Bloom’s Taxonomy of Education and Its Use in Nursing Education

Bloom’s Taxonomy of Education and its use in Nursing Education

Rachel Rebollo

UOP

Health and Chronic Disease Management

NUR427

Sharnee Moore-Jervis

July 17, 2012

Bloom’s Taxonomy of Education and its use in Nursing Education

Bloom’s Taxonomy of Education is a teaching system, first developed by Benjamin Bloom in 1956. Educational objectives were developed and categorized into three domains: Cognitive, Affective, and Psychomotor. Each domain has specific expectations. The Cognitive Domain focuses on knowledge and developing skills to comprehend. This domain has six levels: Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analyze, Synthesis, and Evaluation. The Affective Domain focuses on how one can deal with emotions. This domain is further divided into five levels: Receiving Phenomena (awareness), Responding Phenomena (active participation), Valuing, Organization, and Internalizing Values. The third domain was not developed by Bloom, but later added to the “Handbook” by Simpson in 1972. It is known as the Psychomotor Domain; this domain focuses on the ability to manipulate objects physically. It has seven levels of objectivity: Perception, Set (Readiness to Act), Guided Response, Mechanism, Complex Overt Response (performing without hesitating), Adaptation, and Origination. These domains are listed in a graduated sequence to develop the knowledge and understanding from a basic level to mastery position. Utilizing these steps can provide a measurable amount of comprehension for the teacher from the student ("Big Dog and Little Dog's Performance Juxtaposition,” 2010).

In health care, nurses can adapt this teaching method to provide education to their patients with chronic disease. The nurse uses the Cognitive Domain to develop the information regarding the specific disease to the patient, to establish understanding of the concept. Nurses should assess patients’ affect and readiness to learn about the disease. The Affective Domain guides the nurse to help...