Though the ultimate goal may be for the entire curriculum to be rigorous, it is useful to at least start with a few lessons. For some teachers, it may be easier to identify a project or activity that could be changed to be more student-centered, whereas others might be more inclined to creating a new activity. In either case, start with the familiar structure of Bloom’s Taxonomy to help adapt the lesson or project for more rigorous activities.
Rigor and Bloom’s Taxonomy
Consider the three domains of Bloom’s taxonomy: Affective, Psychomotor and Cognitive. The affective and cognitive domains relate directly to rigor since rigor is obtained through students’ active engagement with knowledge and how it emotionally affects them.
The US Department of Education provides a table to assist teachers with applying the cognitive domain of Bloom’s taxonomy to create engaging lesson plans. The first two categories, knowledge and comprehension, are concerned with memory and basic understanding. However, the other four; application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation, involve students with using their knowledge and comprehension. These four categories of the cognitive domain can also provide teachers with a starting point for including rigor in a lesson.
The affective domain helps teachers include material in their lessons that are based on emotional reaction. This includes not only how students receive and respond to emotional stimulation but also how they value, organize and characterize their responses. Inclusion of the affective domain leads to rigorous lessons through provocative questions or by having students work with concepts that can be emotionally challenging.
Creating Rigorous Activities
Whether adapting an existing lesson or creating a new one, keep in mind Bloom’s taxonomy. While examining the lesson, ask questions such as, “Are students asked to apply their knowledge to solve a similar situation,” “Are students asked to relate this information to something else,” “Are students asked how they would improve something,” or “Can they explain why they made certain choices.” Also consider how student centered the work will be and look for ways for students to interact with each other while learning.
Once teachers understand what rigor is, they may find that it is already present in some of their activities. The challenge then becomes identifying where, tweaking it to be more effective and finding more places in the curriculum to use it. Bloom's taxonomy, especially the cognitive and affective domains, gives a starting place for understanding rigor using a familiar set of categories.
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