Defining program objectives

This module will help you define an appropriate set of objectives for your program.

Here is a prerequisite for defining program objectives:

• You need to have a well-defined program goal.

  See:	Defining a literacy program goal

  Example:

  Examples of objective statements

Here are some characteristics of a well-defined objective:

• Objectives are stated in measurable terms.

• A program could and should have between five and 12 objectives, depending on the scope of the program.

  Tip:	If you have fewer objectives, your program may not be adequately thought through or developed. If you have more than 12, you are probably including too much detail in your objectives.

• Roughly, there should be at least one objective for each component of your program. There may also be specific goals which are more global to your program, such as a given number of literates or program graduates. Such a goal will be achieved by the overall program and will not necessarily be subspecified by the program management tool.
• The objectives should, taken together, have the effect of achieving the overall program goal;

• There should be cohesion among the objectives. An objective which is significantly different from the others needs to be evaluated to determine whether it belongs as a part of the proposed program.

  Example:

  If one of the goals has been to send five people to university to study economics, it would take some effort to demonstrate the consistency of such a goal with the program defined by the other objectives.

• The objectives should reflect the overall nature and balance of the program, and should address each of the program subsystems.

  See:	The subsystem model of literacy

• Make a list of things that must be done to achieve your program goals.
• Rewrite each item on the list in the form of a result that can be measured and with some specification of a time allotment for the objective.
• Review all of your proposed objectives and adjust them to achieve an appropriate balance between them.

• Planning a literacy program

• Task module: Defining program objectives, by Stephen L. Walter
• In task module: Designing a literacy program
• In task module: Planning a literacy program, by Stephen L. Walter
• In modular book: Plan a literacy program, by Stephen L. Walter, Barbara K. Trudell (contributor), and Trudy K. Stewart (general editor)
• In bookshelf: Literacy

This page is an extract from the LinguaLinks Library, Version 4.0, published on CD-ROM by SIL International, 1999. [Ordering information.]

Page content last modified: 25 October 1999

© 1999 SIL International