MODULE 1: ANALYZE – INTRODUCTION TO

INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN, NEEDS ANALYSIS AND

COURSE DESIGN

Table of Contents
MODULE 1: ANALYZE – INTRODUCTION TO INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN, NEEDS ANALYSIS AND COURSE DESIGN ......... 1
Module Overview ........................................................................................................................................................... 2
Module 1, Task 1: Building Community Discussion .................................................................................................. 3
Module 1, Task 2a: Course Pre-Test.......................................................................................................................... 4
Module 1, Task 2b: Course Needs Survey ................................................................................................................. 4
Module 1, Task 3a: Overview of Instructional Design............................................................................................... 4
Module 1, Task 3b: Check for Understanding ........................................................................................................... 6
Module 1, Task 4a: Needs Analysis ........................................................................................................................... 6
Module 1, Task 4b: Needs Analysis Survey ............................................................................................................... 8
Module 1, Task 4c: Analyze Your Students ............................................................................................................. 16
Module 1, Task 5a: Analyze Your Data to Create a Learner Story .......................................................................... 16
Module 1, Task 5b: Learner Story Examples ........................................................................................................... 17
Module 1, Task 5c: Create Your Learner Story ........................................................................................................ 19
Module 1, Task 6a: Course Objectives .................................................................................................................... 21
Module 1, Task 6b: SMART Objectives.................................................................................................................... 22
Module 1, Task 6c: Bloom’s Taxonomy ................................................................................................................... 23
Module 1, Task 6d: Check for Understanding ......................................................................................................... 26
Module 1, Task 7: Submit a Learner Story and Course Objectives ......................................................................... 26
Module 1, Task 8: Module Summary ...................................................................................................................... 29

© 2021 by Arizona State University. Module 1 Downloadable Packet for the Online Professional
English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding provided by the
U.S. government and administered by FHI 360. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons 1
Attribution 4.0 License, except where noted. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Module Overview
Welcome to Module 1!
In this module, you will begin the process of creating and implementing online courses. You will learn about a
model for online course design. You will engage in the first step of this model: Analyze. You will analyze your
students’ needs through a needs analysis. From the needs analysis results, you will create a learner story. At the
end of the module, you will develop course objectives based on the learner story.

Learning Objectives:
By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• describe the process and tools used for doing a needs analysis
• create a learner story based on a needs analysis
• write 2-4 course objectives following SMART criteria

Course Glossary
We have also created a glossary for you to use as you take the course. In the glossary, you will find words and
definitions that will help you in the course tasks.

Module 1 dates: January 10 – January 16, 2023

Below is the schedule for Module 1:
Module 1 Schedule

Task Description Time to Complete

1 Post on a Building Community Discussion 25-30 minutes

2a Take a Course Pre-Test 30-45 minutes

2b Complete a Needs Survey 10-15 minutes

3a Watch a Video 15-30 minutes

3b Check for Understanding 15-25 minutes

4a Read about Needs Analysis 20-30 minutes

4b Study the Needs Analysis Survey 20-30 minutes

4c Analyze Your Students 30-60 minutes

5a Watch a Video 15-30 minutes

5b Read Learner Story Examples 15-30 minutes

5c Post your Learner Story 1 hour-1.5 hours

6a Read about Course Objectives 15-20 minutes

CIOC, Module 1, Page 2

 6b Read about SMART Objectives 15-20 minutes

6c Read about Bloom's Taxonomy 15-20 minutes

6d Check for Understanding 15-25 minutes

7 Submit a Learner Story and Course Objectives 1 hour-1.5 hours

8 Watch a Video 10-15 minutes

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 1 : B U I L D IN G C OM M U N IT Y D IS C U S S I ON
Let's get to know each other!

Write a 5-7 sentence introduction about yourself. You will

receive 10 points for including the following:

• 2 activities that you enjoy when you're not

teaching
• 2 facts about your school and/or students
• 1 reason (or more) why you are taking this course
• 1 worry or fear that you have about creating and
implementing an online course. “Coffee” by Andrew Lloyd Gordon is licensed under the Pixabay License

After you post your introduction, find one other person and comment on his or her post. Ask a question or share
some information. Remember that we're building a community here and that community depends on your
participation!

Below is an example from Sarah:

Hi everyone! I’m Sarah. When I’m not teaching, I love to hike and watch movies. Right now, I am teaching
English to young students (10-14 years old). My students’ level is quite low, so we focus a lot on learning basic
vocabulary and grammar. The reason I am taking this course is because my principal recently asked me to
make my course online and I do not know where to start! One worry that I have about moving my course
online is how to keep students engaged, especially when they are that young.

Your discussion post will be graded using the rubric below:

Building Community Discussion Rubric

Criteria Ratings

2 points (Full Marks) 0 points (No Marks)

1 point (Half Marks)
Length Post is at least 5 Post is only 1 sentence or
Post is 2-3 sentences.
sentences. not done.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 3

 2 points (Full Marks) 1 point (Half Marks) 0 points (No Marks)
Activities Post includes 2 activities Post includes only 1 Post does not include any
enjoyed. activity enjoyed. activities enjoyed.

0 points (No Marks)

2 points (Full Marks) 1 point (Half Marks)
Post does not include any
Context Post includes 2 facts about Post includes only 1 fact
facts about teaching
teaching context. from teaching context.
context.

2 points (Full Marks) 1 point (Half Marks)

0 points (No Marks)
Post includes at least 1 Post includes a reason for
Reason for Taking Course Post does not include a
reason for taking the taking the course but may
reason for taking the course.
course. not be clear.

1 point (Half Marks)

2 points (Full Marks) 0 points (No Marks)
Post includes a worry/fear
Post includes at least 1 Post does not include any
about creating and
Online Course Worry/Fear worry/fear about creating worry/fear about creating
implementing an online
and implementing an and implementing an online
course but may not be
online course. course.
clear.

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 2A : C O U R S E P R E -T E S T
Complete a Pre-test (30-45 minutes)
Now you will take a pre-test, or a diagnostic, so we can find out what you know about creating and implementing
online courses. You will not receive a grade for this pre-test. At the end of the course, you will take a course post-
test to measure how much you learned.

<<This diagnostic can only be completed online>>

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 2B : C O U R S E N E E D S S U R V E Y
Take a survey (10-15 minutes)
Please complete this survey so we can better understand your needs. You will not be graded on your answers.

<< This survey can only be completed online>>

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 3A : O V E R V I E W O F I N S T R U C T I ON A L D E S I GN
Watch a Video (15-30 minutes)
In the Welcome Module, you met Sarah, who has the challenge of developing an online course for the first time.
Now let's watch a video about Sarah as she gets help from peers who have expertise in online course design.

You can also read a transcript of the video below.

Overview of Instructional Design – Video Transcript

CIOC, Module 1, Page 4

Sarah: It looks like some teachers have responded to my vlog. Let’s see what they have to say!

Sam: Hey Sarah! I had the same problem last year. Putting my whole course online was a huge challenge. I would
say that one of the things that helped me out the most was becoming familiar with a basic design model. It takes
time and preparation to put a course online, so definitely spend at least part of that time learning how course
design works. For first timers, I always recommend taking a look at the ADDIE model. It is simple and it gives you a
model around which you can build. I hope this helps!

Jessie: Hi, Sarah. I feel your pain. I guess the best bit of advice I’ve ever received for building an online course was
to think about your audience. If you are going to an online space, does that change your audience at all? Maybe
your students have full time jobs and have time only in the evenings. Maybe they are younger or older or have
different reasons for taking the course than students in your face-to-face class. Collecting as much information as
you can is important in course design so that you don’t make any serious mistakes. As soon as you create videos
and readings and assessments, it is really hard to change them, so try to get it right from the beginning! And one
more thing, maybe the most important thing, I always do a needs analysis. I’ll send you an example needs analysis
after I teach my class. Speaking of class, it is time for me to teach. Gotta run!

Narrator: Great advice from these two experts in the field. Let’s discuss their ideas. The first expert mentioned the
ADDIE model. Now, there are many common
instructional design models such as MPI, Gagne’s 9
Events of instruction, ARCs, and Backward Design;
however, ADDIE is probably the most common
model in the online world, so let’s discuss it.

The ADDIE model allows you to plan a course in an

organized fashion. ADDIE stands for analyze,
design, develop, implement, and evaluate.

We will use the ADDIE model ourselves during this

course to give you a good sense of how you can
use it to build out your own course. Each module
will introduce one of the parts of the ADDIE model,
and in this first module, we will begin with the first
letter: analyze.

Our second expert mentioned a needs analysis. For

designers, a needs analysis can be one of many
different kinds of instruments. It could be a survey,
a series of interviews, or other data collection tools.
Let me suggest three reasons you should start with
a needs analysis, rather than just putting ‘a bunch
of stuff’ on the Internet.

First, a needs analysis helps you learn about your

audience and why they want to learn English. Second, it helps you understand the objectives and interests of
different groups. For example, you will need to think not only about your learner audience, but also about the
teachers who will likely teach your course, and the administrators that support it. Each group may have different
ideas about the purposes, content, and delivery of the online course. Third, a good needs analysis helps you
determine the learners’ background. This might include their location, their purpose for taking your course, their
skill with technology, and their knowledge of English and the English skills you are going to teach. Much of this you
may already know from experience, but doing a needs analysis often gives surprising results.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 5

Review the ADDIE model infographic below.

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 3B : C H E C K F OR U N D E R S T A N D IN G
Check for Understanding (15-25 minutes)
Now you will take a quiz about the video.

You can take the quiz multiple times. Your highest score will be used as your grade. To pass the quiz, you need to
answer at least 4 questions correctly.

<<This quiz can only be taken online>>

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 4A : N E E D S A N A L Y S IS
Read about the Needs Analysis and its Tools (30-60 minutes)
Definition and Purpose of a Needs Analysis

In the video, Jessie, the teacher, recommends that Sarah conduct a needs analysis. In fact, you have probably
already conducted a needs analysis in the classroom. Have you ever given a diagnostic or a pre-test to your
students? If you have, then you have done a needs analysis. A needs analysis, just like the name suggests, is a
process for collecting and analyzing the needs of the stakeholders or those people who are affected by the
course. The stakeholders are the students, but they can also be other teachers teaching the same course,
administrators, or even parents.

There are a number of reasons why you should use a needs analysis, but the most important reason is when
creating a course online, you need to know much more about your students and their needs. Who are your
students? Why are they taking your course? Why are they learning English? How much do they know about
English? How well do they know technology? What do they need to learn? A good needs analysis can give you that
information and help you to make informed decisions about your course.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 6

Types of Needs

There are two different types of learner needs. One type includes those needs that are easy to measure, like
learners’ demographic information, language level and abilities, skills with technology, while the other type of
needs are those needs determined by the learners themselves. These needs include attitudes, interests,
expectations, goals and motivation for learning, and preferences, like learning styles or strategies, for how they like
to learn (Brown, 2007).

Needs Analysis Tools

There are different tools that you can use to learn about these two types of needs. To find out more about your
students’ needs, you could give them diagnostics or pre-tests. You could also carry out observations of your
students in other classes. These tools will help you to gauge the students’ language levels.

“Untitled” by Andreas Breitling is licensed under the Pixabay License .

One of the most common needs analysis tools is the survey, which includes questions about the different needs of
learners. A survey can be used to find out more about students’ educational background and experience, including
their knowledge of technology. A survey can also help to find out their goals, motivation, attitudes, and
preferences.

Surveys can include different types of questions, such as multiple choice, ranking/scale, and open-ended (those
questions that require detailed responses).

For a survey, you should choose the question types that work best for collecting information on your students.
There are also advantages and disadvantages to these question types. For example, in an open-ended question,
students can provide information specific to their needs, but these questions usually take more time to answer.

Other needs analysis tools include the interview and the focus group. An interview is when you talk with a student
one on one using open-ended questions to get more detailed information about the different types of needs. A
focus group is also a good opportunity to find out more about students’ needs and interests. In a focus group, you
ask a small group of students to meet for a guided discussion. This can take more time because of coordinating
with everyone to set up a time, but you can learn a lot of useful information about your students.

As you can see, you have a variety of needs analysis tools to choose from. If possible, it is a good idea to use 2 or 3
tools. The more data you can collect, the better understanding you will have of your students. When trying to
decide which needs analysis tools to use, think about your teaching context and choose the 2 or 3 tools which will
be the most effective for your context to give you the most comprehensive picture of your students.
References

(The content in these references is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not Public or Creative
Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)

Brown, D. H. (2007). Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy. Pearson Education, Inc.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 7

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 4B : N E E D S A N A L Y S IS S U R V E Y
Study the Needs Analysis Survey (20-30 minutes)
Here is the needs analysis survey mentioned in the video. The teacher chose 10 questions from the below survey
and gave it to her adult students to assess their needs.

As you study the needs analysis survey, pay close attention to the different categories, the types of questions, and
the questions themselves. You will also use this survey in the next task to analyze your own students.

If you are interested in conducting a needs analysis of your students, please use the survey below.

Because most surveys have fewer questions (between 8-10), choose which questions would work best in your
teaching context. You can also change or adapt them if needed.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 8

CIOC, Module 1, Page 9
CIOC, Module 1, Page 10
CIOC, Module 1, Page 11
CIOC, Module 1, Page 12
Needs Analysis Survey

Please fill out this survey. This will help me to get to know you and to make our class better. This survey
is anonymous.

Demographic Information

1. How many years have you studied English?

2. What was the last English language class you took?

Language Use

3. When do you use English outside of class? Check (✓) all that apply.

❑ my job ❑ video games ❑ watching TV/shows movies in English

❑ writing emails ❑ talking with friends ❑ listening to music in English
❑ on social media platforms like Facebook/Instagram
❑ Other: ________________________________________________________________

4. Who do you speak English with outside of class?

Technology

5. Have you ever taken an online English language course? If yes, what did you like about the course?
What did you not like about the course?

6. How comfortable do you feel taking a class online?

Somewhat
Very uncomfortable Uncomfortable Comfortable Comfortable Very Comfortable

7. How often do you use the following:

Very
Never Rarely Sometimes Frequently Frequently
Online English dictionaries

Apps for learning English

CIOC, Module 1, Page 13

 Online games

Google Translate

8. How much do you like using technology (for example, apps) to help you learn English?

Dislike A Lot Dislike Somewhat Like Like Like Very Much

Language Level/Abilities

9. How good are you at the following in English?

Very Poor Poor Average Good Excellent

Reading

Writing

Listening

Speaking

Grammar

Vocabulary

Pronunciation

10. Which area of English is the easiest for you? Choose 1.

o Reading o Grammar
o Writing o Vocabulary
o Listening o Pronunciation
o Speaking

11. Which area of English is the most difficult for you? Choose 1.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 14

 o Reading o Grammar
o Writing o Vocabulary
o Listening o Pronunciation
o Speaking

12. Which area of English do you want to work on the most? Choose 1.

o Reading o Grammar
o Writing o Vocabulary
o Listening o Pronunciation
o Speaking

Attitude/Motivation

13. Why are you learning English?

14. How do you feel about learning English?

Learning Preferences

15. Which activities are most helpful for you to learn English? Check (✓) all that apply.

❑ working by myself ❑ working in pairs/groups

❑ reading silently ❑ reading out loud
❑ listening to dialogues ❑ watching videos
❑ conversation ❑ playing games

16. How would you describe yourself as a learner?

Strongly Neither Strongly

Disagree Disagree Disagree/Agree Agree Agree
I prefer explanations with visual
aids (graphs, pictures, etc.).

I like to use my hands and make

something in class.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 15

 I remember something better if I
repeat it out loud than write it
down.

I like to draw pictures and graphs

when I take notes.

I prefer to read a textbook than

listen to a lecture.

Interests/Expectations

17. What topics do you like to talk about in English? Check all that apply.

❑ sports ❑ music ❑ famous people

❑ shopping ❑ vacations ❑ friends and family
❑ work ❑ clothing ❑ food
❑ health ❑ hobbies ❑ plans/goals
❑ Other: ________________________________________________

18. What do you want to learn about in this class?

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 4C : A N A L Y Z E Y O U R S T U D E N T S
Analyze Your Students (30-60 minutes)
Now, it’s your turn to analyze the needs of your students!

Thinking about your current or former students, please answer the following questions in complete sentences
from the needs analysis survey. You will use your answers to complete the other tasks in this module.

You will be graded on how clear and complete your answers are. You can take the quiz multiple times. Your highest
score will be used as your grade. To pass the quiz, you need to receive a score of 14 correct or 70%.

<<This quiz can only be taken online>>

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 5A : A N A L Y Z E Y O U R D A T A T O C R E A T E A
L E A R N E R S T OR Y
Watch a Video (15-30 minutes)
Now watch a video about Sarah and learn how to analyze the data in a needs analysis to create a learner story.

You can also read a transcript of the video below.

Analyze Your Data to Create a Learner Story – Video Transcript

CIOC, Module 1, Page 16

Sarah: Hey, thanks to Sam and Jessie who gave me great advice. I really love the advice. I created a needs analysis
and gave it to my students. But now I have another problem...what do I do with all this data?

Sarah: Let’s take a look at my vlog. It looks like Jessie responded! Let’s see what she has to say.

Jessie: Hey, I’m back from class. Okay, you ask a really great question. What do you do with all the data? Well, I
guess the best thing you can do after collecting data is to create a learner story. Let me explain. A learner story is a
small 4-5 sentence description of the learners in your course. It shows their needs, their motivations, and their
general characteristics. A learner story helps you imagine who your general audience is in a way that informs your
curriculum.

So how do you write a learner story? First, I look for trends. In other words, look for ways learners are all or mostly
the same in their needs, motivations, and characteristics. Especially look for trends that might make you change
your topics, objectives, or graphic design. For example, if your learners are all learning English to get a job, you
might want to teach more job vocabulary. If most of your learners are not good at technology, you might want
your first module to teach the technology needed for your course. If your students are young, you might want to
choose bright colors or even cartoon animals as part of your graphic design. Remember...look for trends!

So, what are some of the trends I found when I conducted my needs analysis? Well, I learned that all of my
students share the same language background and come from my country. I learned that many are adults, and that
they have full time jobs. Most of them want to improve their English to advance their careers or be successful at
their jobs. My administration asked me to create a business class for these students.

Oh, and one more thing. Sometimes you won’t find a clear trend. You might find that the class is split into two or
three groups. For example, in my class, about half of the students come from the same workplace...a hotel
business, and they want vocabulary that will help them at their jobs. The rest of the students work in sales and
general business. This allowed me to think about two major groups and write up a learner story that includes both
groups.

Sarah: Hmmm…so I take my data, I look for trends, and I try to imagine a story. Four or five sentences? That
shouldn’t be too hard. Okay, time to start writing!

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 5B : L E A R N E R S T O R Y E X A MP L E S
Read Two Learner Story Examples (15-30 minutes)
After Sarah’s needs analysis of her students, she noticed that
• her students are young, between the ages of 12-14.
• her students are interested in basic communication, and all enjoy using social media in English.
• her students already have all had two or more years of English (but still at A1 proficiency on CEFR).
• half of the students prefer speaking, while the other half of the students prefer writing.
• half of the students are comfortable with online technology, while the other half is not.

Sarah also talked with the administrators at her school and confirmed that they want:
• students to achieve an A2 (CEFR) level by the end of the school year.

She also checked in with a few teachers at her school and learned that they want students to be able to
• use past, present, and future tenses.
• write a full paragraph.

Using all the data, she came up with a story about her learners and focused on two groups of typical learners. Here
is Sarah's learner story:

CIOC, Module 1, Page 17

Sarah's Learner Story:
Through my needs analysis, I learned that I have a young group of students, between 12-14, who are interested in
basic communication. They all enjoy social media. They have all had more than 2 years of English, and my
administration wants them to achieve an A2 (CEFR) level of proficiency by the end of the school year. I want to
make sure my students can use the simple past, present, and future, and write a full paragraph using compound
and complex sentences.

I have also identified two groups of typical learners based on my needs analysis:

Typical Learner Group 1: These learners are bright students who love talking and make friends easily. They do well
in group work situations where they can speak. They are not proficient in technology and struggle a little with
formal writing. They love using English to listen to music and watch videos on social media.

Typical Learner Group 2: These learners are shy and rarely speak up in class. They are very good at technology and
writing, but they have a hard time with pronunciation and speaking in front of others. They are good readers and
enjoy getting things done on their own. They love to post pictures and ideas on social media.

Notice how Sarah has two very different learner groups. As she creates her course, she will need to think about the
different needs and interests of both. She will try to meet the administration’s goal to get these students to a high
beginning level of English. Now let's move on to one other example.

Jessie teaches at a language school in her country. After Jessie's needs analysis of her students, she noted that:
• her students are adults
• the students speak the same language
• many of the students come to the language school after full-time work
• although there are many differences, most of the students want to improve their English for better jobs or
general workplace success.

Jessie spoke with her administrators and confirmed that they want:
• a business class created for students who work in the hotel industry and for students who work in sales.

Using all this data, she came up with a story about her learners and focused on two groups of typical learners. Here
is Jessie's learner story:

Jessie's Learner Story:

Through my needs analysis, I learned that I have a group of adult students. They come to class after working all
day. Most of them want to take English classes because they want to get a better job or be more successful at
work. They studied English at high school and university but did not focus on business English. My administration
wants me to create a business English course that is for different types of work environments.
I have also identified two groups of typical learners based on my needs analysis:

Typical Learner Group 1: These learners work in sales at a business that has many opportunities. However, many of
these jobs require better English in order to engage in business meetings, attend conferences, and work with
clients. They will need to give presentations, send emails, have good skills on the phone, and learn how to talk
about the various business products their company makes. They hope that by learning general and business
English, they will be able to get one of these higher paying positions.

Typical Learner Group 2: These learners work in the hotel industry. This workplace pays for their English classes and
expects that they will be able to pass a test that the company has created that will prove a high enough level of
proficiency. They are very good at speaking already, but need to know certain terms and ideas for the hotel

CIOC, Module 1, Page 18

industry. They are required to answer phones, meet with clients, and organize and host conferences. They are also
required to send emails to clients and answer questions.

Notice how Jessie’s situation is different from Sarah’s, and thus, her course design may be different as well. Jessie
also has to think about the needs and interests of her learners and create a course that pleases the administration.
Did you notice any places where the interests of the administration, Typical Learner Group 1, and Typical Learner
Group 2 are similar? Did you notice any areas of difference?

As you build your course, you’ll want to develop objectives that meet the needs of all stakeholders, and you’ll want
to design flexibly to allow for different learner preferences and interests. By having a clear learner story in your
head, you will be able to make choices that all groups want.

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 5C : C R E A T E Y OU R L E A R N E R S T OR Y
Create Your Learner Story (1 hour-1.5 hours)
Now it’s your turn!

Please write a learner story. Remember that a learner story

should:

1. Include the results of your needs analysis and the

conversations you had with any teachers and
administrators.
2. Tell the story of a typical learner in your class. You should
think about such factors as:
o interest/reasons for taking your course
o age
“Untitled" by Yogesh More is licensed under the Pixabay License.
o cultural background
o technological background
o level of English/background knowledge
3. Help guide you during your course design. You will be using it to imagine a future audience. Remember,
you are creating a course for real people that you simply haven’t met yet! Meeting those expectations by
considering who your students are will help you align your objectives, your activities, and your entire
course correctly.
Instructions:
1. Using Sarah's learner story (see below), your own needs analysis, and information you learned after
speaking to other teachers or administrators, first write a 4-8 sentence description of your learners
and the course you want to design. In the description, include your administration’s purpose for the
course.
2. Then write 4-8 sentences about two groups of typical learners who might be examples of the learner
experience. These could be actual students or students you imagine.
3. Post your learner story to the discussion.
4. Reply to 1 (or more) of your peers' discussion posts. In 2-3 sentences, write about 2 (or more)
similarities and/or differences you see between your learners and your peer's learners. Your reply to
your peer will be graded.

Below is an example of a learner story from Sarah.

Through my needs analysis, I learned that I have a young group of students, between 12-14, who are interested in
basic communication. They all enjoy social media. They have all had more than 2 years of English, and my
administration wants them to achieve an A2 (CEFR) level of proficiency by the end of the school year. I want to make
sure my students can use the simple past, present, and future, and write a full paragraph using compound and
complex sentences.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 19

I have also identified two groups of typical learners based on my needs analysis:

Typical Learner Group 1: These learners are bright students who love talking and make friends easily. They do well in
group work situations where they can speak. They are not proficient in technology and struggle a little with formal
writing. They love using English to listen to music and watch videos on social media.

Typical Learner Group 2: These learners are shy and rarely speak up in class. They are very good at technology and
writing, but they have a hard time with pronunciation and speaking in front of others. They are good readers and
enjoy getting things done on their own. They love to post pictures and ideas on social media.

This task is worth a total of 10 points. Your discussion post and response to your peer will be graded using the
rubric below:

Learner Story Rubric

Criteria Ratings

2 points (Half Marks)

4 points (Full Marks)
0 points (No Marks)
Description gives a picture
Description gives a clear
of possible learners and Description is missing or
Description of picture of possible learners
course itself and based on missing most of the required
Learners/Course and course itself and clearly
the needs analysis but may information. It contains no
based on the needs analysis.
need more detail. It includes information on the
It also includes the
little to no information on administration's purpose for
administration’s purpose for
the administration’s purpose the course.
the course.
for the course.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 20

 2 points (Half Marks)
4 points (Full Marks) Examples include a
description of learners, but
Examples include a clear 0 points (No Marks)
may need more detail.
description of learners'
Examples are based on
Examples of 2 Typical interest/reasons for taking Examples may be missing, or
needs analysis and includes
Learner Groups the course, age, cultural not be based on needs
some of the following:
background, technological analysis and missing most of
learners’ interest/reasons
background, level of the required information
for taking the course, age,
English/background about learners.
cultural background,
knowledge. Clearly based on
technological background,
needs analysis.
level of English/background
knowledge.

2 points (Full Marks)

1 point (Half Marks) 0 points (No Marks)
Reply is to at least 1 other
Reply is to 1 peer with No reply or reply does not
Reply to Peer(s) post with 2 (or more)
1 similarity and/or include
similarities and/or
difference between similarities/differences
differences between
participants' learners and between participants'
participants' learners and
peer's learners. learners and peer's learners.
peer's learners.

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 6A : C O U R S E OB JE C T IV E S
Read about Writing Course Objectives Based on a Learner Story (15-20 minutes)
After you have conducted your needs analysis, analyzed your results, and created your learner story, your next
step in designing your course is to write your course objectives. Often teachers are excited to start planning the
course, module or unit, and lesson activities, but it’s necessary to start first with the course objectives. Your
objectives are the foundation for your course and include the specific skills that you want your students to
develop. The activities come later and are planned to help your students achieve the objectives.

The learner story you’ve created provides a description for what your students need to learn. As you read in Task
4b, Sarah created a learner story based on her needs analysis. Review Sarah’s learner story below:

Learner Story:
Through my needs analysis, I learned that I have a young group of students, between 12-14, who are interested in
basic communication. They all enjoy social media. They have all had more than 2 years of English, and my
administration wants them to achieve an A2 (CEFR) level of proficiency by the end of the school year. I want to
make sure my students can use the simple past, present, and future, and write a full paragraph using compound
and complex sentences.

I have also identified two groups of typical learners based on my needs analysis:

CIOC, Module 1, Page 21

Typical Learner Group 1: These learners are bright students who love talking and make friends easily. They do well
in group work situations where they can speak. They are not proficient in technology and struggle a little with
formal writing. They love using English to listen to music and watch videos on social media.

Typical Learner Group 2: These learners are shy and rarely speak up in class. They are very good at technology and
writing, but they have a hard time with pronunciation and speaking in front of others. They are good readers and
enjoy getting things done on their own. They love to post pictures and ideas on social media.

Because the learner story details the needs of learners, you can use the story to help create your course
objectives. From this learner story above you can see that Sarah’s young learners have some specific needs for
learning English. As we mentioned earlier, the course objectives should be based on the learners’ needs. Below
you can see how Sarah’s course objectives work toward meeting the needs of her learners.

Course Objectives:
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• produce language using high frequency words in English that are appropriate to the context
• use the simple present and present continuous correctly in oral and written communication
• write paragraphs with appropriate sentence structure and vocabulary on everyday topics

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 6 B : S M A R T OB JE C T IV E S
Read about Writing SMART Course Objectives (15-20 minutes)
In addition to writing objectives based on our learners’ needs, we want to make sure we write objectives that meet
the SMART criteria, which stand for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-oriented.

Review Sarah's objectives for her online course below.

Course Objectives:
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• produce language using high frequency words in English that are appropriate to the context
• use the simple present and present continuous correctly in oral and written communication
• write paragraphs with appropriate sentence structure and vocabulary on everyday topics

Let’s look at the first objective and ask some questions.

Course Objective 1:

CIOC, Module 1, Page 22

By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• produce language using high frequency words in English that are appropriate to the context

SMART Objectives
First, is the objective specific? Can you clearly identify the skill in the statement? In this case, we
would say yes, we can: it is to be able to produce language using high frequency words in English
that are appropriate to the context. If you compare this objective to one such as, “improve
vocabulary,” you can see that this statement is more specific.

Next, is it measurable? Will you be able to measure your learners’ achievement of the objective?
How will you measure their achievement? If the objective is to produce language using high
frequency words in English that are appropriate to the context, then Sarah will look for the student to
demonstrate understanding of those words by using them correctly. She will be able to measure the
skill with those clear results or outcomes.

Then, is the objective achievable in the timeframe? She has said students will be able to produce
language using high frequency words in English that are appropriate to the context by the end of the
course. In this case, the course is one academic year, and she expects students to be able to build
their vocabulary in that timeframe. When writing your objectives think about the timeframe, and
ask yourself, “Is that possible?”

Objectives should be relevant and work toward skills that students need. That takes us back to our
needs analysis, doesn’t it? Well in Sarah’s learner story, we identified that students need to achieve
at least a high beginning level of English and improve their communication skills. Does this course
objective work toward meeting that need? Yes, the objective connects to this need by building their
vocabulary to a higher proficiency level and giving them an essential skill for communication.

Lastly, is the objective time-oriented? That is, have you clearly stated the time period in which the
objective is to be achieved? In this case, Sarah has included the time period “by the end of the
course.”

Keep in mind as you start planning your course and writing your objectives that you are planning the overall
objectives for the entire course. Later you will plan objectives for individual units and lessons, but you’ll start with
the more general English language skills.

Icons by The Noun Project are licensed under CC BY 3.0.

References

(The content in these references is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not Public or Creative
Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)

Doran, G. T. (1981). There’s a SMART way to write management’s goals and objectives. Management review, 70(11), 35-36.

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 6 C : B L O O M ’S T A X O N O MY
Read About Using Bloom’s Taxonomy to Write Couse Objectives (15-20 minutes)

CIOC, Module 1, Page 23

In order to write clear objectives that meet the SMART criteria, many teachers use Bloom’s Taxonomy. This
taxonomy, or classification system, lists six levels or categories of learning and gives you verbs that you can use in
stating the skills you want learners to demonstrate.

Below you can see the levels of learning, and example verbs and SMART objectives for each level.

Bloom's Taxonomy and SMART Objectives

Bloom's Level Common Verbs Example Objectives Using SMART Criteria

design, build, invent, create, By the end of the course, students will be able to
Creating compose, generate, modify, develop a proposal to make their city more
develop, plan sustainable.

choose, support, determine, By the end of the course, students will be able to
Evaluating
defend, judge, assess, evaluate support and defend their ideas in an academic debate.

differentiate, categorize,
By the end of the course, students will be able to
Analyzing analyze, compare, contrast,
compare and contrast two characters in a story.
discuss, criticize, simplify

predict, apply, solve, illustrate,

By the end of the course, students will be able to use
Applying use, demonstrate, model,
the present perfect to talk about past experiences.
perform

describe, explain, paraphrase,

By the end of the course, students will be able to
Understanding summarize, discuss, classify,
describe 3 types of an essay introduction.
give examples of

list, state, outline, define, name, By the end of the course, students will be able to list
Remembering
match, identify, label, recognize the parts of an essay.

(Airasian et al., 2001)

Let's review Sarah's course objectives again. Notice how the objectives use verbs that clearly describe the skill she
wants her students to demonstrate by the end of the course.

Course Objectives:
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• produce language using high frequency words in English that are appropriate to the context
• use the simple present and present continuous correctly in oral and written communication

CIOC, Module 1, Page 24

 • write paragraphs with appropriate sentence structure and vocabulary on everyday topics

You may also want to refer to Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy. In this version, there are additional verbs that are
relevant to online content and tasks, for example blog, post, and search.

Digital Bloom's Taxonomy

Digital Bloom's
Common Verbs Activities with Digital Tools
Level

publicly share, publish, contributing to open social networks, publishing,

Sharing
broadcast broadcasting, networking

design, construct, plan, programming, filming, animating, blogging, video

Creating produce, invent, devise, blogging, mixing, re-mixing, wiki-ing, video casing,
make podcasting, directing

check, hypothesize,
critique, experiment, blog commenting, reviewing, posting, moderating,
Evaluating
judge, test, detect, collaborating, refactoring, testing
monitor

compare, organize,
deconstruct, attribute, hacking, mashing, linking, validating, reverse engineering,
Conceptualizing
outline, find, structure, cracking
integrate

implement, carry out, running, loading, playing, operating, uploading, sharing

Applying
use, execute with group, editing

CIOC, Module 1, Page 25

 interpret, summarize,
advanced searches (Boolean searches), blog journaling,
infer, paraphrase,
Connecting tweeting, categorizing, tagging, commenting, annotating,
classify, compare,
subscribing
explain, exemplify

recognize, list, describe,

bullet pointing, highlighting, bookmarking, group
Doing identify, retrieve, name,
networking, shared bookmarking, searching
locate, find

This table is a derivative of “Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy” by Fractus Learning, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0
International License. This derivative is licensed under Creative commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

References

(The content in these references is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not Public or Creative
Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)

Airasian, P., Cruikshank, K., Mayer, R., Pintrich, P., Raths, J., & Wittrock, M. (2001). A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing: A revision
of Bloom’s taxonomy of educational objectives. (Anderson, L. W., & Krathwohl, D. R., Eds.). Longman.

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 6 D : C H E C K F OR U N D E R S T A N D IN G
Check for Understanding (15-25 minutes)
Now you will take a quiz about the reading.

You can take the quiz multiple times. Your highest score will be used as your grade. To pass the quiz, you need to
answer at least 4 questions correctly.

<<This quiz can only be taken online>>

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 7 : S U B M IT A L E A R N E R S T OR Y A N D
C OU R S E OB JE C T IV E S
Submit a Learner Story and Course Objectives (1 hour- 1.5 hours)
In Task 4c you submitted your learner story. Now you are going to use your learner story and what you have
learned about writing course objectives in Task 5a, making your objectives SMART in Task 5b, and using Bloom’s
Taxonomy in Task 5c to submit your learner story and objectives for your own course.

Instructions:
1. Review the learner story you submitted in Task 4c. Make any changes you think are needed (after the
comments from your peers and instructor).

2. Thinking about your learner story, write 2-4 course objectives following the SMART criteria.
o Use the description you’ve written in your learner story to choose 2-4 skills that you want your
students to achieve.
o Write an objective for each skill. Remember to follow the SMART guidelines and try to use verbs
from Bloom’s Taxonomy.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 26

 o Explain how you used your learner story to write your objectives. Write 1-2 sentences describing
the connection between your learner story and objectives.

3. Submit your learner story and course objectives:

o Download a Word file of the template for Task 7 here (below). You can also download a PDF of
the template here. Complete the template and save the file with your name, ex. Sarah
Lastname_Task 7. Upload the file to the assignment submission.

-OR-

o Type your learner story, course objectives, and sentences into the text entry box.

Your instructor will grade your learner story and course objectives using the rubric below.
Learner Story and Objectives Rubric

Criteria Ratings
9 points (Half Marks)
15 points (Full Marks)
Learner story gives a
Learner story gives a clear
description of possible
description of possible
learners and 2 typical
learners and 2 typical
learner groups, but may 0 points (No Marks)
learner groups. Learner
be unclear. Learner story Learner story is missing or is
story is based on needs
is based on needs analysis unclear. It may not be based
analysis and includes
and includes most of the on needs analysis, and
learners’ interest/reasons
following: learners’ missing most of the
Learner Story for taking your course,
interest/reasons for taking required information about
age, cultural background,
your course, age, cultural possible learners. It contains
technological background,
background, technological no information about the
level of
background, level of administration’s purpose for
English/background
English/background the class.
knowledge. It also
knowledge. It includes
includes the
little to no information
administration’s purposes
about the administration’s
for the class.
purpose for the class.

5 points (Full Marks) 3 points (Half Marks)

0 points (No Marks)
Objectives (Completion) 2-4 course objectives are Less than 2 objectives are
Objectives are missing.
included. included.

6 points (Half Marks)

10 points (Full Marks)
Objectives may not be
Objectives are clear and
clear. Improvement is 0 points (No Marks)
follow the SMART criteria.
needed for objectives to Objectives are not clear and
1-2 sentences have been
follow the SMART criteria. do not follow the SMART
written describing the
Objectives (Evaluation) 1-2 sentences describing criteria. There is no
connection between the
the connection between connection between the
learner story and
learner story and objectives and the needs
objectives. Objectives are
objectives may be missing. analysis and learner story.
clearly based on the needs
Objectives may be based
analysis and learner story.
on the needs analysis and

CIOC, Module 1, Page 27

 learner story, but the
connection is not clear.

Here is an example submission from Sarah:

Learner Story:
Through my needs analysis, I learned that I have a young group of students, between 12-14, who are interested in
basic communication. They all enjoy social media. They have all had more than 2 years of English, and my
administration wants them to achieve an A2 (CEFR) level of proficiency by the end of the school year. I want to
make sure my students can use the simple past, present, and future, and write a full paragraph using compound
and complex sentences.

I have also identified two groups of typical learners based on my needs analysis:

Typical Learner Group 1: These learners are bright students who love talking and make friends easily. They do well
in group work situations where they can speak. They are not proficient in technology and struggle a little with
formal writing. They love using English to listen to music and watch videos on social media.

Typical Learner Group 2: These learners are shy and rarely speak up in class. They are very good at technology and
writing, but they have a hard time with pronunciation and speaking in front of others. They are good readers and
enjoy getting things done on their own. They love to post pictures and ideas on social media.

Course Objectives:
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• produce language using high frequency words in English that are appropriate to the context
• use the simple present and present continuous correctly in oral and written communication
• write a paragraph with appropriate sentence structure

Connection between my learner story and objectives:

In my learner story I identified that I have learners who are 12-14 years old and at an A1 CEFR level. Based on the
learners' level and story, I will focus on vocabulary (high frequency words), grammar (simple past, present, future
tenses), and writing (paragraph) skills that my learners need to develop and I wrote an objective for each of these
skills.

Submit a Learner Story and Course Objectives - Template

Now you are going to use your learner story and what you have learned about writing course objectives to submit
your learner story and objectives for your own course.

Instructions

1. Review the learner story you submitted. Make any changes you think are needed (after the comments from
your peers and instructor). Write your Learner Story below.

CIOC, Module 1, Page 28

2. Thinking about your learner story, write 2-4 course objectives following the SMART criteria.

• Use the description you’ve written in your learner story to choose 2-4 skills that you want your students
to achieve.
• Write an objective for each skill. Remember to follow the SMART guidelines and try to use verbs from
Bloom’s Taxonomy.

Course Objectives:

By the end of …

•
•
• (optional)
• (optional)

3. Explain how you used your learner story to write your objectives. Write 1-2 sentences describing the connection
between your learner story and objectives.

Connection between my learner story and objectives:

4. After you complete the template, save the file with your name, ex. Sarah Lastname_Learner Story and Course
Objectives.

Upload the file to the assignment submission.

M O D U LE 1 , T A S K 8 : M OD U L E S U M M A R Y
Watch a Video (10-15 minutes)

CIOC, Module 1, Page 29

Now watch a short closing video that summarizes the module's main points, shares an additional insight, and
previews the next module.

You can also read a transcript of the video below.

Summary of Module 1 – Video Transcript

Narrator: We have discussed the importance of a needs analysis, which is a tool or series of tools you can use to
identify your learners, stakeholders, and purposes for the course. We also discussed how to analyze the data from
your needs analysis to create a learner story, which is a brief description of the types of learners you are building
the course for. Finally, we discussed how the needs analysis and the learner story can point you toward an
understanding of creating SMART course objectives.

At this point you might be thinking, “Wow, this is a lot of work before we even start designing the course!”
You know what? You’re right. It takes excellent preparation and vision before you begin to build.

You might think of it a little bit like aiming at a target. No matter how strong you are, or how good you are at
shooting a bow and arrow, you won’t be very successful if you aren’t aiming at the right target.

“Untitled” by Quince Creative is licensed under the Pixabay license.

Similarly, a needs analysis, a learner story, and course objectives help you to know exactly where you are aiming.
And that can make all the difference.

In the next module, we will move from analysis to design, and we will teach you about a tool that can help you
frame the course you are building. What do we mean by frame? Well, we’ll explain it all to you in the next module.

Thanks for watching!

CIOC, Module 1, Page 30