We discuss the interpretation of the concept of “learning outcomes”. Theoretical analysis widely represents the interpretations of the learning outcomes of a high school student: academic skills: understanding, application of knowledge to solve problems, synthesis, analysis and evaluation; basic skills and basic knowledge, and skills of a higher order and advanced knowledge; skills of a higher order represented as a system of critical thinking, analytic reasoning, problem solving and written communication; wide abilities interpreted as verbal, quantitative and spatial thinking, understanding, problem solving and decision making. We conclude that each considered approach distinguishes meta-subjective skills,
i.e. skills to interact with the quality of information regardless of the context. The ability to measure the meta-skills is discussed on an example of the “Collegiate learning assessment”, realized in the United States.