March 2008, Volume 6

Topic: Matching Learning Activities with Levels of Thinking

The problem: The things that you say and do in the classroom are not
matching what you want to achieve according to your syllabus’ learning
objectives. For example, your style in class encourages the memorization of
facts, but your exam requires students to synthesize and evaluate these facts.
When they struggle to do so, they complain, and you get frustrated.

Here’s what you might try:

Begin with the end in mind. What do you want students to be able to think,
value and do by the end of your course? You might phrase these ends in terms
such as “To remember important historical events” or “To value their own
personal history,” or “To imitate excellent public speakers’ delivery.” In each
case the verb signifies a different domain of learning and hints at two facts:

• We need to frame our course objectives with these domains in mind, and
• We need to create learning activities that match these domains and
different levels within each.

A taxonomy of educational objectives developed by Bloom and his colleagues

has proven useful for sorting out domains and levels of learning. One domain is
the cognitive, another affective, and the third psychomotor.

With this in hand, we can create learning activities to match the desired level of
student thinking. Then we can make our tests, papers, and projects match
these levels of learning and activities. This newsletter looks at Bloom’s first
learning domain, the cognitive one.

On pages 2 & 3 you will see a chart that outlines 1) six levels of cognitive
learning and 2) activities for each.
 Bloom’s Taxonomy
Cognitive Domain

Level of thinking The student will be able to:

Recall, Recall common terms, facts, basic principles, match items,

Recognize, identify, list or name objects
Remember
Typical learning activities:
• Make a story map of main events
• Make a chart showing main idea
• Recite poem

Comprehend, Grasp or understand the meaning of written material,

Understand explain, interpret, translate, generalize classify, summarize
or give examples

Typical learning activities:

• Write in your own words…
• Explain why this occurred..
• Writer a brief outline

Apply Apply concepts and principles to new situation, solve

problems, apply laws and theories to a variety of situations.

Typical learning activities:

• Make a topographic map
• Take and display photographs
• Write an explanation for others

Analyse Break down material into constituent parts, to differentiate,

discriminate, and discern relationships among parts

Typical learning activities:

• Design a questionnaire to gather data
• Review a work of art in terms of form
• Write a biography
Synthesize Bring together elements to form a whole, categorize,
rearrange, modify, integrate, hypothesize or generate new
patterns

Typical learning activities:

• Prepare and conduct debate
• Write a letter to the editor
• Write a case study

Evaluate, Judge the value of content, discern the logic of an argument,

Judge, and support findings with a conclusion, invent, produce or
Create construct

Typical learning activities:

• Design a new monetary system
• Write a TV show
• Create a new product and a marketing campaign to sell
it

Bloom, B.S. (1956) Taxonomy of educational objectives: the classification of educational goals (handbook
!:cognitive domain) New York McKay

You may find this material helpful in shaping curriculum

this semester or next. If you have your own ideas, please
don’t hesitate to send them to Gordon Chutter
(gordonc@twu.ca) or Bill Strom (strom@twu.ca).