How to Use Bloom’s Taxonomy in the Classroom

In education, learning objectives are the main driving force that guides students toward progress. Without them, it would be hard, if not impossible, to evaluate students’ performance and take the right steps forward. But, how do you set learning objectives? Are they the same for every student? More importantly, on what criteria do you personalize learning objectives? Does using Bloom’s Taxonomy in the classroom provide an easy, yet effective solution? There are so many questions burdening educators on a daily basis.

Bloom’s Taxonomy is a hierarchical model that classifies learning objectives based on their complexity and specificity in different domains. Ever since its creation back in 1956, this framework has been widely used by generations of K-12 teachers and instructors in higher education.

The popular use of Bloom’s Taxonomy in the classroom is due to its clear, easy, and effective framework that helps teachers to write learning objectives that extensively describe the skills and abilities students are expected to master in each program. Having such a comprehensive foundation, educators are able to closely monitor the students’ achievements and set progressive goals building deeper knowledge and understanding of complex concepts. 

If this sounds too abstract and elaborate, don’t worry! We’ll break down this concept in simple and concrete terms that will help you better understand it and learn how to use Bloom’s Taxonomy in the classroom. 

What is Bloom’s Taxonomy?

Bloom’s Taxonomy can be defined as an educational framework, a set of hierarchical models, or a tool for classifying learning objectives into different levels of complexity and specificity. The levels cover learning objectives in three domains – cognitive, affective, and sensory domain – out of which the first is most commonly used in traditional education for structuring curriculums, assessments, and other evaluation strategies. 

To put it in simpler terms, what we call Bloom’s Taxonomy is actually a theory that identifies how learning develops in childhood, and based on that knowledge 6 progression levels were created (for cognitive domain). These levels are also considered objectives or milestones that every student needs to master in a particular order. 

The implication of such a hierarchical classification of learning objectives is that educational systems can create programs for different grade levels where students will gradually climb higher on the hierarchy by learning skills that increase in complexity. 

For the cognitive domain, the six levels include knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation (order: increasing complexity). The affective domain includes 5 levels, while the sensory domain (also psychomotor or action domain) includes 7 levels. We’ll explain each domain in detail in the next section of this article.

History of Bloom’s Taxonomy

Bloom’s Taxonomy was developed by Benjamin Bloom and a small committee of educators, hence the name. These models were first described in “Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: The Classification of Educational Goals” back in 1956 and a couple of years later, in 1964, a second volume “Handbook II: Affective” was published that described the second, affective domain. 

Since then, these handbooks have been used by educators worldwide for improving the design of the curriculums and evaluation practices. However, we mentioned that the cognitive domain received the most attention, which is why in 2001 a revised edition of Bloom’s Taxonomy for the cognitive domain was published, aiming to improve the classifications and their descriptions. 

Benjamin Bloom

Benjamin Bloom, the creator of the Taxonomy of Learning Objectives, was an American educational psychologist whose work was mainly focused on learning. He was a leader in his time motivating educational psychologists and teachers to work together so they can create a system for describing and evaluating learning outcomes. 

The legacy of Bloom is incredibly important in education as it represents the first successful attempt to classify cognitive processes and order them in levels of complexity that facilitate learning. He transformed educational policies and practices so profoundly that even today it’s hard to identify other individuals who had a greater impact than him. 

Beyond this, Bloom’s most notable contribution was defining and promoting the concept of Mastery Learning. He believed that students shouldn’t be compared to each other but helped, so everyone can achieve their full potential. And, while this is common sense today, it wasn’t well understood in the past. Bloom was one of the more influential experts who advocated the power of the environment in shaping human performance. His thoughts were gathered in his book Developing talent in young people (Bloom, 1985), which is a great read if you want to learn more about Bloom’s ideas regarding educational practices. 

Bloom’s Taxonomy in the Classroom: Revised Edition

Another stepping stone in the history of Bloom’s Taxonomy that we need to address is the revised edition and the taxonomy’s status today. Regardless of how ahead of its time this framework was, back in the 1950s, a lot of things regarding childhood development and learning were still not discovered. For these reasons, in 2001, a group of cognitive psychologists, curriculum theorists, and instructional researchers formed a team to revise and improve the taxonomy. 

What has changed? 

One of the most notable changes was done to the names of the levels that were changed from nouns to action verbs: Analysis → Analyze. This also affected the two first levels whose names were changed from Knowledge to Remember and from Comprehension to Understand. 

Also, most people remember the revision as changing the Synthesis and Evaluation level to simply Create, which is the highest fifth level. The reasoning behind this is probably because higher cognitive levels are more complex and do not follow the strict hierarchical order, which makes it harder for them to be separated and classified. In fact, some critics of the taxonomy believed that higher cognitive processes should not be ordered because they develop in parallel, but we’ll discuss this in greater detail when we talk about the critiques of Bloom’s Taxonomy.

Reviewing Bloom’s Taxonomy

Now that we know what Bloom’s Taxonomy actually is and how it was developed, let’s review it in detail by covering all of its components and their practical implications. In other words, we’ll break down the domains level-by-level and describe how each becomes a measurable learning objective in the classroom. 

The Cognitive Domain

The cognitive domain comprises six levels (five levels in the revised edition), including knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation – in order from the lowest to the highest level. 

Each level in the cognitive domain consists of skills that are mainly the focus in traditional educational practices, from recalling and remembering facts, to abstract mental abilities.

Knowledge (Remember)

Knowledge is the lowest level in the cognitive domain representing the first learning objective of young students. It’s defined as remembering previously learned material in the form of facts, numbers, specific terminology, or basic concepts.

Knowledge or Remembering differs from Comprehension, as it doesn’t require the student to actually understand the meaning behind the concepts, but simply reproduce them. 

During this stage kids learn:

• Specific terminology or facts/labels;
• Ways and means for dealing with basic terminologies, such as conventions, trends, classifications, categories, lists, etc. 
• Generalizations and specifications in a field. 

This is how the child acquires knowledge when they start learning officially for the first time. They learn the names of objects, animals, and other things around them, numbers, how to tell time, the differences in word categories such as mother and family (both apply to the same person). However, when they learn during this stage, they don’t necessarily understand the meaning behind all these new things, which is something that comes after.

Comprehension (Understand)

The second level is comprehension or understanding in the revised edition. It’s a higher cognitive capacity that goes beyond just knowing to read or what the words mean. It’s defined as the capacity to grasp the underlying meaning of the material (what the author wanted to say). 

To illustrate, a student might read fluently when asked, but still struggle to understand how to proceed or what is required from them. This is a major problem in education as it profoundly affects performance.

We wrote a separate article on “How to Help Students with Reading Comprehension,” which we kindly recommend.

As we explain in the above-linked article, comprehension can be assessed by how well the students can organize, summarize, translate, paraphrase, or generalize facts and ideas. 

Comprehension was usually the main focus in 3rd and 4th grade, but today, teachers begin with comprehension strategies even in early elementary school. All students progress individually and once they master the knowledge level, they can begin with comprehension exercises. 

Application (Apply)

After understanding the materials, students progress by learning how to apply that knowledge in concrete situations, solve problems, identify potential concerns, and avoid mistakes.

The application-level includes applying prior knowledge about rules, methods, concepts, principles, laws, and theories for solving new problems. It’s a higher cognitive process than comprehension as it requires students to make connections, identify patterns, and make inferences. 

An example of application is when students use previously learned mathematical principles to solve a mathematical problem.  

Analysis (Analyze)

Continuing to climb the ladder, we get to analysis, which is the fourth level in Bloom’s Taxonomy. Analysis is defined as the ability to break down the material into its component parts in order to understand it better. It involves figuring out how different parts relate to one another, what are the motives or causes for something, identifying the organizational structure that gives sense to the material, and so on. 

Analysis is a higher cognitive process because it requires a deep understanding (comprehension) of the material and an ability to use previously learned knowledge in new situations. 

Formally, analysis can be divided into three categories:

1. Analyzing elements;
2. Analyzing relationships;
3. Analyzing organization.

By the time students get into high school, they should already have basic analytical skills, which they should master before continuing to college or university. 

Synthesis (Create)

In the revised version of Bloom’s Taxonomy, synthesis or creating is the highest learning objective in education. It’s defined as the ability to put things together to build something new. Basically, it means that students should utilize everything they’ve learned before, so they can produce something different – writing an essay, a poem, creating art, planning a research proposal, or creating a system for classifying information are all examples of skills obtained in this level. 

Formally, synthesis can also be divided into three categories:

1. Creating unique communication; 
2. Creating an elaborate plan (set of operations) with an end goal; 
3. Creating a set of abstract relations. 

Evaluation

Finally, the last learning objective according to the original version of Bloom’s Taxonomy is evaluation – the ability to judge the value of the educational material and pieces of information presented to them. This is a highly useful skill today, as kids are exposed to fake or misleading information online all the time. It’s vital for them to learn how to judge a piece of text or another type of information based on the value, quality, arguments presented or based on previously defined criteria. 

Fact-checking and reverse search are two modern tools that all children should master in order to be able to critically evaluate information. 

In Bloom’s Taxonomy, evaluation is categorized as:

1. Judgment based on internal evidence;
2. Judgment based on external evidence.

The Effective Domain

Although much less attention is given to the second and third domain of Bloom’s Taxonomy in the classroom, things are changing. Psychologists and educators slowly begin to emphasize the importance of developing socio-emotional skills in school. 

By reading about the affective domain, teachers can find out how students learn to identify and manage their emotions. This domain also reveals some insights for promoting prosocial behavior by developing empathy and joy. This is achieved when teachers and parents target skills that raise awareness of one’s attitudes and feelings. 

Receiving

The first, lowest level, without which all other effective processes are not possible, is receiving. Receiving is a term that describes the most basic attentional processes. In simpler words, receiving is a skill to hold the attention toward the speaker or the material. If the students don’t pay attention, no learning can occur. Attention, or being in a receiving state, is a prerequisite for all types of learning, including cognitive and emotional knowledge.

Examples of receiving skills include listening to others with respect, remembering the names of their classmates, following instructions, etc. 

Responding

The second level is defined through the term responding. This is when the student goes a step beyond paying attention and interacts with the material. 

Examples of responding skills include participating in class discussions, presenting a topic from the material, volunteering for different activities, etc. 

Valuing

Valuing is the ability to attach value to an object, person, act, or concept. As a learning objective, it can be assessed by observing how the student feels about tasks, responds to moral dilemmas, accepts cultural norms, or behaves in tempting situations. 

The words associated with valuing are: appreciation, respect, shares, joins, important, etc. 

Examples of valuing as a skill include sensitivity toward diversity, commitment toward their responsibilities and relationships, expressing their opinion on things that matter to them, etc. 

Organizing

One stair beyond valuing is organizing or organization. It’s a learning objective that teaches students to set priorities by comparing things with different values and resolving conflict between them. The focus in this step is put on the relationship between different values.

Examples of organizing as a skill include the ability to balance between responsibilities and free time, accepting rules and ethical standards, and knowing how to prioritize time to meet various needs without conflict or neglecting one aspect of life.

Characterizing

Characterizing is the ability of the student to create a system of values that will guide them throughout life. This is achieved mainly by internalizing social rules, roles, and customs, but also through questioning those same rules and trying to find a system of values that works for their newly formed identity.

Characterizing is important because it allows students to control their behavior, to know what’s important, to be resilient and independent, but also vulnerable and cooperative when needed. 

The Sensory Domain

The sensory domain, which is also called the psychomotor domain, is focused on action, physical movement, and skills that include the motor system, such as playing sports, drawing, dancing, the ability to use a tool, and other activities. 

The learning objectives in this domain are usually measured in terms of speed, precision, accuracy, balance, and complete execution of tasks.  

In Bloom’s Taxonomy, there are seven learning objectives in the psychomotor domain. 

Perception

The lowest level or the first learning objective is perception or awareness of the surrounding when guiding motor activity. For example, the student moves in the correct direction when catching a ball.

Set (Readiness to Act)

If the students are perceptually able to feel their surroundings, they can progress toward the second learning objective which is defined as readiness to act. In other words, this refers to the mental state or the mindset of the student that determines their reactions to different situations.

Carol Dweck identified two different mindsets that determine students’ academic achievements. To read more about this topic, please read our article on growth mindset for kids. 

Guided Response

Guided response is actually the ability to imitate behavior that’s demonstrated when learning a new skill. In early childhood development, children learn by imitating the facial expressions of their parents, they try to open their mouth and produce a sound just like the ones they hear. Imitation is the foundation of all learning, but especially motor skills such as walking, writing, throwing a ball, and playing sports. 

Every guided response begins with observation, an attempt for imitation, error, and repetition. 

Mechanism (Learned Responses or Basic Proficiency)

Mechanism is an intermediate learning objective between trying, failing, and mastering a complex skill. It’s characterized by habits, learned responses that are somewhat successful and can be performed relatively easily. For instance, when learning how to dance, before mastering a certain move, the student should learn the mechanism by which that dance move comes together. 

Complex Overt Response

During the complex over-response stage, students should demonstrate skillful performance and complex movements with ease. If we’re talking about a musical instrument, then this is the stage when students can comfortably, without hesitation, and almost automatically play a song.

Adaptation

An even more complex learning objective is when the student can deviate from the learned motor skill for a specific purpose. An example of this might be changing a few notes in order to improve or personalize the melody on a musical instrument. The student can modify movement patterns to achieve more advanced goals. 

Origination

In the cognitive domain, origination is equivalent to creating. In fact, origination is the same thing as creating, but for movement and motor skills. It’s defined as the ability to create new patterns, new movement strategies in order to achieve better results. 

Things To Consider: Critique of Bloom’s Taxonomy

Bloom’s Taxonomy in the classroom is one of the most commonly used tools for designing curriculums, deciding on teaching strategies, and specifying learning objectives. However, not everyone is impressed by this classification. We identified and shared the four most frequent critiques of Bloom’s Taxonomy. 

First, some skeptics question the existence of the effective and sensory domain hierarchy, although the cognitive domain is accepted. These people believe that there’s no hierarchy when it comes to emotional and psychomotor learning, which is why Bloom’s Taxonomy is not really useful for these aspects. 

Second, opponents argue that while the first three levels in the cognitive domain are hierarchical, the last three are developed in parallel, meaning that the hierarchical order is misleading. 

Third, some people question the order or the levels. For example, some believe that application comes before comprehension. Does the student first learn how to apply the theory in practice before truly comprehending its meaning?  

Finally, there are some experts that believe cognitive processes can’t be separated in this way, making the taxonomy an artificial and unnatural process. They argue that assignments include multiple processes (eg. comprehension, application, analysis, etc). 

How to Use Bloom’s Taxonomy in the Classroom?

The last thing we’ll briefly discuss in this article is how to use Bloom’s Taxonomy in the classroom. Hopefully, by now, you have a clear idea of what Bloom’s Taxonomy is and how each domain is defined. 

These definitions together with the action words associated can support your teaching and learning assessments. 

The first step is to think about the children’s age and previous knowledge. If needed, survey the parents and find out where your class stands. This will help you identify an optimal starting position. 

Next, try to position the students’ previous knowledge in one of Bloom’s Taxonomy levels, then design activities and assignments that mainly focus on skills in that particular level. For instance, if your students are on the first, knowledge level in the cognitive domain, you should start by learning the names of objects, basic definitions, and simple assignments that ask the students to recall semantic knowledge. 

The third step is to brainstorm. Try to think of many different activities that fit the unit. Once you have them on paper, think how each of these activities fits in Bloom’s Taxonomy. Ask yourself, what learning objectives will this assignment promote? 

After this, classify the assignments into the appropriate levels and decide which learning objectives you need to focus on. This is going to tell you what the most suitable assignments for your class are. 

Finally, observe your students and evaluate their progress by seeing how easily they tackle the skills in each learning objective. When they’re ready, move to the next level. 

Before You Go

Bloom’s Taxonomy in the classroom is the backbone of many educational practices and teaching methods. It’s been used over and over again for developing curriculums and teaching strategies for new programs. While its effectiveness is proved through the success of the educational systems that still use it,  the popularity surrounding Bloom’s Taxonomy is mainly because of its clear-cut framework giving teachers a solid structure to lean on. 

If you want to learn more, don’t hesitate to follow the links we’ve included in this article. 

On the other hand, if you want to learn more about different approaches and other innovative teaching strategies, make sure to visit our blog. We’ve recently published a series of guides regarding learning methods such as brain-based learning, gamification, personalized learning, and more. But, we won’t stop there! Subscribe to our newsletter to receive notifications on upcoming articles and other resources. 
Finally, we also support teachers and homeschool parents by providing high-quality and interactive worksheets on our main website. Check us out and browse through our growing library of resources to see how we can help you create a fun and memorable lesson for kids of all ages.