Critical Thinking:Critical Thinking:

Higher Order Thinking Higher Order Thinking That UnifiesThat Unifies

Curriculum, Instruction, Curriculum, Instruction, and Learningand Learning

 

ABOUT USABOUT US

Billabong High International School, Thane is run byCitizens Welfare Association,a registered Public Charitable Trust dedicated and committed to providing Quality Education and Promoting Social and Cultural activities. The trust is managed by Mr. Sudhir Goenka, who is passionate about providing quality education.

Let us Begin With the Let us Begin With the Question: What is Critical Question: What is Critical

Thinking?Thinking?

thinking about thinking while thinking in order to make thinking better.

thinking that assesses itself.

The Three Dimensions The Three Dimensions of Critical Thinking of Critical Thinking

A n a lys iso f th ink ing

b y fo cus ing onth e pa rts

E va lu a tiono f th ink ing

b y fo cus ing onth e s tan d ards

Im p ro ve m e nto f th ink ing

b y u sin g w h a tyo u le a rn ed

C rit ica lT h in k ing

Throughout the rest of the talk, this concept of critical thinking should be understood as what is meant by higher order thinking.

ThesisThesisEducation, as a concept, defines

a set of higher order goals, but actual school learning

typically culminates in a set of lower order results.

How can we narrow the gap between goals and results?

So that in math classes students learn to think mathematically.

So that in history classes students learn to think historically.

So that in science classes students learn to think scientifically.

How can we make high How can we make high order goals a practical order goals a practical

reality?reality?

students begin to think critically in a disciplined, self-directed fashion

A major obstacle we face is that most teachers make assumptions about instruction, knowledge, and learning that are incompatible with high order results.

And so that in generalAnd so that in general

What is missing is What is missing is coherence, connection, coherence, connection,

and depth of and depth of understanding.understanding.

The bottom line, as we all well know, is not what is taught but what is learned.

Students are learning something very different from what we think we are teaching them.