ABSTRACT
Outcomes-based instruction needs to align the intended learning outcomes with the assessment of what students actually accomplish in the course. That is not an easy task and requires the means to translate broader learning outcomes into very specific performances. Too often, vague relationships between initially declared outcomes and assignments given later in the course are postulated but never clearly established. The sample assignments presented fail to clearly convey instructor expectations or how the assignments are related to the course's learning outcomes. Even if the instructors had links in mind between assignments and course outcomes, those links were not evident. These problems with course assignments occur as long as instructors do not identify the criteria by which to judge quality work that is aligned with the course outcomes. One of the most useful ways to help students understand instructor expectations is to create a grading rubric.
