Well written objectives will…

1. Well written objectives will… Provide clear direction for instruction Convey what is to be learned to students Provide a clear guide for assessment

2. What goes into an objective? As an objective describes some aspect of learning, it must contain both knowledgeand cognitive processes. For example, when did England win the soccer world cup? – contains Factualknowledge and the cognitive processes Memory. 1966

3. How about for types of thinking? Types of Thinking Subject Content Knowledge: • Understand integrated circuits • Components of an integrated circuit • Types of integrated circuits • Use and limitations of integrated circuits • Analysis • Compare & contrast • Inference and & interpretation • Evaluation Analyse the components of an integrated circuit Compare and contrast integrated circuits Evaluate the use of integrated circuits

4. Writing objectives at different levels of Performance There are a number of frameworks or taxonomies that can be used as a basis for writing objectives (e.g., Bloom, Solo) It is useful to think of your objectives in terms of the specific performances you want from students, these typically fall into 3 main categories: • Recall of Knowledge (facts, concepts, principles, procedures) – Involves the processes of Memorization • Understanding of the connectivity of knowledge in developing mental schemas (e.g., mental schemas – “jigsaws in our head”). Involves active use of the types of THINKING in relation to what is already in Long- term memory • Demonstration of skill/competence through real world performance (e.g., solving a real world engineering problem). Involves integration of KSA

5. Educational Taxonomies Bloom’s original taxonomy, 1956 Anderson & Krathwohl, revised taxonomy, 2001

6. List each specific type of performance learners are to exhibit at the end of the instructional period State a General Learning Objective (GLO), then provide a sample list of the specific types of learner performance (Specific Learning Objectives- SLO’s) that we are willing to accept as evidence of the attainment of the GLO Two ways of writing objectives NB – GLO’s typically identify the main topic areas of a subject domain and are not directly measurable; whereas SLO’s are observable and measurable, providing evidence that the learner is developing the abilities/competencies identified in the GLO

7. Marking Formats for performance assessments Decide on the basis of level of Inference in making assessment decision analytic or holistic rubric – what’s the difference, and on what basis would you decide?

8. Decide format on the basis of whether the item involves High or Low Inference • Low inference items are those where the performances being tested are clearly visible and there is a widely established correct answer (e.g., conducting a fire drill, setting up an experiment) Here a Checklist is most appropriate • High inference items involve performances that are less directly visible and/or more open to subjective judgement (e.g., creative writing, managing a team) Here a rating scale/scoring rubric is most appropriate A major challenge to test design is to produce tasks that require low inference scoring systems. Unfortunately, many worthwhile student outcomes reflecting higher order thinking lend themselves more to high inference scoring.