Reflections on Bloom's Taxonomy

Model by Rex Heer, Iowa State University, 2012

One of the first things they teach you in teacher school is Bloom's Taxonomy. It's the basis of writing learning objectives, as the focus is on what students will actually do in order to show their learning. The practicality and value of this for a teacher is often unsung, as it has become so ubiquitous. I was recently given a refresher course in Bloom's last week in my instructional technology class, and it's been good to reflect on the Taxonomy again after years of teaching experience.

For years I had this pinwheel taped on my desk so I could reference it with each lesson plan I made. I'm not claiming it is the best one out there, but it did serve as an invaluable resource for me as I thought about what I actually expected from students. I was always taught that it was never enough to say "Students will understand...," but to replace the word "understand" with an action verb that has some visible result. A quick Google image search will show you that there are countless graphics out there that do the same thing but with a different shape. 

"But wait!" - you say, "Don't you know there's a revised one!" 

Yes. I do...now. But this pinwheel was the one I liked 8 years ago and it was already printed and neatly taped to my desk when I found out about the revised one. I'm only human. 

When hearing about the revised Taxonomy, I always just assumed it was an organic thing that happened, crowdsourced through the collaborative collective nature of the internet. Not so. It has a starting point: 2001 from Anderson and Krathwohl, two people who actually knew the famed Benjamin Bloom himself! You can read all about the history here. They came out with a book, A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A Revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. Other editions have come out since then, as well as abridged versions. 

Something new to me is the "Knowledge Dimension." The University of Iowa's Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT) outlines the revised taxonomy and knowledge dimension beautifully (also see stair-step graphic above). The CELT has resources, links, PDFs...the works!...when it comes to the revised Bloom's Taxonomy. 

Source: Iowa State University Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching

The Knowledge Dimension adds a layer of depth when crafting student learning objectives. I wish I had known about this when I first started out instead of nearly a decade after completing my teaching certification program! As shown by CELT, using the Knowledge Dimension and the Cognitive Process Dimension as a grid can really focus learning objectives, as well as scaffold learning so that students learn in an order that makes sense. 

Whether you're a greenhorn or an old hat when it comes to teaching, I encourage you to take a moment and reflect on Bloom's Taxonomy. Maybe you left teacher school and realized nobody is checking on your learning objectives, or you've been teaching for so long that you can just think of a concept and wing it without a proper lesson plan. It's time to ensure you've got learning objectives based on Bloom's Taxonomy with every lesson you do. I don't think any other educational theorist's work has had such a day-to-day, nitty-gritty impact on my teaching.