Planning a session

Learning and Teaching in Practice
Module 4: Planning, delivering and critiquing a teaching session
Planning a session	Introduction  |  Design active, experiential and deep learning strategies  |  Develop elements of a session  |  Summary
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This section covers the nuts and bolts of developing a teaching plan for facilitation. This corresponds to the Plan phase of the PDSA cycle. Find out how to distinguish between learning objectives and learning outcomes. Learn how to organise content and resources, and integrate formative assessment as well as evaluate the session.

Why is planning important?

• A well structured lesson increases students' motivation and interest.
• Planning your lesson ensures the content will be in tune with the required learning of the course.
• Planning also helps to filter your content and prompts you to discard what isn't relevant.

In any good design, a planning process must first be followed. Ako Aotearoa has developed a useful guide to the process.

The planning process

Click on the expand button to the right of each stage of the process for more information:

1. Establish the learning objectives

Learning objectives are what you want your students to learn (that is, to know or be able to do) as a result of the session. Here are some sample learning objectives from another course on WikiEducator. Explain why listening to customers is crucial to the delivery of quality service. Identify five (5) steps to active listening. Respond to incoming phone calls. Handle complaints through the phone. (Source: Applying Effective Communication Skills) How are learning objectives different from learning outcomes? Learning outcomes are usually defined when the course is developed and identify what students can expect to achieve at the end of the course or unit - they are summatively assessed. Learning objectives are usually defined when planning a single session and describe the learning you plan to achieve in that session. Naturally, they are usually closely related to the learning outcomes of the course and identify a subset of what is covered in the learning outcomes for the course. Please note: sometimes these terms are used interchangeably or differently from our definitions here! Learning outcomes and objectives are usually written in a standardised format: for more information on how to write learning outcomes and objectives, see Writing Learning Outcomes and Learning outcomes and learning objectives.

2. Decide on the content

Ensure the content will enable the learning outcomes to be achieved. Also, make sure that the content for the lesson fits with what you taught yesterday and what you will teach tomorrow. Brett's tips for success Remember that content is not an end in itself - make sure the content you include is essential for learners to achieve the outcomes. Make sure the content is suitable for the needs and literacy levels of learners.

3. Decide how you will deliver the content
Ensure the content is learner focused and that there are a range of learning activities that will suit your students and their learning styles. Brett's tips for success Remember that delivery is about how learners will engage with the content, not how you will transmit it.

4. Decide on the order in which you will teach the content

Make sure you include an interesting introduction, a logical and well-sequenced main body which includes the key messages, and some way of summarising or drawing the lesson to a conclusion. (Students remember what they heard first and last!) Introduction Needs to be interesting, attention grabbing, fun e.g., use a quote, photos, video clip, ice- breaker etc. Main body Covers key points and concepts and includes learner-centred activities like case studies, role play, debates, group discussion, etc. Conclusion Summarises the key points covered within the lesson and sets students up for subsequent lessons. Also may include self study guidelines and additional readings. You could use mind-mapping or brainstorming to summarise the lesson.

5. Decide on resources
Decide what learning resources you need to prepare for your session, both to support your teaching and to give to your students to support their learning. Brett's tips for success Remember that resources should encourage learners to interact with the content - don't just get learners to read, get them to discuss and analyse, and if possible ask them to explain the material to others.

6. Think about timing
Break your lesson into manageable learning chunks and estimate how much time to allocate to each. Brett's tips for success Remember that active learning takes time.

7. Formative assessment

Decide how you will know that your students have achieved your objectives for the session - that is, they have understood or learned what you intended. What activities or questions can you ask your students or get them to complete which will enable you to identify that they have understood the content of the lesson? Brett's tips for success *Remember to consider the results of the formative assessment when reflecting on your own teaching after the session.

8. Review
What will you get your students to do before the next lesson? What resources can you provide for those students who need additional support? What extension activities can you prepare for those students who want to deepen their learning?

Acknowledgement: sections of this topic have been based on Ako Aotearoa's Signposts publication (CC-BY-SA).

Extra resources

Planning a Lesson