The rising emphasis on offering advanced methods of teaching-learning in the institutes has created a need to implement and adapt new educational methods that focus on the development of skills among the students. Curriculum development and teaching pedagogy play an important role in it. These aspects are primarily governed by Bloom’s taxonomy.
Evaluating the curriculum and incorporating Bloom’s Taxonomy can indeed help ensure balanced learning experiences for students. Bloom’s Taxonomy is a hierarchical framework that classifies educational objectives into different levels of cognitive complexity. By aligning the curriculum with Bloom’s Taxonomy, educators can design learning activities that focus on the development of cognitive abilities and promote a well-rounded educational experience.
Review the curriculum objectives
The institutes can initiate the review process by examining the stated objectives and learning outcomes of the curriculum. They must identify the key areas of knowledge and skills that the curriculum aims to develop. Once the learning objectives are defined, it gives them a path to create the curriculum and enlightens them about what to expect from the students at every point in the course.
They must understand the different levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy, which include remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating. Each level represents a progressive stage of cognitive complexity, starting from basic recall to higher-order thinking and creativity. It helps them to clearly define the curriculum.
Analyze the existing curriculum
The educational body must assess the alignment of the curriculum with Bloom’s Taxonomy. This will help them to create a curriculum that is an upgrade to the previous one.
Balance the cognitive levels
The institutes must aim to create a balanced learning experience by incorporating activities that address various levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy and help the students to grow at those levels. They must ensure that the curriculum includes opportunities for students to engage in activities that promote higher-order thinking, such as analyzing, evaluating, and creating, along with lower-level activities like understanding and remembering.
This helps in the overall development of the students especially in creative learning, emotional learning, problem-solving, real-life applications, and others. It also promotes the development of technical and non-technical skills among the students that can help them in the future.
Modify learning objectives
If necessary, the educational bodies can revise the curriculum objectives to incorporate Bloom’s Taxonomy. It may require a few changes in the curriculum and methods of evaluation. Consider how each objective can be expressed at different cognitive levels, allowing for a more comprehensive learning experience for the students.
For example, if an objective is focused on recalling information, reframe it to require analysis or evaluation of that information. Small changes at every stage of the learning process can create an effective Bloom’s taxonomy-based curriculum.
It also includes the development of new learning activities and assessments that align with Bloom’s Taxonomy.
Educational officials can create tasks that encourage students to think critically, solve problems, and apply their knowledge in real-world contexts. Also, the curriculum must provide opportunities for collaboration, creativity, and independent thinking to the students.
Assess student performance
The colleges are require to use a variety of assessment methods to evaluate student learning across different levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy. It includes assessments that measure both lower-level and higher-level cognitive skills. This will allow them to understand the effectiveness of the curriculum and identify areas that may require further attention.
To conduct effective and accurate assessment reports, the institutes can use an exam management system that automates the examination and evaluation tasks.
Reflect and revise
The institutes must conduct frequent evaluations and reflections on the curriculum and instructional practices to ensure a balanced approach. They can take feedback from students, colleagues, and administrators to make informed adjustments and improvements to the curriculum.
Every year will witness an improvement in the curriculum and teaching methods because of frequent evaluation and student feedback, helping to enhance students’ abilities and improve their learning outcomes.
Conclusion-
By evaluating the curriculum and integrating Bloom’s Taxonomy, educators can promote a balanced learning experience that focuses on lower-order knowledge and higher-order thinking skills. This approach encourages students to engage in critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity, fostering a holistic development of their intellectual abilities. The NEP 2020 aims to create technically skilled and well-learned professionals and Bloom’s Taxonomy is the way to go for it.
