DEFINING LEARNING

OUTCOMES
Assessment Workshop
March 2017
 Overview

Introduction

Clarifying
/ reviewing department-level
learning outcomes
Defining
department-level learning
outcomes
Writing your own learning outcomes
Leveraging CLC Learning Outcomes
 What do we mean by
assessment of student learning?

Assessment is an ongoing process of:

Establishing measurable, clear, and documented
expected outcomes of student learning
Providing students with sufficient opportunities to
achieve those outcomes
Systematically gathering and analyzing
evidence to determine how well, and in what
ways, student learning matches the
documented outcomes and expectations
(criteria)
Using the evidence to inform decisions to improve
student learning
Adapted from: Learner Centered Teaching
(https://learnercenteredteaching.wordpress.com/teaching-resources/definition-of-
assessment-of-student-learning/)
Why Assess?
 Levels of Learning
Outcomes
Pre-exercise: Organize a
set of outcomes with
colleagues

8 College Learning
Outcomes (CLOs)

CLOs + department level

learning outcomes + field
standards (if relevant)

Course Reference Form

learning outcomes
(should include some
department and college
learning outcomes.
5-Step Department
Assessment Process
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May
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Purpose of department learning
outcomes

Adapted from: Dee Fink & Associates (2016).

Integrated Course Design Workshops.
www.designlearning.org
Key Concepts for Defining
Department Learning
Outcomes
The Good, The Bad, & The
Ugly What do you think about these
outcomes?

Students demonstrate a
reasonably high degree of
competency of technical execution
appropriate to the chosen
medium.

From: Dee Fink & Associates (2016). Integrated

Course Design Workshops.
www.designlearning.org
The Good, The Bad, & The
Ugly
All journalism majors will learn the role
technology and the new media are playing in
the current and future worlds of news
gathering and dissemination. Our course work
will emphasize that the arrival of internet and
broadband technology as well as satellite and
video tape technology is as significant in its
own way as the Gutenberg Revolution and the
introduction of the telegraph were to the
future of journalism. Each has accelerated the
news cycle as never before and challenged
journalists to get the news fastFrom:
and to get it
Dee Fink & Associates (2016). Integrated

right. Our students will learn how to do both.

Course Design Workshops.
www.designlearning.org
The Good, The Bad, & The
Ugly

Knowledge of contracts.

From: Dee Fink & Associates (2016). Integrated

Course Design Workshops.
www.designlearning.org
The Good, The Bad, & The
Ugly
Students will be able to apply
the sociological imagination by
connecting a variety of
Sociology course topics
(gender, class, race, sexuality,
families, deviance) to their
own lives and experiences
Tips to remember
The outcome should be
Clearly written and specific
Use action verbs
Measurable and observable
Focused on the behaviors of the student
Refer to learning across courses, by the
end of a program, or in high-impact
courses

What are Characteristics of Good Student Learning Outcomes? ;

http://condor.depaul.tla/Learning/what.html
Common pitfalls to avoid
Using vague verbs like, understand, have
knowledge of, be aware of, appreciate
Including how an outcome will be measured in
the text of an outcome
Focusing on instructors rather than the
students
Complex outcomes that actually address
multiple concepts
Too many or too few outcomes for the
department
Adapted from: Dee Fink & Associates (2016).
Integrated Course Design Workshops.
www.designlearning.org
 Learning Outcome Formula

What
Target Future Measura students
audien tense ble will
ce behavior know/ be
able to
do

http://assessment.uconn.edu/primer/goals1.html
http://www.uta.edu/ier/Resources/ABCD_Outcome_Writing_Model.pdf
http://ets.tlt.psu.edu/learningdesign/objectives/writingobjectives
 Your Turn! Define a
department-level learning
outcome
Option 1
1. Look at the CRFs for your
departments courses
2. Identify a concept, skill,
process, or content
knowledge that you expect
students to learn across the
courses or by the end of a
course sequence
3. Use the brainstorming tool (if
needed) to select one of
particular interest
4. Write the department-level
learning outcome using the
formula
Exercise 1: Define a
department-level learning
outcomes using one of the
options below (25 minutes)
Option 2
1. Look at the CLO(s) that
your department identified
during the last Academic
Department Review
2. Review the current CLOs
3. Pick one CLO that fits your
department
4. Document rationale for
why this learning outcome
is appropriate for your
department
5. Consider if you need to
adjust the CLO to suit your
 Assess your learning
outcome

Refer to the rubric

provided to assess
your learning
outcomes

Share outcomes with

the group to receive
feedback
5-Step Department
Assessment Process
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May
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Support Resources