The use of Blooms Taxonomy to provide focus for the delivery of education and meeting educational objectives is a commonly used structure. The taxonomy can aid developing curriculum learning objectives, assessments and activities to align and scaffold education delivery. Organising levels of expertise of Bloom’s taxonomy categorises and orders from simple to complex and from concrete to abstract, and cover the learning objectives in the cognitive, affective and sensory domains.
For The Educator
“This connection between the ‘teaching objectives’ (what lecturers say they want to do) and their ‘teaching activity’ (what they actually do) – a lack of relationship between intention and performance. This unrecognised contrast between intent and the effects of teaching is often expressed as a distinction between the formal and the hidden’ curriculum” (Entwistle et al, 1971, pg. 12).
- What are the aims of the education?
- What level of knowledge and understanding is expected of the student?
- Scaffolding towards critical thinking.
- Guides and aligns type of assessment.
For The Student
- What is expected of me (what educators want students to know)?
- What am I going to develop by attending this course?
- Are values, attitudes, and interests affected?
- To understand and use concepts, to demonstrate particular skills.
Summary
The updated taxonomy by Krathwohl (2002) using the knowledge and cognitive domains states that “the Taxonomy of Educational Objectives is a scheme for classifying educational goals, objectives, and, most recently, standards. It provides an organizational structure that gives a commonly understood meaning to objectives classified in one of its categories, thereby enhancing communication”.
References
Krathwohl, D. R. (2002). A revision of Bloom’s taxonomy: An overview. Theory into practice, 41(4), 212-218.
Iowa State University (2016) Revised Blooms Taxonomy. Center for Excellence Learning & Teaching.
Nursing Education Network (2016) Intended Learning Outcomes
I look forward to this course.