For this week's interactive discussion - a Web visitor to ASTD writes:
"Objectives... The more I read, the more I'm confused. They can sound like goals, specific tasks, or dreams. Is there a better way to write objectives?"
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2 Responses
Learning outcomes
Viewed in the context of training, objectives are what you would expect the trainers capable of achieving or demonstrating as a result of the ‘learning’ or ‘training’ they have been subjected to. Objectives are usually measurable outcomes that trainees could be expected to have gained.
Learning Outcomes or Objectives
In Australia we have moved from objectives to learning outcomes. While a course/program may have an Aim (a broader general idea of what outcome is expected), learning outcomes relate specifically to what learners must be able to do during or after training. LOs use action oriented words such as ‘demonstrate’, ‘gauge’, ‘produce’ etc and usually consist – in their most formal state – of an activity, condition and standard. Thus they become unmistakable for what they are. It’s most important to ensure LOs have a learner focus rather than a facilitator focus.