evaluating
information gathered from, or generated by, observation,
experience,
reflection, reasoning, or communication as a guide .
Critical thinking skills
1-Analyzing.
2-Reasoning.
3-Evaluating.
4-Problem solving.
5-Decision making.
Critical thinking Activities
1-Note-taking pairs.
2-Quiz or test questions.
3-Round Robin response.
4-Summarizing peers' answers.
5-Active review sessions.
6-Debates.
7-Interviewing.
8-Exchanging Evaluation.
9-Puzzles and paradoxes.
10-Quotations.
11-Role-playing.
12-Jigsaw group projects.
13-Send a problem.
14-Relating concepts.
15-Analyzing and composing.
16-Comparing and evaluating.
Why critical thinking?
Critical Thinking is a domain-general thinking skill.
Being able to
think well and solve problems systematically is an asset for any career.
Critical Thinking is very important in the new knowledge economy.
The new
economy places increasing demands on flexible intellectual skills, and
the ability to analyze information and integrate diverse sources of
knowledge in solving problems. Good critical thinking promotes such thinking skills, and is very important in the fast-changing workplace.
Critical Thinking enhances language and presentation skills.
Thinking clearly and systematically can improve the way we express our
ideas. In learning how to analyze the logical structure of texts,
critical thinking also improves comprehension abilities.
Critical Thinking promotes creativity.
To come up with a creative solution to a problem involves not just
having new ideas. It must also be the case that the new ideas being
generated are useful and relevant to the task at hand. Critical thinking plays a crucial role in evaluating new ideas, selecting the best ones and modifying them if necessary
Critical Thinking is crucial for self-reflection.
In order to live a meaningful life and to structure our lives
accordingly, we need to justify and reflect on our values and decisions.
Critical thinking provides the tools for this process of self-evaluation.
It is the foundation of science and a liberal democratic society.
Science requires the critical use of reason in experimentation and
theory confirmation. The proper functioning of a liberal democracy
requires citizens who can think critically about social issues to inform
their judgments about proper governance and to overcome biases and
prejudice.
Critical Thinking is important in life.
It helps you to think creatively – ‘outside the box’. It keeps you from becoming narrow. Critical Thinking is expected of you in higher education. It can lead to developing your judgement, evaluation and problem solving abilities.
Learning Critical Thinking enhances your academic performance.
students who know how to analyze and critique ideas are able to make
connections across disciplines, see knowledge as useful and applicable
to daily life and understand content on a deeper, more lasting level.
Teaching strategies:
(Classroom Assessment Techniques):
stresses the use of ongoing classroom assessment as a way to monitor
and facilitate students' critical thinking. An example of
a CAT is to
ask students to write a "Minute Paper" responding to questions such as
"What was the most important thing you
learned in today's class?
What
question related to this session remains uppermost in your
mind?" The
teacher selects some of the papers and prepares
responses for the next
class meeting.
Using Questions:
Experts identify ways of using questions in the classroom:
Reciprocal Peer Questioning:
Following lecture, the teacher
displays a list of question stems (such
as, "What are the strengths
and weaknesses of...).
Students must write
questions about the lecture material. In small groups, the students ask
each other the questions. Then, the whole class discusses questions from each small group.
Cooperative Learning Strategies :
Expertsargue
that putting students in group learning situations is the best way to
foster critical thinking. "In properly structured cooperative learning
environments, students perform more of the active, critical thinking
with continuous support and feedback from other
students and the
teacher"
Case Study /Discussion Method:
Expertsdescribe
this method as the teacher presenting a case
(or story) to the class
without a conclusion. Using prepared
questions, the teacher then leads
students through a discussion, allowing students to construct a
conclusion for the case.
Reader's Questions:
Require
students to write questions on assigned reading and turn them in at the
beginning of class. Select a few of the
questions as the impetus for
class discussion.
How to teach critical thinking:
Encouraging Students to Have an Open Mind
1-Start a class discussion by asking an open-ended question.
Open-ended questions are questions that have more than one answer. Make
sure to emphasize to your students that there are no right or wrong
answers. Let them know that there are only opportunities to learn and
some answers may work better than others.
This will allow students to
think critically and creatively without fear of getting anything wrong.
Show enthusiasm about answers that are outside of the box to encourage
students to let their minds expand to different possible ideas.
For example, ask students an open-ended question like, "What would be a good way to get more people to recycle in the school?"
Whether or not it's realistic, offer praise for an inventive answer
like, "we could start to make a giant sculpture out of recyclable things
in the middle of the school. Everyone will want to add to it, and at
the end of the year we can take pictures and then break it down to bring
to the recycling plant."
Give students time to think things through.
Narrow thinking is often the result of rushing to give an answer.
For classroom discussions or in-class assignments, give students a few
minutes to think clearly before they propose any ideas. For the best
results, have students sit quietly and put down their books and pens
while they reflect.
Try including a brief creative exercise in the beginning of
class to help get their minds working. For example, you could ask
students to identify 5 uses for a shoe .
Make a list naming the pros of two conflicting ideas.
Get students out of the mindset that there is always a "right" and
"wrong" answer by looking for the good in two contrasting ideas. Make a
large list on a chalkboard, white board, or large poster with a column
for each idea. Ask students to name positive things for both sides and
to think about a possible third option that would use parts of each.
For instance, make columns to name the good things about both a
camping trip and a city excursion, then have students think about a
happy medium between the two.
Part 2
Helping Students Make Connections
Ask your students to look for patterns and connections.
Across various subjects of study, encourage your students to look for
patterns and connections to the real world. This will help your students
tie individual lessons to bigger trends or concepts, and also to apply
them to daily life. Encourage students to point out themes or ideas that
they've seen before as they are learning.
For instance, environmental themes may come up in science, history, literature, and art lessons
If you are teaching geometry, then you might ask if they have ever
seen a building that resembles the shapes you are teaching about. You
could even show them some images yourself.
Show students a vague picture to get them thinking about their own assumptions.
Show your students a picture of something that is a bit vague and have
them guess what's happening in the picture. Next, ask them to break down
the clues in the picture that led them to this assumption. Finally, ask
them to think about how some of their own beliefs or experiences shaped
what they thought about the picture.
Explain to your students how the clues and their own personal influences form their final conclusions about the picture.
For instance, show students a picture of a man and woman shaking
hands in front of a home with a "For Sale" sign in front of it. Have
students explain what they think is happening in the picture, and slowly
break down the things that made them reach that conclusion.
Analyze statements by asking "why" five times.
It is important to encourage students to think about and explain their reasoning behind their answers.[7] Make a game out of interrogating claims by asking "why?" about it
five times. You can apply this to most lesson plans you are teaching,
especially in regard to literature or history. Encourage students to do
this on their own to get to the root of problems and to think about
things more deeply.
If you are studying a book or play, you can ask a question like,
"Why did Bob go to the train station?" and break down the responses in
such a way:
"To take a train."
"Why?"
"To get to the city."
"Why?"
"To meet his friend."
"Why?"
"Because he missed him."
"Why?"
"Because he was lonely."
On a more advanced level, students will benefit from interrogating their research and work to determine its relevance.
Part 3
Teaching Students About Reliable Information
1-Teach students the difference between opinions and factual statements.
Teach your students that any claim they make is considered an opinion
until they can provide evidence about it. This evidence might be an
experiment that they conduct, or reliable information published by
experts. In class discussions and projects, remind your students to back
up every claim they make with some supporting data.
For instance, if a student says that there are fewer libraries
than there used to be, have them provide some actual statistics about
libraries to support their statement.
2-Remind students to be open to conflicting views.
Your
students may be tempted to focus on sources that agree with their point
of view, but this will limit their ability to think critically about
the issue. Instead, encourage your students to learn about both sides of
the debate and stay open to both opinions. This will allow them to
learn as much as possible about a topic before deciding where they
stand.
3-Help students spot advertisements disguised as information.
Disguising product placements as neutral information is a powerful
advertising tool that is common today. Show students a simple paid story
article or subtle commercial segment to get them to think more
critically about that information that is presented to them every day.
Ask them to consider the sources of this information and the motivations
driving someone to share the information in the first place
Encourage students to ask the simple question, "Who is sharing this information, and why?
For instance, an advertisement for a low calorie food product may be
disguised as a special interest television segment about how to lose
weight on a budget.
4-Have students rate a website.
In the age of
electronic information, it is important to know what websites are
offering reliable facts and which ones aren't. Discuss the issue in
class, or give students an assignment to look at a website on their own
and evaluate it. They should be looking at the following factors
The date it was published, whether or not it has been updated, and
how current the information is. Tell students where to find this
information on the website
What the author's qualifications are. For instance, a medical
article should be written by a doctor or other medical professional.
If there is supporting evidence to back up what the writer says.
Sources should always have information to back them up, especially when
the source is something your students find on the internet.
5-Encourage students to question the sources of their information.
It is important to teach your students to look at their sources on a
deeper level. This will help them to identify any potential conflicts of
interest and think critically about their sources.
For example, if your students are reviewing the political
viewpoint of a senator in the USA, ask your students to look up
donations provided to that senator from any special interest groups.
This may provide your students with insight into the reasons for the
senator’s views.
