Classifying education goals and objectives

Beginning in 1948, a group of educators undertook the task of classifying education goals and objectives. The intention was to develop a classification system for three domains: the cognitive, the affective, and the psychomotor.

Bloom's Taxonomy

Work on the cognitive domain was completed in 1956 and is commonly referred to as Bloom's Taxonomy of the Cognitive Domain 

Competence

Skills demonstrated

Question cues
   
1.
Knowledge
  • observation and recall of information
  • knowledge of dates, events, places
  • knowledge of major ideas
  • mastery of subject matter
list, define, tell, describe, identify, show, label, collect, examine, tabulate, quote, name, who, when, where, etc.
2.
Comprehension
  • understanding information
  • grasp meaning
  • translate knowledge into new context
  • interpret facts, compare, contrast
  • order, group, infer causes
  • predict consequences
summarize, describe, interpret, contrast, predict, associate, distinguish, estimate, differentiate, discuss, extend
3.
Application
  • use information
  • use methods, concepts, theories in new situations
  • solve problems using required skills or knowledge
apply, demonstrate, calculate, complete, illustrate, show, solve, examine, modify, relate, change, classify, experiment, discover
4.
Analysis
  • seeing patterns
  • organization of parts
  • recognition of hidden meanings
  • identification of components
analyze, separate, order, explain, connect, classify, arrange, divide, compare, select, explain, infer
5.
Synthesis
  • use old ideas to create new ones
  • generalize from given facts
  • relate knowledge from several areas
  • predict, draw conclusions
combine, integrate, modify, rearrange, substitute, plan, create, design, invent, what if?, compose, formulate, prepare, generalize, rewrite
6.
Evaluation
  • compare and discriminate between ideas
  • assess value of theories, presentations
  • make choices based on reasoned argument
  • verify value of evidence
  • recognize subjectivity
assess, decide, rank, grade, test, measure, recommend, convince, select, judge, explain, discriminate, support, conclude, compare, summarize

More on Bloom

  • Knowledge: the remembering (recalling) of appropriate, previously learned information. Comprehension: Grasping (understanding) the meaning of informational materials.
  • Application: The use of previously learned information in new and concrete situations to solve problems that have single or best answers.
  • Analysis: The breaking down of informational materials into their component parts, examining (and trying to understand the organizational structure of) such information to develop divergent conclusions by identifying motives or causes, making inferences, and/or finding evidence to support generalizations.
  • Synthesis: Creatively or divergently applying prior knowledge and skills to produce a new or original whole.
  • Evaluation: Judging the value of material based on personal values/opinions, resulting in an end product, with a given purpose, without real right or wrong answers.