Authoring Tip #4: Case Learning Objectives

By now you are all in the thick of the authoring process, so the tip this week focuses on a core element of the case content which should enable you to summarize the teaching in your case and draw the different elements together: case learning objectives. These learning objectives will be used by students and instructors as a quick reference for the key teaching your case accomplishes.

In each of your case outlines, you have probably seen the card we created entitled “LearningObjectives.” Inside there is a numbered list as well as the following prompt: “Please list 6-8 learning objectives for your case, distilled from your case outline. These objectives will appear to the student on the final case card.” They will also be incorporated in the Instructors’ Area of fmCASES.

Even though many of you have already completed a draft of your learning objectives, please take a moment after you have written the majority of your cards to look over your original case outline and compare it to the content you have now produced. Do the learning objectives capture the core teaching in your case for potential students? Could an instructor use these as a quick reference guide for what elements of the curriculum are covered by the case? If you have not written the objectives, write them with these questions in mind.