Instructional Goals, Classroom Activities, and Assessment

If you ask college teachers what the most important goal is in their classroom, many will respond it is “to get students to think.” With a bit more questioning or prodding, they might come up with a list of skills they want their students to master: critical thinking, problem solving, teamwork, writing and oral communication, or the intellectual skills and enthusiasm for lifelong learning.

Gardiner (1994) compiled a list of what he called “critical competencies” that includes the goals listed above and others of a similar nature. Greater Expectations (AACU 2002) outlines a similar set of goals and adds some involving human interactions, appreciation of culture, citizenship, ethical values, and social responsibility. Others (e.g., Bok, 2006) have also compiled lists of holistic goals that transcend a particular discipline. So, instructors, expert panels, and institutions largely agree that the goals of our instruction should not be discipline specific, but instead should be overarching goals that will be significant to students after they leave our classrooms (also termed “significant learning”; Fink, 2003).

Yet, what do we actually do in our classrooms? With few exceptions, college instructors deliver content with the expectation that students learn it. They may use instructional strategies that involve critical thinking or teamwork, but most of the time the focus is on content. In addition, our assessments typically emphasize low-level thinking (e.g., content recall or rote problem-solving). Rarely do we asses higher-level thinking skills such as evaluation or critical thinking.

The lack of alignment between intended outcomes, instruction, and instructional assessment is a serious challenge at most institutes of higher education. Courses and curricula must be redesigned if we are going to give students an education that is relevant and has enduring value.