Bloom's Taxonomy: A Guide to Develop Learning Objectives (LO)

Have you ever questioned the origin of objectives outlined in academic resources? You may have noticed that many academic resources include the statement, "Students will be able to, " and have you ever thought about the process behind objective formation?

Embraced with educators worldwide, Bloom's Taxonomy empowers the development of high-order thinking skills by forming objectives corresponding to a level of thinking skills. The 70-year-old taxonomy, developed by educational psychologist Benjamin Bloom,  has guided learners towards mastery of their chosen subjects. It encompasses the spectrum of cognitive thinking, ranging from low-order to high-order thinking, helping learners rise to unparalleled knowledge heights.

Bloom's Taxonomy breaks down cognitive thinking skills into six distinct categories. Each level provides educators with a clear understanding of what skills can be taught and what activities to work on to help learners to obtain high-order thinking skills in a given subject. It is hierarchical, meaning each level builds upon the one before it. For example,

• To understand a concept, you must first be able to remember it.
• To apply a concept, you must have a good understanding of it.
• To evaluate a process, you must have first analyzed it.
• To create an accurate conclusion, you must first evaluate it thoroughly.

In general, instruction designers/curriculum developers use Bloom's Taxonomy to help them understand what a learner will learn at each level and design the corresponding clear and measurable objectives along with the activities. For instance, if learning designers want learners to 'analyze' a source of information, they could determine the hierarchical position of their objectives along with the activities and simultaneously determine that previous skills are achieved. 

THE PARAMOUNT OF THE HIERARCHY IN BLOOM TAXONOMY

Bloom's Taxonomy, like other taxonomies, is organized hierarchically, meaning that learning at a higher level depends on mastering the prerequisite knowledge and skills at a lower level. However, it does not necessarily mean that the learning process must start at the lowest level and progress through every level of the hierarchy throughout the entire course. This approach may prove tedious for both course developers and learners. Instead, course developers should consider their learners' current proficiency level and begin instruction accordingly.

When designing a course, it becomes paramount to consider the learner’s existing level of proficiency and expertise in the learning subject. For example, for beginners, such as in an introduction course, the primary objectives should focus on the lower levels of Bloom's Taxonomy to build a foundation of knowledge about the subject matter. On the other hand, it would be unrealistic to expect beginners to engage in high-order thinking skills such as analysis, evaluation and creation, which could lead to frustration and unachievable goals.

On the other hand, for advanced learners such as juniors and seniors who have a fundamental understanding of the subject matter, it is appropriate to use higher-level thinking skills such as analysis, evaluation and creation. However, in some cases, it may still be necessary to include lower-level thinking skills, such as remembering and understanding, when introducing new concepts. Nevertheless, most tasks should focus on high-order thinking skills that will enable the learners to master the subject matter. Applying too many lower-level thinking skills in an advanced course may cause boredom among learners.

DEVELOPING LEARNING OBJECTIVES (LO) USING BLOOM TAXONOMY

There are a few key steps you can utilize when using Bloom Taxonomy to develop Learning Objectives (LO):

1. Identify the level of learning you want to achieve based on the 6 levels of Bloom Taxonomy: Remembering, Understanding, Applying, Analysing, Evaluating & Creating. For example, if you want students to be able to analyse a text, you would be focusing on the Analysing level.
2. After identifying the level of learning, write clear and measurable learning objectives (LO) that align with the level. For example, "Students will be able to analyse the main themes in a text"
3. Use action verbs that align with the level of learning you want to achieve. For example, for the Analysing level, you might use verbs like "analyse," "compare," or "examine," while for the Creating level, you might use verbs like "create," "design," or "compose."
4. Design activities and assessments using the objectives you developed. For example, if your objective is "Students will be able to analyse the main themes in a text," you might design an activity in which students have to identify and analyse the themes in a short story. Similarly, the assessment should be designed to accommodate the same learning objectives to assess whether learners have mastered the skills.
5. Review and revise the objectives to ensure they are aligned with the latest curriculum standards and educational pedagogy.

THE VERBS IN THE HIERARCHY 

The lower level of Bloom Taxonomy, such as Remembering and Understanding, provides verbs that tend to be more straightforward and specific using verbs like 'recall' or 'explain', requiring learners to remember information and comprehend it. For instance,

"Students will be able to recall the Pythagorean Theorem formula for determining the length of the missing side of a right triangle."

Moving to the upper level of the taxonomy, the verbs are more complex and abstract. For instance, at the Applying level, students are expected to use what they have learned in new and concrete situations. For example;

"Students will be able to apply the Pythagorean Theorem to calculate the length of the missing side of a right triangle in real-world problems and situations."

Similarly, as the level increases, the higher the thinking skills required from the learners to achieve mastery over a given subject; thus, to use Bloom's verb to form learning objectives, you would start by identifying the level of complexity of thinking you want your objective to have. Then, you choose an action word from the corresponding level of Bloom Taxonomy to use in your objectives.

It's essential to notice that verbs in Bloom's Taxonomy should be used in conjunction with other elements such as the subject matter, the student population and the context of the instruction. This will help create clear and measurable learning objectives tailored to the student's specific needs and align with the overall goals of the instruction.