Alignment

Critical course components (objectives, assessments, learning activities) must be closely aligned so that they reinforce each other. It is all too easy to write assessments that don't test the level of critical thinking that we desire from our students, or that are implied by the stated learning objectives.

Read: Why Should Assessments, Learning Objectives, and Instructional Strategies be Aligned?; Carnegie Mellon University, Eberly Center

Transparency

"The more we share about why we have chosen our teaching practices the better students perform..." (Bowen & Watson, 2017).

Read: Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT), Cal State LA

Clear Targets

"Research suggests that faculty can help by explaining to students what they are to do, why we want them to do it, and how it will help them learn (Bowen & Watson, 2017).

Clear Targets go hand-in-hand with Transparency. There are a number of tools we can use to provide clearer targets to students, including rubrics, checklists, and advance organizers.

Watch: Dr. John Hattie on Communicating Learning Targets

References

Bowen José Antonio, & Watson, C. E. (2017). Teaching naked techniques: A practical guide to designing better classes. Jossey-Bass.