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GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

Venice Scott

Albertus Magnus College

November 21, 2015

[Professor Comments begin on the next page.]

Strengths of the essay:

You’ve done a nice job including real world examples in this paper, Reese! Being that this assignment is a bit abstract, it would be easy to get caught up in vague language. You share big-picture definitions of both goals and objectives, but also successfully demonstrate the differences between the two through examples of each. Good work!

Issues needing work:

· Thesis & Introduction

· You do have a sense of a clear thesis here, Reese, but it is not clearly stated in your opening paragraph. Your reader will want to know the purpose of your paper right at the beginning so that they can follow your argument closely. Once you’ve stated your thesis, give your reader a preview of what’s to come by outlining your main points.

· Passive Voice

· I’m glad you requested help with your use of the passive voice! It says a lot about you as a writer that you are aware of this issue and actively seek feedback to improve it. So what is the passive voice? The passive voice occurs when there is no clear owner of the action in your sentence. For example:

When the importance of the active voice is explained, students will make the effort to strengthen their writing.

In this sentence, we do not know who is explaining the importance of the active voice. To revise this, we want to clearly state who is doing the explaining:

When instructors explain the importance of the active voice, students will make the effort to strengthen their writing.

This makes for a much stronger sentence, as it gives clear ownership and responsibility. Sometimes we fall into the passive voice when we aren’t sure exactly who is/could be doing the action of the sentence. For example:

When considering who is responsible for the action, the answer can be found within the subject of the sentence.

As it stands, the subject of this sentence is “the answer.” In its simplest form, this sentence is: answer (subject) + can be found (predicate). But, seeing as “answer” isn’t really doing anything, this is a weak sentence structure. To strengthen these, we want to add a clearer, more responsible subject:

When considering who is responsible for the action, students can find the answer within the subject of the sentence.

OR

When considering who is responsible for the action, one can find the answer within the subject of the sentence.

Just be careful not to abuse “one” in your writing, and be sure to include a specific subject whenever possible.

· Conclusion

· Once you’ve strengthened your thesis and introduction, you also want to work on your conclusion a bit. Make sure you clearly state your thesis again in the conclusion (though it may be in new words), and synthesize the main points of your essay to tie it all together. Your reader should be able to read only your conclusion, and still have a strong picture of your argument.

Issues unaddressed in this review: Once you’ve worked through the issues outlined above, remember that you can submit this essay up to two more times for further review! Your next e-tutor may want to check your progress with these issues, or may notice additional concerns that you can address.

Goals and objectives are closely related although there are distinct differences between them. Two are needed [by who?] especially when there is need to accomplish a task. Despite the close relationship between the two, there are various aspects that bring out the difference between them as described below. [Good start to your introduction – but what is your thesis statement? What argument are you proving in this essay? Then outline your main points so the reader knows where you’re going.]

The first difference between goals and objectives is in terms of their definition with respect to the duration of achievement; goals are long term while objectives are short term. Goals usually take a relatively long period of time for them to be achieved (Stephen & Gary, 2009). In most projects, goals take more than one year before they are accomplished. [Where is your ownership? Who is accomplishing them?] This implies that more resources and efforts are needed for goals to be realized. [Again, watch that passive voice.] There are also more structures and formalities that must be observed for goals to be achieved as planned. Given the long period of time needed for accomplishing goals, an organization is required to make more investments for this to be achieved.

On the other hand, objectives take shorter to be achieved; basically three months into launching a project are enough for objectives to be realized. As opposed to goals, objectives are less formal and do not require a lot resources and commitments for them to be achieved; this makes them simpler as compared to goals. Despite the fact that achievement of objectives leads towards meeting the goals of a project, it must be noted that objectives are more related to individuals while goals are related to the organization. This is among the greatest differences between the two concepts needed in accomplishing a task. One is short term while the other is long term. Objectives must be achieved before the goals of a project are realized.

Goals are only achieved when a specific direction is followed. This implies that clear structures must be put down outlining the particular tasks that different members of the project group must take in order for the project to be achieved. [Instead of “structures” being put down, how can you create more ownership in this sentence? Who is building the structure?] In most cases, organizations usually look for services of professionals from outside the organization to help in meeting the goals of a project. Goals are more sensitive and require more keenness and care if they are to be met as planned. Given the broad coverage of goals, in many instances the extent to which goals will be achieved is unknown; it is not easy to come up with a clear quantification in terms of how much will reveal that the goal has been achieved. The best that can be done [Is this the passive voice? How can you correct it?] is estimation because a clear statement of the quantity is not easy to come up with. Goals go beyond the boundaries of an organization into the undiscovered territories because their effect can be huge.

As opposed to goals, objectives are more concrete and definite. Objectives can be said to be tangible because their timelines are clearly outlined (Peter, Robert & Lawrence, 2013). Where financial resources are required, objectives can be budgeted for and there can be clear quantifications of the same. This basically implies that an objective is very specific and it is possible to specifically determine whether or not it has been achieved. To make this clear, an organization can set aside a given sum of money for purpose of making a particular accomplishment within a given period of time. This is an objective because the achievements as well as resources can be clearly quantified and determined. [Check this paragraph for a couple instances of passive voice.]

Measurement is another distinct difference between goals and objectives. It is not possible to clearly measure a goal but an objective can be measured. Goals are more abstract while objectives are more concrete. It is not possible to determine whether or not a goal has been achieved; it can only be felt or related that it is achieved or not. An organization can only feel that it has achieved its goals but cannot be so sure in terms of the extent to which the goals have been achieved. On the other hand, objectives can be measured [keep an eye out for your use of “can be” and “to be.” You tend to use passive voice in the sentences where you say that.] and it is very possible for an organization to determine whether or not objectives have been met. Through the resources given out towards the objectives as well as the time set for the same, accurate measurement of objectives is achievable.

There are examples that can be used [watch out!] to describe the differences between goals and objectives. For example, a child advocate can set a goal of improving and maximizing their professional knowledge and experience. This is considered a goal because of its characteristics. First of all, there is no definite time for gaining experience; some people take one year others two years while others take even more than five years. As seen, there is no definite timeline for achieving a goal. It is also important to note that goals cannot be quantified. In this example the child advocate cannot really tell the amount of experience and knowledge that he has acquired over a given period of time. He can only say that he has acquired some knowledge that has boosted and improved his professional life but cannot be specific in mentioning the amount of experience received. Being abstract in nature, the advocate can only feel that he has achieved his goal; he might also not be in a position to quantify the exact amount resources used in order to meet the goal. [Nice example!]

An example of an objective is when the child advocate says that he wants to improve the number of his clients by 10% within three months. This is considered an objective because it is definite and concrete; there are values that can be used to measure it (Stephen & Gary, 2009). When the number improves, the advocate will notice because he has the figures that he compares to see how well he is doing in his job. There is also a defined timeline within which the objective is expected to be realized. After three months, the child advocate can perfectly tell whether or not he has achieved his objective. [Notice how much stronger that last sentence is because it shows clear ownership! How can you strengthen your passive sentences to have the same emphasis?]

Despite the several differences between goals and objectives, there is one that is basic in the differentiation; goals cannot be quantified or put in a timeline while objectives can be accurately quantified as well as put on a timeline. [Good start to your conclusion. Elaborate a bit more on your thesis and main points to lengthen it a bit.]

[Please review the “Next Steps” section on the following page.]

Next steps:

· Clarify your thesis statement and introduce it in your opening paragraph. For more help with the thesis, check out these resources:

· http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/thesis-statements/

· https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/588/01/

· https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/545/01/

· Expand on your introduction to outline your main points. For more information about introductory paragraphs, check this out:

· http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/introductions/

· Check your paper for your use of the passive voice. I have noted several instances of this, but I have not noted all of them. It will be up to you to sift through your writing and see where you can create more ownership in your sentences. For more help with this, take a look at this:

· http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/passive-voice/

· Expand on your conclusion. Restate your thesis and synthesize your main points. For more help with concluding paragraphs, check out these resources:

· http://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/ending-essay-conclusions

References

Peter, M., Robert, M. & Lawrence, M. (2013). Designing & Managing Programs, 4th ed. Thousand, Oaks: SAGE.

Stephen, A. & Gary, R. (2009). Agency-Based Program Evaluation (Lesson from practice). Thousand Oaks: SAGE.