Knowledge Dimension - Bloom's stAIrcase

The Knowledge Dimension classifies four types of knowledge that learners may be expected to acquire or construct — ranging from concrete to abstract. This taxonomy provides a framework for determining and clarifying learning objectives.

Learning activities often involve both lower order and higher order thinking skills as well as a mix of concrete and abstract knowledge.

The content of this page is adapted from Rex Heer's A Model of Learning Objectives based on A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A Revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, published by the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching at Iowa State University. View the original source.

concrete knowledge abstract knowledge
factual	conceptual	procedural	metacognitive*
knowledge of terminology knowledge of specific details and elements	knowledge of classifications and categories knowledge of principles and generalizations knowledge of theories, models, and structures	knowledge of subject-specific skills and algorithms knowledge of subject-specific techniques and methods knowledge of criteria for determining when to use appropriate procedures	strategic knowledge knowledge about cognitive tasks, including appropriate contextual and conditional knowledge self-knowledge

*Metacognitive knowledge is a special case. In this model, "metacognitive knowledge is knowledge of [one's own] cognition and about oneself in relation to various subject matters..." (Anderson and Krathwohl, 2001, p. 44).