building a course with bloom's taxonomy

DiWan UniversityFaculty Lecture Series

Presented by Dr. Lee WintersSenior Professor

Northwestern Polytechnic University

Instructional Objectives and Bloom’s Taxonomy: Understanding by Design

Abbot Lowell

Universities are full of knowledge;The freshmen bring a little inand the seniors take none away,so knowledge accumulates.

Before you build a house…• How big is the lot?• How many people will live in it?• Number of bedrooms?• Number of baths?• How big of a living / dining room?• Office / library?• Garden / balcony / patio?• Garage, one car or two?• Environmentally friendly?

Before you build an airplane…Mission Specification:

• 555 passengers + luggage• More comfort!• Crew = 2• Range = 8,000 km.• Cruising Speed: Mach = 0.85 (289 m/s)• Ceiling = 15,000 m• Takeoff / Landing distance = 4 km.

Before you build a course

What do you do before you build a new course?

WORKSHOP OBJECTIVES

• Explain the reasons why we need to write IO for our courses.• Discuss the 6 levels of Bloom’s (original)

and Anderson’s (revised) Taxonomy and how they relate to IO.• Define appropriate, meaningful, and

measurable IO for one course.

What is an Instructional Objective?

It is an intent, communicated by a statement describing a proposed change in the learner – a statement of what the learner is to be like when he or she has successfully completed a learning experience.

Robert Mager

Instructional Objectives must:

• Describe what the learner will have to do when demonstrating that he / she has reached the objective. (where am I going?)

• Describe any conditions under which the learner will demonstrate his / her competence. (How shall I get there?)

• Indicate how the learner will be evaluated, or what constitutes acceptable performance. (How will I know I have arrived?)

Why bother ? Because, Instructional Objectives:

1. Facilitate course design:a. Critically evaluate the relative importance of topics and

the allocation of instructional time per topic. b. Identify and eliminate extraneous course material.c. Construct in-class activities, out of class assignments,

projects, tests, etc.d. Exercise all levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy.

2. Communicate effectively your expectations of the students.

Why bother ? Because, Instructional Objectives: (cont.’d)

3. Provide a study guide for students.4. Give a clear picture of what students should

be able to do, if they pass the course:a. Important for instructors of follow up courses.b. Important for new instructors teaching the course for the 1st time.

5. Required by accreditation agencies 6. Drive the course assessment.

Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy• Taxonomy of Cognitive Objectives• 1950s- developed by Benjamin Bloom• Means of expressing qualitatively different kinds of thinking• Adapted as a planning tool for classroom use • Continues to be the most universally applied model • Provides a way to organize thinking skills into six levels, from basic

to the highest order level of thinking• 1990s- Lorin Anderson (former student of Bloom) revisited the

taxonomy and made a number of changes

(Pohl, 2000, Learning to Think, Thinking to Learn, pp. 7-8)

Bloom’s Taxonomies of Educational Objectives :

• Cognitive domainIntellectual outcomes including knowledge, understanding,

thinking skills.

• Affective domainEmotional outcomes including interests, attitudes,

appreciation.

• Psychomotor domainMotor skill outcomes including operating laboratory

equipment, drafting, sports.


Cognitive domain

1. Knowledge – recognize or recall information (repeat verbatim)

2. Comprehension – understand the meaning of information (terms, definitions, and concepts)

3. Application – use the information appropriately in different situations to solve problems


Cognitive domain (cont.’d)

4. Analysis – break information into components, see relationships, formulate theoretical explanations, mathematical or logical models for observed phenomena

5. Evaluation – judge the worth of ideas, theories, opinions, choose among alternatives, justify choice using specified criteria

6. Synthesis – put components together to create new products and ideas, combine elements in novel ways

BLOOM’S REVISED TAXONOMYCreating

Generating new ideas, products, or ways of viewing thingsDesigning, constructing, planning, producing, inventing.

Evaluating

Justifying a decision or course of actionChecking, hypothesising, critiquing, experimenting, judging

Analysing

Breaking information into parts to explore understandings and relationshipsComparing, organising, deconstructing, interrogating, finding

Applying

Using information in another familiar situationImplementing, carrying out, using, executing

Understanding

Explaining ideas or conceptsInterpreting, summarising, paraphrasing, classifying, explaining

Remembering

Recalling informationRecognising, listing, describing, retrieving, naming, finding


Affective domain

• Receiving – attend to a stimulus [listen attentively to a lecture, read a handout]

• Responding – react to a stimulus [show interest in a subject, carry out an assignment]

• Valuing – attach value to an object, person, phenomenon, or behavior [demonstrate a positive attitude, appreciation, belief, or commitment through expression or action]


Affective domain (cont.’d)

• Organization – compare, relate, synthesize different values into the beginning of an internally consistent value system [recognize a need to balance freedom and responsibility, formulate a career plan, adopt a systematic approach to problem solving]

• Characterization by a value or value complex – internalize a value system and behave accordingly in a pervasive, consistent, and predictable manner [work independently and diligently, practice cooperation in group activities, act ethically]


Psychomotor domain• Perception – use sense organs to obtain cues about motor

activity [relate labels to need for special handling of dangerous material]

• Set – readiness to take a particular action [explain the series of steps required to operate a piece of equipment]

• Guided Response – early stage of learning a performance skill including imitation and trial and error [consciously follow a prescribed instrument calibration procedure]

• Mechanism – later stage of learning a performance skill when it can be performed with proficiency [follow the same procedure smoothly and effortlessly]


Psychomotor domain (cont.’d)

• Complex Overt Response – skillful performance of a complex movement pattern [repair electronic equipment quickly and accurately]

• Adaptation – skills that are so well-developed that the individual can modify them to fit the situation [alter a routine procedure to adapt to a novel situation] Mastery/Consultant

• Origination – creating new movement patterns based on highly developed skills [develop a procedure for building an experimental prototype]

Level 1: Knowledge / Remembering

• List [the assumptions under which Bernoulli’s equation is valid]• Identify [all the components of an

airplane structure]• Outline [the procedure for calculating

the hydrostatic forces on submerged surfaces]

Questions for Remembering• What happened after...?• How many...?• What is...?• Who was it that...?• Can you name ...?• Find the definition of…• Describe what happened after…• Who spoke to...?• Which is true or false...?• (Pohl, Learning to Think, Thinking to Learn, p. 12)

Level 2: Comprehension / Understanding

• Describe [the differences between liquids and gases and explain the origin of these differences]

• Interpret [the lift vs. angle-of-attack graph for an airfoil]

• Distinguish [between Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids]

• Explain [in your own words how an airplane wing generates lift]

Questions for Understanding• Can you explain why…?• Can you write in your own words? • How would you explain…?• Can you write a brief outline...?• What do you think could have happened next?• Who do you think...?• What was the main idea...?• Can you clarify…?• Can you illustrate…?• Does everyone act in the way that …… does?

(Pohl, Learning to Think, Thinking to Learn, p. 12)

Level 3: Application / Applying

• Use [the Moody diagram to solve problems involving heat losses in pipes].

• Calculate [the static margin of an airplane using the longitudinal stability equation].

• Apply [the continuity equation to calculate velocities in a variety of cases involving 1-D, uniform, incompressible, steady flows].

Questions for Applying• Do you know of another instance where…?• Can you group by characteristics such as…?• Which factors would you change if…?• What questions would you ask of…?• From the information given, can you develop

a set of instructions about…?


Level 4: Analysis / Analyzing

• Derive [the momentum equation for a fluid, starting with Newton’s 2nd law of motion]• Explain [how Hero’s fountain forms]• Analyze the aerodynamic interference

for wings flying in the vicinity of each other

Questions for Analyzing• Which events could not have happened?• If. ..happened, what might the ending have been?• How is...similar to...?• What do you see as other possible outcomes?• Why did...changes occur?• Can you explain what must have happened when...?• What are some or the problems of...?• Can you distinguish between...?• What were some of the motives behind..?• What was the turning point?• What was the problem with...?


Level 5: (Evaluation) Evaluating

• Classify [a flow as 1-D, 2-D, 3-D]• Optimize [the weight distribution along the

longitudinal axis, to result in a slightly unstable airplane]

• Evaluate [the available options for placing the wing on the fuselage], select [one of these options], and justify [your choice].

Questions for Evaluating• Is there a better solution to...?• Judge the value of... What do you think about...?• Can you defend your position about...?• Do you think...is a good or bad thing?• How would (should) you have handled...?• What changes to…would you recommend?• Do you believe...? How would you feel if. ..?• How effective are...?• What are the consequences...?• What influence will...have on our lives?• What are the pros and cons of...?• Why is....of value? • What are the alternatives?• Who will gain and who will loose?


Level 6: (Synthesis) Creating• Identify, formulate and solve

[a problem involving the simultaneous application of continuity, momentum, and energy equations]

• Design [an experiment to verify the performance of the NACA 4412 airfoil, as shown in published data]

• Create [a flow chart to illustrate the process for calculating the pressure distribution on a swept wing in compressible flow]

Questions for Creating• Can you design a...to...?• Can you see a possible solution to...?• If you had access to all resources, how would you

deal with...?• Why don't you devise your own way to...?• What would happen if ...?• How many ways can you...?• Can you create new and unusual uses for...?• Can you develop a proposal which would...?


Sample Unit : Aerodynamics RememberinRememberingg

Define the following: (a) Mach number, (b) stagnation and critical conditions for isentropic flow, (c) stagnation and critical conditions for flow with heat addition.

UnderstandinUnderstandingg

Explain Kelvin’s theorem and its implications for the vortex system of an airfoil.Explain induced drag in 3 different ways.

ApplyingApplying Use the SUB-2D program to explore the effects of thickness and camber on the aerodynamic characteristics (lift slope, aerodynamic center, etc.) of airfoils

AnalyzingAnalyzing Use the method of images to analyze ground effects for an airfoil.

EvaluatingEvaluating Prepare a list of the design criteria for an airfoil to be used on the wing of an ultra-light airplane.

CreatingCreating Design a wing for a supersonic executive jet.

Non-Instructional Objectives (Goals)

By the end of the course (Fluid Mechanics) you will:• Know the basic principles of fluid mechanics

(continuity,momentum, energy)• Learn how an airplane flies.• Appreciate blood flow through the human heart and

capillaries.• Understand fluids and how they differ from solids.

Writing Instructional Objectives

By the end of this [course, section, week, lecture], students will be able to….

Complete the sentence with an action word.IO should:• be as specific as possible• be measurable• address all levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy (collectively),

in a course.– Usually, only levels 1-3 are addressed.– Levels 4,5,6 require higher-order thinking skills.– Level 4 represents working knowledge ability.

What is higher-order thinking?Higher-order thinking by students involves the transformation of

information and ideas. This transformation occurs when students combine facts and ideas and synthesise, generalize, explain, hypothesize or arrive at some conclusion or interpretation. Manipulating information and ideas through these processes allows students to solve problems, gain understanding and discover new meaning. When students engage in the construction of knowledge, an element of uncertainty is introduced into the instructional process and the outcomes are not always predictable; and the teacher is uncertain what the students will produce. In helping students become producers of knowledge, the teacher’s main instructional task is to create activities or environments that allow them opportunities to engage in higher-order thinking.

A guide to Productive Pedagogies: Classroom reflection manual

Writing Instructional Objectives

Course IO should include • A subset of Program Outcomes.• Additional course-specific goals.• Additional instructor specific goals.• Any equipment and supplied required.

Writing YOUR Instructional Objectives

1. Select a topic in one of your courses.2. Identify what you want your students to be able to

do after they complete that topic and draft 2 - IO. Make them clear and specific. Use action verbs like recall, explain, calculate, derive, design, select, justify, etc. Do not use “know”, “learn”, “appreciate”, “understand”.

3. Determine the level of thinking required in each objective using Bloom’s Taxonomy.

Example

By the end of this chapter you will:Ugly: ...know the basic principles of pipe flow.Bad: …be able to derive expressions for fluid velocities

and pressure drops and calculate them for specific cases.

Good: …be able to (a) derive the equation for the velocity distribution across a circular pipe section in laminar flow. (Level 3)

Thank You

building a course with bloom's taxonomy

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