There is more than one type of learning. A committee of colleges, led by Benjamin Bloom (1956), identified three domains of educational activities: (The Three Types of Learning)
- Cognitive: mental skills (Knowledge)
- Affective: growth in feelings or emotional areas (Attitude)
- Psychomotor: manual or physical skills (Skills)
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.
The committee also produced an elaborate compilation for the cognitive and affective domains, but none for the psychomotor domain. Their explanation for this oversight was that they have little experience in teaching manual skills within the college level (I guess they never thought to check with their sports or drama departments).
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 is the topic we are more interested in, so it will be the one I will develop more:
—> Cognitive Domain 
The cognitive domain (Bloom, 1956) involves knowledge and the development of intellectual skills. 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.
Category:
1.- Knowledge: Recall data or information.
2.- Comprehension: Understand the meaning, translation, interpolation, and interpretation of instructions and problems. State a problem in one’s own words.
3.- Application: Use a concept in a new situation or unprompted use of an abstraction. Applies what was learned in the classroom into novel situations in the work place.
4.- Analysis: Separates material or concepts into component parts so that its organizational structure may be understood. Distinguishes between facts and inferences.
5.- Synthesis: Builds a structure or pattern from diverse elements. Put parts together to form a whole, with emphasis on creating a new meaning or structure.
6.- Evaluation: Make judgments about the value of ideas or materials.
—> 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:
*Receiving Phenomena
*Responding to Phenomena
*Valuing
*Organization
*Internalizing values (characterization)
—> 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:
*Perception
*Set
*Guided Response
*Mechanism
*Complex Overt Response
*Adaptation
*Origination
- Other Psychomotor Domain Taxonomies:
Dave’s (1975):
- Imitation
- Manipulation
- Precision
- Articulation
- Naturalization
Harrow’s (1972):
- Reflex movements
- Fundamental movements
- Perception
- Physical abilities
- Skilled movements
- No discursive communication
& 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 (Pohl, 2000).
This new taxonomy reflects a more active form of thinking and is perhaps more accurate:
1. Remembering: Recall previous learned information.
2. Understanding: Comprehending the meaning, translation, interpolation, and interpretation of instructions and problems. State a problem in one’s own words.
3. Applying: Use a concept in a new situation or unprompted use of an abstraction. Applies what was learned in the classroom into novel situations in the work place.
4. Analyzing: Separates material or concepts into component parts so that its organizational structure may be understood. Distinguishes between facts and inferences.
5. Evaluating: Make judgments about the value of ideas or materials.
6. 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.
RESOURCE: http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/bloom.html
