What is the importance of Bloom's Taxonomy for the assessment and the strategies of the Cognitive Learning?
http://hbotoolkit.laureate.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/PageOne_TaxonomyEN.pdf
http://educationalelearningresources.yolasite.com/resources/guildresearch_blooms2013%20(1).pdf
https://umanitoba.ca/faculties/health_sciences/medicine/media/Outcome_based_Education-Manitoba(3).pdf
Dear Aung Ze Ya,
The most important use of Bloom's Taxonomy is that is a good heuristic for teachers to understand the varying levels of cognitive, psychomotor, and affective demand that teachers have as outcomes for students. It also helps with assessments in terms of matching your assessment items to the level of your objectives.
In recent years it has been looked upon in a negative way because people oten associate it with behaviorisitic psychology. It is wrong to assume that Bloom's is only tied to behviorism, but because it specifes observable behaviors this connection has been made. In the end, no matter what your theory of preferance, teachers must have students do something in order to determine if they have learned what was desired.
A misuse of Bloom's Taxonomy is the original assumption that it is a hierarchy. However, much research has shown that students can sometimes perform at the higher levels without having mastered the lower levels.
Norm
.
Bloom helps us understand the design and assessment of learning tasks, which are created to achieve of the outcome goals of the class or of the academic program.
Bloom's Taxonomy also helps you determine what level of learning you are achieving with your program. We aim to design training that operates at the higher levels of the Taxonomy for more effective learning.
The Bloom's Taxonomy helps us distinguish between Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) and Lower order Thinking Skills(LOTS). At the lowest level we just remember the information, then understanding, then applications, then analysis, Evaluation and at highest level it is creation of knowledge. This helps in forming strategies/ exercises/tools for delivering the content. Similarly while assessment is done one must be clear on what level of knowledge we want to assess and accordingly questions may be set.
I think that the Bloom's taxonomy is many times misused. Its value is surely great speaking theoretically. But facing practice it has many shortages. It is easy with the objective tests, but the assessment of the essay's question is very difficult and I do not see the practical value of this Taxonomy in this process. let us assume that the student should write a five-paragraph essay on some topic. As a teacher you can see how the text is organized, does it has introduction, body and conclusion, you can see the arguments the student use in the essay, you can seethe flow of the thoughts etc. But, when the teacher starts to assess this essay, problem appear. Let us assume that the teacher find that the three argument are not profound enough, or that they are not the right arguments, or say the arguments are not so strong support to the topic etc. How will you as a teacher give the student a necessary feedback. The teacher will say, Hm, this argument is not so strong support to the thesis, but then, can anyone have a definition on what presents a strong argument.Do anyone have a list for strong arguments on the thesis? It is very difficult and it contain a subjective factors no matter of what the Taxonomy states. Or, I will give you another example, maybe the teacher is not fond of the student's writing style. So anyone know how to define the style? etc.
So, in order for the Taxonomy to work, all the teachers have to share a unique understanding of the its level. We all have to know what the level apply means. For ex., some sources says it is about implementation on what has been learned in a new context or new situation. Bit what is considered as a new situation. After the teachers teaches about one unit, does the exercise present the new context. Or a new context is something that will happen outside of school, perhaps at the place the student will work in future? Thus, many dilemmas arise when using this Taxonomy. Spend a lot of time to explore, examine the connection of the Taxonomy with everyday teacher's practice. Never come out with exact results for the issues I have written above.
Kind regards,
Violeta
Bloom's taxonomy guides us in classifying the cognitive level our students have specifically on the way they answer and ask questions.
Dear Aung Ze Ya,
The most important use of Bloom's Taxonomy is that is a good heuristic for teachers to understand the varying levels of cognitive, psychomotor, and affective demand that teachers have as outcomes for students. It also helps with assessments in terms of matching your assessment items to the level of your objectives.
In recent years it has been looked upon in a negative way because people oten associate it with behaviorisitic psychology. It is wrong to assume that Bloom's is only tied to behviorism, but because it specifes observable behaviors this connection has been made. In the end, no matter what your theory of preferance, teachers must have students do something in order to determine if they have learned what was desired.
A misuse of Bloom's Taxonomy is the original assumption that it is a hierarchy. However, much research has shown that students can sometimes perform at the higher levels without having mastered the lower levels.
Norm
.
Hello Prof. Norm,
I do deeply appreciate for your great comments.
Big Congratulations!
Have a nice day!
Very sincerely,
Aung
Professor, YTU, Myanmar
Hello Prof. Violeta,
It's great pleasure fore me to read your valuable comments.
Many Thanks!
Have a great day!
Very sincerely,
Aung
Professor, YTU, Myanmar
Bloom's taxonomy is good, however, if you want that teaching and learning activities and assessment tasks are aligned to learning outcomes, i suggest to use Dee Fink's Taxonomy or SOLO taxonomy would help you frame a better lesson.
In response to Violeta's concerns...
Pretty much EVERYTHING can be measured.
The trick is to ask yourself, "What does it look like?"
For example: Creativity. This is the top level of Bloom's (revised). Many people think that you cannot assess creativity. However, in the context of your assignment/unit/course, what would creativity look like? Bloom's definition is CREATE: produce a new or original work through Generating, Planning, and
Producing. You may say, this is an introductory painting class, and this is the final assignment. What should creativity look like under these conditions?
So then you start to break it down: "Student's work exhibits at least 3 of the 7 elements of art in an integrated fashion." So, 3 of the following:
- color
- form
- line
- shape
- space
- texture
- value
Students will have learned and practiced these concepts throughout the course, so further defining these qualities would be unnecessary at this point.
Then, how do you define "integrated?" Using a 4 level rubric, you might say the following:
Level 1 - work appears unfinished (1), or work was not submitted (0).
Level 2 - work exhibits a "finished" quality; however, emotional impact is absent.
Level 3 - work exhibits a "finished" quality; conveys feeling/emotion.
Level 4 - work exhibits a "finished" quality; conveys feeling/emotion; guides the viewer's eye through the painting.
The student work must fulfill each quality under a level in order score at that level.
The instructor may then go on to assess the quality of the student's explanation of the work, either written, one-on-one, presentation/PPT/Pretzi, video of process, etc. Thus, CREATE: produce a new or original work through Generating, Planning, and Producing is fulfilled.
Depending upon how detailed you want to get, the assessment and evaluation could be quite lengthy (which may be fine for a capstone or final project/exam).
Definition from https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/blooms-taxonomy/
@Lisa Gower - tx for the detailed response/examples here, greatly appreciated!
Norman G. Lederman's answer highlights the uses and misuses of Blooms. You may want to read my published article (see below). Thinking Skills and Bloom's Taxonomy
Dear Lisa, thank you for the contribution. You have explained everything very well. The first level is clear and measurable. However, when you set the criterion at Level 2 - work exhibits a "finished" quality; however, emotional impact is absent. How did you measure the "emotional impact"? Which are the indicators that will show that the exhibit lacks of emotional impact? Is the emotional impact something that is measurable? Or, as I claim, it is up to you and you and only you depending on the exhibit decide whether the exhibit has emotional impact?
Let us make a comparison with another topic. If the student should write an essay for example. If I give them seven arguments, and ask them to use three of them, where is their creativity? They are supposed to choose the arguments independently and to combine them in one coherent whole. Then, if I say the argument 2, for example is not clear, how can I write and prove that the argument is no clear. What would be my indicators? Or, maybe the same argument will be better used in other essay. Are there unique and universal indicators to show which argument is better in an essay? What will you write in the feedback: The essay needs more argument> How much? six, eight> If I tell them the arguments> there essays will lack creativity etc. Of, course, I can elaborate everything for the argument, for example it is not good used, not connected with the other parts, not suitable for that paragraph etc. But, what I am saying is> I have no reasonable and measurable indicators that would not have a subjective note, i.e. my attitude and opinion. I hope that you understand what my dilemma is.
Kind regards,
V. Janusheva
Hello RG Colleagues!
I do deeply appreciate for your great answers.
Congratulations!
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