As you read, be sure to think at each level. Here is a list of questions
to help you read and think at each level.
| Level of Thinking | Question |
|---|---|
| Knowledge | What information do I need to learn? |
| Comprehension | What are the main points and how are they supported? |
| Application | How can I use this information? |
| Analysis | How is this material organized? How are the ideas related? How are the data presented in graphs, tables, and charts related? What trends do they reveal? |
| Synthesis | How does this information fit with other sources (class lectures, other readings, prior knowledge)? |
| Evaluation | Is this information accurate, reliable, and valuable? Does the author prove his or her points? |
| Level | Examples |
|---|---|
| Knowledge
recalling information, repeating information with no changes |
Recalling dates, memorizing definitions for a history exam |
| Comprehension
understanding ideas, using rules and following directions |
Explaining a mathematical law, knowing how the human ear functions, explaining a definition in psychology |
| Application
applying knowledge to a new situation |
Using knowledge of formulas to solve a new physics problem |
| Analysis
seeing relationships, breaking information into parts, analyzing how things work |
Comparing two poems by the same author |
| Synthesis
putting ideas and information together in a unique way, creating something new |
Designing a new computer program |
| Evaluation
making judgements, assessing the value or worth of information |
Evaluating the effectiveness of an argument opposing the death penalty |
Back to Reading in the Textbook Reading Workshop
Materials from, Flemming, READING FOR RESULTS, 4ed 1990 315920^ Developmental English
displayed with special permission of Houghton Mifflin Company. All Rights Reserved.
