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Goals
and
objectives
structure a
course's plan of action. Goals and objectives are as important in the
distance
education arena as they are in a traditional classroom set-up. The
scope for a
course needs to be sufficient to ensure the entire learning experience
will
lead to the desired (and measurable) outcomes.
Goals and
objectives
are important because:
1.
They help
instructional designers and instructors focus on what the important
content is
for a course.
2. They provide
direction on
how to assess students' abilities.
A
brief definition
and example of goals and objectives follow:
Goal – A general statement of what the instructor
hopes the
course will achieve, perhaps expressed in terms of what will be
presented to
the learner. Broadly stated goals are helpful.
Example goal statement: To introduce the learner to healthy eating habits.
Objective – A series of statements of what learners should be able to do as a result of having completed the course or course module. Objectives state the conditions under which learning should occur, the performance expected of the learner, and the standard to which the performance will be matched.
Example objective
statements, based on the previous goal statement:
a) List five of the six principal
components of a balanced diet and describe the function of each in the
body.
b) Name six of 10 diseases caused
by an
inadequate or unbalanced diet.
The keys to writing an effective objective statement are an active verb and a content reference that follows the verb:
- name the five steps in a process
- assemble all parts of a machine properly
- write a 500-word theme
- apply a rule
Hear how
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Irani and Rudd discuss the importance of having instructional goals and objectives (:54) |
Click here for text-only version.
Keep moving to learn about how behavioral taxonomies are used to write objectives.
