david sylvester and rita brown. critical thinking is the art of thinking about your thinking while...
TRANSCRIPT
David Sylvesterand
Rita Brown
Critical thinking is the art of thinking about your thinking while you are thinking in order to make your thinking better: more clear, more accurate, or more defensible. (Paul in Craven & Hirnle (2000) p.139)
Critical thinking is a lot like jazz. We may not be able to define it, but we can recognize it when we hear it.
John Netland in Critial Thinking at Calvin College, 2007
◦“The Delphi Report” November 1990 Two dimensional definition Cognitive Skills Affective Disposition
CT According to the Delphi Report
Cognitive skills required (Core CT skills)◦Interpretation◦Analysis◦Evaluation◦Inference◦Explanation◦Self-regulation
Approaches to life and living in general:
◦Inquisitive in a wide range of issues
◦Wish to remain well informed
◦Trust in the processes of reasoned inquiry
◦Honesty in facing one’s own biases
Approaches to specific issues, questions or problems:
◦ Clarity in stating question or concern
◦ Orderliness in working with complexity
◦ Diligence in seeking relevant information
◦ Care in focusing attention on the concern at hand
Model behaviors that demonstrate the desired dispositions
Insist on student behavior that reflects the dispositions sought
Engage students in repeated activities that require use of these dispositions
Reinforce behaviors that demonstrate the appropriate dispositions
Encourage students to challenge you
Calvin College
Critical Thinking Task Force 2007◦ Found Delphi definition to be too narrow
◦ Felt passionate engagement was an essential piece
◦ Focused on cultural discernment and influence of worldviews as a mode of CT.
◦ Found that no definition of CT incorporated all its subtleties
Developed a rubric to evaluate students’ stages of critical thinking in place of developing another definition
5 CT skills
6 dimensions associated with CT
Found that 95% of questions students answered only required recall.
Identified 6 levels of intellectual behavior (cognitive domain)
Old
Knowledge Comprehension Application Analysis Synthesis Evaluation
New
Remembering Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating Creating
Level 1 – RecallRemembering previously learned material,
recalling facts, terms, basic concepts from stated text
Name, List, Recognize, Choose, Label, Relate, Tell, Recall, Match, Define
Level 2 – Understand Demonstrating understanding of the statedmeaning of facts and ideas
Compare, Describe, Outline, Organize, Classify, Explain, Rephrase, Show, Relate, Identify
Level 3 – Put to UseSolving problems by applying acquiredknowledge, facts, and techniques in a
different situation
Apply, Construct, Model, Use, Practice, Dramatize, Restructure, Simulate, Translate, Experiment
Level 4 – Break downExamining and breaking down information
intoparts
Analyze, Diagram, Classify, Contrast, Sequence, Simplify, Summarize, Relate to, Categorize, Differentiate
Level 5 – Put togetherCompiling information in a different way bycombining elements in a new pattern
Compose, Design, Develop, Propose, Adapt, Elaborate, Formulate, Originate, Solve, Invent
Level 6 – JudgePresenting and defending opinions by makingjudgments about information based on
criteria
Judge, Rank, Rate, Evaluate, Recommend, Defend, Justify, Prioritize, Support, Prove
How important should covering the content be as compared to teaching or cultivating Critical Thinking?
Use content to develop their self-awareness of their learning
Model how to learn – model your own thinking processes ◦ Show your drafts of work, notes on your own
reading ◦ Talk aloud as you problem solve
Make content relevant◦ Show its apparent intrigue◦ Show its power to answer questions
Students apply the content◦ Writing-to-learning activities ◦ Cooperative learning ◦ Case studies ◦ Other real-world applications/projects
Students learn from each other Climate of learning – interaction with
autonomy and responsibility
Teacher establishes parameters and assigns students to:◦ Decide on policies about class participation ◦ Organize content ◦ Give examples ◦ Summarize discussions ◦ Solve problems ◦ Draw diagrams, charts, graphs ◦ Chose assignments
Attempting to turn passive learners into autonomous learners is challenging
Why do they resist?◦ More work for them◦ More threatening for them – their decisions
might be wrong
◦ May be too much for some – not capable of such self-confidence or intellectual maturity
◦ Loss of certainty as the student moves to higher stages of self-directedness and intellectual development
◦ Many lack basic skills needed for college and are often busy with work/children.
This causes students to be dependent and passive
The more structure we give the more students want
The more responsibility we assume the less they accept
Don’t abandon rules – use them carefully
Don’t summarize chapters for students who haven’t read them
Don’t give negative attendance points for tardies◦ Give a quiz at the beginning of the period instead
Give frequent exams – put unread material on the test (for the unprepared students)
Be consistent with your policies and how you follow through
Encourage students to think of themselves as learners ◦ Explain the purposes of an assignment and
what troubles some may have with it ◦ Help with time management ◦ Guide in the management of group projects
Involve students in a discussion of creating climate that promotes learning ◦ “In the best class I ever had, the teacher…”◦ “In the best class I ever had, students…” ◦ “I learn best when…” ◦ “I feel most confident as a learner when…”
Revisit the discussion later in the semester and get feedback
Questioning strategies◦ Ask for clarification, evidence, reasoning
More than recall◦ Ask questions with more than one correct answer
Have students use oral and written language often and informally ◦ Have students write answers to questions, before
speaking up in class ◦ Use small-group tasks ◦ Teach students reading and note-taking
strategies
Design tasks that require thinking about content as a primary goal ◦ Use active-learning strategies that require
students to process information, not just recall it
Teach explicitly how to do the thinking needed for the tasks ◦ Practice is not enough◦ Model the thinking processes required◦ Give feedback
Create a classroom atmosphere that promotes risk-taking and speculative thinking ◦ Arrange physical space to promote student-
student interaction ◦ Avoid competition ◦ Foster interaction among students
Facione, P.A. (1990). The delphi report: Executive summary. California Academic Press
Facione, P.A. (1998). Critical thinking: What it is and why it counts. California Academic Press
Critical Thinking at Calvin College (2007)http://www.calvin.edu/admin/provost/
assessment/criticalthinking/cttf-report.pdf
Foundation for Critical Thinking◦ http://www.criticalthinking.org/
Critical thinking: What is it and why it counts 2010 Update (permission to copy unlimited)◦ http://www.insightassessment.com/pdf_files/what
&why2007.pdf
Holistic Critical Thinking Rubric◦ http://www.insightassessment.com/hctsr.html