Bloom's Taxonomy
Bloom's Taxonomy resulted from a study published in 1956 and coordinated by Benjamin Bloom. Behavioral elements important for learning in the cognitive (vs affective and psychomotor) domain were classified according to a hierarchical scheme. The six levels are listed below, and are each followed by verb examples of the intellectual activities associated with each level.
Lowest |
Knowledge: |
define, list, name, recall, record, relate, repast, underline. |
|---|---|---|
Comprehension: |
describe, discuss, explain, express, identify, locate, recognize, report, restate, review, tell, translate. | |
Application: |
apply, demonstrate, dramatize, employ, illustrate, interpret, operate, practice, schedule, shop, sketch, use. | |
Analysis: |
analyze, appraise, calculate, categorize, compare, contract, criticize, debate, diagram, differentiate, distinguish, examine, experiment, inspect, inventory, question, relate, solve, test. | |
Synthesis: |
arrange, assemble, collect, compose, construct, create, design, formulate, manage, organize, plan, prepare, propose, set up. | |
Highest |
Evaluation: |
appraise, assess, choose, compare, estimate, evaluate, judge, measure, rate, revise, score, select, value. |
Bloom's classification scheme, and the associated verbs, are excellent tools when creating objectives, assignments, exercises, test questions, etc. for your course. The taxonomical vocabulary is a simple yet effective way to determine the cognitive behaviors you are asking your students to model.
