Learning outcomes for life: intentional, explicit and practiced
By Peter Wolf, Higher Education Consultant
(Originally posted and adapted from http://blog-en.heqco.ca/2016/01/peter-wolf-learning-outcomes-for-life-intentional-explicit-and-practiced/)
Learning outcomes have been a key part of my professional life in higher education for the past 25 years. I completed a degree in social work at McGill University way back in the 80’s and haven’t been a social worker for a very long time. While I still can remember some content I learned (remembering what I had for breakfast is enough of a challenge these days!), most enduring is the systems thinking approach I was exposed to in a number of courses and outside-of-class experiences, as well as the importance of compassion, community and the impact of individual and societal empowerment. These outcomes of my undergraduate experience – in other words the knowledge, skills and attitudes imparted – have been useful in almost every aspect of my life.
It took me many years to understand and intentionally use what I learned. It seems clear now that these outcomes were an implicit and intended part of my education; I can only imagine their impact had they been explicitly articulated and practiced during those formative years. Though I certainly needed to create my own meaning of my undergraduate experience, knowing and practicing what was intended would have furthered my ability to make sense of the many seemingly disparate learning experiences that were part of my postsecondary education.
For me, the current learning outcomes movement in Ontario is about trying to ensure that we are providing students with intentional opportunities to develop the enduring knowledge, skills and attitudes that are valued in our programs, institutions and disciplines. I hope that students leave with a set of capacities that will carry them through much of their lives, regardless of whether they use their learning in the specific contexts in which they were taught. And yet, I suspect if you were to ask most students what they think of program outcomes, you would get a lot of blank looks in response. Although understandable, this is also regrettable because generations of students are passing through our hallways as we work through the details of fully engaging with students around learning outcomes.
Admittedly, some pedagogical approaches for grounding learning outcomes are now well-established. For example, co-ops, research courses and community-engaged learning provide great opportunities for consolidating and reflecting on previous learning. Yet intentional opportunities for practice, feedback and meaning-making are not always fully integrated into the curriculum. And although many more approaches are being cultivated – for example, outcomes-based e-portfolios and capstone learning experiences – it is still a challenge to identify well-established outcomes-based teaching and learning approaches, to the occasional exception of externally-accredited professional programs.
Engineering, medicine, and business programs, amongst others, are developing increasingly sophisticated ways to assure and ensure their graduates develop the explicit and specific knowledge, skills and abilities needed for their anticipated future, often considering graduates career as concrete and key benchmarks. There is much to be learned from these experiences, but even more still to be developed.
For those programs that are neither profession- nor practice-oriented, they often welcome a broad range of students into a wide range of studies (e.g. BA, BSc). The intention of these many of these programs is expanding and extending student capacity through exposure to a myriad of learning opportunities and subject matter exposure. Yet even through the diversity of experiences and topics available, considering the shared knowledge, skills and habits of mind expected of graduates is an important activity, helping graduates make meaning of the 30 or 40 courses they have taken over 3+ years of study, life and learning.
About the Author
I am a passionate advocate for the continuous improvement of educational practices and culture in higher education. I served as Associate Vice Provost (Teaching & Learning) and Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning at Queen’s University in Kingston Ontario until August 2017. Previously, I taught in the Ontario college system and served in a variety of educational leadership roles at the University of Guelph. I have also served as a board member for the Society of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (STLHE).
As an independent higher education consultant, I am privileged to collaborate with many universities, colleges and government educational organizations. Though each project is unique, the consistent theme of my work is the capacity-building of systems, organizations and people to enhance educational practices and approaches.
Currently at York University, I consult with the Office of the Vice-Provost. As well, I am honored to be the Executive-in-Residence, Higher Education, at the Lassonde School of Engineering.