DEVELOPING MODULE OBJECTIVES

Use key verbs in the module objectives such as compare and contrast, decide, deduce, diagnose,
forecast, justify, measure, prioritize, prove, rank, rate, recommend, resolve, select, solve, support,
demonstrate, do, design, use…. Course objectives that the course handover document lists can provide
some help. Select verbs that target the higher levels of learning (see the following section), which
naturally describe an active learning task.

Bloom’s Taxonomy

New approaches to training enable learners to reach a higher level of knowledge understanding rather
than simple knowledge transfer. In 1956, Benjamin Bloom headed a group of educational psychologists
who developed a classification of levels of intellectual behavior important in learning.

Bloom’s taxonomy provides us with a tool to identify and write effective objectives for an instructional
unit.

Ev
alu
ati
on
(hi
Synthesis
gh)

Analysis

Application

Compresension

Knowledge (low)

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Integrating Levels of Knowledge Using Course Objectives

Use verbs from the higher levels of learning in your objectives.
Level Sample Objectives and Measurable Verbs
Knowledge
Low
Sample Recall information, such as dates, events places, ideas, definitions, formulas,
theories, etc.
Verbs arrange, define, describe, draw, duplicate, identify, indicate, label, list, locate,
match, outline, pick, point, pronounce, quote, recall, recite, recognize,
record, relate, repeat, reproduce, state, underline
Comprehension
Sample Grasp the meaning of the information, express it in your own words, and/or cite
examples.
Verbs compute, confirm, contrast, decipher, defend, differentiate, equate, estimate,
express, extend, extrapolate, generalize, give examples, group, infer, liken,
order, paraphrase, predict, reorder, rephrase, restate, rewrite, sort, substitute,
tell translate
Application
Sample Use or apply knowledge or skills to new situations. Use the new information
and knowledge to solve a problem, answer a question, or perform another
task.
Verbs add, allocate, alter, apply, calculate, change, choose, complete, conduct,
coordinate, demonstrate, determine, develop, direct, discover, divide,
dramatize, draw, employ, examine, formulate, gather, graph, interpret, make,
manipulate, model, multiply, operate, perform, present, provide, recount,
report, schedule, show, sketch, subtract, use
Analysis
Sample Break down knowledge into parts, and show and explain the relations among
the parts.
Verbs analyze, appraise, associate, break down, classify, compare, criticize,
discern, designate, diagram, discriminate, dissect, distinguish, elect, establish,
experiment, explain, expound, illustrate, inspect, inventory, isolate, profile,
question, refute, separate, subdivide, summarize, test, utilize
Synthesis
Sample Pull together parts of knowledge to form a new whole and build relationships
for new situations.
Verbs assemble, assimilate, categorize, collect, combine, compile, compose,
condense, construct, create, design, derive, detail, hypothesize, integrate,
invent, manage, modify, originate, organize, plan, prepare, prescribe,
produce, propose, rearrange, reconstruct, reorganize, rework, set up, simplify,
specify, synthesize, theorize, transform, write

Evaluation
High
Sample Judge or assess the value of material and methods for a given purpose.
Verbs argue, assess, attack, champion, compare and contrast, conclude, critique,
debate, decide, deduce, diagnose, evaluate, forecast, improve, judge, justify,
measure, prioritize, prove, rank, rate, recommend, resolve, revise, score,
select, solve, support, value, verify, weigh

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