Crafting Learning Outcomes that Center Students: Course Design Part 1 √ §

Learner-centered course design begins with envisioning a course’s desired learning results: what will students know and be able to do when they complete the class successfully? By stating the course’s desired learning results as student learning outcomes, we begin to articulate the course design–we show learners what they can achieve by taking the class. Then we offer a clear view of what successful learning looks like by mapping the outcomes to activities and assignments that help students practice, build, and demonstrate their learning. Course design emerges from clear alignment between outcomes and the pathway we create to help students to achieve and demonstrate them. In this discussion, we will explore how learner-centered design works, and how to craft outcomes. 

Part of a year-long series, we’ll continue to build on this work this semester by discussing aligning your course design. In spring semester, we’ll look at measuring and analyzing course design. Feel free to join one or all of these sessions.