# data[].attributes.body
Ethnicity/Race                  D,  F, W
| Black Non-Hispanic   | 5713
| Hispanic                     | 24605
| White Non-Hispanic   | 1591
| Other                             | 1101
| Overall                        | 33010

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Ethnicity/Race                  D,  F, W
| Black Non-Hispanic    | 6989
| Hispanic                      | 26956
| White Non-Hispanic   | 1529
| Other                            | 1152
| Overall                        | 36626

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•	What are the key strengths of our students of color that are discussed early in the podcast?•	What is the essence of a culture of dignity?•	How does the human stress response system affect our student's learning in the classroom and what is the role of the Window of Tolerance in learning?•	What is a pedagogy of inquiry?•	How can faculty learn to create psychological safety and belonging in their classrooms which require embodied teaching and interactions with their students?

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•	What are the key strengths of our students of color that are discussed early in the podcast?•	What is the essence of a culture of dignity?•	How does the human stress response system affect our student's learning in the classroom and what is the role of the Window of Tolerance in learning?•	What is a pedagogy of inquiry?•	How can faculty learn to create psychological safety and belonging in their classrooms which require embodied teaching and interactions with their students?

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Hands On Activities are excellent to get students involved and to help them learn!

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Hands On Activities are excellent to get students involved and to help them learn!

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Orientation for students to understand more about learning resources

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Orientation for students to understand more about learning resources

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Provide overview sessions on each module of work.

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Provide overview sessions on each module of work.

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Contacting the students by email when they are missing work

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Contacting the students by email when they are missing work

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5 minute videos for students to review key concepts

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We could be more lenient with students about deadlines and offer more exemptions for submitting late work. 

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We could be more lenient with students about deadlines and offer more exemptions for submitting late work. 

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Breakout work for students so they have the opportunity to get to know one another.

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Breakout work for students so they have the opportunity to get to know one another.

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Collegewide LiveSafe LiveSafe enables direct and discreet two-way communication with your community safety officials using text, picture, video, and audio. It also lets you virtually walk your friends and family home with SafeWalk. Download "LiveSafe" from Google Play or the Apple App Store. MDC H.E.L.P.S. (Helping Everyone Learn to Prevent Suicide) The MDC H.E.L.P.S.

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As much as possible, try to see things from the student perspective

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As much as possible, try to see things from the student perspective

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Record online meetings for students who are not able to attend live.

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Record online meetings for students who are not able to attend live.

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Collegewide LiveSafe LiveSafe enables direct and discreet two-way communication with your community safety officials using text, picture, video, and audio. It also lets you virtually walk your friends and family home with SafeWalk. Download "LiveSafe" from Google Play or the Apple App Store. MDC H.E.L.P.S. (Helping Everyone Learn to Prevent Suicide) The MDC H.E.L.P.S.

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Knowing the students names, incorporating the students into the lecture by using them in examples, and hand-on activities help students greatly.

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Knowing the students names, incorporating the students into the lecture by using them in examples, and hand-on activities help students greatly.

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Add instructional resources - graphic organizers 

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Add instructional resources - graphic organizers 

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Providing students with examples of previous papers that got 100% so they know what to work toward to

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Providing students with examples of previous papers that got 100% so they know what to work toward to

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Address how students have self-efficacy (a sense of their own capability) and persistence (continuing through difficult blocks and issues). Give them a foundation of their own strength. 

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Address how students have self-efficacy (a sense of their own capability) and persistence (continuing through difficult blocks and issues). Give them a foundation of their own strength. 

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Create groups of 3-4 students. These groups can act as study groups and support groups. 

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Create groups of 3-4 students. These groups can act as study groups and support groups. 

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Remainders trough BB, emails and informal conversations with students at the beginning and at the end of class

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Video programming examples and application examples to show the students what they are being taught.

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Video programming examples and application examples to show the students what they are being taught.

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Encourage students to turn on their cameras every time. Have a 5-10 min grabber activity to get students’ attention and ticket out the door strategy where students jot down what they learned or are confused about in the class as they exit the class

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Classroom icebreakers encourage new students to have conversations, getting to know you and each other in the process. Used early on, icebreakers can help students feel comfortable in your classroom or team meeting. They're ideal for the first day of school, but can be used throughout the semester and serve as a precursor for teamwork and collaborative learning. Virtual icebreakers -facilitated via social media, discussion boards or in virtual team meetings-have also gained new meaning in helping group members warm up to one another.

An icebreaker can be as simple as asking students to introduce themselves to the class or to the students sitting next to them, but games and activities offer a chance to interact with a greater number of classmates and build camaraderie. According to a guide from Nottingham Trent University, for classroom icebreaker games "there ought to be a fun aspect to the activities in order to provide participants with some shared history that they can discuss later and, where possible, a relevance to the taught course/university experience."

It's no doubt that icebreaker activities like scavenger hunts or Pictionary are overdone. Keep in mind that some classroom icebreakers could be awkward or uncomfortable for students, such as publicly sharing personal information. The key is to get students talking to each other, having conversations and making connections-without social risk. This could mean facilitating small group activities versus requiring students to share personal information in front of the whole class. As an educator, help your students get to know one another in a safe and effective way.

Here are 20 fresh and easy-to-implement games and activities to break the ice in your in-person, blended or online classroom.
Download The Ultimate List of Icebreakers for the College Classroom for an additional 50 activities and fun icebreakers (get the list here).
7 group games for college students

1. Concentric circles

This is a great team-building icebreaker for an in-person learning environment. Arrange students in two circles, one inside the other, with students facing each other in pairs. Ask a question, such as "what's your favorite thing about college and why?" Pairs discuss the answer, then rotate the circle to form new pairs for the next question-exposing students to the different perspectives of their peers. The trick is to provide open-ended questions rather than those with a 'yes' or 'no' answer to get students talking.

2. Find someone who...

This is like Bingo, but with people instead of chips. Students are given a piece of paper with a grid of squares. Written inside each square is an item, such as 'travelled to another continent' or 'has a younger sister.' Students are given a time limit to find classmates who fit the description. Whoever gets 'Bingo' first wins. You can even award a prize of your choice, such as a bonus point or two on an upcoming assignment. This is a good icebreaker to help your students warm up to one another at the start of the school year-especially those who are meeting one another for the first time.

3. Name game

This classic party game can also be applied in the classroom-you can even tweak it to reflect the curriculum. Write down names of famous people (or names related to course material) on sticky notes. Students place a sticky note on their forehead and interact with their classmates, asking questions to understand which person they are embodying. This team icebreaker helps students loosen up and informally interact with their classmates. It also helps them learn about a figure who may have previously been unknown to them.

4. Poker hand

This classroom icebreaker is ideal for large groups of students (a maximum of 50). Shuffle a deck of cards and hand out a card to each student. Set a time limit and instruct students to find four classmates and form a hand of poker. The best hand 'wins' when their time is up-consider offering a couple of bonus points on an assignment. Keep in mind that not everyone knows how to play poker, so display the rules of the game on a whiteboard or a slide at the front of the classroom. This activity may help students develop their analytical skills.

5. Three of a kind

Set a time limit and instruct students to find three other students they share something in common with-though not anything obvious or visible, such as hair color. The idea is to help them make connections that may not be immediately apparent. For more strategies to help your students get to know their classmates, download our free list of college icebreakers here.

6. Find your pair

In advance of class, prepare word pairs-such as salt and pepper, or ketchup and mustard-on separate pieces of paper. Have students select a piece of paper from the pile, ensuring they don't share their word with anyone else. Students then walk around the room and ask yes or no questions to their peers to try and figure out what word they have (and helping them get to know more people in your class). Once students have figured out what word they have, they then must find their pair (if they haven't already) by continuing to ask questions.

7. Act and react

Ask students to write down an event or scenario on a piece of paper. These may range from "I just got fired from my job" to "I just got stung by a bee." Fold the pieces of paper up and put them in a bag or hat. Have students randomly draw a slip of paper and react to the experience using their facial features, gestures or words. The remaining students can guess what just happened. This activity will help lighten the mood in your class and allows for student-student interaction.
→ Download Now: 50 Free Icebreakers for College Courses
7 first day icebreakers

8. Two truths and a lie

Divide the class into small groups. Each group sits in a circle, and each participant tells their group three statements; two are true and one is a lie. The other students in the group must guess which is the lie. This interactive icebreaker could be used during the first day of class to make introductions and reduce first-day jitters, all by sharing fun facts with one another.

9. This or that

Present students with a choice between 'this or that.' Topics should be relatively light, such as whether they prefer dogs or cats (though you could also tie this back to course material). Students move to the side of the room that reflects their choice. After a few minutes, encourage one or two members in each group to defend their position amongst a new group of students. Ask students to repeat this process for several rounds to help familiarize themselves with a variety of standpoints. Similar to would you rather, this or that is ideal for small or large groups and spurs conversations and makes connections.

10. Longest line

Instruct students to form one continuous line based on certain criteria, such as alphabetically by first name or from shortest to tallest. For large classes, you could ask students to gather in groups based on some commonality (such as by birthday month). The goal is for students to line up as fast as possible-a result of clear and open communication in medium-sized groups. This classroom icebreaker is a great team-building activity and can help create a sense of community should it be used as a first day icebreaker or at the beginning of the year.

11. Three Ps

Divide students into small groups, and have them share three facts about themselves: something personal, something professional and something peculiar, such as an interesting hobby or habit. This icebreaker idea can easily be used in virtual meetings. It should be noted, the personal fact shouldn't be anything too personal-it could be something as simple as a country they've always wanted to travel to. Use this great icebreaker when students go back to school from the summer, helping them warm up to their peers.

12. Beach ball

Like the name suggests, this activity requires an inflatable plastic beach ball. Ahead of class, write different get-to-know you questions on each segment of a beach ball using a Sharpie. Arrange students in a circle. For larger classes, you may want to divide the class into smaller groups. The questions could be "what was one of your highlights from the summer?" or "who is your celebrity idol and why?" Toss the ball. Whoever catches it asks the question closest to their left thumb, answers it and then tosses the ball to another student.

13. Syllabus questionnaire

Before sharing your syllabus with students, place them into groups of five and have them fill in a Google Doc or worksheet with questions they have about your course. Structure the first five minutes as a brainstorming session. After each group has prepared their list of questions, distribute the syllabus and have students find answers to their questions using this document. Re-convene as a group and give students an opportunity to ask any further questions that couldn't be answered from the syllabus. You may also wish to facilitate this activity using individual lesson plans throughout the semester.

14. String a story

Arrive to class with a big roll of yarn or string and cut various pieces ranging from five to 20 inches in length. Bunch the pieces of string together and place them to the side. Have each student draw a piece of string from the pile and slowly wind it around their index finger. As they are winding the string around their finger, students must introduce themselves and give a first-person account of their life-in whatever capacity they wish-until the string is completely wound up.

6 course- or assignment-specific icebreakers

15. Blind contour

This activity is a fun way to get your visual arts students talking in a small group of people. Split students into groups of five and have each student choose an object to sketch-without looking at their paper. Give students five minutes to complete their sketch, then have them share it with their team members and ask the remaining students to guess what they drew. Repeat the process with another item or object, until time runs out. This game helps hone students' observational skills, while making sure students are mentally present.

16. It was the best of classes, it was the worst of classes

This classroom icebreaker not only helps students relate to each other, it can help inform your teaching practices throughout the term. On one side, write "the best class I ever had" and on the other side, write "the worst class I ever had." Without referring to specific professors or courses, ask students to share what they liked and disliked about their previous courses. Make a list of these items to potentially implement-or avoid-in your own course this semester. Additionally, consider using an anonymous discussion board or a group worksheet in your virtual classroom to encourage participation.

17. The living Likert scale

This icebreaker question for college students lets learners see where they-and their peers-stand on a variety of topics related to your discipline. Before class, write numbers '1' through '7' on pieces of paper and place them across the room. The sheet with '1' on it could refer to 'strongly disagree' while '7' might refer to 'strongly agree.' Acting as a facilitator, pose a series of statements related to your discipline-such as "I think television can make children act aggressive" in a social psychology class-and have students move to the side of the wall according to their stance. Students who are comfortable sharing their opinions pertaining to the topic may do so.

18. Why am I here?

Have students draw a picture that represents why they enrolled in your course. Encourage them to think beyond the fact that they may need your course credit to graduate, or that their high school guidance counselor recommended your course. They could think about wanting to learn more about your field or simply that their friends were enrolled in your class, too. After five minutes, have students share their picture with the larger group if they're comfortable-helping students feel like part of one interconnected community.

19. Class in one word

Have students share their perceptions of your discipline in one word, such as 'complicated,' 'analytical,' or 'enjoyable.' Students can go around in a circle-or the order they appear in your Zoom tile view-and describe their past experiences in your field using a single word. In an asynchronous course, set up an anonymous discussion question in Top Hat and have students respond on their own time. This activity offers a humanizing view of who else is in the same boat.

20. Philosophical chairs

A statement that has two possible responses-agree or disagree-is read out loud. Depending on whether they agree or disagree with this statement, students move to one side of the room or the other. After everyone has chosen a side, ask one or two students on each side to take turns defending their positions. This allows students to visualize where their peers' opinions come from, relative to their own.

Classroom icebreakers aren't just a 'feel good' exercise. The best icebreakers can help students create connections and build a sense of camaraderie in your classroom. It can also help educators get to know their students and build better relationships. Whether you're in a physical classroom or in a remote team setting, the above icebreakers will surely create a light-hearted environment for your students to thrive in.

As Jennifer Gonzalez explains on her website, Cult of Pedagogy,, "building solid relationships with your students is arguably the most important thing you can do to be an effective teacher. It helps you build trust so students take academic risks, allows you to better differentiate for individual needs, and prevents the kinds of power struggles often found in poorly managed classrooms."
Download The Ultimate List of Icebreakers for the College Classroom, packed with 50 easy-to-implement games and activities for your next course. Get the full list of activities here.
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Six small group games for college students
The pros and cons of the high tech classroom

References

1. Ice-Breaker Activities to use in Your First-Year Student Induction. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www4.ntu.ac.uk/adq/document_uploads/running_a_course/193397.pdf

2. Gonzalez, J. (2017, July 23). A 4-Part System for Getting to Know Your Students. Retrieved from https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/relationship-building/

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20 Classroom Icebreakers For College Professors [Plus: Free List of 50 Icebreakers]

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Classroom icebreakers help students get to know each other and feel comfortable. Here are 20 games and activities for your next course, regardless of modality.

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Provide a Diversity and Inclusion Statement for myself and my students. Have students create class charters during week 1

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Provide a Diversity and Inclusion Statement for myself and my students. Have students create class charters during week 1

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Engage in funds of knowledge in the classroom. Adjust curriculum to be centered on student's cultural and familial knowledge

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Engage in funds of knowledge in the classroom. Adjust curriculum to be centered on student's cultural and familial knowledge

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Videos to introduce particular assignments to students in case they miss the class room discussion of that.

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Provide a class overview video before the first day of class and let it be visible for the entire term.

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Provide a class overview video before the first day of class and let it be visible for the entire term.

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Ask for expectations and goals of students and share yours

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Start classes with quiet music... a chance to say hello and connect... and a "question of the day" they can respond to in the chat, with emojis, etc.

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Start classes with quiet music... a chance to say hello and connect... and a "question of the day" they can respond to in the chat, with emojis, etc.

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I create a detailed agenda for each class. This enables students who have connectivity issues to know exactly what we are doing. I also add a link to the slides that I am using that day in course announcement and post it with the agenda. This is already located on BB but I make it easier for students.

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I create a detailed agenda for each class. This enables students who have connectivity issues to know exactly what we are doing. I also add a link to the slides that I am using that day in course announcement and post it with the agenda. This is already located on BB but I make it easier for students.

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If you use a platform such as MindTap, MyITLab, or SIMnet, create an overview video showing students how to register and provide them with an overview of the activities they will be doing at this platform. Leave it visible for the entire term.

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If you use a platform such as MindTap, MyITLab, or SIMnet, create an overview video showing students how to register and provide them with an overview of the activities they will be doing at this platform. Leave it visible for the entire term.

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Create student plans with student.  Support students in learning college strategies for success. Students submit their own work plans.

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Create student plans with student.  Support students in learning college strategies for success. Students submit their own work plans.

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Vulnerability is a key concept that is conducive towards cultivating and inclusive learning environment. When students see and respect the "person" beyond the title of their "Professor," it tend to spark a catalyst to bridge gaps.

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Vulnerability is a key concept that is conducive towards cultivating and inclusive learning environment. When students see and respect the "person" beyond the title of their "Professor," it tend to spark a catalyst to bridge gaps.

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Focus on educating the whole student and the content will follow. Don't assume they know something. Also, give students actual strategies they can use to be successful in College. because they don't get these strategies in high school.

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Focus on educating the whole student and the content will follow. Don't assume they know something. Also, give students actual strategies they can use to be successful in College. because they don't get these strategies in high school.

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short videos motivating students at the begginning of the lessons

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I loved the concept of the "Window of Tolerance" - found a great resource online to share this with my students this week in class when we discuss "Stress" - consider the hypo and hyper triggers (that we do not intend to elicit / trigger)

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I loved the concept of the "Window of Tolerance" - found a great resource online to share this with my students this week in class when we discuss "Stress" - consider the hypo and hyper triggers (that we do not intend to elicit / trigger)

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In my classes, we talk about racism, historic, systemic racism; the legal challenges to these issues and where we are now.  This typically happens at the beginning of the term before we dive into the course material.  At times this can be a recurring issue and we talk about it in the context of class.

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In my classes, we talk about racism, historic, systemic racism; the legal challenges to these issues and where we are now.  This typically happens at the beginning of the term before we dive into the course material.  At times this can be a recurring issue and we talk about it in the context of class.

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Diane di Prima

Rant

You cannot write a single line w/out a cosmology
a cosmogony
laid out, before all eyes

there is no part of yourself you can separate out
saying, this is memory, this is sensation
this is the work I care about, this is how I
make a living

it is whole, it is a whole, it always was whole
you do not "make" it so
there is nothing to integrate, you are a presence
you are an appendage of the work, the work stems from
hangs from the heaven you create

every man / every woman carries a firmament inside
& the stars in it are not the stars in the sky

w/out imagination there is no memory
w/out imagination there is no sensation
w/out imagination there is no will, desire

history is a living weapon in yr hand
& you have imagined it, it is thus that you
"find out for yourself"
history is the dream of what can be, it is
the relation between things in a continuum

of imagination
what you find out for yourself is what you select
out of an infinite sea of possibility
no one can inhabit yr world

yet it is not lonely,
the ground of imagination is fearlessness
discourse is video tape of a movie of a shadow play
but the puppets are in yr hand
your counters in a multidimensional chess
which is divination
& strategy

the war that matters is the war against the imagination
all other wars are subsumed in it.

the ultimate famine is the starvation
of the imagination

it is death to be sure, but the undead
seek to inhabit someone else's world

the ultimate claustrophobia is the syllogism
the ultimate claustrophobia is "it all adds up"
nothing adds up & nothing stands in for
anything else

THE ONLY WAR THAT MATTERS IS THE WAR AGAINST
THE IMAGINATION

THE ONLY WAR THAT MATTERS IS THE WAR AGAINST
THE IMAGINATION
THE ONLY WAR THAT MATTERS IS THE WAR AGAINST
THE IMAGINATION
ALL OTHER WARS ARE SUBSUMED IN IT

There is no way out of a spiritual battle
There is no way you can avoid taking sides
There is no way you can not have a poetics
no matter what you do: plumber, baker, teacher

you do it in the consciousness of making
or not making yr world
you have a poetics: you step into the world
like a suit of readymade clothes

or you etch in light
your firmament spills into the shape of your room
the shape of the poem, of yr body, of yr loves

A woman's life / a man's life is an allegory

Dig it

There is no way out of the spiritual battle
the war is the war against the imagination
you can't sign up as a conscientious objector

the war of the worlds hangs here, right now, in the balance
it is a war for this world, to keep it
a vale of soul-making

the taste in all our mouths is the taste of power
and it is bitter as death

bring yr self home to yrself, enter the garden
the guy at the gate w/ the flaming sword is yrself

the war is the war for the human imagination
and no one can fight it but you/ & no one can fight it for you

The imagination is not only holy, it is precise
it is not only fierce, it is practical
men die everyday for the lack of it,
it is vast & elegant

intellectus means "light of the mind"
it is not discourse it is not even language
the inner sun

the polis is constellated around the sun
the fire is central

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Use class time to meet with students individually.

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Use class time to meet with students individually.

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Provide access to research articles and concepts that are relevant to the student's interests. Ask students to share their interests. 

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Provide access to research articles and concepts that are relevant to the student's interests. Ask students to share their interests. 

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All of these ideas are great but here is a thought: If a student is taking 5 classes, while being a full time employee, and raising a family, and he or she successfully complete 4 out of the 5 classes, but fails one. That to me is a success story but in this data set we do not know the whole story of each students. It seems bad when we look at the raw data but there is much more to the story.

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All of these ideas are great but here is a thought: If a student is taking 5 classes, while being a full time employee, and raising a family, and he or she successfully complete 4 out of the 5 classes, but fails one. That to me is a success story but in this data set we do not know the whole story of each students. It seems bad when we look at the raw data but there is much more to the story.

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Be a good listener. Communicate frequently. Respect always.

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Use interactive tech tools - sli.do, Jamboard, flip grid (cameras off or on), white board -- and use inquiry-based discussion tools so that students create / pose their own questions (Packback) - and use PBL -- these foster a "pedagogy of inquiry"

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Use interactive tech tools - sli.do, Jamboard, flip grid (cameras off or on), white board -- and use inquiry-based discussion tools so that students create / pose their own questions (Packback) - and use PBL -- these foster a "pedagogy of inquiry"

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Incorporate other "ways of knowing" and demonstrating that understanding through dynamic assessments. 

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Incorporate other "ways of knowing" and demonstrating that understanding through dynamic assessments. 

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My classes are structured, but I walk into the classroom prepared, I greet the students, I acknowledge their presence and I am respectful to them. They reciprocate as well. This way they feel valued and engaged.

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My classes are structured, but I walk into the classroom prepared, I greet the students, I acknowledge their presence and I am respectful to them. They reciprocate as well. This way they feel valued and engaged.

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Want to try out the "Ouch," "Oops," and "Whoa" strategy in my classes and in our meetings with each other!

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Want to try out the "Ouch," "Oops," and "Whoa" strategy in my classes and in our meetings with each other!

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Follow up when students do not attend class.  Ask open-ended questions.  

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Follow up when students do not attend class.  Ask open-ended questions.  

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Listen to our students. Send then to single stop when they need help. Most of the students that drop the class or that fail is because they do not have time to study because they have to work. We have to talk to them and hold them accountable. That is important as well. That helps to bring the sense of responsibility, so they study more.

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Listen to our students. Send then to single stop when they need help. Most of the students that drop the class or that fail is because they do not have time to study because they have to work. We have to talk to them and hold them accountable. That is important as well. That helps to bring the sense of responsibility, so they study more.

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About Single Stop

Single Stop offers students a wide array of services, including public benefits screening, financial coaching, individual counseling, tax preparation, access to a food pantry, and various other services. All of our services are free to Miami Dade College students and their immediate family members.

In October 2010, Miami Dade College's partnership with Single Stop was established, and more than 66,000 students and families have benefited from the program's services to date.

Learn more about MDC Single Stop

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Single Stop offers students a wide array of services, including public benefits screening, financial coaching, individual counseling, tax preparation, access to a food pantry, and various other services. All of our services are free to Miami Dade College students and their immediate family members.

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I start each class with music. After the first week, the students submit their song choices and they hear them weekly before class starts. I do not teach a subject relating to music, but using music creates an atmosphere of fun and enables the students to settle in. Bad Bunny always gets them dancing in their chairs!

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I start each class with music. After the first week, the students submit their song choices and they hear them weekly before class starts. I do not teach a subject relating to music, but using music creates an atmosphere of fun and enables the students to settle in. Bad Bunny always gets them dancing in their chairs!

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Ask "how can I help" instead of "you did not do" when checking in on students who are falling behind

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Ask "how can I help" instead of "you did not do" when checking in on students who are falling behind

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Understand current events that are impacting students lives. Integrate critical thinking into the curriculum so students can make the connection.

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Understand current events that are impacting students lives. Integrate critical thinking into the curriculum so students can make the connection.

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Creates group discussions with questions at the higher level of blooms taxonomy to help them with inquire.

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Creates group discussions with questions at the higher level of blooms taxonomy to help them with inquire.

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Cite this guide: Armstrong, P. (2010). Bloom's Taxonomy. Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching. Retrieved [todaysdate] from https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/blooms-taxonomy/.

Background Information | The Original Taxonomy | The Revised Taxonomy | Why Use Bloom's Taxonomy? | Further Information

The above graphic is released under a Creative Commons Attribution license. You're free to share, reproduce, or otherwise use it, as long as you attribute it to the Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching. For a higher resolution version, visit our Flickr account and look for the "Download this photo" icon.

Background Information

In 1956, Benjamin Bloom with collaborators Max Englehart, Edward Furst, Walter Hill, and David Krathwohl published a framework for categorizing educational goals: Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. Familiarly known as Bloom's Taxonomy, this framework has been applied by generations of K-12 teachers and college instructors in their teaching.

The framework elaborated by Bloom and his collaborators consisted of six major categories: Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation. The categories after Knowledge were presented as "skills and abilities," with the understanding that knowledge was the necessary precondition for putting these skills and abilities into practice.

While each category contained subcategories, all lying along a continuum from simple to complex and concrete to abstract, the taxonomy is popularly remembered according to the six main categories.

The Original Taxonomy (1956)

Here are the authors' brief explanations of these main categories in from the appendix of Taxonomy of Educational Objectives ( Handbook One, pp. 201-207):

Knowledge "involves the recall of specifics and universals, the recall of methods and processes, or the recall of a pattern, structure, or setting."

Comprehension "refers to a type of understanding or apprehension such that the individual knows what is being communicated and can make use of the material or idea being communicated without necessarily relating it to other material or seeing its fullest implications."

Application refers to the "use of abstractions in particular and concrete situations."

Analysis represents the "breakdown of a communication into its constituent elements or parts such that the relative hierarchy of ideas is made clear and/or the relations between ideas expressed are made explicit."

Synthesis involves the "putting together of elements and parts so as to form a whole."

Evaluation engenders "judgments about the value of material and methods for given purposes."

The 1984 edition of Handbook One is available in the CFT Library in Calhoun 116. See its ACORN record for call number and availability.

Barbara Gross Davis, in the "Asking Questions" chapter of Tools for Teaching, also provides examples of questions corresponding to the six categories. This chapter is not available in the online version of the book, but Tools for Teaching is available in the CFT Library. See its ACORN record for call number and availability.

The Revised Taxonomy (2001)

A group of cognitive psychologists, curriculum theorists and instructional researchers, and testing and assessment specialists published in 2001 a revision of Bloom's Taxonomy with the title A Taxonomy for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment. This title draws attention away from the somewhat static notion of "educational objectives" (in Bloom's original title) and points to a more dynamic conception of classification.

The authors of the revised taxonomy underscore this dynamism, using verbs and gerunds to label their categories and subcategories (rather than the nouns of the original taxonomy). These "action words" describe the cognitive processes by which thinkers encounter and work with knowledge:

Remember

Understand

Interpreting

Exemplifying

Classifying

Summarizing

Inferring

Comparing

Explaining

Apply

Analyze

Differentiating

Organizing

Attributing

Evaluate

Create

In the revised taxonomy, knowledge is at the basis of these six cognitive processes, but its authors created a separate taxonomy of the types of knowledge used in cognition:

Factual Knowledge

Knowledge of terminology

Knowledge of specific details and elements

Conceptual Knowledge

Knowledge of classifications and categories

Knowledge of principles and generalizations

Knowledge of theories, models, and structures

Procedural Knowledge

Knowledge of subject-specific skills and algorithms

Knowledge of subject-specific techniques and methods

Knowledge of criteria for determining when to use appropriate procedures

Metacognitive Knowledge

Strategic Knowledge

Knowledge about cognitive tasks, including appropriate contextual and conditional knowledge

Self-knowledge

Mary Forehand from the University of Georgia provides a guide to the revised version giving a brief summary of the revised taxonomy and a helpful table of the six cognitive processes and four types of knowledge.

Why Use Bloom's Taxonomy?

The authors of the revised taxonomy suggest a multi-layered answer to this question, to which the author of this teaching guide has added some clarifying points:

1. Objectives (learning goals) are important to establish in a pedagogical interchange so that teachers and students alike understand the purpose of that interchange.

2. Organizing objectives helps to clarify objectives for themselves and for students.

3. Having an organized set of objectives helps teachers to:

"plan and deliver appropriate instruction";

"design valid assessment tasks and strategies";and

"ensure that instruction and assessment are aligned with the objectives."

Citations are from A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A Revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives.

Further Information

Section III of A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A Revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, entitled "The Taxonomy in Use," provides over 150 pages of examples of applications of the taxonomy. Although these examples are from the K-12 setting, they are easily adaptable to the university setting.

Section IV, "The Taxonomy in Perspective," provides information about 19 alternative frameworks to Bloom's Taxonomy, and discusses the relationship of these alternative frameworks to the revised Bloom's Taxonomy.

This teaching guide is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

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by Patricia Armstrong Print Version Cite this guide: Armstrong, P. (2010). Bloom's Taxonomy. Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching. Retrieved [todaysdate] from https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/blooms-taxonomy/. Background Information | The Original Taxonomy | The Revised Taxonomy | Why Use Bloom's Taxonomy? | Further Information The above graphic is released under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

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Create a list of shared course agreements together. 

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Create a list of shared course agreements together. 

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Recognizing the importance of taking the time to unpack concepts that seem dense and unrelatable students. That can resonate powerfully with students who feel extremely distant from what is being learned in class. The distance in what they are learning creates more distance in their belief that they can achieve a good grade. And succeed.

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Recognizing the importance of taking the time to unpack concepts that seem dense and unrelatable students. That can resonate powerfully with students who feel extremely distant from what is being learned in class. The distance in what they are learning creates more distance in their belief that they can achieve a good grade. And succeed.

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Utilize an opening circle in the classroom and offer space for students to lead.

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Utilize an opening circle in the classroom and offer space for students to lead.

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A technique for proactively building the skills and relationships students will need when challenges arise.

Our students come to school with many issues on their minds and in their hearts. As educators, we can help them process their thoughts and feelings so they can better handle their situations and be more present in class.

Restorative circles are a useful practice to do just that. While frequently used to replace punitive forms of discipline, restorative circles are equally important in proactively building the relationships and skills students need to support one another and collectively address the challenges they face.

Restorative circles are most effective when they're an integral part of school culture. After all, you can't "restore" a community that you haven't built or sustained.

7 Steps for Facilitating Meaningful Circles

1. Cocreate a safe, supportive space: Circles work best if teachers invest time up front to build relationships, skills, and practices to draw on throughout the school year-especially if the going gets tough.

Early in the process, teachers and students together explore values-like empathy, patience, kindness, courage, and open-mindedness-that need to be respected for people to be willing to share openly and honestly in circle. They also determine best ways of working together (circle practices). These include honoring the talking piece, which goes around the circle as an invitation to share while everyone else listens (participants may pass if they don't wish to talk). People are encouraged to speak and listen from the heart. And what is shared in circle, stays in circle, though educators should let students know at the outset that we are mandated by law to report when a student threatens to harm themselves or others, or when students divulge abuse.

2. Be prepared: Make sure that you, the facilitator, are well rested, calm, and focused.

To hold the circle space effectively, it's important to be fully present and able to sit with other people's stories and feelings as well as your own. Center yourself. If you're exploring sensitive issues that may require follow up, consider alerting support staff.

3. Plan ahead: Decide together on a topic or theme that sustains students' interest.

Find a relevant opening ceremony to open the circle space, such as a poem, quote, or piece of music. A mindfulness activity can also be used to bring students into the space after a particularly stressful class or noisy hallway experience.

Look for information to ground the conversation, and develop questions and prompts to invite student perspectives into the circle.

Keep in mind that the bigger the circle, the more time you'll need for the talking piece to go around. Think about how things might unfold and be ready to adapt to what comes up.

Make sure to leave time for a closing ceremony, giving students a chance to transition into spaces that may be less conducive to being vulnerable. A closing ceremony can be a commitment to safeguarding the stories shared in circle, or a breathing exercise in which we provide students with prompts and time to put themselves back together again.

4. Invite student experiences into the space: Encourage students to connect with the circle content by sharing stories from their own lives.

Include storytelling rounds by asking students to talk about "a person in your life who..." or "a time when...." Share authentically of yourself. This gives others permission to do the same. Model good listening as the talking piece goes around the circle. Be fully present as others speak. Remind everyone that listening is the key ingredient in circles. True listening can create the kind of welcoming space that encourages even the quietest voices to speak.

5. Acknowledge, paraphrase, summarize, and practice empathy: Listen closely to what students share so that you can build on their experiences.

When the talking piece comes back to you, touch on what you felt, noticed, or heard. If you sense that there's more than surfaced in the first round, send the talking piece around a second or third time, asking students for their connections, reflections, or additions.

If challenging or painful issues come up, model agreed-upon circle practices for students to follow. Listening mindfully and being present with other people's ordeals and hardships can create supportive, healing experiences that strengthen community connections and build empathy.

If needed, let students know you're available to check in with them later in the day or week. You might also have them consider speaking with other supportive adults or students to find solace if they're troubled.

6. Explore what it means to be an effective ally: Beyond creating a supportive listening environment, ask what else, if anything, students need from you and from each other.

Explore how to be better allies in circle so that students know they don't need to face their challenges alone. Invite them to talk about a person in their lives who is a good friend or ally, or a person they'd like to be a better friend or ally. Discuss the qualities these people have (or lack) and how they make us feel. Invite students to talk about a time they've been a good friend or ally themselves, and what gets in the way of being our best selves with one another.

7. Zoom out to promote understanding on the systems level: Explore whether there are larger systemic forces that underlie the challenges students have touched on (such as racism, sexism, or lack of access to resources). Introduce information, stories, and voices that might shed light on how these systems operate. Look for examples of people who took action to interrupt these and other oppressive systems.

Invite students to connect to this information by sharing their thoughts, feelings, and related experiences.

Studying larger, systemic forces in society can help students better understand their situation, and can be a useful starting point for students to become more active themselves. Action and activism can inspire hope, connection, and healing.

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Building Community With Restorative Circles

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A technique for proactively building the skills and relationships students will need when challenges arise.

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Be a human being first, a faculty second

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We discuss current events and correlate those events into the topics which we are discussing in class. This helps students see the practical implementation of the concepts which they are studying.  They find relevance to their own lives.

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We discuss current events and correlate those events into the topics which we are discussing in class. This helps students see the practical implementation of the concepts which they are studying.  They find relevance to their own lives.

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Use a mixture of "anonymous" and "named" activities for their responses - and pairs and small groups

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Use a mixture of "anonymous" and "named" activities for their responses - and pairs and small groups

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Ask students what works, what did not work and what we can do to improve

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Have students discuss what is going right and wrong in the course

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Have students discuss what is going right and wrong in the course

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Include closed captioning for all videos to ensure all students have that viewing option on their monitors.

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Include closed captioning for all videos to ensure all students have that viewing option on their monitors.

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Being flexible about students issues

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Create and share an expectations for students' guide for MDC Live active participation and engagement

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Create and share an expectations for students' guide for MDC Live active participation and engagement

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Don't attach to the plan you had when you realize that your students have knowledge to share based on their experiences that may not match your expectation. Stopping and listening is part of respecting voices and knowledge bases that are often overlooked by institutional effectiveness and the need to have a tidy process.

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"Humor" is a powerful tool in the classroom. Psychologically speaking. Finding "fun" in the class creates curiosity, and ultimately more inquiry in what is being discussed. It can help ease tension, and create certain bonds that develop a greater desire to learn, and excel.

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"Humor" is a powerful tool in the classroom. Psychologically speaking. Finding "fun" in the class creates curiosity, and ultimately more inquiry in what is being discussed. It can help ease tension, and create certain bonds that develop a greater desire to learn, and excel.

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Consider students - if they want to drop, ensure that they connect with Student Success Coaches and Financial Aid to understand the implications of W and IW drops following last drop / add / change for the short term and long term 

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Consider students - if they want to drop, ensure that they connect with Student Success Coaches and Financial Aid to understand the implications of W and IW drops following last drop / add / change for the short term and long term 

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Consider - and start identifying - what else is it we do want to know to have "key equity data" In a conference yesterday, someone highlighted that we have plenty of competency markers (e.g., retention data, grades) but do not have a lot of data about key equity outcomes for students toward CSLOs

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Consider - and start identifying - what else is it we do want to know to have "key equity data" In a conference yesterday, someone highlighted that we have plenty of competency markers (e.g., retention data, grades) but do not have a lot of data about key equity outcomes for students toward CSLOs

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Educate the whole student. Asking the students how they feel and how they can improve. Create connections with students. Know their names. Follow-up with them if missing class / issues with performance / etc. - ask open-ended questions

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Educate the whole student. Asking the students how they feel and how they can improve. Create connections with students. Know their names. Follow-up with them if missing class / issues with performance / etc. - ask open-ended questions

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Providing students resources (tutorials, videos, MDC Resources, overviews, expectations for engagement, a Diversity & Inclusion Statement, etc.) and exemplars of work products. 

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Providing students resources (tutorials, videos, MDC Resources, overviews, expectations for engagement, a Diversity & Inclusion Statement, etc.) and exemplars of work products. 

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Using groups - and give roles in the groups to foster engagement. Potentially add questions for guide group work.

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Using groups - and give roles in the groups to foster engagement. Potentially add questions for guide group work.

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Vulnerability and a willingness to "story tell"

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Vulnerability and a willingness to "story tell"

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Use music and multiple modalities of knowing - music first to open and create community. Allow students to "pick their songs over time." Create "class playlist" of their favorites. "Community Connection Assignments"

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Use music and multiple modalities of knowing - music first to open and create community. Allow students to "pick their songs over time." Create "class playlist" of their favorites. "Community Connection Assignments"

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Use interactive tech tools / activities / etc.

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Use interactive tech tools / activities / etc.

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Understand and including discussion time for experiences affecting students' lives to make our curriculum relevant to students and to invite that into the classroom to make connections between scientific concepts and the reality of their lives.

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Understand and including discussion time for experiences affecting students' lives to make our curriculum relevant to students and to invite that into the classroom to make connections between scientific concepts and the reality of their lives.

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Inform students of Single Stop and various other tutoring services. 

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Inform students of Single Stop and various other tutoring services. 

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Use the Civic Score Card and Earth Ethics and Changemaking to "get out into the world" to engage in experiential learning

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Use the Civic Score Card and Earth Ethics and Changemaking to "get out into the world" to engage in experiential learning