The Need to Know Information
Main Function
Every instructor should offer classroom activities that are directly aligned to learning outcomes so that students have opportunities to be introduced to related concepts and to practice or master related skills. This does not mean that all activities must be connected to a learning outcome, but it does mean there should be at least one activity aligned to every learning outcome.
Key Points to Know
- A classroom activity that is aligned to learning outcomes might be used to introduce students to content related to a given outcome, or the activity might be used to give students the opportunity to practice or master related skills.
- Students must be given opportunities to learn, practice, or master related content if there is an expectation for them to do so.
Benefits
Classroom activities that are aligned to learning outcomes
- help faculty members know where in the curriculum they will introduce related content to students or give students opportunities to practice or master related skills and abilities;
- provide opportunities for students to engage with related content, knowledge, skills, and abilities; and
- build in formative assessment opportunities which help faculty members know how well students are achieving a given outcome before it is time to formally assess.
Classroom Activities Self-Assessment
Take the self-assessment below related to classroom activities in one or more of the courses you teach. You should be able to answer each question affirmatively and in appropriate detail by the end of this section of the handbook.
| (1) Do you know when in the course schedule you introduce, reinforce, or expect mastery of the information or skills that are associated with each course learning outcome (CLO)? |
| (2) How do you give students the opportunity to practice demonstrating achievement of each CLO in your course? |
| (3) To what extent have you engaged in a mapping exercise to document what activities you present to students to give them the opportunity to practice and demonstrate achievement of each CLO in your course(s)? |
| (4) What activities do you use that require higher order thinking skills? |
Getting Started
You have good outcomes. Now what? Good outcomes mean nothing if several things do not happen. Students should know the outcomes. In fact, students should be explicitly told what the outcomes are, because it lets them know what they will be expected to demonstrate during or by the end of the course or program. Faculty should know where in the curriculum students have the opportunity to be introduced to related skills and when students can practice those skills. It should also be clear to the faculty member, students, and external evaluators what assessments allow students to demonstrate those skills.
Curriculum maps are excellent tools to articulate this information and should be considered before building classroom activities. Maps provide a “check and balance” for faculty members and the institution. Curriculum mapping is an exercise that can be done at all levels. Mapping allows faculty to document connections between program and institutional outcomes, between course and program outcomes, and between course activities, assignments, or assessments and outcomes at any level.