How to Write an Educational Objective

Co-authored by Megan Callaghan, PhD

Last Updated: December 17, 2023 Approved

An educational objective is an important tool for teaching. It allows you to articulate your expectations for your students, which can inform you as you write lesson plans, test, quizzes, and assignment sheets. There is a specific formula that goes into writing educational objectives. Learning to master that formula can help you write excellent educational objectives for you and your students.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Planning Your Objective

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1
Differentiate between goals and objectives. Objectives and goals are terms that are sometimes used interchangeably, but there is a distinct difference between educational objectives and educational goals. Make sure you understand this difference before attempting to write your objective.^{[1]
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- Goals are broad and often difficult to measure in an objective sense. They tend to focus on big picture issues. For example, in a college class on child psychology, a goal might be "Students will learn to appreciate the need for clinical training when dealing with small children." While such a goal would obviously inform the more specific educational objectives, it is not specific enough to be an objective itself.
- Educational objectives are much more specific. They include measurable verbs and criteria for acceptable performance or proficiency regarding a particular subject. For example, "By the end of this unit, students will be able to identify three theorists whose work on child psychology influenced teaching practices in the US." This is a more specific educational objective, based on the educational for the same hypothetical course.
2
Familiarize yourself with Bloom's Taxonomy. In 1956, educational psychologist Benjamin Bloom created a framework to classify different types of learning, as well as a hierarchy illustrating different levels of learning. Bloom's Taxonomy is usually used when writing educational objectives.^{[2]
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- Bloom identified three domains of learning. The cognitive domain is the domain given the most focus in the world of higher education. Cognitive is the domain used for guidance when writing educational objectives. The cognitive domain focuses on intellectual, scholarly learning and is divided into a hierarchy consisting of six levels.
- The first level is knowledge, which is the ability to memorize, recite, and recall previously learned materials.
  - Example: Memorizing multiplication tables.
  - Example: Recalling when the Battle of Hastings occurred.
- The second level is comprehension. This means taking the facts you know and demonstrating your understanding through organizing, interpreting, translating, or comparing said facts.
  - Example: Translating a Japanese sentence into German.
  - Example: Explaining why nuclear technology affected President Reagan's political policies.
- The third level is application. This means solving problems by applying your knowledge to a variety of situations.
  - Example: Using pi to solve various mathematical problems.
  - Example: Using "please" to ask for things politely not just with Mom, but other people.
- The fourth level is analysis. This means taking the facts you learned and reexamining them so you are able to understand why they are true. You are also expected to find evidence to support new claims or inferences you make during your education.
  - Example: Understanding the concept of "fate" as a predetermined destiny.
  - Example: A ball thrown on the ground falls, a rock thrown on the ground falls...but what happens if they are thrown into water?
- The fifth level is synthesis. This means organizing information in a new way and discovering new patterns or alternative ideas, solutions, or theories.
  - Example: Creating a painting.
  - Example: Putting forth a new idea about subatomic particles.
- The sixth level is evaluation. This means gaining the ability to present and defend information and make informed judgments about the opinions of others on a given subject.
  - Example: Creating a short film humanizing immigrants in your community with commentary on why you believe they deserve respect.
  - Example: Writing an essay on why you believe Hamlet really did not love Ophelia.
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Learn the characteristics that communicate your intent. When writing an educational objective, there are three characteristics that you need to focus on. These help you effectively communicate the intent of your class and teaching style.
- Performance is the first characteristic. An object should always state what your students are expected to be able to do by the end of a unit or class.
- Condition is the second characteristic. A good educational objective will outline the conditions under which a student is supposed to perform said task.
- Criterion, the third characteristic, outlines how well a student must perform. That is, the specific expectations that need to be met for their performance to be passing.
- For example, say you are teaching a nursing class. A good educational objective would be "By the end of this course, students will be able to draw blood, in typical hospital settings, within a 2 to 3 minute timeframe." This outlines the performance, drawing blood, the conditions, typical hospital settings, and the criterion, the task being performed in 2 to 3 minutes.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Writing Your Educational Objective

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Write stem statements. A stem statement should outline the performance expected of a student. You should use measurable verbs to form your stem statement.
- Your stem statement should begin by referencing the class or lesson. For example, "After this course, students will..." "After completing this lesson, students are expected to..."
  - Example: After completing this lesson, students are expected to be able to write a paragraph using a topic sentence.
  - Example: After completing this lesson, students are expected to be able to identify three farm animals.
- Your stem statement outlines the duration of time your students need to have mastered a certain skill. If you're writing an educational objective for a particular lesson, specify that lesson in the objective rather than writing something like "By the end of this course..." Instead, opt for, "By the end of today's lecture..."
  - Example: By midterm, all students should be able to count to 20.
  - Example: At the end of the workshop, students should produce a haiku.
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Select the proper verb. The verbs you use are contingent on which level of learning in Bloom's taxonomy you're conveying. You should write a variety of educational objectives that all speak to differing levels of Bloom's Taxonomy.^{[3]
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- For knowledge, go for words like list, recite, define, and name.
- For comprehension, words like describe, explain, paraphrase, and restate are ideal.
- Application objectives should include verbs like calculate, predict, illustrate, and apply.
- For analysis, go for terms like categorize, analyze, diagram, and illustrate.
- For synthesis, use words like design, formulate, build, invent, and create.
- For evaluation, try terms like choose, relate, contrast, argue, and support.
3
Determine the outcome. The outcome is where you really get to the performance, condition, and criterion. You are expressing what the students are expected to do at the end of a course or lesson.
- What performance do you expect? Do students simply need to list or name something? Should they understand how to perform a task?
- Where and when will they carry out this performance? Is this for a classroom setting alone or do they need to perform in a clinical, real world environment?
- What are the criteria you're using to evaluate your student? What would be considered a passing grade or an appropriate performance?
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Put it all together. Once you've laid out the stem statement, chosen your verb, and identified the outcome, put it all together to form an educational objective.
- Say you're teaching a high school English class and, for one lesson, you're teaching symbolism. A good educational objective would be, "By the end of this lesson, students should be able to analyze the symbolism in a given passage of literature and interpret the work's meaning in their own words."
- The stem statement identifies that the objective should be met by the end of the lesson.
- The verbs used are comprehension verbs, indicating this task falls under the second level of Bloom's hierarchy of learning.
- The expected performance is literary analysis. The condition is, presumably, that the reading be done alone. The expected outcome is that the student will be able to read a work, analyze it, and explain it in her own words.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Reviewing Your Objectives

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Make sure your objectives are SMART. You can make sure your objectives work by measuring them against the criteria outlined in the acrostic SMART.^{[4]
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- S stands for specific. Do your learning objectives outline skills that you are able to measure? If they're too broad, you might want to revamp them.
- M stands for measurable. Your objectives should be able to be measured in classroom setting, through testing or observed performances.
- A stands for action-oriented. All educational objectives should include action verbs that call for the performance of a specific task.
- R stands for reasonable. Make sure your learning objectives reflect realistic expectations of your students given the timeframe of your course. For example, you can't expect students to learn something like CPR by the end of a week-long unit.
- T stands for time-bound. All educational objectives should outline a specific timeframe they need to be met by.
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Evaluate whether objectives are being met. Solid educational objectives can help you stay on task as a teacher. Periodically review your course to make sure your students are meeting your objectives.
- Obviously, tests, papers, exams, and quizzes throughout the semester effectively measure if educational objectives are being met. If one students seem to be struggling with an objective, it might be an issue of that individual's performance. If every student seems to struggle, however, you may not be effectively relaying the information.
- Give your students questionnaires and surveys in class, asking them how they feel about their own knowledge of a given subject. Tell them to be honest about what you're doing right and wrong as a teacher.
Educational objectives are important. Many educators return to them during a semester if students seem to be slipping. If you're having any issues with teaching, return to your objects and review them carefully. See how they might be revised in a way that would allow you to be a better teacher.

Sample Objectives and Things to Include and Avoid

Annotated Educational Objectives

What to Include in Educational Objectives

What to Avoid in Educational Objectives

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What is the difference between educational objectives and instruction?

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Instruction from the perspective of an educator refers to your command of teaching techniques - how to impart knowledge through effective strategies. Strong instructional proficiency includes a good command of the material being taught and an understanding of what techniques would be best suited to convey that information. An educational objective is a goal set by either your instructional program or by you as an educator. It should be short and clear, so that the students understand the objective and can work together with you to achieve it. The more thought-out the educational objective, the better results you will get from your instructional know-how.

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How do I make large sentences into short and sweet sentences using high level English?

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Start by naming the subject in clear terms. Employ a simple direct verb to indicate what is happening with or to or by the subject. Add in only as many details as necessary to understand the particular "subject-and-verb" event. Details requiring more than two additional phrases or one additional clause may need another sentence.

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Which of the following are best used in a learning objective: "at the end," "by the end," or "before the end of the lesson"?

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They are all fine, and saying which one is best is a purely subjective. I'd go for "by the end" because it's short. "By the end" means you will have done xyz by then, "at the end" means you intend to do xyz at that time.

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Fellow educators can help you with your objectives. Everyone in the world of education has to write educational objectives. If you are struggling, have a peer review your objectives and give you feedback.

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Look at lots of examples of educational objectives. They are usually listed in course syllabi. This will give you a sense of what a solid, well written objective sounds like.

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