Developing
Goals and Learning Outcomes
By Prof. Jonathan Acuña-Solano
School of English
Faculty of Social Sciences
Universidad
Latina de Costa Rica
Wednesday,
March 16, 2016
Post 235
Working on the right development of
teaching goals and their corresponding learning outcomes is no easy task for a
neophyte in teaching, but it is indeed a skill that is developed through one’s
professional teaching life. It requires lots of reflective teaching to find the
best way to do it.
To what
extent is one stating specific goals and learning outcomes for one’s lessons? Every
moment a teacher steps into the teaching ground, s/he is supposed to be
prepared with a set of goals and outcomes for that lesson or period of time in
which course objectives need to be covered. Lacking this sense of direction can
prove to be futile when one realizes that learners are not accomplishing what
was planned for them. For this very reason any teacher must have very specific
goals and outcomes for his/her teaching sessions, which need to be communicated
to students so they also know what the lesson is aiming at and what is meant
for them to have achieved at the end of it. Lacking specific goals and learning
outcomes mean that though learning can happen, it will rather erratic than
deep.
How is one
currently assessing one’s students’ learning? This is the kind of
question all teachers must ask themselves to be certain than some sort of
formative or summative assessment is aligned with one’s teaching goals and
learning outcomes. Just because a quiz is designed, developed, and applied, it
does not mean that it is the only way of giving learners a grade. There are
other ways of doing it in which more practical (hands-on) experiences can help
the teacher see student development in terms of expected behaviors s/he is
supposed to replicate. Assessment, as stated before, must also be aligned with course
content and objectives, but it is the instructor the one who needs to come up
with good assessing practices to foster and reinforce deep learning.
How might
technology tools be used to increase student participation in class? Dealing
with the Generation Y and the way they learn by means of technological gadgets
is one of those factors that faculty members or school teaching staff must keep
in mind to guarantee that learners will achieve goals and outcomes.
Participation, as well as engagement, can be created and fostered when
technology tools such as chats and social media can be incorporated into one’s
teaching and planning. Moving from a mere F2F class where most activities take
place can have an interesting shift if one moves the class onto the web my
means of IBL (Internet-Based Learning). And since the Internet is one of the
most common resources for students to work on their learning tasks, why not to
take it into account when it comes to assessing students’ learning?
Education has indeed been evolving
exponentially in the last few years, and then one thinks, “What is in store for us educators in the near future?” Though
it is difficult to provide an answer, what is certain is that more changes are
coming our way. Teaching needs to be adapted to new circumstances, and though
student learning can change, the setting of learning goals and outcomes is
something that has to be present in today’s or in the future’s way of teaching.
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
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