Bloom's Taxonomy of Learning Domains

Bloom's Taxonomy was created in 1956 under the leadership of educational psychologist Dr Benjamin Bloom in order to promote higher forms
of thinking in education, such as analyzing and evaluating, rather than just remembering facts (rote learning).

The Three Types of Learning

The committee identified three domains of educational activities or learning (Bloom, 1956):

 Cognitive: mental skills (Knowledge)

 Affective: growth in feelings or emotional areas (Attitude or self)
 Psychomotor: manual or physical skills (Skills)

Since the work was produced by higher education, the words tend to be a little bigger than we normally use. Domains can be thought of as
categories. Trainers often refer to these three categories as KSA (Knowledge, Skills, and Attitude). This taxonomy of learning behaviors can be
thought of as “the goals of the learning process.” That is, after a learning episode, the learner should have acquired new skills, knowledge, and/or
attitudes.

This compilation divides the three domains into subdivisions, starting from the simplest behavior to the most complex. The divisions outlined are
not absolutes and there are other systems or hierarchies that have been devised in the educational and training world. However, Bloom's
taxonomy is easily understood and is probably the most widely applied one in use today.

Cognitive Domain
The cognitive domain involves knowledge and the development of intellectual skills (Bloom, 1956). This includes the recall or recognition of
specific facts, procedural patterns, and concepts that serve in the development of intellectual abilities and skills. There are six major categories,
which are listed in order below, starting from the simplest behavior to the most complex. The categories can be thought of as degrees of
difficulties. That is, the first ones must normally be mastered before the next ones can take place.

Bloom's Revised Taxonomy

Lorin Anderson, a former student of Bloom, revisited the cognitive domain in the learning taxonomy in the mid-nineties and made some changes,
with perhaps the two most prominent ones being, 1) changing the names in the six categories from noun to verb forms, and 2) slightly
rearranging them (Anderson, Krathwohl, Airasian, Cruikshank, Mayer, Pintrich, Raths, Wittrock, 2000; Pohl, 2000).

This new taxonomy reflects a more active form of thinking and is perhaps more accurate:
 Table of The Revised Cognitive Domain

Category Example and Key Words (verbs)

Examples: Recite a policy. Quote prices from memory to a customer. Knows the safety
rules. Repeats what it was said in the classroom. Describes what one saw before. Repeat
Remembering: Recall previous learned what one read before.
information.
Key Words: defines, describes, identifies, knows, labels, lists, matches, names,
outlines, recalls, recognizes, reproduces, selects, states.

Understanding: Comprehending the meaning,
translation, interpolation, and interpretation of
instructions and problems. State a problem in
one's own words.
Examples: Rewrites the principles of test writing. Explain in one's own words the steps
for performing a complex task. Translates an equation into a computer spreadsheet.
Explains what is wrong and right in his or her own life. Generalize appropriate habits in
learning settings. Comprehend own strength and weaknesses in his or her own learning.
Key Words: comprehends, converts, defends, distinguishes, estimates, explains,
extends, generalizes, gives an example, infers, interprets, paraphrases, predicts,
rewrites, summarizes, translates.

Applying: Use a concept in a new situation or Examples: Use a manual to calculate an employee's vacation time. Apply laws of
unprompted use of an abstraction. Applies what
was learned in the classroom into novel situations
in the work place or personal life.
Analyzing: Separates material or concepts into
component parts so that its organizational
structure may be understood. Distinguishes
between facts and inferences.
Evaluating: Make judgments about the value of
ideas or materials.
Creating: Builds a structure or pattern from
diverse elements. Put parts together to form a
whole, with emphasis on creating a new meaning
or structure.
statistics to evaluate the reliability of a written test. Make decisions based on
objectiveness. Constructs a routine to develop appropriate habits. Shows positive
attitudes to actions. Modifies his or her behavior in different ways: home, university,
friends, strangers, etc.
Key Words: applies, changes, computes, constructs, demonstrates, discovers,
manipulates, modifies, operates, predicts, prepares, produces, relates, shows, solves,
uses.
Examples: figure out how to work a piece of equipment by using logical deduction.
Recognize logical fallacies in reasoning. Gathers information from a department and
selects the required tasks for training. Contrast different types of human behavior.
Deconstruct from simple to complex concepts to deeply understand. Discriminate types
of reading texts. Separate relevant from irrelevant information.
Key Words: analyzes, breaks down, compares, contrasts, diagrams, deconstructs,
differentiates, discriminates, distinguishes, identifies, illustrates, infers, outlines, relates,
selects, separates.
Examples: Select the most effective solution. Hire the most qualified candidate.
Explain and justify a new budget. Explain why one thinks in one way or another. Justify
why information is relevant or not. Summarize texts and opinions.
Key Words: appraises, compares, concludes, contrasts, criticizes, critiques, defends,
describes, discriminates, evaluates, explains, interprets, justifies, relates, summarizes,
supports.
Examples: Write a company operations or process manual. Design a machine to
perform a specific task. Integrates training from several sources to solve a problem.
Revises and process to improve the results. Generate a research study. Designs a new
way to teach, to learn. Plan one´s own life. Restructure something already done.
Key Words: categorizes, combines, compiles, composes, creates, devises, designs,
explains, generates, modifies, organizes, plans, rearranges, reconstructs, relates,
reorganizes, revises, rewrites, summarizes, tells, writes.
 Affective Domain
The affective domain (Krathwohl, Bloom, Masia, 1973) includes the
manner in which we deal with things emotionally, such as feelings, values,
appreciation, enthusiasms, motivations, and attitudes. The five major
categories are listed from the simplest behavior to the most complex:

Category Example and Key Words (verbs)

Examples: Listen to others with respect. Listen for
Receiving Phenomena: and remember the name of newly introduced people.
Awareness, willingness to hear, Key Words: asks, chooses, describes, follows, gives,
selected attention. holds, identifies, locates, names, points to, selects,
sits, erects, replies, uses.
Responding to Phenomena: Examples: Participates in class discussions. Gives a
Active participation on the part presentation. Questions new ideas, concepts, models,
of the learners. Attends and etc. in order to fully understand them. Know the
reacts to a particular safety rules and practices them.
phenomenon. Learning
Key Words: answers, assists, aids, complies, conf
outcomes may emphasize
compliance in responding, orms, discusses, greets, helps, labels, performs,
willingness to respond, or practices, presents, reads, recites, reports, selects,
satisfaction in responding tells, writes.
(motivation).
Valuing: The worth or value a Examples: Demonstrates belief in the democratic
person attaches to a particular process. Is sensitive towards individual and cultural
object, phenomenon, or differences (value diversity). Shows the ability to
behavior. This ranges from solve problems. Proposes a plan to social
simple acceptance to the more improvement and follows through with commitment.
complex state of Informs management on matters that one feels
commitment. Valuing is based strongly about.
on the internalization of a set of
specified values, while clues to Key Words: completes, demonstrates, differentiates,
these values are expressed in explains, follows, forms, initiates, invites, joins,
the learner's overt behavior and justifies, proposes, reads, reports, selects, shares,
are often identifiable. studies, works.
 Examples: Recognizes the need for balance between
freedom and responsible behavior. Accepts
responsibility for one's behavior. Explains the role of
Organization: Organizes systematic planning in solving problems. Accepts
values into priorities by professional ethical standards. Creates a life plan in
contrasting different values, harmony with abilities, interests, and beliefs.
resolving conflicts between Prioritizes time effectively to meet the needs of the
them, and creating a unique organization, family, and self.
value system. The emphasis is
Key Words: adh
on comparing, relating, and
synthesizing values. eres, alters, arranges, combines, compares,
completes, defends, explains, formulates,
generalizes, identifies, integrates, modifies, orders,
organizes, prepares, relates, synthesizes.
Internalizing values Examples: Shows self-reliance when working
(characterization): Has a value independently. Cooperates in group
system that controls their activities (displays teamwork). Uses an objective
behavior. The behavior is approach in problem solving. Displays a professional
pervasive, consistent, commitment to ethical practice on a daily basis.
predictable, and most Revises judgments and changes behavior in light of
importantly, characteristic of new evidence. Values people for what they are, not
the learner. Instructional how they look.
objectives are concerned with
Key Words: acts, discriminates, displays,
the student's general patterns of
influences, listens, modifies, performs, practices,
adjustment (personal, social,
proposes, qualifies, questions, revises, serves, solves,
emotional).
verifies.

Psychomotor Domain
The psychomotor domain (Simpson, 1972) includes physical movement, coordination, and use of the motor-skill areas. Development of these
skills requires practice and is measured in terms of speed, precision, distance, procedures, or techniques in execution. The seven major categories
are listed from the simplest behavior to the most complex:

Category Example and Key Words (verbs)

Examples: Detects non-verbal communication cues. Estimate
Perception (awareness): where a ball will land after it is thrown and then moving to the
The ability to use sensory correct location to catch the ball. Adjusts heat of stove to
cues to guide motor correct temperature by smell and taste of food. Adjusts the
activity. This ranges from height of the forks on a forklift by comparing where the forks
sensory stimulation, through are in relation to the pallet.
cue selection, to translation. Key Words: chooses, describes, detects, differentiates,
distinguishes, identifies, isolates, relates, selects.
Set: Readiness to act. It Examples: Knows and acts upon a sequence of steps in a
includes mental, physical,
and emotional sets. These
three sets are dispositions
that predetermine a person's
response to different
situations (sometimes called
mindsets).
manufacturing process. Recognize one's abilities and
limitations. Shows desire to learn a new process (motivation).
NOTE: This subdivision of Psychomotor is closely related
with the “Responding to phenomena” subdivision of the
Affective domain.
Key Words: begins, displays, explains, moves, proceeds,
reacts, shows, states, volunteers.

Guided Response: The Examples: Performs a mathematical equation as

early stages in learning a demonstrated. Follows instructions to build a model.
complex skill that includes Responds hand-signals of instructor while learning to operate
imitation and trial and error. a forklift.
Adequacy of performance is Key Words: copies, traces, follows, react, reproduce,
achieved by practicing. responds
Mechanism (basic
proficiency): This is the Examples: Use a personal computer. Repair a leaking faucet.
intermediate stage in Drive a car.
learning a complex
skill. Learned responses Key Words: assembles, calibrates, constructs, dismantles,
have become habitual and displays, fastens, fixes, grinds, heats, manipulates, measures,
the movements can be mends, mixes, organizes, sketches.
performed with some
confidence and proficiency.
Complex Overt Response
(Expert): The skillful
performance of motor acts
that involve complex
movement
patterns. Proficiency is Examples: Maneuvers a car into a tight parallel parking spot.
indicated by a quick, Operates a computer quickly and accurately. Displays
accurate, and highly competence while playing the piano.
coordinated performance,
requiring a minimum of Key Words: assembles, builds, calibrates, constructs,
energy. This category dismantles, displays, fastens, fixes, grinds, heats, manipulates,
includes performing without measures, mends, mixes, organizes, sketches.
hesitation, and automatic
performance. For example, NOTE: The Key Words are the same as Mechanism, but will
players are often utter have adverbs or adjectives that indicate that the performance
sounds of satisfaction or is quicker, better, more accurate, etc.
expletives as soon as they hit
a tennis ball or throw a
football, because they can
tell by the feel of the act
what the result will produce.
 Examples: Responds effectively to unexpected
Adaptation: Skills are well experiences. Modifies instruction to meet the needs of the
developed and the individual learners. Perform a task with a machine that it was not
can modify movement originally intended to do (machine is not damaged and there is
patterns to fit special no danger in performing the new task).
requirements. Key Words: adapts, alters, changes, rearranges, reorganizes,
revises, varies.
Origination: Creating new
movement patterns to fit a Examples: Constructs a new theory. Develops a new and
particular situation or comprehensive training programming. Creates a new
specific problem. Learning gymnastic routine.
outcomes emphasize Key Words: arranges, builds, combines, composes,
creativity based upon highly constructs, creates, designs, initiate, makes, originates.
developed skills.

References
Anderson, L. W., Krathwohl, D. R., Airasian, P. W., Cruikshank, K. A., Mayer, R. E., Pintrich, P. R., Raths, J., Wittrock, M. C. (2000). A
Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. New York: Pearson, Allyn &
Bacon.

Biggs, J. B. and Collis, K. (1982). Evaluating the Quality of Learning: the SOLO taxonomy. New York, Academic Press

Bloom B. S. (1956). Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, Handbook I: The Cognitive Domain. New York: David McKay Co Inc.

Dave, R. H. (1975). Developing and Writing Behavioral Objectives. (R. J. Armstrong, ed.). Tucson, Arizona: Educational Innovators Press.

Harrow, A. (1972) A Taxonomy of Psychomotor Domain: A Guide for Developing Behavioral Objectives. New York: David McKay.
Krathwohl, D. R., Bloom, B. S., & Masia, B. B. (1973). Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, the Classification of Educational Goals.
Handbook II: Affective Domain. New York: David McKay Co., Inc.

Pohl, M. (2000). Learning to Think, Thinking to Learn: Models and Strategies to Develop a Classroom Culture of Thinking. Cheltenham, Vic.:
Hawker Brownlow.

Simpson E. J. (1972). The Classification of Educational Objectives in the Psychomotor Domain. Washington, DC: Gryphon House.

Questions to answer individually:

1. How many domains are there in knowledge and what are their names?
2. What are the levels of knowledge from low to high order thinking?
3. How many categories are there in the “affective domain”? Mention them:
4. How many categories are there in the psychomotor domain? Mention them:
5. Conceptualize each domain:
6. How important is each domain in “research”?
7. In which domain do you deal with “induction, deduction, reflecting, abstracting, concreting” Why?
8. How important is “to receive the phenomena category” in the affective domain for you to learn new things?
9. Whenever we involve in learning something new, there is a need to put into practice the domains. Can you suggest an activity in which
the domains are put into practice? Describe it:
10. From your point of view, which domain do you think is important to develop?