Descriptions of what students will learn in a course, program, or training, and how that learning will be assessed. Creating clear and measurable learning outcomes are necessary for assessment and evaluation. Well-stated learning outcomes include a verb to describe an observable action, a description of what the learner will be able to do and under which conditions, and the performance level the learner should be able to reach. Learning outcomes is a general term for what students will learn and how that learning will be assessed, and includes goals and objectives. Related terms include:
- Learning goals – often used to describe the general outcomes for a course or program.
- Learning objectives – refer to the more focused outcomes for specific learning lessons or activities.
- Learning taxonomies – describe how a learner’s understanding develops from simple to complex when learning different subjects or tasks.
Two taxonomies are commonly used in developing learning outcomes:
- Bloom’s Taxonomy – model describing how learning occurs hierarchically, as each skill builds on previous skills towards increasingly sophisticated learning. It includes three domains of learning: cognitive, psychomotor, and affective.
- Finks Taxonomy of Significant Learning – model describing learning as holistic and extending beyond the course or training. The right-hand side of the taxonomy refers to the same kinds of cognitive learning described in Bloom taxonomy but the left-hand side goes beyond cognitive learning to include six intersecting domains (foundational knowledge, application skills, integration, human dimension, caring, and learning how to learn.
