By the end of this guide you will be able to:
- List benefits of creating outcomes
If you’ve ever struggled to attract your target learners to your content or found it difficult to gauge how all your learners are progressing, then learning outcomes can help with both those common issues. In fact, they have many benefits for both content creators and learners including:
Learning outcomes can help content creators...
Describe to learners what is expected of them
This is beneficial as you’re more likely to attract your target audience and not have someone that is over or underskilled trying to take your content.
Plan their learning content more effectively
With outcomes defined at the start, you’re less likely to plan beyond the scope or to miss the mark as everything you plan will aim to help learners achieve those outcomes.
Select and design appropriate teaching strategies and materials
Measurable verbs in outcomes help you select effective teaching strategies that best serve your learners meeting the outcomes. Outcomes focus your content design and help you find and make effective materials.
Design appropriate activities
Activities are designed to assess if learners can achieve the learning outcomes. Meaning your activities are purposeful and meaningful. They are therefore more likely to be completed as learners want to achieve the outcomes.
Track learner progress
As outcomes are measurable, you or your learners should be able to track learner progress. Progress can be determined by whether your learners can complete the activities and therefore achieve the outcomes.
Measure the effectiveness of their content
If learners are not able to achieve the outcomes, you can choose to make appropriate changes to the outcomes, content or activities to improve learning.
Learning outcomes can help learners…
Identify what they will gain from successfully completing the content
Outcomes give them a clear idea of what they will learn before they start and know what is expected of them
Choose appropriate content to meet their learning needs
Learners can choose to take content that meets their learning needs as they can check if outcomes align with their goals.
Track their progress
Learners can self-assess if they can achieve the outcomes. All activities throughout the content should assess if the outcomes can be achieved. If learners can complete the activities, then they know they can achieve the outcomes.
Get satisfaction from their learning
Learners can get great satisfaction when content meets their expectations and from monitoring how much they’ve achieved. All of this is helped by instructors designing content with learning outcomes.
Apply their learning to their everyday life
As the content and outcomes are designed to be knowledge and skills based, their learnings should be applicable to other aspects of the learners’ lives.
Which Benefits From Creating Outcomes Resonate With You?
From the two lists above, make a list of your top three benefits of creating learning outcomes that would encourage you to write them at the very start of content design.
For example, if I were wanting to create a workshop, then the following benefits may resonate with me:
Describe to learners what is expected of them
Whilst running workshops, there have been instances where I have had learners in the workshop that are either too skilled or underskilled for the content. It can cause disruption and learner dissatisfaction if they feel lost or if they feel they’ve not gained much from being there. If outcomes had made it clear at the start what they would gain and at what level, this could be avoided.
Design appropriate activities
I’ve also designed activities that can feel like they’re filling time without a clear purpose or direct link to the content. Learners seem demotivated, and it can disrupt the flow of the session. If outcomes are used to design sessions, then all activities are linked to desired outcomes. Learners would be more motivated to complete activities as they want to achieve those outcomes.
Track learner progress
Sometimes I am unsure of how all learners are progressing in a workshop. If outcomes are used, I can tell how all learners are progressing by how well they are completing each activity. if learners are getting stuck, I can fill in any learning gaps in real time. I can also amend materials or add more outcomes in the future if many learners are getting stuck at the same point.
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