Bloom’s Taxonomy is the higher order of thinking. Imagine a pyramid; to get to the top, you must first finish what is on the bottom. Bloom’s Taxonomy is divided into 6 different sections, each one specifying what skills are being demonstrated. The first and easiest block is knowledge. In knowledge you observe and recall of information, knowledge of dates, events, places, major ideas, and of subject matter. Some clues to identify knowledge is if it asks or you list, define, tell, describe, identify, show, label, collect, examine, tabulate, quote, name, who, when, where. The second step would be comprehension.
Comprehension consist of understanding information, grasp meaning, translate knowledge into new context, interpret facts, compare, contrast, order, group, infer causes, predict consequences. Keywords to spot Comprehension would be: summarize, describe, interpret, contrast, predict, associate, distinguish, estimate, differentiate, discuss, and extend. Layer number three is Application.
This is where it starts to get harder. Application involves using information, methods, concepts, and theories in new situations, solving problems using required skills or knowledge. Look out for these words to help you identify application: apply, demonstrate, calculate, complete, illustrate, show, solve, examine, modify, relate, change, classify, experiment, and discover. Step four is Analysis. Analysis involves seeing patterns, organization of parts, recognition of hidden meanings, identification of components.
Question Cues: analyze, separate, order, explain, connect, classify, arrange, divide, compare, select, explain, and infer. The second to the last step, Synthesis, is hard, because now not only do the questions have to be answered for this, but the other steps should be done as well, to be able to fully understand. The elements that contribute to synthesis are: use old ideas to create new ones, generalize from given facts, relate knowledge from several areas, predict, and draw conclusions. Clue words include combine, integrate, modify, rearrange, substitute, plan, create, design, invent, what it?, compose, formulate, prepare, generalize, and rewrite.
Last and definitely the hardest because incorporate all previous 5 steps, is Evaluation. Evaluation compares and discriminates between ideas, assess value of theories, presentations, makes choices based on reasoned argument, verifies value of evidence, and recognizes subjectivity. Suggested hints include assess, decide, rank, grade, test, measure, recommend, convince, select, judge, explain, discriminate, support, conclude, compare, and summarize.
