What does the term ‘Learning Outcome’ mean to me?

Original posting on November 9, 2021

From the Teacher perspective, learning outcomes are what shape the curriculum and assessments in a lesson, module or course. They are a set of action statements, which define what the students will get out of a lesson but they don’t say how.

They are used to provide a goal or target to aim for and a descriptor for what students will be able to do as a result of taking part. They act like a barometer for assessment ie. How has the student met the learning outcomes? Or does the lesson plan allow the student to achieve the learning outcomes

For the student, they give a sense of what is expected to be achieved and can be used to frame or focus their efforts to make sure they are appropriate and proportional.

As to why they are called ‘intended’ outcomes, I would suggest it’s because within educational scenarios, it makes sense to allow for a level of flexibility and adaptation in response to situations that arise in teaching sessions. This also acknowledges unintended outcomes.