17 the memorization in which it should concern on complex cognitive process as
cited in Haladyna, 2012, p. ix. Second, recalling retrieving leads students to retrieve relevant knowledge
from their long-term memory when given stimuli to do so Anderson Krathwohl, 2001, p. 69. The stimuli are usually questions Anderson
Krathwohl, 2001, p.69. An example given by Haladyna 2012, p. 31 that students are given a task to mention one primer number. It
needs students’ long term-memory in order to answer the question Haladyna, 2012, p. 31. Thus,
remembering level mostly employs memorization skill in assessing students’
competences.
b. Understanding
According to Anderson and Krathwohl 2001, p. 70, understanding occurs when students are able to construct meaning from instructional messages
including oral, written or graphs. It means understanding leads students to build connection between the new knowledge and their prior knowledge Anderson
Krathwohl, 2001, p. 70. The new knowledge here does not mean really “new”,
but it still has connection to students’ existing knowledge Anderson
Krathwohl, 2001, p.70. Moreover, interpreting and summarizing are the behaviors employed in
understanding level Anderson Krathwohl, 2001, pp. 70-73; Curches, 2008. First, interpreting occurs when students are able to convert information from one
representational form to another Anderson Krathwohl, 2001, p. 70. For example, students are able to paraphrase existing sentences without changing
18 meanings Anderson Krathwohl, 2001, p. 70. Second, summarizing occurs
when students are able to suggest a single statement that represents presented information Anderson Krathwohl, 2001, p. 73. It means that summarizing
level leads students to construct a representative meaning of the information Anderson Krathwohl, 2001, p. 73. An example of summarizing task is to
determine a theme or main points of a paragraph or texts Anderson Krathwohl, 2001, p. 73. Thus, understanding level mostly focuses on the meaning
construction.
c. Applying
According to Anderson and Krathwohl 2001, p. 77, applying occurs when students are able to solve problem by considering the procedural knowledge
they already have in minds. It means that students are able to use knowledge and concepts they already have in minds Forehand, 2010. Therefore, applying is
considered as higher level than remembering and understanding Forehand, 2010. One of applying level behaviors is executing Anderson Krathwohl, 2001, p.
77; Churches, 2008. Executing leads students to use procedural knowledge to perform a familiar task Anderson Krathwohl, 2001, p. 77. Bransford, Brown
and Cocking 1999 note procedural knowledge is knowledge which has rules so that students know when and where to use it as cited in Anderson Krathwohl,
2001, p. 52. Thus, applying level employs students’ thinking skill to carry out
their prior knowledge and concepts to the new situation Forehand, 2010.
