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What is a Behavioral Objective? Imagine, for a moment, an educational environment where teachers did not make behavioral objectives for their students. Given that they have their lesson plan, the materials needed, and they have taught the lesson well to the best of their ability, how would teachers and educators recognize evidence of learning without looking for evidence that learning has occurred? Behavioral objectives serve first as a map and as map markers: it indicates and guides educators towards the directions they need to head in order to get over all (long term) goals done. Secondly, behavioral objectives also serve as educational markers or points of reference on how and what kind of learning has occurred in various teaching and learning experiences. More importantly, it is through behavioral objectives that a student is able to accomplish the optimum goal with all teaching and educational experiences and this is: change. The Focus and Essence of Behavioral Objectives But with these statements, one must ask: What is a behavioral objective? A behavioral objective, as defined by Carolyn Chambers Clark, is a statement of what learners are to be like when they have attained the criterion. Another definition provided by Bastable in 2008 is that behavioral objectives describe precisely what the learner is able to do following a learning situation. Although from book to book and theory to theory may be worded differently, the overall definition of behavioral objectives still remain the same, first and foremost the behavioral objectives of an individual are learner centered and not teacher centered. After which, most definitions on this term describe that a behavioral objective describes something that a learner is able to do or achieve after they have been taught a lesson. With these being said, it is also important to note that effective behavioral objectives require a degree of precision in order

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to assure that learners learn and do what they are meant to learn. Nurse Educators, on their part must develop and practice effective behavioral objective writing with all types of learners to ensure effective teaching and learning is attained from every experience. Getting to this point Prior to this point in time of creating behavioral objectives, many things should have already been accomplished (Bastable, 2008). First and foremost, the student or the learners should have been assessed. Within this assessment, the teacher must ask: what does the learner already know? Is the knowledge of the learner correct, or does his or her knowledge need to be corrected (CEU, 2012)? What are the gaps in knowledge, and within these gaps, what does the learner need to know (Bastable, 2008)? Within the timeframe of assessing and knowing the learner in a better light, the teacher or educator must also make efforts to know under what conditions the learner is most receptive to learning; particularly, the educator must know how the learner learns best (Rankin et al., 2005). From this initial assessment, the educator moves forward in terms of what the learner is supposed to do at the end of the learning experiences (Wittmann-Prince & Fasolka, 2012). From this the educator answers the question, what is the learner expected to accomplish? The identification of needs is a pre-requisite to creating learning objectives and from these needs identification gathered from cues, an educator makes a diagnosis in the form of educational objectives. This educational/learning/ or behavioral objective will serve as a guide for the consequent steps of planning, implementation of the plan, and the evaluation of the overall learning experience. Goals, Objectives, and Subobjectives

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The terms goal and objective are often used interchangeably, but in terms of using these words in the educational setting, these words are very different from one another. The main difference between a goal and an objective include their characteristics in terms of time span and how specific they are in identifying the behavioral characteristics to be observed following a lesson or teaching. A goal can be seen as a long term objective. This is a statement which pertains to an ultimate state of being in a future point in time (Bastable, 2008). Goals are the final outcome of what is to be achieved in the teaching/learning process over a long period of time, and they are general or overall. With this, many authors state that goals have a global nature, and are more general than specific in terms of what is expected of the learner (Little & Milliken, 2007). It is also important to note that although a considerable amount of time is allotted for the completion of goals, they should still be achievable and realistic within a set period of time (Rankin et al., 2005). Objectives, on the other hand, are the opposite of goals, in terms of time and specificity (Bastable, 2008). In a relative note, Anderson et. al in 2003 stated: What we teach, we want our students to learn. What we want them to learn as a result of our teaching are our objectives. If goals are long term, objectives are short term, and usually behaviors specified in objectives can effectively be completed after only one or two lessons with the clientele (Little & Milliken, 2007). In addition to this, objectives are singular and one-dimensional in nature, or rather; they precisely name a single action or observation that is expected to arrive as a result of learning (Clark, 2008). Objectives explicitly state what learners should exhibit in order to be competent in a taught subject matter.

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Furthermore, objectives derived from goals must be consistent and related with that goal, and must also be customized to fit the learners needs as all learners are different, with different abilities and capabilities (Mager, 1997). From these pieces of information, it is also important to note that even though the same subject matter is taught to many students, students will not take the same information from the same instruction (Bastable). To accomplish effective learning, the goals, objectives, and plans of a learner should be collaborated with both the one who is teaching and the one who is being taught. Without working with the patient or the learner, objectives can be viewed as unimportant, irrelevant, impractical, or something already learned (Bastable, 2008). Types of Objectives According to many authorities on education, there are at least three identified types of objectives. These three types include: educational objectives, teaching/instructional objectives and behavioral or learning objectives. Educational Objectives Educational objectives are used to identify the intended outcomes of the learning process (Bastable, 2008). These objectives become the basis of educational programs such as a part or the whole of an educational program or curriculum. Educational objectives serve as guides in designing curriculums and units of educational institutions and continuing education programs (Bastable, 2008). Instructional Objectives These are the exact teaching activities and resources used to facilitate effective learning (Morrison, Ross, & Kemp, 2004). These objectives are more focused on the process of education, rather than the entire program itself or the learner, and are centered on structuring the types of learning activities to be utilized during a lesson (Bastable, 2008).

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Behavioral or Learning Objectives These are the markers of what a learner should be able to do following a learning activity (Bastable, 2008; Clark, 2008; Little & Milken, 2007). Most behavioral objectives are short term, meaning immediately after a lesson, the client or learner should be able to exhibit the noted behavior or action (CEU, 2012). It is focused on what outcomes should be present and observable (Bastable, 2008). A debate on using behavioral objectives One of the best ways to understand the concept of the need for behavioral objectives is from a statement made by Mager (1997), who states that the underlying principle has been, if one does not know where he is going, how will that individual know he or she has arrived? In line with this, it is important to know that without clear behavior/learning objectives that can be shared between a nurse and a learner, measures of achievement can be misleading, irrelevant, unfair, or useless (Clark, 2008). To this day there is still a present debate on whether or not learning objectives should be utilized. Those in opposition to the creation of learning objectives say that the objectives are not a panacea (solution or remedy) for all the problems that can be encountered in the planning, implementation and evaluation of learning activities (Reilly & Oermann, 1990). Arguments, outlined by Arends (1994), Reilly and Oermann (1990), Haggard (1989), Durbach, Goodall, and Wilkerson (1987), and Morrison, Ross, and Kemp (2004) have given seven main reasons to why the practice of writing behavioral objectives should be discontinued.
1. For experienced educators, the exercise of writing behavioral objectives is redundant

or superfluous, because for these professionals, they already have a good grasp of what needs to be seen as an outcome of learning a particular lesson. (Bastable, 2008)

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2. Practice of writing objectives can be limiting on the part of student. It does not reflect

the sum of the total parts of the learning process, and specific learning objectives can lead to reductionism. (Bastable, 2008)
3. Objective writing is a time-consuming task. It is more tedious to create a behavioral

objective than is warranted by their effort on an institutional program. (Bastable, 2008)

4. Writing behavioral objectives is a pedagogic process, or rather, something which can

be done to effectively teach children, however, may deem unnecessary for adult learners or clients. Furthermore, it mainly expresses the teachers expectations of the outcomes of the learning process rather than giving learners the opportunity to formulate their own objectives or expected outcomes of the lesson. (Bastable, 2008)
5. Predetermined activities only cater or grab focus to specific areas of the lesson

which can stifle creativity and interfere with the freedom to learn and to teach
6. Writing Behavioral Objectives is incompatible with a complex field such as Nursing

because an infinite number of objectives are possible for one topic or subject. (Bastable, 2008)
7. Unable to capture the intricate cognitive processes, as these processes are not readily

observable or measurable. (Bastable, 2008)

Most others, in contrast, are still very much in favor of creating behavioral objectiveas Ferguson (1998) and Morrison et al. (2004) are able to list more reasons in considering learning

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objectives then there are arguments against. As seen in the following list, the benefits still outweigh the cons of this task:

1. Helps to keep the educators thinking on target and learner centered. 2. Communicates to others, both the learners and the health care team members alike, what is planned for teaching and learning. 3. Helps learners understand what is expected of them so they can keep track of their own progress 4. Forces the educator to organize educational materials so as not to get lost in content and forget the learners role in the process 5. Encourages educators to question their own motivesto think deliberately about why they are doing things and analyze what positive results will be obtained. 6. Tailors teaching to the learners particular circumstances and needs 7. Creates guideposts for teacher evaluation and documentation of success and failure. 8. Focuses attention not on what is taught but what the learner will come away with once the teaching learning process is completed. 9. Make it easier for the learner to visualize performing the required actions.

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To add on to this, Roger Mager also includes three other major advantages to writing explicit objective statements, and these include: 1) They provide a sound basis for the selection or the design of instructional content, methods, and materials, 2) They provide learners with the means to organize their efforts and activities toward accomplishing the intent of instruction, and 3) They allow for a determination as to whether an objective has, in fact, been accomplished. Writing Behavioral Objectives Writing behavioral objectives is not merely a mechanical by also a synthesizing process (Bastable, 2008). In completing learning or behavioral objectives, these provides direction that helps the educator and learner identify: time that will be needed to accomplish learning, clues as to how the learner best acquires information, teaching methods which will work most effectively, and lastly, creating behavioral objectives and pinpoint the best way to evaluate the learners progress (Bastable, 2008). Again, mutual setting of goals and objectives are considered by most educators to be the initial, most important consideration in the education process (Clark, 2008). With this, it is important to note that there are two main formats for writing behavioral objectives, and these include those of Mager (1997) and those of Bloom et al in 19. Roger Mager Mager, a noted authority in the creation of writing objectives, indicated that there are (originally) three important components in the writing of behavioral and learning objectives, and these include: performance, condition, criterion, and in later works, he included the learner. All four of these terms are clearly illustrated in the table below. In describing these portions of the written learning objectives, Mager first describes performance is what needs to be done. Performance is the action or the behavior performed by the learner (Mager, 1997). It implies and indicates that something or a change must be seen as a result of learning.

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Performance can be a variety of different actions, depending upon the subject matter and the intended skill to be learned. After defining performance, Mager moves to the definition of the condition. The condition of the objective is the environment and the conditions rendered to the learner for the task to be done (Bastable, 2008). This term connotes that certain environmental conditions were made by the teacher to help facilitate the learning of the student (Clark, 2008). In relation to this, the criterion describes how well the task is expected to be accomplished following the learning activity; it is the degree to which the task is accomplished (Mager, 1997). The last component, of course, is who the behavior is expected to come from, and this is of course, the learner. The learner is the person who is expected to complete the task. Table 1 The Four Part Method of Objective Writing Audience Behavior Condition (The Learner) (Performance) (Situation) Student Staff Nurse will solve will demonstrate without using a calculator using a model

Degree (Criterion)

five out of 6 math problems the correct procedure for changing sterile dressings at least two reasons for quitting smoking high protein foods with 100% accuracy

Patient Significant Other/ Care Giver

will list will select

following a group discussion after watching an educational video

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In an effort to organize these concepts in an organizable and easily recallable way, many nurse educators rely on the works of Heinich, Molenda, Russell, and Smaldino in 2001 who organized these concepts as ABCD: A-udience (who) B- ehavior (what) C-ondition (under what circumstance) D egree (how much or to what extent)

Due to inexperience in formulating behavioral objectives, or the rush to formulate, many mistakes are made which could have been easily avoided. Of these mistakes, the most common noted by authors Bastable and Clark in 2008 include: basing the objectives on the expected behavior of the instructor, rather than the student, having more than one expected behavioral outcome, and forgetting one of the many behavioral components. The following table illustrates the each of the commonly made mistakes and means to remedy these to create more accurate objectives. Table 2: Commonly Made Mistakes and their examples

Commonly made Mistake Based on expected behaviors of instructor, not student.

Rationale for Error The focus of behavioral objectives should be the STUDENT as the student is at the receiving end of the education continuum. Behaviors should be written singularly and with one general direction or with one focused objective. Objectives become difficult to realize if more

Example After the lesson, the instructor will be able to.

Remedy Change the subject matter from instructor to student.

Has more than one behavior

After 8 hours of RLE experience in AMCER, the fourth year nursing students will be able to adequately place ECG leads and

Create separate objectives for each behavioral outcome.

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than one is included at a given time. Forgets one of the four components needed Depends on the characteristic missing, if: -Learner: Who will you observe? -Behavior: How can you indicate that learning has occurred? - Criteria: How can you state how well or to what degree is the subject matter mastered. -Condition: In what way did you teach the skill so it would be mastered? Uses ambiguous terms Words like understand, know, realize, and be familiar with take on many terms or cannot be directly observed. An unrealistic goal may leave a learner frustrated or unmotivated to learn the subject matter

read ECG findings. Given a list of exercises to relieve lower back pain, the patient will understand how to control low back pain. (No Criterion) After drafting the objectives, it is best to individually mark each of the portions of the objective in terms of ABCD to ensure all criteria is included. After drafting, work with the learner to establish whether or not the objectives are SMART.

After an hours of health teaching, the client will be able to understand the need to decrease sodium intake. After watching 1 hour of the diabetes educational video, the patient will be able to totally eradicate high-sugar foods from their diet.

use more specific words as listed in the following table.

The objective is unattainable by the learner

Work hand in hand with the learner for goals to avoid this

Sample of ambiguous words: with: i. To know ii. To Understand

Better words to replace these to apply to identify

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Behavioral Objectives iii. To realize iv. To be familiar with v. To enjoy vi. To value vii. To be interested in viii. To Feel ix. To think x. To learn to list to predict to construct to define to describe to demonstrate to verbalize* to write

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Taxonomy and the work of Bloom In a statement formulated by Carolyn Chambers Clark (2008), she mentions that just as nursing philosophy guides a curriculum, learning objectives guide the development of a learning system. Taxonomies are used in the creation of learning objectives. A taxonomy is an orderly classification (Clark, 2008). By definition, a taxonomy is a mechanism used to categorize things according to how they are related to one another Bloom, Englehart, Furst, Hill, and Krathwohl first developed a taxonomy of cognitive or thinking objectives in 1956, and these were revisited by Anderson and Krathwohl in more recent years. Till this present time, Blooms taxonomy still continues to be the one most widerly used. According to Anderson and Krathwohl in 2001, taxonomy is a special kind of framework in which categories lie in a continuum. More information on taxonomies can be seen in the reference section at the end of this written report. Blooms taxonomy has three main domains or categories in which objective terminology are classified (Bloom et al., 1956). These include the cognitive domain, the affective domain, and the psychomotor domain. Although Bloom uses these categories to distinguish terminology

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of learning objectives, it is of importance to note that although a division may exist, this does not necessarily mean that the objectives must occur at separate times or that the domains are completely independent of each other (Clark, 2008). Human beings are diverse and complex, and therefore: the classification systems exist independently and interdependently of each other, just as other human processes do as well, and can occur at the same time (Bastable, 2008). Adding to this, behavioral objectives can be classified further as low, medium, or high, ranging from moderate to complex difficulty within each of the classifications (Clark, 2008). In sifting through behavioral objectives, individuals must master first the lower level domains before they are able to adequately learn and master the higher level behaviors/learning in each of the domains. Cognitive Domain The cognitive domain focuses more on the acquisition of information and focuses on knowledge, including the recall or recognition of specific facts, procedures, and concepts (Clark, 2008; Bastable, 2008; Bloom, 1956).This domain deals with the development of intellect, understanding, and the thinking process of learners (Eggen & Kauchak, 2001). The development of intellect and overall knowledge is gained through exposure of all types of educational experience, and for most other activities, learning in the cognitive domain is a prerequisite to engage in other educational activities such as group discussion or role play (Clark, 2008). For example, in order to actively participate and apply particular concepts in a role play activity, learners must have a basic background, or better, a thorough understanding of the subject matter in order to correctly apply this knowledge into the activity. The same goes for the creation of a group discussion; learners would not be able to create or place input, opinions, or arguments on a particular subject matter if they did not know what they are talking about. With this information in mind, it is also pivotal to mention that the knowledge that a person knows affects greatly how that person feels, and how that person performs tasks.

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Of all the three domains, the cognitive domain is the one address the most, as it is the traditional basis of teaching. It can be done in a simple classroom-lecture type environment, or anywhere for that matter, and its most basic characteristic could be through the teacher prviding instruction to his or her student (Bastable, 2008). The cognitive domain is divided into six levels, and these include: knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation (Clark, 2008). Six Levels of the Cognitive Domain:
KNOWLEDGE Basic Definition: recalling or remembering Key Words: Recalling, recognizing, describing, quoting, naming, finding Example: List three cardinal rules for teaching relaxation procedures COMPREHENSION Basic Definition: Explaining ideas or concepts APPLICATION Basic Definition: Putting understanding into action Key Words: Paraphrasing, summarizing, exemplifying, classifying Example: Paraphrase Orems theory of self care using your own words Key Words: Implementing, carrying out, using, executing Example: After participating in the ICU simulation game, students will be able to use information gained from the game in the clinical experience in the ICU tomorrow. ANALYSIS Basic Definition: Breaking information into parts Key Words: Exploring relationships, organizing, deconstructing, questioning, and defending Example: Organizing a class presentation in a logical and understandable fashion. - or - Defending research findings. SYNTHESIS Basic Definition: to put together pieces of information Key Words: categorize, combine, compile, correlate, design, devise, generate. Example: After the discussion on behavioral objectives, the students of the MSN class will be able to generate their own behavioral objectives using the Magers writing format. EVALUATION Key Words: checking, hypothesizing, critiquing, experimenting, and

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Example: Hypothesize about the meaning of class behavior during the role playing situation

Types of knowledge according to Bloom Blooms revised taxonomy also provides information on the different types of knowledge. These include factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive knowledge. Factual knowledge is the knowledge of specific terminology and details (ex. anatomy). Conceptual knowledge on the other hand is knowledge of classification and categories such as those used in medications, herbs, and diets. This also includes standard care procedures, and knowledge of theories and models. Procedural Knowledge is knowledge of how to do certain skills. Metacognitive Knowledge is knowledge or thinking about your thinking and includes activities such as self-critiquing your abilities or defending how you planned or executed care.

The Importance of Spacing lessons and Cognitive Knowledge It is important to keep in mind the timeframe in which learning elements should be given (Bastable, 2008). As the cognitive domains deals with knowledge, recall, and the application of knowledge through understanding, it is important to note that the time span from learner to learner will vary, and educators must keep this in mind, especially during the formulation of educational contracts which will be discussed later. Scientists note that learning a subject through several sessions is more effective than learning a subject in a single session. Having more time to analyze and internalize information has been described by Willingham in 2002 as the spacing

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effect. In line with this, learning all the information in one day is known as massed practice while learning information through distributed periods of time is known as distributed practice (Bastable, 2008). Distributed practice in learning information is usually the better choice, and retention and understanding of the subject matter is increased with this type of learning practice. A person retains or learns 67% better if the lesson is distributed through several sessions rather than one session (Willingham, 2001 as cited in Bastable, 2008). Affective Domain The affective domain is also known as the feeling domain. It can be described as increasing internalization or commitment to expressed feelings, interest, or beliefs, attitudes, practices and appreciations (Bastable, 2008). Terms in the affective domain specifies the degree of emotional depth in response to particular tasks. These cannot be directly observed, but inferred from words or actions (Maier-Lorentz, 2004). Competencies in this domain relate to the development of the value system. Reilly & Oermann in 1990 differenciated the difference between beliefs, values, and attitudes: Belief Perception; how an individual perceives reality Attitudes Feelings about something (object, person, or event). Values Operational beliefs that guide day to day actions. Of all the domains, the affective domain is both the hardest to teach and also the hardest to measure (Clark, 2008). Educators often have difficulty in establishing an adequate weight system to measure outcomes within this domain because outcomes are implied or indirectly seen. However, formal documents such as the code of ethics for nurses and nursing laws can serve as guides for these tasks. Educational activities that can promote growth in the learner and

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his or her affective domain include: questioning, case study, role playing, gaming, group discussion. Learning in the affective domain can occur in three sociological levels which include: Intrapersonal (self awareness and self concept), interpersonal (self in relation to other individuals), and extrapersonal (Level perception of others as established groups). The following table elaborates the five levels of the affective domain: Five Levels of the Affective Domain:
Receiving showing awareness to an idea Responding responding to a particular experience Valuing Accepting the worth of an idea, theory, or event as a guiding belief in daily practice. Awareness, willingness to hear and selected attention (Clark, 2008) Key words: follows, gives, holds, identifies, locates, names, points to Examples: Identifying fears Identifying weaknesses Asks questions that are focused on the topic Sits in a calm open way, indicating receptiveness to others comments Active participation and paying attention to a specific phenomena (Clark, 2008) Verbalizing feelings of confidence Questions concepts, models, and procedures to understand them. Exhibiting confidence through movements Ranges from simple acceptance to th more complex state of commitment. Key words: completes, demonstrates, differentiates, explains, follows, forms, initiates, invites, joins, justifies, proposes, reads, reports, selects, shares, studies, works. Demonstrates a willingness to help without being

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Behavioral Objectives prompted to in emergency situations. Organization Ability to classify and prioritize values Characterization/ internalizing Having a value system that controls behavior and is pervasive, consistent, predictable, and characteristic of the learner.

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Informs class about matters one feels strongly about. Done through contrasting different values, resolving conflicts between them, and creating a unique value system. Key words: comparing, relating, and synthesizing values. Comparisson of ideal from non-ideal practices in Hospital setting. Defends professional ethical standards by speaking up in class. Having a value system that controls behavior and is pervasive, consistent, predictable, and characteristic of the learner. Being continued to be lead by learned values until they are integrated into part of your being. Showing consistency in ideal practices.

Psychomotor Domain The psychomotor domain is also known as the skills domain and consists of the development of fine and gross motor skills. Currently, there are two opposing stances on the matter, the earliest of which implies that psychomotor skills are not merely the copying and imitation of teachers motor skills, but rather a synthesis of theory and knowledge to complete an act. The knowledge to complete this act, according to Reilly and Oermann in 1990 is usually far more than what is suggested to be known. In contrast to this, Eggen and Kauchak in 2001 state that psychomotor skills are simply the manipulation and the imitation of observed skills. Whichever stance may hold true, one thing remains certain, psychomotor skills play an important role in nursing education, especially towards inexperienced staff and students. Of all

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the domains in Blooms taxonomy, the naming of objectives and measuring of learning outcomes come easiest with psychomotor learning objectives as these actions are the most observable. These are further elaborated in the following table.

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Perception awareness to objects and cues associated with a task; Using sensory cues to guide motor activity

KEY WORDS: chooses, describes, detects, differentiates, distinguishes, identifies, isolates, relates, and selects. Examples: Detects non-verbal cues Identifies client anxiety Reading directions Keywords: displays, explains moves, proceeds, reacts, shows, states, volunteer. Readiness to take particular action Expressions of willingness Displays correct equipment to perform a nursing procedure States correct side effect to medication before dispensing it.

Set/ Readiness to Act Sometimes also called mind sets Mental, physical,and emotional sets necessary to perform.

Guided response Overt actions with the guide of an instructor. Early stage of learning complex skills. Imitation and trial and error learning are prevalent (Clark, 2008)

Keywords: copies, follows, reacts, reproduces, responds. Ex. IV insertion, medication administration, with the guide of an instructor Follows simulation directions

Mechanism Ability to perform repeated steps of a desired skill with certain degree of

Key Words: Assembles, calibrates, constructs, dismantles, displays, fastens, fixes, grinds, heats, manipulates, sketches, organizes. Learned responses become habitual (Clark, 2008)

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Student nurse and VS

Complex overt response Automatically complete a motor act with independence and a high degree of skill.

Key words, same as those used for mechanism however, adverbs and adjectives indicate that the actions are done in a quicker, swifter, and better manner. (Simpson, 1972; Clark, 2001)

Adaption Ability of the learner to modify and adapt motor processes.

Key Words: Adapts, Alters, Changes, Rearranges, Reorganizes, Revises, and Varies. Ex. Knowing when to kink or not kink an IV line when administering IV medications.

Origination Ability of the learner to create new motor acts When skills are highly developed, creativity is possible

Key words: Makes, builds, combines, composes, constructs, creates designs. Examples: Constructs a new theory Develops a new teaching module

Important reminders in formulating Learning Objectives 1. Readiness to learn 2. Past experiences 3. Health Status 4. Environmental Stimuli 5. Anxiety Level 6. Developmental Stage 7. Practice Session Strength

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Making Teaching Plans Teaching plans should be made with mutual agreement between the teacher and the learner. With the predetermined goal set by both the teacher and the learner, this goal will serve as the basis for formulating the plan and ensuring that all goes according to plan in the achievement of a preset goal. In creating this more detailed plan. Educators create what is known as a teaching plan to effectively write out the essential elements of the tasks to be carried out, in what way they must be carried, and how to measure the outcomes of learning after each lesson. A teaching plan, as stated by Bastable in 2008, should be written as clearly and as concisely as the goals and objectives which are the foundation of it and should reflect the various elements of the educational process. In her book, Bastable notes three major reasons for developing a lesson plan. And these are: 1) to ensure a logical and sequential process to teaching, 2) to outline and format exactly what needs to be taught, and 3) to legally document that each individual has a plan in place to satisfy mandates for institutional accreditation. With this, Ryan and Marinelli (1990) iterate that a teaching plan should consist of eight basic elements, which include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. The purpose Statement of overall Goal List of objectives and Subobjectives An outline of related content 8. Instructional methods used for Methods used to evaluate learning 6. Time allotted for teaching each

objective 7. The instructional resources

(materials, tools, and equipments) needed

teaching the related content

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Use of Learning Contracts A learning contract is a formal legal agreement between a teacher and a learner terms of transaction over a specified period of time (OReilly, 1994) It can either be written (formal) or unwritten/verbal (informal) and is useful in many health institutions in the form of discharge planning (Bastable, 2008). Learning contracts are a very innovative way to teach students as they can empower students to learn on their own and reflect on strengths and weaknesses. With these types of contracts, learners have an opportunity to change behavior based on their personal reflections. It can be used for all types of learners, especially those who are self-sufficient or independent when it comes to learning, such as staff nurses looking to increase their work ethic. The components of the contract include: A. Content Specifies the precise behavioral objectives to be achieved B. Performance expectations Specifies activities to be facilitated C. Specifies the criteria used to evaluate the achievement of objectives such as checklists.
Steps to implement the Learning Contract I. Determine specific learning objectives a. Encourage learner to identify his or her learning needs b. What the learner wants to be able to do within a specific span of time II. Review the contracting process a. Learners must review and acknowledge their part in the learning process b. Not widely used, so many are still unfamiliar with this method of teaching. III. Identify the learning resources a. What is the instructional material available? b. Self study materials and audio visual tools IV. Assess the learners competency level and learning needs

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a. Contract is based on the learners current abilities and learning needs. Learner collects data primarily through interview b. Pretesting must occur V. Define roles a. Roles of the educator and learner must clearly be established before the implementation of the contract VI. Plan the learning experiences a. Determine content and type of experiences to be utilized. b. What skills must be demonstrated? c. What time can be given for self study? VII. Negotiate the time frame a. Based on sequencing of behavior b. Behaviors from simplest to most complex c. Target date for the completion of each objective VIII. Implement the learning experience a .Take into consideration what the learner can learn through self study b. For patients, take note of health status c. Type and level of complexity IX. Renegotiate a. Goals and expectations can be renegotiated as the educational process continues. b. People frequently change their notions on what they would like to learn. X. Evaluate a. Have periodic and summative evaluation of a learners process. XI. Document a. Write down observations and evidence of achievements in learning goals (of both the learner and the teacher). If an objective has been completely met, both parties will sign at the last column (completion date)

The Concept of Learning Curve

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Learning Curve has been historically used to describe how long it takes for a learner to learn a new psychomotor skill. In the past, it has been used incorrectly as it had been used to refer to all types of skill, however, the learning curve has great potential in understanding mastery of skill however no research so far that this concept has been applied to skill practice. Latest researches on the learning curve focus on medically invasive and surgical procedures (Gawande, 2002). Cronbach (1963) defines the learning curve as a record of an individuals improvement made by measuring his ability at different stages of practice and plotting his scores. Alongside this, McCray and Blakemore (1985) stated that the learning curve is nothing more than a graphical depiction of individual process during a specific period of time. However, this graphical representation still deems useful as in many situations, learning occurs at a very predictable pattern. Cronbach defines and divides this pattern into 6 individual stages including: o Negligible process - very limited improvement detected o Increasing Gains Rate of learning increases as learner grasps the specific tasks o Decreasing Gains Rate of improvement slows but does not go down. o Plateau No substantial gains are made. o Renewed Gains Rate of performance rises again if gains are possible. o Approach to limit Ability to perform has reached its potential. References Bastable, S. B. (2008). Nurse as educator, principles of teaching and learning for nursing practice. (Third ed., pp. 384 - 422). Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

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Clark, C. (2008). Classroom skills for nurse educators. (pp. 100-116). New York, NY: Jones & Bartlett Publishers. Cronbach, L. J. (1963). Educational psychology (2nd Edition). New York: Harcourt, Brace, & Wald. Curran, C. (1977). Behavioral objectives: a necessity for nurse educators. Journal of Conintuing Education for Nurses. 8(6), pp. 3-6. Eggen, P.D. & Kauchak, D. P. (2001). Strategies for teachers teaching content and thinking skills (4th Edition). Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Ferguson, L.M. (1998). Writing learning objectives. Journal of Nursing Staff Development, 14(2), 87 94. Gawande, A. (2002). The learning curve. Annals of medicine. The New Yorker, pp. 52-61 Haggard, A. (1989). Handbook of patient education. Rockville, MD: Aspen. Heinich, R., Molenda, M., Russell, J., & Smaldino, S. (2001). Instructional methods and technologies for learning (7th edition). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, Inc. Little, M. & Milliken, P. (2007). Practicing what we preach: balancing teaching and clinical practice competencies. International Journal of Nursing Education and Scholarship, 4(6). Mager, R. (1997). Preparing instructional objectives (3rd edition). Atlanta, GA: Center for Effective Performance.

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Rankin, S. H., Stallings, K. D., & London, F. (2005). Patient education in health and illness. (pp. 213-220). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Reilly, D. & Oermann, M. (1990). Behavioral objectives: Evaluation in nursing (3rd edition). Pub. No. 15-2367. New York: National League for Nursing. Ryan, M. & Marinelli, T. (1990). Developing a teaching plan. Unpublished self-study module, College of Nursing, State University of New York Health Science Center at Syracuse. Wittman-Prince, R. & Fasolka, B. (2010). Objectives and Outcomes: The Fundamental Difference. Nursing Education Perspectives: July 2010, 31( 4), pp. 233-236. Unpublished raw data, CEU. (2012). Available from Continuing Education Provider. (CEU4U). Retrieved from http://www.ceu4u.com/v2/contribute_3.php on January 20, 2012

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Taxonomy References http://www.coun.uvic.ca/learn/program/hndouts/bloom.html http://eduscapes.com/tap/topic69.htm http://krummefamily.org/guides/bloom.html http://www.ukcle.ac.uk/resources/personal-development-planning/table/ http://www.businessballs.com/bloomstaxonomyoflearningdomains.htm http://zaidlearn.blogspot.com/2009/07/use-blooms-taxonomy-wheel-for-writing.html http://education.calumet.purdue.edu/vockell/edPsybook/Edpsy3/edpsy3_bloom.htm

J.A. Maniulit || GSN 101 : Clinical Teaching