North Carolina Thinking Skills: An introduction

There are five dimensions in the model of thinking skills used to classify questions for the state's assessment tests.

By Tom Munk

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Perhaps you’ve heard of Bloom’s Taxonomy. Maybe you’re even familiar with Marzano’s Dimensions of Thinking Model. But were you aware that North Carolina’s testing program incorporates a thinking skills model?

Let’s start back with Bloom. He proposed that we should try to lead our students through various levels of thinking — from knowledge to comprehension to application, analysis, synthesis, and finally, evaluation (Bloom et al, 1956). Since that time, teachers have tried to lead their students away from knowledge-based instruction toward higher levels of thinking.

Appropriately, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (DPI) makes a strong effort to ensure that statewide tests assess these multiple levels of thinking. Thinking skill level is one of the dimensions used to classify questions for North Carolina tests. DPI chose to adopt the Dimensions of Thinking model (Marzano et al , 1988) because "the framework reflects current thinking in cognitive psychology, education, and philosophy. It provides a practical framework for curriculum development, instruction, assessment, and staff development." (Assessment Brief, Public Schools of North Carolina, Summer 1999)

As indicated in the attached chart (Public Schools of North Carolina, 1999), there are five major dimensions in the model. (The Dimensions of Thinking chart is also available in PDF format.) Of course, teachers are trying to impart content knowledge, but, in addition, we want to encourage students to be aware of and control their own thinking — this is metacognition. Students should also learn to think critically and creatively. The thinking processes are fairly complex sequences of thinking skills. It is the thinking skills, the "building blocks" of thinking, that DPI has chosen to incorporate into its testing program and LEARN NC has chosen to incorporate in its forthcoming update to the lesson plan database.

At the lowest level, students should learn the focusing, information-gathering, and remembering skills that allow them to gain declarative and procedural knowledge. Techniques such as comparing, classifying, ordering, and representing allow students to develop skill in organizing information. Applying their knowledge to a novel situation is a higher-level skill that our children will need to succeed, both in school and outside the classroom. By examining the parts and relationships of existing information, students clarify their knowledge and practice the learning skill of analyzing. By inferring, predicting, and elaborating, students can become skilled at generating new information, meaning, or ideas. Integrating can be accomplished by condensing information efficiently into a cohesive statement or by connecting existing and prior knowledge into a new understanding. Evaluating ideas by setting criteria and confirming the accuracy of claims is the last of the North Carolina Thinking Skills.

How do we guide our students toward these higher levels? The English/Language Arts Planning Guide for Grades K-2 includes a table of the North Carolina Thinking Skills with examples of question stems to encourage that level of thought. (Public Schools of NC, 2001).

Dimensions of Learning (Marzano, 1992; Marzano, et al 1992) is a well-developed model, published by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, that teachers and curriculum developers can use to enhance learning and thinking in all content areas from grades K-12.

Dr. Stan Pogrow’s HOTS program is designed to counter the typical performance drop found in grades 4 to 8 for Title I and LD students. Dr. Pogrow found that development of thinking skills was the most effective way to improve performance even on tests that are not intended to evaluate thinking skills

Bibliography

Bloom, B.S. et al (Eds.). (1956). Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: Part I, Cognitive Domain. New York: Longman Green.

Marzano, R.J., Brandt, R.S., Hughese, C.S., Jones, B.F., Presseisen, B.Z., Stuart, C., & Shhor, C. (1988). Dimensions of Thinking. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Marzano, R.J. (1992). A Different Kind of Classroom: Teaching with Dimensions of Learning. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Marzano, R.J., Pickering, D.E., Arrendondo, G.J., Blackburn, R.S., Brandt, R.S., & Moffett, C.A. (1992) Dimensions of Learning Teachers’ Manual. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Pogrow, Stan, Ph. D. (2001) www.hots.org.

Public Schools of North Carolina, State Board of Education, Department of Public Instruction, Division of Accountability Services (Summer, 1999) Assessment Brief, Vol. 6, No. 4. Understanding North Carolina Tests: Thinking Skill Level. Raleigh, NC: North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.

Public Schools of North Carolina, State Board of Education, Department of Public Instruction, English Language Arts (January, 2001) English Language Arts Planning Guide for Grades K-2. Raleigh, NC: North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.

Slowinski, Betty James Maness, Ph.D. (1995) The Basics Revitalized: Integrated, Holistic Learning As We Prepare for the 21st Century. in Education for the 21^st Century: Key Issues - Leadership, Literacy, Legislation, Learning, edited by Barbara Day, Ph. D. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company.