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Teaching@UW

Align your course

This page is designed to help instructors effectively apply the “aligned” core element of effective teaching at UW: “Aligned: Effective teaching is intentionally designed and organized to help learners meet learning objectives.” (UW Faculty Code section 24-32)

What does it mean to “align” your course?

A course is aligned when all the elements of the course are working together toward a clearly defined goal or set of goals. One way to understand alignment is to think about a car. A car is a complex machine with thousands of parts and multiple core systems. Those parts have to work together and must ultimately serve the primary goal of a car, which is to transport people. If a car’s systems don’t work together or if there are unnecessary parts in a car, it can hinder the car’s performance. So alignment is about ensuring that your assignments, activities, assessments, and course materials all “align” to your goal(s).

Aligned course design

The process of designing an aligned course begins by developing learning objectives that are achievable in your context, then designing assignments and activities that will help students meet these objectives.

Consider the context

Before you begin planning your course, think about its situational factors:

  • The course’s position at the UW and in your department: Does it fulfill one of UW’s general education requirements? Is it part of a curricular sequence in your department/program? What (if any) are the prerequisites?
  • The term: Most UW courses operate on a quarter system (~10 weeks). What is realistically achievable for you in that time frame?
  • The students: Generally speaking, are your students majors or non-majors? First-year students? New to your discipline? Students’ backgrounds also impact their experience in your course—for example, many UW students are the first in their families to attend college. UW’s “Fast Facts” page includes the most recently available demographics of UW students.

Develop measurable course learning outcomes

After having a general understanding of your course context, develop achievable course learning outcomes. Learning outcomes (sometimes also referred to as “goals” or “objectives”) are simple, concise statements that tell students what they should be able to do as a result of working through your course. Measurable learning outcomes can help instructors and programs determine if learners are achieving the goals we’ve set for them. If your course is part of a program that has stated outcomes, align your course outcomes to the program’s outcomes.

Learn more about developing effective learning outcomes.

Align your assignments, activities, and assessments

Learning outcomes are destinations, and assessments help you understand if students have reached them. Assignments and activities should help students journey toward those destinations.

Scaffold your assignments and activities to help students meet learning outcomes

Even in introductory courses, the concepts and processes in our disciplines are complex and nuanced. Because we’ve been deep in our disciplines for so long, we sometimes develop “expert blind spots” that cause us to lose sight of the many smaller, component skills needed to tackle complex problems and concepts. For students to learn, we need to break down that complexity and develop assignments that incrementally build students’ knowledge and skills. This is a concept known as scaffolding.

Consider this example learning outcome:

“Students will be able to develop an argument based on scholarly sources.”

This outcome requires an understanding of the nature of source material, and knowledge of the components and processes involved in constructing an argument based on evidence. It is unlikely that students would succeed if we just handed them this assignment on the first day. You can set them up for success by developing smaller, scaffolded assignments or activities that build toward the larger task. For example, you might ask students to:

  • Compare and contrast a scholarly and non-scholarly source
  • Use library databases to find scholarly sources on a topic
  • Annotate a scholarly source
  • Practice writing a thesis statement

Learn more about designing effective assignments.

Create assessments that allow you to measure progress toward outcomes

Assessments (such as tests, assignments, and other graded experiences) should be designed to measure students’ grasp of the knowledge and skills in your learning outcomes. Assessments can take many different forms.

Learn more about creating effective assessments.

Practicing and demonstrating alignment

Because alignment is one of UW’s core elements of effective teaching, it is important that UW faculty members know how to demonstrate and recognize it. Developed by members of the UW Faculty Senate Council on Teaching and Learning, the list of practices and materials below is neither required nor exhaustive, but may be a good starting point for instructors and reviewers preparing to engage in a collegial review process.

Examples of aligned teaching practices

  • Instructor provides students with syllabus outlining course or unit learning objectives
  • Course learning objectives are aligned with departmental and/or national curricular goals
  • Assigned readings/assignments/activities are designed to help learners reach course learning objectives
  • Instructor relates readings/assignments/activities/slides to course and/or weekly learning objectives
  • Standards for evaluating students are transparent and aligned with course learning objectives
  • Readings/assignments/assessments are appropriately challenging for course level

Your department may also have discipline-specific examples to consider.

Note: Instructors might consider providing their reviewer(s) with annotated copies of key artifacts (e.g., course syllabus, example assignment) to highlight how they are designing course activities and assignments around learning outcomes.

In the video below, UW faculty members discuss how they integrate alignment in their teaching practice and demonstrate it in promotion and tenure processes.

Aligning your use of technology

Learning technologies offer instructors additional opportunities to create dynamic, relevant learning experiences, share information, and structure interaction for students in in-person, hybrid, and online courses. But technology, in and of itself, cannot foster learning. The technologies you adopt need to support your larger vision and align with your learning outcomes.

Here are some questions to guide your technology decision-making:

  • What are my learning goals? The best technology is useless if it isn’t connected to a clear instructional purpose.
  • Does the technology add value? Asking students to devote brainpower to learning a new technologies every week may reduce the amount of brainpower they can devote to course concepts. And always avoid choosing a complex technology when a simpler one will do.
  • Is the technology supported by the UW? Many technologies on the web are advertised as “free.” That doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to use them. Free software often carries hidden (non-monetary) costs, usually involving the appropriation of student data.When choosing technology, first explore the learning technologies supported by the UW and/or connect with the learning technology support staff on your campus. Here’s where to get learning technology support:

Creating your syllabus

A syllabus provides the instructor and students with a common reference point that sets the stage for learning throughout the course. Get guidance on how to create a syllabus.