This article outlines the basic premises of Bloom’s Taxonomy, applies these premises to writing comprehensive literature reviews in counselor education, and suggests methods for moving students to higher levels of cognitive complexity in their papers. Faculty may use this model to give their students a specific cognitive map for their writing that includes a goal and a method to move toward that goal. Thus, rather than simply telling a student that his or her work “lacks critical thinking,” the model is intended to help the student recognize where his or her thinking has broken down and what method can be used to get back on track.

Bloom’s Taxonomy

Bloom’s Taxonomy (Bloom et al., 1956) was one of the first models developed to provide educators with a systematic classification of cognitive operations. The Taxonomy outlines six hierarchical positions of cognitive complexity, ordered from the least to the most complex: Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation. The levels are assumed to be cumulative, with each level of the system building on the successful completion of the previous levels. Much research has been conducted on the model, and it has been found to transcend age, type of instruction, and subject matter (Hill & McGaw, 1981; Kottke & Schuster, 1990; Kunen, Cohen, & Solomon, 1981). Since its inception, the model has influenced curricular development, educational research, and the construction of tests in education and professional organizations (Kunen et al., 1981). It is one of the most widely accepted models of cognitive abilities and educational objectives used in education, and even its severest critics agree that the model has enormous influence and is an important step toward understanding the structure of learning outcomes (Kottke & Schuster, 1990).