Cognitive domains definition: Domains of cognition and their assessment

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Bloom’s taxonomy | Education, Cognitive Skills & Learning Outcomes

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Bloom’s taxonomy, taxonomy of educational objectives, developed in the 1950s by the American educational psychologist Benjamin Bloom, which fostered a common vocabulary for thinking about learning goals. Bloom’s taxonomy engendered a way to align educational goals, curricula, and assessments that are used in schools, and it structured the breadth and depth of the instructional activities and curriculum that teachers provide for students. Few educational theorists or researchers have had as profound an impact on American educational practice as Bloom.

Understanding education and its objectives

Throughout the 20th century, educators explored a variety of different ways to make both explicit and implicit the educational objectives taught by teachers, particularly in early education. In the early 20th century, objectives were referred to as aims or purposes, and in the early 21st century, they evolved into standards. During much of the 20th century, educational reformers who wanted to more clearly describe what teachers should teach began to use the word objectives, which referred to the type of student learning outcomes to be evidenced in classrooms. Bloom’s taxonomy was one of the most significant representations of those learning outcomes.

Bloom’s work was not only in a cognitive taxonomy but also constituted a reform in how teachers thought about the questioning process within the classroom. Indeed, the taxonomy was originally structured as a way of helping faculty members think about the different types of test items that could be used to measure student academic growth. Bloom and a group of assessment experts he assembled began their work in 1949 and completed their efforts in 1956 when they published Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: The Classification of Educational Goals, Handbook 1: Cognitive Domain.

Bloom’s cognitive domains

Bloom’s cognitive taxonomy originally was represented by six different domain levels: (1) knowledge, (2) comprehension, (3) application, (4) analysis, (5) synthesis, and (6) evaluation. All of the Bloom domains focused on the knowledge and cognitive processes. The American educational psychologist David Krathwohl and some of his associates subsequently focused on the affective domain, which is concerned with student interests, attitudes, and feelings. Another American educational psychologist, Anita Harrow, developed the psychomotor domains, which deal with a wide variety of motor skills. Bloom’s work was most noted for its focus on the cognitive. Bloom became closely associated with the cognitive dimension even though, in subsequent work, he often examined the wide variety of “entry” characteristics (cognitive and affective) that students evidenced when they began their schooling.

Each of Bloom’s cognitive domains enabled educators to begin differentiating the type of content being taught as well as the complexity of the content. The domains are particularly useful for educators who are thinking about the questioning process within the classroom, with questions ranging in complexity from lower-order types of knowledge to higher-order questions that would require more complex and comprehensive thought. Bloom’s taxonomy enabled teachers to think in a structured way about how they question students and deliver content. The taxonomy, in both its original and revised versions, helped teachers understand how to enhance and improve instructional delivery by aligning learning objectives with student assessments and by enhancing the learning goals for students in terms of cognitive complexity.

The following list presents the structure of the original framework, with examples of questions at each of the six domain levels:

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1. Knowledge Level: At this level the teacher is attempting to determine whether the students can recognize and recall information. Example: What countries were involved in the War of 1812?

2. Comprehension Level: At this level the teacher wants the students to be able to arrange or, in some way, organize information. Example: In the book Teammates the authors describe Jackie Robinson’s struggles as a baseball player and the way in which Pee Wee Reese publicly defended Robinson. Describe in your own words the struggles that Robinson had and what Reese did to help him succeed as a baseball player.

3. Application Level: At this level the teacher begins to use abstractions to describe particular ideas or situations. Example: What would be the probable influence of a change in temperature on a chemical such as hydrochloric acid?

4. Analysis Level: At this level the teacher begins to examine elements and the relationships between elements or the operating organizational principles undergirding an idea. Example: Describe the way in which slavery contributed to the American Civil War.

5. Synthesis Level: At this level the teacher is beginning to help students put conceptual elements or parts together in some new plan of operation or development of abstract relationships. Example: Formulate a hypothesis about the reasons for South Carolina’s decision to secede from the Union.

6. Evaluation Level: At this level the teacher helps students understand the complexity of ideas so that they can recognize how concepts and facts are either logically consistent or illogically developed. Example: Was it an ethical decision to take to trial the Nazi war criminals and to subsequently put so many of them to death?

Bloom focuses primarily on the cognitive dimension; most teachers rely heavily on the six levels of the cognitive domain to shape the way in which they deliver content in the classroom. Originally Bloom thought about the characteristics that students possess when they enter school, and he divided those characteristics into the affective and the cognitive. From Bloom’s perspective the learning outcomes are a result of the type of learning environment a student is experiencing and the quality of the instruction the teacher is providing. The affective elements included the students’ readiness and motivation to learn; the cognitive characteristics included the prior understandings the students possessed before they entered the classroom. In essence, a student who had an extensive personal vocabulary and came from a reading-rich home environment would be more ready to learn than the student who had been deprived of such opportunities during his preschool years. In the early 21st century, some reformers described this as the “knowledge gap” and specifically highlighted the fact that students from low socioeconomic settings have less access to books and a lower exposure to a rich home vocabulary. In essence, some of Bloom’s original ideas continued to be reinforced in the educational research literature.

A revision of Bloom’s taxonomy

Many researchers had begun to rethink the way in which educational objectives were presented by teachers, and they developed a revision of Bloom’s taxonomy in 2001. The revised taxonomy was developed by using many of the same processes and approaches that Bloom had used a half century earlier. In the new taxonomy, two dimensions are presented: the knowledge dimension and the cognitive dimension. There are four levels on the knowledge dimension: factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive. There are six levels on the cognitive process dimension: remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating. The new taxonomy enabled teachers to think more in depth about the content that they are teaching and the objectives they are focusing on within the classroom. It allowed teachers to categorize objectives in a more-multidimensional way and to do so in a manner that allows them to see the complex relationships between knowledge and cognitive processes.

The original Bloom’s taxonomy allowed teachers to categorize content and questions at different levels. The new two-dimensional model enabled teachers to see the relationship between and among the objectives for the content being taught and to also examine how that material should be taught and how it might be assessed. By examining both the knowledge level and the cognitive processes, teachers were better equipped to consider the complex nature of the learning process and also better equipped to assess what the students learn.

The new taxonomy did not easily spread among practitioners, in part because most classroom teachers remained unfamiliar with the new taxonomic approach and because many professional development experts (including those in teacher-education institutions) continued to rely on the original taxonomy. The new model was in many ways just as significant as the original taxonomy. The original approach provided a structure for how people thought about facts, concepts, and generalizations and offered a common language for thinking about and communicating educational objectives. In essence, it helped teachers think more clearly about the structure and nature of knowledge. The new taxonomy helped teachers see how complex knowledge really is.

Thomas J. Lasley II
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Subject area of ​​cognitive linguistics. Brief overview

Subject area of ​​cognitive linguistics: brief overview
Cognitive linguistics is a modern school of linguistic thought and practice. An area of ​​research in cognitive linguistics is the relationship between natural language, the mind, and sociophysical experience. This branch of linguistics was founded in the 1970s (Filmore, 1975; Lakoff & Thompson, 1975; Rosch, 1975) and stemmed from dissatisfaction with the results that demonstrated the formal approaches to language that dominated linguistics and philosophy at that time. Despite the fact that the origin of this linguistic direction was, in part, philosophical in nature, yet cognitive linguistics was strongly influenced by the scientific concepts and scientific research of other cognitive sciences (since they appeared during the 1960s and 1970s), especially cognitive psychology.
This influence is best reflected in the writings on social classification, especially those of Charles Fillmore in the 1970s (eg Fillmore 1975) and George Lakoff in the 1980s (eg 1987). Earlier traditions (such as Gestalt psychology) also matter, as demonstrated by Leonard Talmy (2000) and Ronald Langecker (1987). Finally, theories about the neural basis of language and human cognition have had a lasting impact on the nature and content of cognitive linguistic theories, beginning with early work on how the eye’s structure limits the color terminology system (Kay and McDaniel, 1978), ending with recent work entitled “Neural Theory of Language” (Lakoff, 2005). In recent years, cognitive linguistic theories have become sufficiently complex and detailed to start making any predictions that are suitable for testing using a wide range of similar methods from the field of cognitive science.
Early research was dominant in the 1970s and early 1980s due to a relatively small number of scientists primarily (though not exclusively) active on the West Coast of the United States. Within 19In the 1980s, cognitive linguistic studies began to take root in the north of continental Europe, especially in Belgium, Holland and Germany.
By the early 1990s, there was a growing body of research in cognitive linguistics across Europe and North America. There was also a rather large group of researchers who lived in different countries and who called themselves ‘cognitive linguists’. After a conference in Duisburg (Germany), the International Association for Cognitive Linguistics was founded in 1989, and a year later the journal Cognitive Linguistics was established. According to one of the pioneers in the field of cognitive linguistics, Ronald Langaker (1991b, p. xv), this event ‘marked the birth of cognitive linguistics as a strongly grounded, self-aware intellectual movement’.
‘Movement’ or ‘subject area’ are the words that most accurately describe the essence of cognitive linguistics, since it is not a clearly formulated theory. Instead, cognitive linguistics is an approach that adopts the usual set of core commitments and guiding principles that have led to a different set of complementary, overlapping (and sometimes competing) theories.
The purpose of this article is to trace some of the major assumptions and beliefs that make cognitive linguistics a distinct and viable subject area. We will also attempt to take a brief look at the major areas of research and theory-building that characterize cognitive linguistics, areas that make it one of the most vibrant, exciting, and promising philosophies of thought and practice in contemporary cognitive science.
Two key commitments of cognitive linguistics

The subject area of ​​cognitive linguistics is characterized by two fundamental commitments (Lakoff, 1990). Both of them underlie both the scientific orientation and approach that have been established by practicing cognitive linguists, and the basis of the hypotheses and methodologies adopted by the two main areas of the subject area of ​​cognitive science: cognitive semantics and cognitive approaches to grammar (discussion of these issues will be presented below ).
Generalization obligation.
The first key concept is the generalization obligation (Lakoff, 1990). It is
a kind of focus on the characterization of general principles that apply to all aspects of natural language. This goal is a special case of the standard obligation in science, and is used to seek the broadest generalizations possible. In contrast to the approach used in cognitive linguistics, other approaches to the study of language often divide language ability into distinct areas such as phonology (sound), semantics (word and sentence meaning), pragmatics (meaning in the context of conversation), morphology (word structure). ), syntax (sentence structure) and so on. As a consequence, there is no good reason to generalize through these aspects of the language or to explore their interrelationships. This is especially characteristic of formal linguistics.

Formal linguistics attempts to model a language by establishing explicit mechanical devices or methods that operate on theoretical basic elements in order to reproduce all possible grammatical sentences in a given language. Within such approaches, as a rule, attempts are made to arrive at precise formulations by adopting a formalism inspired by computer science, mathematics, and logic. Formal linguistics found its embodiment, first of all, in the works of Noam Chomsky (for example, his works 1965, 1981, 1995) and in the generative grammar paradigm, as well as the tradition known as formal semantics, inspired by the philosopher of language Richard Montagu (1970, 1973; see Cann, 1993, for a review).
Within formal linguistics, the fact is discussed that areas such as phonology, semantics, and syntax deal with significantly different kinds of structuring
principles based on different kinds of basic elements. For example, syntactic ‘module’ is the area in the human mind that is responsible for structuring (constructing) words into sentences, while phonological ‘module’ is concerned with composing sounds into patterns permitted by the rules of any given language, and natural language in general. This modular view of the mind reinforces the idea that the division of modern linguistic research into different branches of science is justified, not only on the basis of practicality, but also because the components of the language are quite different, and, from the point of view of organization, are not commensurate with each other.
Cognitive linguists recognize that considering syntax, semantics, and phonology as distinct areas can be very helpful. However, given the obligation to generalize, cognitive linguists do not start from the axiom that the ‘modules’ or ‘subsystems’ of a language are organized in rather contradictory ways, or that, in fact, there are quite different modules. Thus, the obligation to generalize is a commitment to explore how different aspects of linguistic knowledge emerge from a single set of human cognitive abilities from which they are derived, rather than from the assumption that linguistic knowledge originates in latent modules of the mind.
The obligation to generalize has some rather specific implications for language research. First, cognitive linguistic research focuses on what is common among different linguistic aspects, seeking to re-use valid methods and explanations in relation to these aspects. For example, just as the lexical meaning of a word contains a prototypical component, there are good and not so good examples of referents of given words connected in some special way – thus, various studies have applied the same principles to the organization of morphology (for example, Taylor, 2003), syntax (e. g. Goldberg, 1995) and phonology (eg Jaeger & Ohala, 1984). Summarizing actionable explanations, interpretations across certain areas of language is not just good scientific practice – it is also the way biology is based; reuse of already existing structures for new purposes, both on the scale of evolution and on the scale of development.
Second, cognitive linguistic approaches often take a ‘vertical’ rather than a ‘horizontal’ approach to the study of language as their basis. A language can be considered a structure consisting of a number of distinct layers of organization – a sound structure, a set of words made up of these sounds, the syntactic structures that these words make up, and so on. If we build these layers one on top of the other, given that they unfold over an extended period of time (like layers of a pie), then modular approaches are then horizontal, in the sense that one layer is considered and studied from the inside – just like horizontal piece of cake. Vertical approaches provide a richer view of the language by looking at the vertical part of the language, which includes phonology, morphology, syntax, and, of course, a healthy dose of semantics at the very top. The vertical part of the language is always more complex to some extent than the horizontal part – it is more fluid and structured – but at the same time it provides possible explanations that are simply not available from a horizontal, modular point of view.

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Cognitive abilities: what is it and how to develop them

Every day, cognitive skills help us solve simple and complex problems. The level of our life, career and health depends on how developed mental abilities are

1. What is it
2. How to change
3. How to improve

The fact that the brain is a “muscle” that also needs to be trained has long been known. It has been proven [1] that people who have been actively engaged in mental work throughout their lives, for example, taught at a university, are less likely to experience dementia, or it comes to them much later. Special attention was paid to the “pumping” of cognitive abilities [2] after the first waves of the pandemic, when it turned out that coronavirus infection affects attention and memory, reduces mental activity and provokes Alzheimer’s disease.

Neuroplasticity allows the development of cognitive functions of the brain both in youth and in adulthood and even advanced age. Thanks to this, we can continuously learn, master languages, succeed at work and just in everyday life, full of tasks and puzzles.

What is cognitive ability

Cognitive ability is the ability of the brain to absorb and process information about the world around us. These include memory, attention, cognitive flexibility, imagination, speech, the ability to reason logically, perceive information with the senses. Cognitive abilities distinguish a person from an animal, they are necessary for survival and development. They allow us to remember the way from home to work, read documents thoughtfully, cook dinner at the same time and communicate with family members.

Attention

Attention is the ability to concentrate on a task for a long time, even if there are distractions around or if you are multitasking at the same time. This skill is especially valued by employers – often they are looking for multitasking employees who are productive in a rush job.

Divided attention is responsible for the ability to focus on different things, for example, listening to the teacher, looking at the blackboard and taking notes of the lecture at the same time. Focused attention allows you to focus on only one stimulus or action.

Inhibition or inhibitory control helps to keep concentration on something while ignoring or suppressing external factors. Thanks to inhibition, we don’t get distracted by the phone while studying important material, we don’t get up in the middle of a meeting because our leg is numb, we don’t suddenly interrupt the speaker if a question arises.

Attention is directly related to our memory. If you can’t focus on information properly, you won’t be able to remember and recall it. Problems with concentration lead to frequent mistakes, untimely completion of projects, conflicts in the team if you inattentively listened to the interlocutor and did not show proper participation.

Memory

Memory allows us to reproduce experiences and impressions experienced in the past, to recall signs of objects and phenomena, poems, formulas, recipes, birthdays and other information that enters the brain.

Imagine that you are riding a bicycle past people, signs, houses and cars. You capture these objects, but forget about them after half a second, because you do not need this information. This is how instant memory works. If you can keep the image of a passerby in your head for 30 seconds, then 9 helped you0053 short-term memory . It is she who helps us to maintain a conversation without losing its essence, and to read books, remembering the plot.

Short-term memory gives access to long-term memory . The same passer-by can get into her halls if he surprised you with something, evoked vivid associations and emotions. The likelihood that you will remember this person for a long time will increase if you meet him on your route every day.

Memory affects our ability to navigate in space, ride a bike years later without practice, drive a car, remember the names of colleagues and feel nostalgic for the old days decades later.

Cognitive flexibility

Mind flexibility allows you to adapt to new conditions, quickly change your strategy and look for alternative solutions to a problem. Cognitive flexibility comes in handy when you need to come up with a non-standard way out of a situation, move from one activity to another, endure failure and work through mistakes.

Did you run out of oatmeal for breakfast? Cognitive flexibility will prevent you from going to work hungry and help you come up with a different dish. Accident and traffic jam on the usual route? A person with flexible thinking will find a new way and be in time for an important meeting. Is your colleague arguing and holding a different opinion than you? A flexible mind has made you tolerant, mobile, and now you can take the place of your opponent, learn new information for yourself and find a compromise.

If a person has difficulty adapting to new conditions and cannot move away from his usual path, this indicates cognitive rigidity . Such a person will look for oatmeal until he realizes that he is late, remains in traffic and quarrels with a colleague, fiercely defending his point of view. Cognitive rigidity strives to take its toll, as the human brain strives for stability, certainty and security. Therefore, it can be easier for us to stick to an established pattern of behavior than to restructure our strategy and step into the unknown. But it is worth remembering that running away from any change and otherness is fraught with unpleasant consequences – inefficiency at work, frequent stress and a low standard of living.

Auditory and visual perception

Auditory and visual processing allows you to interpret any information that you receive through images or sounds. The brain processes such signals at lightning speed. The sound of an ambulance siren is easily recognized and causes an alarm. The red light of the traffic light calls to slow down at the intersection. A rapidly approaching car hints at the same thing.

The surrounding world is filled with sound and visual signals, and if a person loses the ability to perceive them, then the brain loses part of the information about the world. A child with poor eyesight does not see from the board and does not understand part of the material, a person with hearing impairments does not hear the call of a cyclist approaching from behind. The appearance of the interlocutor, his facial expressions, gestures, manner of speech and voice can tell a lot about him without words. Furrowed brows, jerky movements, and loud remarks from your boss will certainly adjust your plan of action if you come in to ask for a pay raise.

Information processing speed

It takes time to capture and process information. Someone solves problems faster, someone slower – and this does not say anything about the mental abilities of a person, but sets a certain pace for his life. A person who needs more time for reading, mathematical calculations, logical reasoning and decision-making simply does it longer, but no less qualitatively. The speed of perception of information, if necessary, can be “pumped” and make the computational processes in the head easier, freer, which, of course, helps us in learning and work.

How cognitive abilities change

As a rule, cognitive skills are most actively formed in childhood, when the brain is more plastic and easily builds new paths in neural networks. Therefore, it is often said that it is easy to learn new things in childhood. But this is not a sentence for an adult.

Yes, with age, people’s memory deteriorates [3] and the speed of information processing slows down [4]. After 30 years, a person becomes more conservative, his worldview is already largely formed, the experience he has experienced protects against mistakes, and without them there is practically no development.

Nevertheless, constant learning and openness to new horizons, according to the report of the International Economic Forum “The Future of Jobs” [5], remain the most sought-after skills today.

Natural cognitive decline can be controlled through education. An experiment was set up at the University of California [6] – they offered elderly subjects 15 hours a week (bachelor’s load) to study Spanish, photography, drawing, music, and iPad functions. Within three months, short-term memory and mental flexibility improved in older students to the level of 30-year-old and younger participants in the experiment.

It turns out that learning is especially useful with age. Education allows you to develop cognitive skills, and cognitive skills help you learn more effectively.

How to improve your cognitive abilities

1. Get physically active

Scientists have proven [7] that 30 minutes of aerobic and strength training per day improves brain function by 5-10%. Sports oxygenate your blood and make your heart beat faster, which increases the activity of the hippocampus, the part of the brain responsible for memory and learning. The good old physical activity is good for the body, and for the spirit, and for the development of mental abilities.

2. Get enough sleep

Before an exam or any other important event, we are often advised to get a good night’s sleep, and for good reason. When we sleep, our brain is restored and the next morning is again ready for mental exploits. Lack of sleep, in turn, causes a loss of concentration and attention. Get 7-9 hours of sleep each day and try to stay up at least before midnight to get the most out of your night’s rest.

3. Reduce your stress level

In a state of stress, it is difficult to concentrate on a task, remember important information and record new information. In conditions of chronic, constant stress, cognitive abilities decline even faster. Try to eliminate sources of tension and anxiety, meditate, engage in breathing practices, or consult a psychologist to achieve peace of mind and make progress in school or work.

4. Maintain and develop social connections

In The Resilient Brain, Sanjay Gupta, MD, neurosurgeon, notes that people with close social circles are more likely to experience sleep and immune system disturbances, and loneliness in old age leads to dementia more quickly .