STUDENT LEARNING OBJECTIVES (SLOs)

“Designing”

© Pennsylvania Department of Education

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SLO Process Phases: DESIGN

• Thinking about what content standards to measure

• Organizing standards and measures• Discussing collective goals with

colleagues• Researching what is needed for a

high quality SLO

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Goal & Objectives

Goal:Create the structure necessary to build a

Student Learning Objective, including applicable performance measures.

Participants will:1. Develop a “Goal Statement”2. Identify underlying content standards3. Create a blueprint

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Helpful ToolsParticipants may wish to reference the following:

Handouts• Handout #1 - Goal Statement Examples• Handout #2 - Targeted Content Standards

Example• Handout #3 - SLO Blueprint Example

Templates• Template #1 - Goal Statement• Template #2 - Targeted Content Standards• Template #3 - SLO Blueprint

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What is a Goal Statement?

Definition:• Narrative articulating the “Big Idea” upon

which the SLO is based

Characteristics:• Central to the content area• Foundational concept needed for later

subjects/courses

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Goal Statements

Typically addresses:• WHAT the “Big Idea” is in the standards• WHY the “Big Idea” is a central, enduring

concept (rationale statement)• HOW the skills and knowledge support future

learning

PDE’s SAS portal has identified “Big Ideas” for most content areas.

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Goal Statement ExampleRef. Handout #1

Should reflect the what, why and how:• WHAT is being measured: Application of

concepts and competencies of nutrition, eating habits, and safe food preparation techniques.

• WHY is it being measured: To determine understanding of the impact to overall health and wellness.

• HOW does it impact student learning: Understanding the impact of overall health and wellness impacts on the life cycle at individual, family and societal levels.

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1. Each team member will work independently to create a statement about the “Big Idea” in terms of the standards.

2. Build consensus by focusing on each aspect of the statement and underlying rationale.

3. Draft a sentence reflecting the group’s consensus for each aspect and review as a group.

4. Merge each sentence to create a single paragraph “statement”. Again, review to ensure this statement reflects the group’s intent.

5. Finalize the statement and double-check for editorial soundness.

Process Steps

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TARGETED CONTENT STANDARDS

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Standard ID Description RationaleACTFL 1.1 WL 1.1—Students listen and

respond, engage in conversations, provide and obtain information, express preferences, emotions and feelings, and exchange opinions and beliefs. (Interpersonal)

To achieve functional levels of communicative competence in a world language, students need to use the language regularly in everyday social interactions such as conversing, arguing, criticizing, requesting, convincing and explaining effectively.

ACTFL 1.2 WL 1.2—Students comprehend and interpret written and oral language on a variety of topics. (Interpretive)

Developing literacy in a world language is a crucial 21st century skill. Students need to develop a variety of reading and listening strategies that will allow them to comprehend, analyze and synthesize information.

ACTFL 1.3 WL 1.3—Students present information, concepts and ideas in oral and written form on a variety of topics. (Presentational)

Students need the ability to gather, comprehend, evaluate, synthesize and report information and ideas. The need to conduct research and consume media intended for speakers of other languages are crucial 21st Century skills.

Targeted Content Standards Example (Handout #2)

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Targeted Content Standards

Choosing Targeted Content Standards means:• Selecting certain standards for use

with the performance measure being developed.

• Identifying standards that represent the “Big Ideas” within the content area.

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Targeted Content StandardsCriteria• Are a refined list of the content standards.• Represent the essential knowledge and skills

that students are expected to acquire.• Are the standards upon which educators will

spend the most time.• Create transparency for families and the

community about what is most important for student success.

• Are the identified content standards used to create the performance measures.

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Guiding Questions

• ENDURANCE- Will this standard provide students with knowledge and skills of value beyond a single test date?

• LEVERAGE- Does this standard provide knowledge and skills of value in multiple disciplines?

• READINESS FOR THE NEXT LEVEL OF LEARNING- Will this standard provide students with essential knowledge and skills necessary for success in the next level of instruction?

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Process Steps

Step 1: Given the Goal Statement, identify those underlying content standards.

Step 2: Place the code for each standard in the Standards ID column.

Step 3: Place the descriptions (or hyperlink) for each standard in the Description column.

Step 4: Describe in the Rationale column how each standard is aligned to the “big idea”.

Step 5: Refine list based upon “endurance”, “leverage”, and “readiness” criteria.

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BLUEPRINTS

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What is a Blueprint?

A Design Tool• Aids in the SLO design process• Visually depicts the relationship

among key SLO components• Aligns the technical components• Serves as the foundation for

creating the SLO

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Blueprint: Basic Elements• Goal Statement- a narrative articulating the “Big

Idea” upon which the SLO is based.• Targeted Content Standards- reference the PA

standards that align with the Goal Statement.• Performance Measure (PM)- an assessment tool

used to measure the knowledge and skills acquired by students.

• Performance Indicator (PI)- a description of the expected level of achievement based on the Performance Measure.

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SLO Blueprint Example (Handout #3)

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Process Steps

Step 1: Add Goal Statement and Targeted Content Standards from Templates #1 and #2.

Step 2: Review alignment of the Performance Measures with the Targeted Content Standards.Step 3: Identify potential measures, including “mastery” and/or “growth” metrics.Step 4: Draft performance indicators for each performance measure.Step 5: Refine Blueprint.

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Summary & Next Steps SummaryModule 1: Designing• Designed a Goal Statement, selected Targeted

Content Standards, and developed the blueprint needed to build a Student Learning Objective.

Next StepsModule 2: Building• Given the completed Blueprint, build the SLO

following a set of procedural guidelines, including those used to develop Performance Measures.