Discussion of the usefulness of the Bloom’s Taxonomy in strategic planning
Bloom’s taxonomy is a system of learning classification proposed by a committee of educators chaired by Benjamin Bloom in the year 1956 (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001). Prior to its publication by Bloom, there were a series of conferences from 1949 to 1953 that were aimed at addressing the goals of education.
The aim of this classification was to enable educators to provide a holistic form of education that enables learners to adjust well to the society. In this model, the objectives of education are categorized into three levels/domains which include the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains.
The cognitive domain is the lowest level of learning in which learners focus on the acquisition of facts. This domain comprises knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Before the advancement of the Bloom’s taxonomy, many educators focused only on the achievement of cognitive skills.
On the other hand, the affective domain targets the development of emotions and realization of the presence of others in a group. This enables students to respect others, adhere to rules, and develop a positive attitude towards the environment. Further, the psychomotor domain enhances the learner to apply bodily movements to be able to respond to changes in the environment. This domain led to the introduction of co-curricular activities in many learning systems (Krathwohl, 2002).
Based on Anderson & Krathwohl’s (2001) ideas, the Bloom’s taxonomy is very important in the strategic planning of any educational system. In order to attain the goals of any education system, the Bloom’s taxonomy should be inculcated into the key components of strategic planning. Key elements of strategic planning, such as the vision, mission, values and strategy of learning institutions should be critically analyzed using the Bloom’s taxonomy.
The mission of an institution defines the main purpose for the establishment of an institution. The diversity and complexity of the levels of the Bloom’s taxonomy mean that these levels cannot be achieved instantaneously, and the need for a vision is crucial. In all the three levels of the taxonomy, the acquisition of finer skills requires reinforcement which is a future prospect or vision (Krathwohl, 2002).
Explanation of critical and creative thinking
As noted by Krathwohl (2002), critical thinking is an intellectual process in which an individual is able to apply scientific principles as a guide to decision making. In the above definition, the key elements postulated by Bloom are emphasized.
The cognitive domain of learning is highly employed in critical thinking. Any form of critical thinking that is aimed at enhancing clarity in decision making and coming up with concrete conclusions must be based on order and scientific reasoning (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001). For critical thinking to be effective, the end results must be evaluated against the set objectives.
On the other hand, creative thinking is the type of thinking that is aimed at coming up with something new (Krathwohl, 2002). Human beings are endowed with capabilities to come up with new ideas in their brains. This ability is not limited to particular individuals but the nature and nurture interplay affects coming up with new ideas. The methods used in creative thinking are entirely borrowed from the Bloom’s taxonomy. Some of the methods of creative thinking borrowed from the taxonomy include synthesis, application and evaluation.
Creative thinking means that a problem may have more than one solution and also numerous ways of arriving at the solution. Creative thinking enables the development of better ideas (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001). To be able to think creatively people ought to nurture the spirit of curiosity, ability to deal with challenges and have the belief that most problems can be solved. Creative thinking is also enhanced by the individual who is able to deal with criticisms.
Explanation of how the domains of learning are reflected in technology-rich projects
The three domains of learning postulated by Bloom are very relevant in technology-rich projects. These are projects which employ sophisticated technologies in almost all their undertakings. The first domain has the greatest reflection on these projects.
The learners must be well versed with the current changes in ICT (Krathwohl, 2002). This means that the application of the Blooms cognitive domain would be paramount. They also need to know how to evaluate the performance and relationship of various aspects of the project, and come up with concrete conclusions.
For all stakeholders in a project to work in harmony the affective domain of learning must be employed (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001). This domain aims at creating teamwork among learners as well as avoiding conflict and friction in institutions. There is still a very high reflection of the psychomotor domain in these projects because the manipulation of machines is the key aspect in these projects.
The learners need to develop good psychomotor skills so as to be able to work with ease with the ICT machines. Proper development of the psychomotor skills leads to mastery of the manipulation of the machines used, hence, enhancing saving of time through increased efficiency.
References
Anderson, L. & Krathwohl, D. A. (2001). Taxonomy for learning, teaching and assessing: A revision of Bloom’s taxonomy of educational objectives. New York: Longman.
Krathwohl, D. R. (2002). A revision of bloom’s taxonomy: An overview. Theory into Practice, 41 (4), 212-218.