LET Tips: Determining and Formulating Objectives

1. The following statements are true, except
A. Assessment can be accurate only if the objectives are clearly stated
B. Learning targets or objectives should be stated in behavioral terms
C. There is a hierarchy of learning targets that can be formulated
D. None of the above

2. Teacher M formulated the following objectives. Which is the best?
A. To understand the concept of photosynthesis
B. To know the process of food-making among plants
C. To identify the parts of a leaf
D. To illustrate the process of photosynthesis

3. Which of the following levels in Blooms Taxonomy aims to assess student’s ability to separate concepts into component parts?
A. Remembering
B. Evaluating
C. Analyzing
D. Applying

4. Teacher G wants to assess students in the applying level. Which objective would best fit to this level?
A. Design a house plan for a three-member family
B. Operate Adobe photoshop to make a house plan
C. Identify the different components of a house plan
D. Distinguish a house plan from a floor plan

5. Teacher Y formulated the following objective: To explain in one’s own words the Preamble of the Constitution. In what level would this objective assess the students?
A. Remembering
B. Analyzing
C. Understanding
D. Evaluating

6. Teacher J intends to assess her students HOTS. Which objective will be inappropriate?
A. To select the most effective solution to global warming
B. To devise a plan in controlling air pollution
C. To write a slogan about caring of mother earth
D. To recognize the detrimental effects of carbon emission

Principles of Teaching: Determining and Formulating Objectives

           Lesson objectives are the first things we need to think about as teachers in preparing our lesson. These objectives become one of the bases or most of the time the primary basis when we decide about the support instructional materials to be used, the methods or approach to present our lesson and the assessment strategy to measure our student’s learning. In view of these, here are the principles in determining and formulating goals and objectives. These are adapted from Corpuz and Salandanan (2007).

1. Begin with an end in mind. I always hear this back in college days and still applies to me as a teacher. This implies that we need to have clearly defined objectives in our lesson. These objectives give our lesson a purpose, a goal in which we need to aim at the end of a class period.  We will avoid wasting our time doing things unrelated and insignificant to our objectives and focus our attention and effort in achieving these objectives. The objectives are like our destination in a long and winding road. If we know where our destination is, then all we need to do is to think and perform ways to reach it.

2. Impart to the students the lesson objectives. Seldom teachers do this. We tend to start our lesson immediately without sharing to the students our lesson objective for the day. If we teachers inform our students about today’s lesson objectives, it gives students the idea the “we are all in this together”. Learning becomes collaborative and is not solely controlled by the teacher. It gives the students as well the opportunity to embrace the objectives both as their personal or even class target. That at the end of the period, they are expected to achieve these targets making them more motivated to learn.

3. Objectives must be holistic. These must include the three domains namely cognitive, psychomotor and affective. This perhaps is my most remembered and most applied principle in formulating instructional objectives. When I became a teacher, some of my colleagues asked me why I always have three objectives when in fact I could just put one objective per day. Of course I always tell them that I religiously adhere to the CPA objectives because I want to make learning holistic.

    The idea of having CPA objectives implies that as teachers, we don’t want to have only one dimension given focus in our teaching and learning process. For our students to become well-rounded individuals, we need to address each domain, most especially the affective domain, for them to make learning more meaningful. If we will just focus on knowledge and skills, then we may produce students who are intelligent and competent yet lacks deeper application of their learning for the common good. Learning, without embracing it, just becomes repetition of facts, thus no significant change happened to the learners.

4. Make the lesson objectives relevant to students’ lives.  Once I asked my Math teacher in high school where can we use functions in our daily lives. She couldn’t answer me satisfactorily so this made me less motivated to learn the topic. What is the use of giving effort to something that is futile? This would be the danger if our students find our lesson objectives irrelevant in their lives. As teachers, we need to explain to our students that the lesson objectives are applicable in our lives, that what we teach are useful in their homes, in school or in their future work.

5. Our lesson objective must coincide with the general aims of the Constitution as well as the vision and mission of the Department of Education and the educational institution we are working with (alliteration or assonance? Hehe..a lot of sion-sion….hehehe). Seriously speaking, our instructional objectives must spring out of the broader aims as stated in our laws. The objectives, even in the classroom level, still must contribute to the realization of the vision and mission statement of the school, the department and the general aim as a whole based on the Constitution.

6. Lesson objectives must aim for higher-ordered thinking skills. Again, our objectives should not be settled on merely repetition of facts. In the age of information explosion, there will always and always be new ideas and knowledge to be learned. To make our students life-long learners, we need them to develop critical and creative skills so that they will not just receive existing knowledge rather generate new knowledge and ideas. As the cliché goes, we need to teach students not what to learn, but how to learn. Metacognition should be also developed.

7. Last but not the least, who would forget that lesson objectives should be SMART??? Do I still need to define this? Okay. S stands for Specific, M- Measurable, A-Attainable, R-Result-oriented (and Relevant) and T- Time-bound (and Terminal). Do I still need to explain these further? Hehehe..This would be your assignment…

Educational Psychology: Behaviorism

     After Piaget, I would like to tackle on behaviorism. I think this topic really helps us understand more about human behavior in a tangible and more obvious way. In the field of education, these behaviorist theories have a great impact especially in the field of pedagogy as well as understanding the learners. But what is behaviorism in the first place? In the second place? Hehehe. Just kidding. But seriously speaking, what behaviorism really is?
 
     In the most simple term, behaviorism concentrates more on observable and obvious behavior. What I mean is that this theory is more of the behavior that we can see, or the reaction or response of a person on a given situation or stimulus. It suggests that behavior can be learned by conditioning and reinforcements. Reinforcement by the way includes rewards and punishment. It doesn't focus more on the internal factors or the mental processes of humans rather more on the external factors.

     There are a lot of behaviorist psychologists and their theories so I will discuss this one by one in the coming posts. I have nothing to do this summer so you might have noticed that I post almost everyday. At least this is a worthwhile pastime because I could have a chance to share what I know to others. Hehehe...

Here is the series of posts on Behaviorism. I hope you can read them all.

Ivan Pavlov's Classical Conditioning

Burrhus Frederick Skinner's Operant Conditioning

Edward Lee Thorndike's Connectionism Theory

Applications of Behaviorism on Education

LET Sample Questions: Behaviorism

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Math Exhibit

     Being our district Math coordinator, I was assigned to coordinate the Math exhibit together with my fellow Math teachers in our district. This exhibit aimed to showcase students' outputs about their learnings in Math and at the same time promote the subject as fun and enjoyable one.
    A lot of students seem to have this negative bias toward Math in which I also was guilty before. But as I always say, Math would only be appreciated by the students if they realize that they CAN actually do Math. Competence for me is the foremost motivation for loving Math. If students believe they are incapable in doing Math, then they do not have enough reasons to love the subject either.

    Anyway here are our simple exhibit. If given enough time, I think we could have done better. But there were a lot of conflicts with our schedule and we're a bit a proud that we have come up with this exhibit.

Our visitors, Mrs. Ligaya H. Montelijao, Dr. Nelly H. Valerio and Dr. Ma. Teresa M. Penecilla

And our VIPs for the exhibit- no other than the pupils...

Truly, MATH IS EASY! MATH IS FUN! MATH IS COOL!!! hahaha...

Salutatory Address

    I was tasked to make a salutatory address for one my students and I found a decent one in the net. I tried to edit some of it but I must admit this is not original. Just try to change the year and the name of the school if you find this useful. Credit is given to the original author.

________________________________, ___________________________, ____________________________, honored guests, teachers, parents, friends, my fellow graduates, a pleasant morning to all of us.

   

       On behalf of batch 2012, it is my honor and pleasure to welcome all of us to the A.Bonifacio Elementary School 35^th Graduation Day. The journey has been long and arduous, which only makes this graduation ceremony an even sweeter occasion to celebrate.

     

     And so today is a time of celebration –a time to recognize the hard work we have poured in, a time to acknowledge that we are another step closer to realizing our dreams. Yes, this is indeed one of our greatest achievements in our relatively young lives, but we must remember that this success is not ours alone. The persons who helped us and stood by us in our academic journey deserve as much recognition, if not more.

     

     We owe most of our lives to our families, especially our parents. Their hard work and love provided us with the needed motivation, allowing us to get to where we are now. Like most of us, we want to show our parents that their sacrifices have borne fruit. And so today, all their hard work and dedication in providing us with a good education is actually a testament to their success.

     

     Today is also a time of gratitude. In this graduation ceremony, we express our grateful appreciation to persons who have recognized our potentials and have consequently given us opportunities to develop them wisely. To our teachers, we owe our success to your selfless guidance.         

     May we carry on the responsibility of developing others as you have molded and shaped us. Indeed, we are grateful for your contribution to our human development for you have tapped our God-given gifts, and patiently nurtured them to their fullest.

     

     This expression of grateful remembrance is also extended to our friends, classmates and schoolmates for showing us the other side of elementary school life –more especially to the non-material things, such as the need to bond and forge friendships which have become invaluable as we journeyed together through elementary life.

     

     And of course, graduation time is a momentous occasion of thanksgiving to our Alma Mater, the A.Bonifacio Elementary School for equipping us with the ardently needed values, ideals, and knowledge, helping us to become the best of who we are and can be, not only to serve our families, and our communities, but more importantly, our country.

     

     And so, this graduation ceremony points to a beginning of a new life, a new chapter, where we carry on and strive to live by the core values of that which makes us God-fearing individuals, individuals who hopefully embody a good character, individuals who believe in the value of diligence, hardwork and perseverance, not because it is a mere token of our educational formation but because it is the best thing to do to help ourselves, our families and other people as well. Graduation is about breaking new grounds, as much as it is a recall of the ground we once trod six or seven years past, for this new ground serves as our landmark when we step into a world that is much different from the one that is just about to end.

     Indeed, we can certainly hope that in the unfolding of human events, we will make the right choices and plan the right actions all toward our success. And so, let me make this personal acclamation on behalf of my fellow graduates and say to our dearest alma mater, our teachers, friends, peers, family and loved ones, that after today, we, the graduating batch of 2012, will endeavor to make more right decisions and to do our best to make our lives better;  we welcome this next step, and we will make you proud. Once again, welcome to this graduation ceremony and good morning!

(P.S. If you're the original author of this speech and doesn't want to have it posted here, kindly inform me and I'll remove this post asap.)

2015 Graduation Message of Secretary Br. Armin Luistro FSC

     Congratulations to our dear graduates! My appreciation goes out to the teachers, school administrators, staff, and parents who have supported and walked with our graduates to reach this milestone.

    Today is a testament to your collective efforts—the fruit of your hard work and perseverance. Once again, you have proven that with competence, compassion and a zeal for excellence you can accomplish anything.

     Dear graduates, as you turn a new leaf towards the achievement of your dreams, bear in mind the values and lessons you have learned throughout your stay in school. Your education has given you the skills to move forward, to pursue your purpose, and to actualize your dreams. Your education continues to cement your foundations to become a better Filipino; one with a keen sense of both self and community, and one who is mindful of diversity that is grounded on acceptance, tolerance, and peace.

     This year’s graduation theme “Saktong Buhay: Sa De-Kalidad na Edukasyon Pinanday” calls to mind the importance of education as we build the foundations of our dreams. Let this be a reminder of the stories of our fallen and living heroes, soldiers and teachers alike, who persevered in their education to secure a decent life for their families. It impresses upon us the power of education in unlocking doors of opportunities and in enabling us to pave the path to a dignified and productive life, a life that is lived not only for ourselves but also for others.

     As you forge ahead, you will experience moments of victories and defeats: Let your triumphs be an inspiration for other people; let your losses serve as your motivation to strive for excellence. Let all these collective experiences inspire hope in us to seek greater heights and aspire for a higher purpose. Throughout it all always be mindful of the people who help you along the way and pay it forward to others who will need your help too.

    For us in the schools, may this theme guide us all as we go forth and realize our mission to provide Filipino learners a quality education that will empower them to attain their life goals.

     Mabuhay kayo!

Valedictory Address

    Let me just share to you my valedictory address back in 2001 during my elementary years. Honestly, this isn't original since I just based this on another valedictory address way back in 1993. This might sound old but hopefully this can be useful for those who seek ideas for their own valedictory address.

Honored guest, ______________, __________________, ____________________, _____________, beloved teachers, family, and to my fellow graduates, good morning.

A famous poet once said, “There’s a time for everything under the sun; a time to sow, and a time to reap; a time to plant and a time to pluck.”

Certainly, the time has come to harvest the grains we have painstakingly planted for six meaningful years. The long awaited reaping is here and now – GRADUATION DAY.

But have we asked ourselves the question, “Am I ripe for plucking?”

Education is a preparation for life. The kind of preparation we did will determine the kind of life we shall lead after we have left the portal of our beloved Alma Mater, the A. Bonifacio Elementary School, the place we considered as our second home. Some of us may have taken this preparation an opportunity to squander time and found pleasure in truant activities.  And I could not imagine how some of us shall fare in the game called life after leaving our school. Yet, among the chaff, the healthy and ripe grains did not budge despite unpleasant environment.  We took each moment an opportunity to grow, to develop into wholesome individuals as to prepare ourselves to a more challenging life outside the walls of the classroom. We realized that if one has to succeed, he or she has to work for it.

Yes, our dear teachers. You molded us the way we should become in the future. You lighted the torch so that we will not grope in the darkness of ignorance and uselessness. You freed us from the bondage of true poverty. By the light you have lighted, we started to see the truth of life that we can become better persons we can be despite the many temptations to go astray. For these, we are sincerely grateful to you.

To our parents, whose gift of life we can never repay, we dedicate our toils---our hardships and successes. We have become what you wished we should be. As we receive our diploma, we are also receiving the fruit of your hard labor so that the gift of education is endowed to us. We need no other gift than this.

Above all, to the Divine Power who made all things possible. We lay before Him our sacrifices and victories. Without Him, we have not reached the heights where we are now. And we shall be prepared for the final harvest that He has set for us.

To my fellow graduates, I could not say so much. ABES has done its best that we could not ask for more. It has provided us warmth of belongingness and knowledge of life. How we used this nourishment is what we can see now. The harvest is plenty. But the question is, will you be a chaff or a grain?  This is a challenge for us. Let us do our best to make our family, our alma mater be proud of us. Let us prove that we, the present crop of graduates, can grow tall and be fruitful.

To end my speech, let me leave you with a stanza “Yesterday is but a dream and tomorrow is only a vision. But yesterday well-lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness and tomorrow a vision of hope.