Bloom’s Taxonomy

What is Bloom’s Taxonomy ?

Bloom’s Taxonomy is a framework for categorizing educational goals, developed by Benjamin Bloom, that organizes learning objectives into a hierarchy of six cognitive levels: Remember, Understand, Apply, Analyze, Evaluate, and Create. In higher education, it serves as a guide for designing curriculum, assessments, and teaching strategies that promote deeper learning. 

By engaging  with foundational knowledge to more complex critical thinking and creative problem-solving, instructors can challenge students appropriately at different stages. Its benefits include fostering intellectual growth, supporting skill development, and enhancing knowledge transfer to real-world contexts. Bloom’s Taxonomy encourages active learning and equips students with the tools for lifelong learning.

The Six Areas of Bloom’s Taxonomy 

How to Use Bloom’s Taxonomy 

References and Resources 

The Six Domains of Bloom’s Taxonomy

Recall and recognize basic concepts, facts, or definitions, forming the foundation for higher-order thinking and understanding.

Example: List the three branches of the U.S. government: legislative, executive, and judicial.

Comprehend meaning by interpreting, summarizing, or explaining information, demonstrating knowledge beyond memorization through contextual application.

Example: Explain the significance of the three branches of government in maintaining a system of checks and balances.

Use acquired knowledge in real-life or novel situations, solving problems or executing tasks by implementing learned concepts or methods.

Example: Use the concept of checks and balances to analyze a real-world case where one branch limited the power of another.

Deconstruct information into parts, examining relationships, causes, and patterns to identify deeper meanings and structural interconnections.

Example: Compare and contrast the powers of the legislative and executive branches to determine how they balance each other.

Critically judge or assess ideas, methods, or outcomes using established criteria to determine validity, reliability, or effectiveness.

Example: Assess whether a recent Supreme Court decision aligns with the principles of the Constitution, supporting your argument with evidence.

Combine knowledge and concepts innovatively to design new ideas, solutions, or approaches, demonstrating advanced problem-solving and creative thinking skills.

Example: Design a proposal for a new system of government that addresses perceived weaknesses in the current U.S. checks and balances framework.

How to Use Bloom’s Taxonomy

Write Intended Learning Outcomes - Bloom’s Taxonomy is a useful tool for writing learning outcomes to help students attain higher order thinking skills. Using the taxonomy in combination with Backward Design, instructors can design courses that support student learning at multiple levels of cognition.

Design Activities and Assessments - Because alignment is key to attaining intended learning outcomes (see Backward Design), instructors should be mindful to develop classroom activities and formative and summative assessments that correspond to levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy as intended in course learning outcomes. Instructors can also apply Bloom’s Taxonomy to existing quizzes and examinations questions to assess what levels of cognition they cultivate.

Consider Other Taxonomies - Instructors can also deploy other educational taxonomies besides Bloom’s and Krathwohl’s. Other tools include Marzano’s Taxonomy, referenced below. Marzano’s Taxonomy is made up of three systems (Self-System, Metacognitive System, and Cognitive System) and the Knowledge Domain. Fink’s Taxonomy of Significant Learning, referenced below, expands Bloom’s taxonomy to include metacognition and wider human needs (Foundational Knowledge, Application, Integration, Human Dimension, Caring, and Learning How to Learn). Further taxonomies, including SOLO and other revisions to Bloom, are explored in the UCD citation below.

References and Resources

Bloom B. et al. (1956). Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: The Classification of Educational Goals. Handbook I: Cognitive Domain. 

Fink, L. Dee. (2013). Creating Significant Learning Experiences: An Integrated Approach to Designing College Courses. eBook: Jossey-Bass Higher and Adult Education Series.

Krathwohl DR. (2002). A Revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy: An Overview.  Theory Into Practice 41(4): 212-218.

Marzano RJ and Kendall JS. (2007). The New Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. Corwin Press: Thousand Oaks, CA.  

O’Neill, G. and Murphy, F. (2010). “Guide to Taxonomies of Learning(link is external).” University College, Dublin: UCD Teaching and Learning / Resources.