In the realm of education, crafting clear and measurable learning objectives is paramount for effective teaching and student success. A cornerstone in this process is understanding and utilizing Learning Objective Verbs within the framework of Bloom’s Taxonomy. Developed by Benjamin Bloom in 1956, Bloom’s Taxonomy provides a hierarchical classification of learning objectives, outlining different levels of cognitive skills that educators aim to cultivate in their students. This guide will delve into Bloom’s Taxonomy, emphasizing the crucial role of learning objective verbs in designing impactful educational experiences.
Understanding Bloom’s Taxonomy and Its Levels
Bloom’s Taxonomy is structured around six key levels, each representing a different dimension of cognitive learning. These levels, revised in recent years to reflect contemporary educational practices, are not merely a list but a hierarchical progression. Mastery at higher levels depends on a solid foundation built upon the lower levels. Think of it as building blocks of knowledge and skills, where each level is essential for reaching the next.
The six levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy are:
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Remembering: This foundational level involves the ability to retrieve, recognize, and recall basic knowledge from memory. It’s about accessing information and laying the groundwork for deeper understanding. Learning objective verbs at this level include define, list, identify, name, and recall.
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Understanding: Moving beyond simple recall, understanding involves constructing meaning from various forms of communication, be it oral, written, or visual. It encompasses interpreting, explaining, and summarizing information. Learning objective verbs here include describe, explain, summarize, classify, and compare.
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Applying: Application is about using learned material in new and concrete situations. It’s the ability to execute a procedure or implement knowledge to solve problems. Learning objective verbs for application are apply, solve, calculate, demonstrate, and use.
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Analyzing: Analysis involves breaking down complex information into its constituent parts and understanding the relationships between these parts and the overall structure. It’s about critical thinking and deconstruction. Learning objective verbs at this level include analyze, differentiate, compare, contrast, and categorize.
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Evaluating: Evaluation is the ability to make judgments based on established criteria and standards. It involves critical assessment and the ability to critique and justify decisions. Learning objective verbs for evaluation include evaluate, critique, judge, justify, and defend.
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Creating: The highest level, creating, involves putting elements together to form a coherent or novel whole. It’s about generating new ideas, products, or perspectives. Learning objective verbs for creation include create, design, develop, formulate, and invent.
This hierarchical nature of Bloom’s Taxonomy is often visually represented as a pyramid or, in a more contemporary and illustrative style, as a cake. The cake analogy emphasizes that each level is built upon the preceding one, creating a layered and robust structure of learning.
Bloom’s Taxonomy: A Tool for Effective Course Design
Bloom’s Taxonomy serves as a powerful framework for designing courses and lessons that foster meaningful learning. It provides a roadmap for educators to think systematically about the learning process. The taxonomy highlights a logical progression: you must remember information before you can understand it, and you must understand it before you can apply it. This sequential understanding is crucial for designing effective instructional strategies.
However, it’s important to note that teaching doesn’t always follow a strictly linear path through Bloom’s levels for every concept. Such an approach could become monotonous. Instead, consider your students’ level of preparation. For introductory courses or freshman-level students, learning objectives may initially focus on the lower levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy, such as remembering and understanding fundamental concepts. This is because students are building foundational knowledge. However, even in introductory courses, aiming for some application and analysis is beneficial to engage students and promote deeper learning.
Conversely, for advanced students, such as juniors, seniors, or graduate students, learning objectives should predominantly target the higher levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy – analyzing, evaluating, and creating. These students already possess a solid foundation and are ready for more complex cognitive challenges. Overemphasizing lower-level objectives might lead to disengagement and underutilization of their potential. A balanced approach, considering the learners’ level, is key to effective course design using Bloom’s Taxonomy.
The Power of Learning Objective Verbs
To effectively utilize Bloom’s Taxonomy, understanding the role of learning objective verbs is crucial. These verbs are action words that clearly articulate what students should be able to do upon completing a lesson or course. Verb tables aligned with Bloom’s Taxonomy are invaluable tools for educators. These tables list verbs categorized by each level of the taxonomy, providing a readily accessible resource for writing measurable learning objectives.
It’s worth noting that some verbs, often termed “multi-level verbs,” can appear across different levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy. For example, the verb “explain” can be used at the understanding level, such as “explain the concept of photosynthesis,” or at the analyzing level, such as “explain the environmental impact of deforestation.” The Bloom’s level is determined not solely by the verb itself, but by the complexity of the skill, action, or activity you intend to teach using that verb. Context is key.
Furthermore, different verb charts for Bloom’s Taxonomy might categorize certain verbs at slightly different levels. The focus should always remain on the intended cognitive process and the level of thinking required by the learning objective, rather than rigid adherence to a single verb list.
| Bloom’s Level | Key Verbs (keywords) | Example Learning Objective |
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| Create | design, formulate, build, invent, create, compose, generate, derive, modify, develop. | By the end of this lesson, students will be able to design an original homework problem dealing with the principle of conservation of energy. |
| Evaluate | choose, support, relate, determine, defend, judge, grade, compare, contrast, argue, justify, support, convince, select, evaluate. | By the end of this lesson, students will be able to determine whether using conservation of energy or conservation of momentum would be more appropriate for solving a dynamics problem. |
| Analyze | classify, break down, categorize, analyze, diagram, illustrate, criticize, simplify, associate. | By the end of this lesson, students will be able to differentiate between potential and kinetic energy. |
| Apply | calculate, predict, apply, solve, illustrate, use, demonstrate, determine, model, perform, present. | By the end of this lesson, students will be able to calculate the kinetic energy of a projectile. |
| Understand | describe, explain, paraphrase, restate, give original examples of, summarize, contrast, interpret, discuss. | By the end of this lesson, students will be able to describe Newton’s three laws of motion in their own words. |
| Remember | list, recite, outline, define, name, match, quote, recall, identify, label, recognize. | By the end of this lesson, students will be able to recite Newton’s three laws of motion. |
Aligning with Quality Matters Standards
For courses aiming for quality assurance benchmarks like Quality Matters, Bloom’s Taxonomy becomes even more relevant. Quality Matters standards emphasize the necessity of measurable learning objectives. Using verb tables linked to Bloom’s Taxonomy directly addresses this requirement by guiding educators away from vague, unquantifiable verbs like “understand,” “learn,” “appreciate,” or “enjoy.” Instead, it encourages the use of action verbs that clearly define observable and measurable student outcomes.
Furthermore, Quality Matters stresses the alignment between learning objectives and course assessments. Bloom’s Taxonomy facilitates this alignment. If a learning objective utilizes an application-level verb like “present,” assessment methods must go beyond simple recall, such as multiple-choice quizzes. Assessments should require students to actually apply their knowledge, perhaps through presentations, projects, or case studies, to demonstrate mastery of the learning objective.
Differentiating Course-Level and Lesson-Level Objectives
When designing curriculum, it’s important to distinguish between course-level and lesson-level objectives. Course-level objectives are broad, overarching goals for the entire course. They define what students should achieve by the end of the course. Lesson-level objectives, on the other hand, are more specific and granular, outlining what students should achieve within a single lesson or module.
Course-level objectives are typically too broad to be directly assessed. Instead, mastery of course-level objectives is demonstrated through the accumulation of mastery in several supporting lesson-level objectives. Think of lesson-level objectives as building blocks that, when combined, lead to the achievement of the broader course-level objectives.
When using Bloom’s Taxonomy, ensure that lesson-level objectives progressively build towards the cognitive level of the corresponding course-level objective. The learning objective verbs chosen for lesson-level objectives should be at or below the cognitive level of the verbs used in the course-level objectives they support. For instance, if a course-level objective uses an “applying” level verb, the supporting lesson-level objectives can use verbs from the remembering, understanding, or applying levels, but not from higher levels like analyzing or evaluating. This ensures a logical progression and scaffolding of learning throughout the course.
Steps to Writing Effective Learning Objectives with Bloom’s Verbs
Writing effective learning objectives using Bloom’s Taxonomy and appropriate learning objective verbs involves a structured approach:
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Ensure Measurable Verbs: Each learning objective should contain one measurable verb. This verb should clearly indicate the observable action or skill students are expected to demonstrate.
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One Verb Per Objective: Each objective should focus on a single, specific outcome. Avoid combining multiple verbs within a single objective, as this can make assessment ambiguous. If an objective contains two verbs, it becomes unclear whether partial mastery (achieving one verb but not the other) constitutes success.
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Hierarchical Verb Alignment: Ensure that the cognitive level of verbs in course-level objectives is at least as high as the highest cognitive level of verbs in the supporting lesson-level objectives. This guarantees that lesson-level objectives adequately contribute to the broader course goals.
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Clarity and Conciseness: Strive for learning objectives that are clear, concise, and easily understandable. Avoid jargon or overly complex language. The objectives should be readily interpretable by both instructors and students.
A helpful technique when writing objectives is to explicitly indicate the Bloom’s level of the chosen verb in parentheses next to it. For example:
Course level objective 1. (Apply) Demonstrate how transportation is a critical link in the supply chain.
1.1. (Understand) Discuss the changing global landscape for businesses and other organizations that are driving change in the global environment.
1.2. (Apply) Demonstrate the special nature of transportation demand and the influence of transportation on companies and their supply chains operating in a global economy.
This practice facilitates a quick visual check of the cognitive levels and ensures alignment between course and lesson objectives.
Before you begin writing your objectives, consider reviewing examples of well-crafted learning objectives and verb charts to further refine your understanding and skills.
Additional External Resources:
For a longer list of Bloom’s Verbs – TIPS tip: You can also use the “find” function (press: Ctrl-f or command-f on a mac) in your browser to locate specific verbs on this list.
