Reverse Bloom: A new hybrid approach to experiential learning for a new world

Bloom’s taxonomy¹ is a set of three hierarchical models used to classify educational learning objectives into levels of complexity and specificity. Of the three models, the cognitive domain list² has been the primary focus of most traditional education and is frequently used to structure curriculum learning objectives, assessments, and activities.

The original elements of Bloom’s cognitive domain taxonomy indicated that learning was built through six levels of learning in increasing richness – knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. A widely accepted revised version of the cognitive domain taxonomy was published in 2001, based on verbs and switching the order of the last two elements.

In a more recent revision in his 2017 book KNOWledge SUCCESSion. Sustained performance and capability growth through strategic knowledge projects³, Dr Arthur Shelley changed create to co-create.

Then, in a 2020 paper⁴, Dr Shelley reveals a significant further development of Bloom’s taxonomy. He suggests that although the latest six elements of the cognitive domain of Bloom’s taxonomy remain valid, more effective learning can be achieved by reversing their order and reintroducing the affective and psychomotor domains into collaborative learning experiences.

The figure above introduces the new approach, called the “Reverse Bloom Learning Framework” (RBLF). Further information can be found in the RealKM Magazine review article⁵, and Dr Shelley’s paper.

References: