The Points Don't Matter

Annotating, the act of adding notes or comments to texts, whether in printed books, digital documents, or handwritten notes, is often underestimated in its ability to boost learning. It's not merely a technique for marking up your materials; it's a powerful tool that can enhance comprehension, retention, and engagement with the content. In this blog post, we'll explore how annotating can significantly increase learning outcomes and why it's a skill worth introducing in your courses. Active Engagement with Content One of the critical advantages of annotating is that it transforms passive reading or listening into active engagement. When you annotate, you're no longer a passive recipient of information but an active participant in the learning process. This increased engagement helps you process and understand the material more effectively. Focus and Concentration Annotating encourages focus and concentration. As you interact with the text, your mind is less likely to...

Module learning outcomes are an optional, but valuable, part of course design for both educators and learners. Let’s look at what they are, and why they are important. Module learning outcomes (sometimes called objectives) are written to clarify and guide learning. They are statements of what the learner will be able to do after completing all components of instruction in the module. Module learning outcomes express the intentions of the module. They explain why the module exists—its purpose. They show learners a reason to engage with the material in that module. Module learning outcomes also relate directly to one or more of the reasons to take the course in the first place—the course competencies . Before we get any further into the value of creating module learning outcomes, let’s back up and mention where these module learning outcomes come from. When enrolling in a course, students are “promised” that the course will offer the opportunity to learn a list of things—that list is ca...