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ABCD Model for Objectives ( 3 mins)

Learning objectives, especially at the module or unit level, don't need to be a paragraph long but they must be specific and measurable.  Here are 4 key things to consider when writing your learning objectives:


  1. Who? (Audience). Who will meet this objective (student, learner, tenured faculty, 1st generation college student, new hire, etc)? Objectives should always be written from the learner’s perspective.  Don't worry, you only need to write the "who" once.

  2. What? (Behavior). What are students expected to do? 

  3. When? (Conditions)  At what point in the course are students expected to complete this objective? Is it at the completion of the course, completion of the module, after reading a chapter, or after an internship? Are they expected to complete the objective after certain conditions are met or materials have been supplied? 

  4. How? (Degree). What level do students need to perform in order to meet mastery? If your objective is that students write a paper on the American Revolution and one student writes a 1-page paper while another writes a 6-page paper, have they both met your objective? Does length matter? Does the amount of errors matter?  Does the number of references used matter? Specify the level to which a student is expected to perform. 


You can remember this as the ABCD model: Audience, Behavior, Condition, and Degree. If you are familiar with using SMART (specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, timely) for goal setting, you will notice that these two models are well aligned. Either model will help you write a stronger objective.


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