How To Write Learning Objectives

by Alan Matthews

The purpose of any training is to change behaviour, you want people to do something different afterwards.

The learning objectives for a course cover what you want people to be able to do at the end of it.

Why is it vital to have clear objectives?

For one thing, the objectives will help you determine what new skills or knowledge people will need. Unless you’re clear about the ultimate objectives of the course, you can’t make decisions about the content. If you’re struggling to choose what to leave in and what to take out, it’s usually because you’re not clear enough yet about the objectives of the training.

This is not the whole story, because changing people’s behaviour will involve changing their attitudes, feelings and beliefs. It will also involve motivating them to want to make the changes, otherwise nothing will happen. When you have determined the objectives, you will have to think about these other issues as well.

Also, you need clear, specific objectives in order to evaluate the training. How can you tell whether the training has been successful if you don’t know exactly what it was meant to achieve in the first place?

The learning objectives should relate back to the training needs which were identified which gave rise to the training. Why do people need the training? What needs do they have (or does the organisation have)? What is the training meant to achieve?

Objectives are usually written in behavioural terms, i.e. what will the participants be able to do as a result of the training?

For example:

• Operate a piece of machinery safely and effectively
• Follow a process or set of procedures
• Use some software to achieve a specific result
• Speak a foreign language to a certain level
• Identify 6 ways to use their time more effectively
• Describe the health and safety policies which apply to their department

They’re expressed in this way because then the outcomes are measurable. You can test whether you’ve been successful.

You shouldn’t write objectives in vague terms such as, “The participants will understand… ” or, “The group will learn… ”

How will you know that they’ve understood or learned something? Only if they’re able to do something with the information. You should make your objectives detailed, precise, specific and measurable.

The sequence leading to the learning objective may be as follows:

1. A training need is identified, e.g. managers in an organisation need to implement a new performance management system.
2. This is turned into a broad training objective: “The training will introduce the managers to the company’s new performance management system, including the forms to be completed, the timing and format of appraisal meetings and the skills needed to carry out performance reviews.”
3. Finally, this leads to specific learning objectives for the course. For example:
   • “Participants will be able to describe 4 simple models for giving feedback.”
   • “Participants will be able to plan an agenda for a performance appraisal meeting using the recommended format.”

Some trainers dislike writing out objectives, it can seem a bit of a chore or the trainer may think, “I know what the course is for, I don’t need to write it down.”

However, writing out the objectives in this way makes you focus on what the end result of the training will be and what the participants will get out of it. It will make your job much easier when it comes to choosing the right content and it will allow you to assess whether the training has had the required effect later.