecimal to binary and vice versa

Explain the social, economic and political effects of World War I on the post-war world.

Classify reactions as exothermic and endothermic.

Explain the impact of Greek and Roman culture on Western civilisation.

Application

The ability to use learned material in new situations, e.g. put ideas and concepts to work in
solving problems

Use action verbs like:

Apply, assess, calculate, change, choose, complete, compute, construct, demonstrate,

develop, discover, dramatise, employ, examine, experiment, find, illustrate, interpret,
manipulate, modify, operate, organise, practice, predict, prepare, produce, relate, schedule,
select, show, sketch, solve, transfer, use.

Examples of application

• Construct a timeline of significant events in the history of Australia in the 19th century.

• Apply knowledge of infection control in the maintenance of patient care facilities.

• Select and employ sophisticated techniques for analysing the efficiencies of energy usage in
complex industrial processes.

• Show proficiency in the use of vocabulary and grammar, as well as the sounds of the language
in different styles…..

• Relate energy changes to bond breaking and formation.

• Modify guidelines in a case study of a small manufacturing firm to enable tighter quality
control of production.

• Show how changes in the criminal law affected levels of incarceration in Scotland in the 19th
century.
Analysis

The ability to break down information into its components, e.g. look for inter-relationships and
ideas (understanding of organisational structure)

Use action verbs like:

Analyse, appraise, arrange, break down, calculate, categorise, classify, compare, connect,
contrast, criticise, debate, deduce, determine, differentiate, discriminate, distinguish, divide,
examine, experiment, identify, illustrate, infer, inspect, investigate, order, outline, point out,
question, relate, separate, sub-divide, test.

Examples of Analysis

• Analyse why society criminalises certain behaviours.

• Compare and contrast the different electronic business models.

• Categorise the different areas of specialised interest within dentistry.

• Debate the economic and environmental effects of energy conversion processes.

• Identify and quantify sources of errors in measurements.

• Calculate gradient from maps in m, km, % and ratio.

• Critically analyse a broad range of texts of different genres and from different time periods.

• Compare the classroom practice of a newly qualified teacher with that of a teacher of 20
years teaching experience.

Synthesis

The ability to put parts together

Use action verbs like:

Argue, arrange, assemble, categorise, collect, combine, compile, compose, construct, create,
design, develop, devise, establish, explain, formulate, generalise, generate, integrate, invent,
make, manage, modify, organise, originate, plan, prepare, propose, rearrange, reconstruct,
relate, reorganise, revise, rewrite, set up, summarise.
Examples of Synthesis

• Recognise and formulate problems that are amenable to energy management solutions.

• Propose solutions to complex energy management problems both verbally and in writing.

• Assemble sequences of high-level evaluations in the form of a program.

• Integrate concepts of genetic processes in plants and animals.

• Summarise the causes and effects of the 1917 Russian revolutions.

• Relate the sign of enthalpy changes to exothermic and endothermic reactions.

• Organise a patient education programme.

Evaluation:

The ability to judge value of material for a given purpose

Use action verbs like:

Appraise, ascertain, argue, assess, attach, choose, compare, conclude, contrast, convince,
criticise, decide, defend, discriminate, explain, evaluate, interpret, judge, justify, measure,
predict, rate, recommend, relate, resolve, revise, score, summarise, support, validate, value.

Examples of Evaluation

• Assess the importance of key participants in bringing about change in Irish history.

• Evaluate marketing strategies for different electronic business models.

• Appraise the role of sport and physical education in health promotion for young people.

• Predict the effect of change in temperature on the position of equilibrium…

• Summarise the main contributions of Michael Faraday to the field of electromagnetic

induction.
Bloom Revisited: Anderson and Krathwohl (2001)

Analysis, Synthesis, Evaluation – Higher Order Thinking Skills

Anderson and Krathwohl (2001)

To remember

To understand

To apply

To analyse

To evaluate

To create

Bloom’s – Lower Levels Knowledge

• Recalling previously learned information such as facts, terminology, rules, etc.

• Answers may be memorized or closely paraphrased from assigned material.

• Define, list, name, recall 27 Bloom’s – Lower Levels Comprehension

• Ability to comprehend the meaning of material.

• Answers must be in the student’s own words while still using terminology appropriate to the
course material.

• Explain, summarize, distinguish between, restate

• Demonstrate rote or surface learning

• Declarative or Procedural Knowledge

• Answers found in the assigned materials

• 80% of HS teachers test at these levels

Bloom’s – Higher Levels Application

• Requires recognizing, identifying, or applying a concept or principle in a new situation or
solving a new problem.

• May require identifying or generating examples not found in assigned materials.

• Demonstrate, arrange, relate, adapt 30 Bloom’s – Higher Levels Analysis

• Ability to break material down into its component parts and to understand its underlying
structure

• May require students to compare and contrast or explain how an example illustrates a given
concept or principle.

• Require students to identify logical errors or to differentiate among facts, opinions,

assumptions, hypotheses and conclusions

• Expected to draw relationships between ideas

• Differentiate, estimate, infer, diagram

Synthesis

• Opposite of Analysis

• Ability to combine parts to form a new whole; to synthesize a variety of elements into an
original and significant whole.

• Produce something unique or original

• Solve some unfamiliar problem in a unique way

• Combine, create, formulate, construct

Evaluation

• Ability to evaluate a total situation, to judge the value of material for a certain purpose,
combining elements of all the other categories and also value judgments based on defined,
fixed criteria.

• The most important part of the answer is the justification and rationale for the conclusion

• Judge, critique, justify, discriminate

Meaningful or deep learning

• Go beyond textual material in that they must be inferred or extrapolated from the material in
the assigned material.

• Students’ creativity, originality and critical thinking is required at higher levels

• More authentic than lower levels

• Thinking at this level is more likely to represent types of performances required in the real
world

Questions for Assessment

1. What do you want the student to be able to do? (Outcome)

2. What does the student need to know in order to do this well? (Curriculum)

3. What activity will facilitate the learning? (Pedagogy)

4. How will the student demonstrate the learning? (Assessment)

5. How will I know the student has done this well? (Criteria)

Steps involved in linking Learning Outcomes, Teaching and Learning Activities

and Assessment
1. Clearly define the learning outcomes.

2. Select teaching and learning methods that are likely to ensure that the learning outcomes are
achieved.

3. Choose a technique or techniques to assess the achievement of the learning outcomes.

4. Assess the learning outcomes and check to see how well they match with what was intended

Show students what they are gaining from your lesson

Step 1: Remind them of the morning’s lesson aim from your weekly plan or write your aims on the
board

Here is an example
Aim: talk about holidas
Vocabulary: holiday activities
Grammar: past simple verbs
Speaking: talking about your last holiday

Step 2: Explain how each activity relates to the lesson aim

For each activity, make it clear why learners are doing it and how it relates to the lesson aim. For
example:

'Listen to two people talk about their holiday. You will learn new vocabulary about holiday activities for the
speaking task.'

Step 3: Ask questions related to the lesson aim after each lesson stage

Once learners have completed this stage of the lesson, ask:

What activity did you just do? (we listened to some new vocabulary about holiday activities)
 Can you give an example of what you learnt? (go sightseeing; take a bus tour of a city)
 Why did we do that activity? (to help learn new vocabulary for the speaking task)

It’s also a good idea to tick off what stages of the lesson learners have completed as they go along. This
shows them that they have completed one stage and are moving on to the next.

It’s also handy for latecomers into the lessons, as they can see what the lesson aim is and what stage of
the lesson they have arrived at.

Step 4: Reflect on the entire lesson

Plan for 5 minutes at the end of the lesson to discuss the following

 What skills did you practise in today’s lesson?

 What new language did you learn? Can you give an example?
 What grammar point did you learn today? Can you give an example of when it’s used?
 What did you find easy/difficult in today’s lesson?
You don't need to use all of them. Choose the ones that match your lesson aims.