The Clarity of Learning Objectives is the Prime Factor in Motivating Learners

In this blog we will discuss the connection between the learning objectives of a course and a corporate employee’s motivation to invest their time in education.

As a learning consultant, I often come across a complaint from practitioners: the course abandonment rates are high and in need of immediate attention.

The first question that I ask myself after reading the learning material is, “Why would a learner, or group of learners, be willing to invest their time and attention on this course?” In his famous theory, The Hierarchy of Needs, Abraham Maslow postulated that a person will be motivated only if his needs are fulfilled.

Do Learning Objectives Meet Learner’s Needs?

How do we convince the learner that this course will fulfill one of their pressing needs?

One way to ensure this is to write clear and relatable learning objectives that match one of the Key Result Areas (KRAs) of the learner’s job description.

Let us look at one of the KRAs of a medical representative:

• Organizing meetings with doctors and healthcare professionals according to daily and monthly schedules.

If the learning objective of a course states:

• After completing this course, you will be better equipped in using tools and knowledge to organize successful meetings with doctors,

there is a greater likelihood of the course attracting the time and attention of a medical representative.

The learning objectives create a favorable connection between the learner and the content of the course. It is like creating a first impression to entice the student.

Learning objectives function as the trailer of a film that makes the viewer curious about the beginning, the middle, and the end of the movie. They provide motivation for the learner to continue the course to completion.

Examples of Learning Objectives

Here is an example of the objectives from one of our custom elearning courses on bringing about organization-wide cultural change.

Over the next hour, you will be strengthening your ability to recognize and handle ethical dilemmas, and practicing your ethical decision-making skills. By the end of this course, you will be able to:

• Identify expected behaviors at our company, as outlined in the “Principles of Business Conduct,” and why these behaviors are important.
• Recognize ethical dilemmas.
• Recognize the need to assess situations, consult, and make decisions based on the company’s values and principles.
• Recognize the need to take action or speak up when misconduct is suspected or witnessed.

The above example outlines several expectations of the course: the duration of time that the learner will need for this education, how it relates to the business’s global policy, and the goal of helping the learner develop certain skills (e.g., the ability to recognize ethical issues).

Writing Relatable Learning Objectives

Writing impactful and engaging learning objectives is a discipline supported by years of meticulous research.

My fellow instructional designers and I always take guidance from the work of Dr. Benjamin Bloom, M. David Merrill, Robert Gagné, David Ausubel, and a few others, on validating the learning objectives of the courses we design.

The study of human psychology states that, “emotions lead to motivation.” To gain deeper engagement with the course, the learning objectives must create strong emotions within the learner: such as the promise of greater success at one’s job or fear of losing to the competition.

Need the Attention of Learners? Pay Attention to Objectives

Amidst the many sad stories about poor course completion rates, I found inspiration in this quote by Nick Unsworth, a performance coach, speaker, and author, who sells trainings:

“We’re not in this business just to get people to buy our stuff. We want them to see the change and the impact and create the success stories.”

Affirming Nick’s quote, I am of the opinion that:

“Learning objectives are a curriculum designer’s sales pitch, to persuade learners to purchase on the final screen of the course or to stay in the classroom until the last minute.”

In our future posts, we will share several examples and theories on how to write learning objectives that will compel learners to participate until the end.