Stahl and Murphy’s domain of cognition taxonomic system

Description and intended use

Stahl and Murphy had the ambitious aim of producing a taxonomy based on the principle of a learning hierarchy of ‘levels of cognitiveaffect thinking and learning-related behaviours’ (1981, p. 23). They were writing for teachers and teacher-educators and, as Marzano did 20 years later, based their taxonomy as far as possible on theory and research findings in cognitive psychology. They address memory, thinking and learning and are concerned with helping teachers to ‘separate preand post-learning behaviours within classroom situations’ (1981, p. 10). The taxonomy is intended to be used in instructional design and the authors assume that teachers can infer from pupil behaviour what mental processes are, or have been, taking place. It is located in a broad theoretical framework which includes a cognitive belief system (equivalent to Marzano’s self system), but not a separate system dedicated to metacognition.

80 Frameworks for Thinking

The levels and sub-levels of the domain of cognition system are shown in table 3.3, together with illustrative general instructional objectives. The same instructional objectives are repeated at different levels, as the levels represent no more than progress towards the internalisation and automatic use of new knowledge.

Stahl and Murphy identify 21 mental processes involved in thinking and learning, and claim that these may be used in different combinations at any of the following levels: transformation, transfersion, incorporation, organisation and generation. These processes are said to operate with all kinds of content, whether cognitive or affective. They are provided in list form, as follows:

1.associating: connecting items together

2.classifying: putting items into categories

3.combining: putting items into some single whole

4.comparing: identifying similarities and differences

5.condensing: producing a shortened version of information

6.converting: changing the features of an item or information

7.describing: reporting the features of an item or information

8.designating: assigning a name or exactness to an item

9.discriminating: treating some items or information differently

10.extending: providing information to fill a gap or gaps

11.extracting: focusing on parts, part–part and part–whole relationships

12.interpreting: making sense of information

13.organising: putting items in order or sequence to bring out their relationships

14.proposing: suggesting a probable way of dealing with a problem

15.reconciliating: putting opposing items together to make a consistent whole

16.selecting: making a preferred, imperative or needed choice

17.separating: taking things apart to identify distinct components

18.translating: putting information into a different form or version

19.utilising: demonstrating how things could be, are being or have been put to use

20.valuating: assigning value, a rating or priority to an item or information

21.verifying: specifying how information should be accepted as valid or true.

Table 3.3. The domain of cognition taxonomic system

Table 3.3 (cont.)