Best Practices Workshop Presentation
Aligning Assignments to Learning Objectives
Cynthia Davis, Associate Dean of Academi Affairs (SUS)

Cynthia Davis gave a presentation on aligning assignments to learning objectives.  Using examples from CMIS 102 and ACCT 495, she developed a systematic method for carefully formulating course objectives and designing appropriate assignments for them.  In planning assignments, she suggested that one ask the following about each objective:

• How will I know whether students achieve this outcome?
• Under what circumstances could I observe this achievement?
• Is this a minimal outcome or an open-ended developmental one?
• What is the minimal level required?
• What criteria will I use in grading to communicate outcomes?
• How does this affect my teaching strategies?

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