Specification of Educational Objectives for System Evaluation.

R. B. Waina

Expert InsightsPublished 1969

A method for evaluating educational systems by measuring student achievement. Educational systems may be rationally evaluated only if the system objectives are properly specified. However, since educational goals are traditionally stated in terms of vague intangibles, it is virtually impossible to decide, without much greater specification, when students have achieved them. One solution is to state educational objectives in terms of observable student behavior. This approach was applied to the specification of course objectives in an undergraduate electrical engineering curriculum. A procedure was devised for developing a set of eventually specified objectives as a more precise restatement of course goals. The resulting objectives were stated clearly and concretely, so that their attainment could be objectively measured on a binary (go, no-go) scale, and the performance of individual students measured independently of the performance of other students. 22 pp. Ref.

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  • Copyright: RAND Corporation
  • Availability: Web Only
  • Year: 1969
  • Pages: 22
  • Document Number: P-4099

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Waina, R. B., Specification of Educational Objectives for System Evaluation. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1969. https://www.rand.org/pubs/papers/P4099.html.
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