Learning outcomes may not be readily assessable for other reasons. Where too much is specified in the one learning outcome, it may be impossible to assess fairly. For example:
(-) Can write essays, reports, descriptions, recounts and personal emails in well organised paragraphs, using accurate grammar and good cohesion.
Does a student really need to produce all these text types in order to pass, and how realistic is it to assess them all? What about the language differences between formal and personal writing?
Cohesion is intrinsic to paragraph organisation, but it is possible to write effectively with some grammatical inaccuracies; and the degree of inaccuracy varies according to genre and context. If a student organises paragraphs well but makes some grammatical errors, this learning outcome has been only partially met and logically the student should fail.
And is it realistic to expect students to achieve “accurate grammar”? Probably not in some genres such as blogs or personal emails. And where accuracy is important, it is likely to be more realistic to specify the degree of accuracy.
The above learning outcome appears to be trying to encapsulate all that a student needs to achieve in writing skills. It would be more effective to break it up, for example:
(+) W1 Can identify the text stages and conventions of a variety of genres.
W2 Can write clear, detailed descriptions on a variety of subjects related to own areas of interest.
W3 Can write a letter or email using a register appropriate to the context and commenting on the correspondent’s information and/or opinions.
W4 Can write an essay or report which develops an argument, giving reasons and explanations.
W5 Can produce clearly intelligible continuous writing, which follows standard layout, paragraphing, punctuation and spelling conventions.
Breaking up the original learning outcome in this way involves the syllabus writer thinking in greater detail about what learners need to be able to do. A different writer might focus learning outcomes differently – for instance, depending on the course, personal writing might have greater relevance or be omitted entirely.
