As the semester begins, it’s important that educators keep a close eye on their curriculum. Measuring the strength of learning objectives, as well as whether they properly resonate with students, is a must for effective learning. How can these measurements be achieved? Well, the foundational educational philosophy of Bloom’s Taxonomy is a great place to start.
Named after Benjamin Bloom, the chair of the philosophy’s founding committee of educators, Bloom’s Taxonomy consists of six levels of cognition that classify a student’s relationship to assigned learning objectives.
- Creating – Is your student able to present a new perspective of what has been taught?
- Evaluating – Is your student able to properly evaluate and justify a position on what has been taught?
- Analyzing – Can your student compare and contrast different areas of a particular subject?
- Applying – Is your student able to use what has been taught in a new, useful manner?
- Understanding – Is your student able to clearly explain key concepts and ideas?
- Remembering – Can your student easily recall information?
The levels follow a hierarchy in which the three lower-tier levels are considered to be more basic than those above them, providing educators a path to help guide students from primary to more complex learning concepts.
In Part 2 of this series, we’ll discuss how applying Bloom’s Taxonomy in assessment can help educators take a deeper look into learning and drive academic achievement for students and programs overall.