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HomeAssessment ProcessStep 1: Articulating Goals and Objectives

Articulating Goals and Objectives

The assessment process begins by articulating intended goals and objectives. This can occur at an institutional, departmental, programmatic, or course level. Before articulating objectives, let’s define some key terms which comprise the shared language of the assessment process at Stony Brook University.

Defining Key Terms

  • Goals: What the program is providing to the students. This can be a broad statement related to the mission and orientation of the program or unit. OEE suggests developing 3-6 goals.
  • Objectives: What students should know or be able to do at the conclusion of a program, course or activity. This should be a measurable statement. OEE suggests developing 3-6 learning objectives.
  • Alignment: Using institutional learning objectives as a guide for developing program learning objectives, and using program learning objectives as a guide for developing course-level learning objectives. This helps ensure cohesion among academic and administrative units as they work to achieve the institutional mission.

Learning Objectives
Learning objectives are helpful to manage mutual expectations among students, faculty, administrators, accreditors and other stakeholders. It also helps ensure consistency across program instructors, sections, and semesters. It provides the basis of the assessment framework.

Learning objectives are concise extensions of the phrase, “By completing the [degree/certificate/ program], students will be able to___________."

For a step-by-step guide on crafting learning objectives, check out this resource guide developed by the SBU Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching.

Creating Smart Goals
Whether articulating goals and objectives for a degree program, an administrative unit, or an entire organization, leveraging best practices such as SMART goal-setting can help units to create clear and measurable objectives that will support the assessment process.

SMART Goals

Dungdm93, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

  • Specific: What is the skill or knowledge your students should take away from the program or experience?
  • Measurable: How will you measure the objective? Which assessment method or data point will you use?
  • Attainable: Is the objective achievable within the context of the institution, program, or course?
  • Relevant: Does the objective align with the broader mission and goals of the program or institution?
  • Time Based: What is the time frame for accomplishing the objective?

Using Bloom's Taxonomy
Learning objectives should align with the level or setting of the institution, program (undergraduate, graduate, doctoral), course (introductory course, culminating course), and discipline or subject matter. Bloom’s taxonomy can serve as a helpful tool to select a verb to fill in the blank in the learning objective “formula” above that is appropriate for its context.

Blooms Taxonomy

"Bloom's Taxonomy" by Vandy CFT is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

 

Assessment Process
Assessment Process