HARNESSING MULTIMEDIA AND INTERACTIVE ASSESSMENT TECHNOLOGIES TO PROMOTE AND EVALUATE COGNITIVE PROGRESSION AND CRITICAL THINKING IN THE CLASSROOM

Bloom's Taxonomy of Cognitive Development provides a model of learning that offers an approach for designing student-centered classroom experiences that promotes critical thinking and constructivist learning approaches. The authors explain how multimedia and interactive-assessment technologies can be combined with other pedagogical techniques, such as “storytelling, ” to create a rich and engaging learning environment that promotes the cognitive progression suggested by Bloom’s Taxonomy. To assist in visualizing the ideas and suggestions discussed in this paper, the authors have provided several examples in which they have used these technologies to assist students in understanding, applying, and evaluating subject matter (e.g., competing theories of international trade, international tax law, etc.). KEY WORDS: Bloom’s taxonomy, classroom response technology, interactive learning, learning modalities, multi-media, storytelling, technolog