1

LITERATURE REVIEW


My research project focused on creating a classroom culture to develop my students thinking
dispositions (i.e., the ability and inclination to think deeply). Prior to taking action in the
classroom, I looked for support toward embedding critical thinking techniques in my teaching. I
began by exploring how education has historically viewed the development of thinking in children.
This led me to discover the disconnect between what education proposes to do and what often
happens in classrooms. In addition to recognizing the value of teaching thinking skills to students,
I further learned the importance of developing thinking dispositions by creating a culture of
thinking in the classroom.

Education: Whats the Purpose?
Prior to the 20
th
century, education in the United States was predominantly influenced by the
conservative (classical tradition) philosophy. The first American schools were designed to teach
religious content and reading skills to use toward bible study. The process of education mimicked
that of the European tradition, in which a teacher disseminated knowledge to children as a means
of producing disciplined, moral citizens (Otto, as cited in Goodlad & Shane, 1973). In the 19
th

century, religious content was largely replaced with secular instruction and the goal for education
expanded to include creating knowledgeable citizens, while the formal method of teaching
remained primarily the same (Witcher, Sewall, Arnold, & Travers, 2001). Schools existed to
transmit information down to new generations. Teachers provided information and children
listened and learned (Ackerman, 2003; Schulz, 2001).

Over time, this method of schooling has been criticized and other options offered for
educating children. Throughout the 18
th
and 19
th
centuries, small movements introduced
alternative forms of teaching ways that were opposed to mere dissemination of information and
were experiential and child-focused. Educators, influenced by the works of Jean Jacques Rousseau,
a philosopher during the Enlightenment, introduced methods that encouraged natural
development of children, replaced authority in schools with reason and investigation, and reflected
Rousseaus notion that the child rather than the subject be taught (Otto, as cited in Goodlad &
Shane, 1973). Although today the liberal progressive philosophy is often regarded as innovative,
variations of progressive schools appear throughout the history of American schooling (Nehring,
2006).

John Dewey, a great educational thinker of the 20
th
century questioned the one-way delivery
style of authoritarian schooling as a means to achieve what he saw as the purpose of education:
helping children become participating members of a democratic society. Most schools to this
point were designed to achieve cultural uniformity rather than diversity and to educate dutiful
rather than critical citizens. Deweys philosophy emphasized the importance of thinking skills and
the value of experience in shaping a childs learning. He thought it important that educators
provide students with experiences that are immediately valuable. Through these experiences,
students create meaning and understanding which prepares them to contribute thoughtfully to
society (Dewey, 1938; Dewey, as cited in Schultz, 2001). It was suggested that students needed to
be exposed to real-world situations and experiential learning, in order to develop skills that were
necessary to become contributing citizens in our world. Giving children information wasnt
enough. Children needed to be taught how to think about that information and to make informed
decisions, to solve problems, and to develop new ideas. To encourage this, Dewey proposed that
children not be passive recipients of knowledge, but rather construct knowledge and skills through
meaningful experiences and cultivate thinking skills as part of the experiential process of learning.

Deweys influence on education was great and throughout the first half of the twentieth
century reform in education incorporated his ideals. Soon though, a popular attack on progressive
education, which was blamed for failure of American schools to create an educated society, gained
ground. During the 1950s, concerns over USSR advancement forced some to worry that
American schools were not producing competitively expert students. A push for improvement in
the educational systems output, in terms of cognitive goals, suggested schools revert to the
traditional, disciplined, standardized curriculum approach to education (Longstreet & Cohen, as
cited in Goodlad & Shane, 1973). But because educational goals and structures were not clearly
defined nationally, by the 1960s and 1970s ambiguity in educational approach throughout the
country led to conflict between discipline-oriented curriculum and curriculum developed around
societys needs. In the former, disciplines themselves (history, mathematics, literature, etc.)
provided the structure of the school day as it was thought that canonical knowledge within these
disciplines needed to be transferred to students. In the latter, the interests and needs of students
drove the direction of the curriculum.

A hundred years after Dewey, schools continue to grapple with how to educate students. The
world has changed greatly such that the knowledge and skills needed for students to succeed today
are quite different from what served them years ago. Moreover, due to the rapid development and
dissemination of new information and understanding, the notion that a fixed body of knowledge
is all students need to know to be successful is false. Beyond an understanding of subject-specific
information, students need skills to continue learning in an ever-changing world. Research
conducted by Tony Wagner (2008) with several hundred business, nonprofit, philanthropic, and
education leaders helped to identify the skills young people need. These include: critical thinking
and problem solving; collaboration and leadership; agility and adaptability; initiative and
entrepreneurialism; effective oral and written communication; accessing and analyzing
information; and curiosity and imagination. Strikingly, one business leader, when asked what skills
he looks for in new hires, responded, First and foremost, I look for someone who asks good
questions...We can teach them the technical stuff, but we cant teach them how to ask good
questionshow to think (as cited in Wagner, 2008, p. 20).

In response to our changing world, leaders in education have been working to revise plans for
schooling to more comprehensively meet student needs. The education that once served the youth
of America is no longer sufficient for preparing students for success after graduation. Over the
past thirty years, school improvements have been proposed. Organizations such as the Education
Commission of the States and the College Board have highlighted the teaching of thinking as
important toward developing more thoughtful and critical students. In addition, many
philosophers, psychologists, and educators hold that the development of rational thought should
be the primary goal of education (Marzano, 1988).

Prior to the 21
st
century, a new framework was designed for teaching and learning that includes
updated student outcomes with an emphasis on thinking. Within this framework, beyond the
classic core subject knowledge and skills, schools are encouraged to prepare students with life and
career skills, learning and innovation skills, and information, media, and technology skills. New
skills such as collaboration, communication, creativity and critical thinking (the Four Cs) are given
important emphasis in the 21st century frameworkin recognition that abilities in these areas are
necessary for success in todays society. More recently, the Common Core Initiative drafted
standards (adopted by forty-four states in the nation) that aim to help students develop critical-
thinking, problem-solving and analytical skills.

While it seems encouraging that current educational programs incorporate new skills in their
goals for students, real change in classrooms remains to be seen. Still, many students are not given
opportunities to learn how to think critically or to practice higher levels of thinking in the
classroom. In most schools, the teacher-centered approach to education still prevails as teachers
lecture or deliver information and students are expected to passively receive it (Mascolo, 2009).
Lip service is paid to the modified learning goals while the structure of classrooms remain the
same; the teaching discourages independent student thinking and continues to promote
memorization and passive learning. As Hooks states, by the time students reach college many,
come to classes assuming that thinking will not be necessary; that all they will need to do is
consume information and regurgitate it at the appropriate moments (2010, p. 8).

For real change to take place, classroom experiences need to evolve to provide opportunities
for students to develop more than content knowledge. Unfortunately, state testing continues to
drive the curricula of many schools. Since most of these exams test only for content
understanding and basic mastery of subject-matter skills teachers continue to focus on the delivery
of information to their students rather than the development of advanced thinking and other skills
requisite to success in our modern world.

In my project-based school (High Tech Elementary), the emphasis is reversed. Rather than the
content driving learning experiences, goals for development of the Four Cs do. My fifth graders
participated in a computer project in which they considered the impact of the digital divide on the
community, worked collaboratively to learn about computers and refurbish old computers for
local families, and developed a tech workshop to train community members on computer tasks
and software. For another project, fifth graders learned about fitness and then devised a creative
solution for encouraging exercise at our school. They constructed a fitness circuit (including a
climbing traverse, log jump, and tire run, among other stations) for students to use. (For more
information about my school, see my thesis section titled Setting.)

Instead of focusing on mastery of information or subject-specific skills as standards for
success, I am encouraged to teach students to engage with each other and think deeply about
ideas, concepts, and problems in the community. Teaching children to become effective thinkers
is an immediate goal of education at our school. Though many schools acknowledge that the
teaching of thinking is an important aim of education (Tishman, Jay & Perkins, 1993), too few
focus on explicitly teaching thinking skills. Too often teachers give students opportunities to be
passive rather than active thinkers. Instead of providing learning experiences that structure active
exploration into new topics, teachers deliver information about these topics to students. As Paulo
Freire succinctly put it, we cannot enter the struggle as objects in order to later become subjects
(as cited in Hooks, 2010, p. 45). Giving students experiences in which they are engaging in the
world around them and actively directing their own learning better prepares them for active
participation in our future society.

Why teach thinking skills?
Just as humans are born with the natural capacity and inclination to move, we are born able
and willing to think (Costa, 2008). We automatically wonder about things, take in information, and
make sense of our observations. But, just as the more complex forms of movement require
teaching and practice, so does more skillful thinking. Skillful thinking, or critical thinking, involves
mental operations that are not automatic, but rather learned through cultivation. These cognitive
skills (e.g., considering multiple perspectives or making connections and comparisons) enable
deeper understanding, better problem-solving and more informed decision-making.

It is important to clarify that having a thinking skill entails more than just having declarative
knowledge (Smith, 2002, p. 662). You can seemingly know something and not have developed
the thinking skills, or organized mental activities to work with information or ideas. Simply
memorizing information does not develop real knowledge and understanding. As Paul states,

Knowledge exists in and through critical thought when we teach each subject in such a way
that students pass courses without thinking their way into the knowledge that these subjects make
possible, students leave those courses without any more knowledge than they had when they
entered them. When we sacrifice thought to gain coverage, we sacrifice knowledge at the same
time. The issue is not shall we sacrifice knowledge to spend time on thought, but shall we
continue to sacrifice both knowledge and thought for the mere appearance of learning (1999, pp.
51-52).

Teaching thinking skills and giving students the opportunities to use them is essential to
learning. As Gough states, perhaps most importantly in todays information age, thinking skills
are viewed as crucial for educated persons to cope with a rapidly changing world (as cited in
Cotton, 1991, p. 1). Though many different descriptions of thinking skills exist, for the purposes
of this research, I have chosen to go with Smiths summary of the concept: A thinking skill is a
teachable, partially proceduralized, mental activity that reaches beyond normal cognitive capacities
and can be exercised at will (2002, p. 663). Examples of thinking skills include making inferences,
asking relevant questions, prioritizing options, and brainstorming ideas.

It is not enough to provide opportunities for thinking deeply in order to develop critical
thinking skills. Students need specific guidance in the tasks effective thinkers do when solving
problems, making decisions or evaluating the world around them. Since thinking is an invisible
action, students cannot be expected to simply watch others to learn how to repeat the same moves
(Perkins, 2003). A novice artist can learn techniques from watching art experts, just as a young
athlete can develop skill for a sport by watching other athletes. Thinking is an action that is not
readily observable. For children to develop thinking skills they must be made explicit and students
must be given opportunities to practice them. When people are thinking in a group and sharing
ideas aloud, thinking is more visible. When one person takes the time to vocalize the thinking they
are doing, thinking is apparent.

Perkins wrote, Education has the opportunity, and hence the responsibility, to improve
students thinking. A variety of studies show that people often do not use their minds well, and
can learn to do so better (1993, p. 98). Teachers have the obligation to make thinking visible by
speaking to the actions involved in critical thinking and making evident to students how we can
employ strategies to explore things deeply. As Costa notes, Although thinking is innate and
spontaneous, skillful thinking must be cultivated... we can catalyze learning to think by making
thinking skills explicit (2008, p. 23). A growing body of research suggests that teachers should go
beyond promoting critical thinking skills by directly teaching how to perform higher-order
thinking skills (Jones, 2012). Through a review of twenty-two research studies or evaluations on
thinking skills instruction, Cotton found that nearly all of the thinking skills programs and
practices investigated were found to make a positive difference in the achievement levels of
participating students (1991, p. 4). Making thinking visible helps students understand how to
perform complex mental tasks and in doing, provides them the opportunity to learn these skills
themselves.

Is teaching thinking skills enough?
Teaching thinking skills to students is important, but not sufficient if we want to foster the
practice of thinking outside of school. It is not enough to develop thinking abilities if we cannot
ensure that students have the tendencies to use these skills. John Deweys observations of poor
thinking among well-educated persons led him to conclude that Knowledge of methods alone
will not suffice; there must be the desire, the will to employ them. This desire is an affair of
personal disposition (as cited in Ritchhart, 2002, p. 18). As noted by Tishman, Jay and Perkins:

To be sure, a good thinker possesses certain abilities: cognitive capabilities, as well as thinking
strategies and skills. Yet what sets good thinkers apart is not simply superior cognitive ability or
particular skills; rather it is their abiding tendencies to explore, inquire, seek clarity, take intellectual
risks, and think critically and imaginatively. These tendencies can be called thinking dispositions
(1993, p. 148).

If we want to encourage students to not only employ critical skills when asked to, but to
recognize and respond to opportunities for thinking outside the classroom, its not sufficient to
simply teach thinking strategies. Teachers must encourage thinking dispositions. According to
Ritchhart:

Thinking dispositions represent characteristics that animate, motivate, and direct our abilities
toward good and productive thinking and are recognized in the patterns of our frequently
exhibited, voluntary behavior (2002, p. 21).

Perkins wrote, If you have the disposition to behave in a certain way, you have the kinds of
attitudes, understandings, and motivations that nudge you to behave that way (1993, p. 98).
Frequently, I see students who have the knowledge of how to behave (how to think or act in
certain situations), but lack the disposition, the inclination to follow through. Many teachers have
had the experience in which students can speak to how they can or should act, but dont actually
do as they say. They are able to talk the talk but not walk the walk. Fostering an inclination to
employ the skills they learn and the motivation to do so without constant prodding is key to
guiding students toward becoming self-motivated, active thinkers.

Thinking is not merely about the mental moves we initiate; it is a matter of our sensitivity to
occasions and our inclination to invest ourselves in them thoughtfully (Costa & Kallick, 2009, p.
xiv). Tishman, Jay and Perkins (1993) claim that thinking dispositions are comprised of three
elements: abilities, sensitivities, and inclinations. Abilities refer to the thinking skills or strategies to
use for certain situations. Sensitivities refer to alertness to occasions or opportunities for thinking.
Inclinations refer to the tendency to employ thinking skills or strategies. The following diagram
simply captures these three elements.


Figure 1. Elements of thinking dispositions. This figure shows the three main parts of a
thinking disposition.

Aiming to develop thinking skills that students will use beyond school requires that we help
develop their thinking dispositions. This means, in addition to explicitly teaching students more
complex thinking strategies we must foster an alertness to thinking opportunities and an
inclination to employ thinking strategies. Developing the dispositions for thinking is key to
ensuring that students become thoughtful both in and out of the classroom. McGuinness, after
evaluating the research into thinking skills concluded,

Developing better thinking and reasoning skills may have as much to do with creating
dispositions for good thinking as it has to do with acquiring specific skills and strategies. For this
reason classrooms need to have open-minded attitudes about the nature of knowledge and
thinking and to create an educational atmosphere where talking about thinkingquestioning,
predicting, contradicting, doubtingis not only tolerated but actively pursued (1999, p. 2)

How are thinking dispositions developed?
For students to learn the cognitive capabilities of a good thinker, a teacher can use
transmission-style teaching: describing and modeling thinking strategies, explaining them and
providing practice and feedback. But this model merely gives students an understanding of
thinking skills without supporting the habit of voluntarily using these skills in different situations
(Tishman et al., 1993). To develop the inclinations and sensitivities also required of a good
thinker, teachers need to create environments and learning situations that cue and support the
desired behavior. The enculturation model of teaching, in essence, encourages habits and
behaviors by explicitly valuing and supporting these through both the classroom environment and
learning experiences (Tishman et al., 1993).

Perkins suggests that we take a clue from everyday experience by noticing, people acquire
dispositions all the time, through enculturation. We grow up, play, and work in settings where
certain values and practices are honored. We learn, by osmosis as it were, to honor them too
(1993, p. 98). In the sense of developing thoughtful students Perkins recommends that we
surround students in an environment that enculturates students into good thinking practices
(1993, p. 98). The set of values and beliefs shared by our social groups (both in and out of school)
influences our development (Salmon, 2008). Teachers can have a great impact on the development
of thinking dispositions by taking responsibility for purposely building a culture that
communicates a value for thinking in the classroom (Perkins, 1993).

Salmon noted, When thinking is part of the daily routine, children become alert to situations
that call for thinking, and, as a result, they build up positive attitudes toward thinking and
learning (2008, p. 461). For Ritchhart (2002), cultures of thinking are places that value the
groups collective and individual thinking and promote thinking while making it visible as part of
the daily experience. All classroom cultures promote certain behaviors. Unfortunately for many
students, a large number of classroom environments promote behaviors that require little thought
such as following directions, listening to the teacher, sitting still and respecting rules, rather than
active thinking and engagement of the mind. In my classroom, I hope to create a culture of
thinking in which language, values, expectations and habits work together to express and reinforce
good thinking (Tishman, Perkins, & Jay, 1995).

What does a culture of thinking look like?
A culture of thinking goes beyond teaching students the skills and strategies for thinking.
Surrounding students with a culture that values and encourages thinking, and giving them an
environment in which opportunities for thinking and the modeling of thinking is ever-present,
helps students develop the habit of using their thinking skills in many situations. More than just
providing occasional activities centered around thinking, the teacher must infuse the environment
with cues for thinking such that the whole experience of being in the classroomfrom what is seen
and heard to how time is spentcontributes toward developing the thinking dispositions of
students. Creating a culture of thinking requires deliberate design. Unfortunately, more often than
not, classroom environments are devoid of the type of activities, language, and visual displays that
promote thinking and that impact attitudes around thinking.

Perkins wrote, We dont notice how easily thinking can stay out of sight, because we are used
to it being that way. As educators, our first task is perhaps to see the absence, to hear the silence,
to notice what is not there (2003, para. 18). Once we recognize that thinking is invisible in the
classroomthe very place where thinking is a goal of learningwe can begin to make it explicit in
our words, visual displays and in the learning experiences we plan for students. This is what
building a culture of thinking is all aboutbeing purposeful in including the language of thinking,
opportunities for thinking and reminders of thinking in the everyday experiences in the classroom.

Students spend six hours each day in a classroom. That environment has the potential for
encouraging thinking in many ways. Ritchhart (2002) suggests that there are eight cultural forces
that define our classrooms through which we can direct or encourage thinking: time,
opportunities, routine and structures, language, modeling, interactions and relationships, physical
environment, and expectations. Each of these cultural forces conveys something about whats
valued in the classroom. As teachers interested in developing the habit of thinking critically, we
can use these aspects of the classroom to both teach thinking and to encourage the disposition for
thinking. For example, to utilize the physical environment for promoting thinking we can display
the process of thinking (with connection webs, wondering walls, or brainstorm lists) and arrange
the space to facilitate thoughtful interactions. The cultural forces of the classroom provide
leverage points for teachers to use in creating classrooms where thinking is highly valued. For
example, we can allocate time for thinking by providing time for exploring topics more in depth as
well as time to formulate thoughtful responses. Or, we can be explicit in the vocabulary we use to
direct students thinking (Ritchhart, 2002).

Other educational researchers describe a culture of thinking in slightly different ways. Tishman
et al. (1995) suggests that there are four cultural forces in the thinking classroom: models,
explanation, interaction, and feedback. Enculturation occurs through demonstrations of good
thinking; straightforward explanation of specific teaching tactics; thinking along with others; and
the provision of informative and learning-centered feedback.

Perkins (2003) describes a third concrete way to envision a culture of thinking that incorporates
three behaviors for making thinking more visible: 1) be a model of thoughtfulness for students; 2)
use the language of thinking; and 3) surface the many opportunities for thinking during learning
using thinking routines. I gravitated toward Perkins framework because these three components
relate to things I already do in my teaching: modeling for students, talking to them, and planning
purposeful activities for learning. Perkins and others help define how to encourage skillful
thinking by describing what modeling, verbalizing, and unearthing thinking looks like. I combined
these three behaviors with the component of reflection because I wanted students to not only
learn how to think better, but also be more aware of the role that thinking plays in developing
their own understanding.

Modeling Thinking
Rather than presenting students with information and fully-formed conclusions, teachers need
to reveal their uncertainties and demonstrate how they develop understanding themselves. The
typical school experience suggests to students that understanding is gained by gathering
knowledge. Teachers need to demonstrate that understanding is constructed through the practice
of thinking strategiesa practice that takes time. Rather than expect instant answers, teachers
should encourage the asking of questions and express their own thought process as its happening
(Perkins, 2003).

Verbalizing Thinking
Another aspect of thinking involves the language we use to describe thinking strategies. Using
specific cognitive terminology (e.g., Lets compare these two pictures rather than Lets look at
these two pictures.) helps students understand what they should be doing to evaluate information
and to reach conclusions. Rather than asking students to think about things, teachers can
encourage students to hypothesize, reason, give evidence, take different perspectives, etc. (Perkins,
2003; Costa & Marzano, 1983).

Unearthing Thinking
Encouraging students to think throughout the day requires more than simply asking them to
do so. Visible Thinking Routines designed by Harvards Project Zero are simple protocols that
can be used to make thinking visible and to facilitate thinking (Perkins, 2003). When thinking is
visible, a learners ideas are revealed as they are unfolding (Tishman & Palmer, 2005). Thinking
skills are fostered through the use of thinking routines that encourage active processing. Rather
than students listing facts, routines guide students in actively engaging with a topic by asking
questions or connecting new knowledge to old (Tishman & Palmer, 2005). Additionally, these
thinking routines become recurring events in the classroom which have been observed in young
students to promote alertness to situations that call for thinking and to build positive attitudes
toward thinking (Salmon, 2008).

One simple routine used for capturing essence is called Headlines. This routine has one core
question: If you were to write a headline for this topic or issue right now that captured the most
important aspect that should be remembered, what would that headline be (Visible Thinking
Headlines, n.d., para. 2). This routine can be used in any number of situations. By repeatedly
employing it, students become comfortable with summarizing information or an experience and
getting at the heart of a topic or issue. Other routines encourage different skills such as exploring
diverse perspectives, reflecting on how or why thinking has changed, or thinking creatively about
options.

Reflecting on Thinking
In addition to modeling, verbalizing and unearthing thinking, it is important to reflect on
thinking to help students become aware of how thinking impacts their learning experiences. As
Ritchhart, Church & Morrison state,

Its one thing for us as teachers to articulate the kinds of thinking we are seeking to promote;
it is another for students to develop a greater awareness of the significant role that thinking plays
in cultivating their own understanding (2011, p. 15).

I cannot assume that without having conversations following thinking routines that my
students will automatically recognize that using critical thinking skills leads to deeper thinking or
learning and more interesting interactions with new information. Since one of my goals is to
cultivate in students the will to utilize critical thinking strategies I feel its necessary to help them
see the benefits of using thinking skills such that they will want to employ them without my
suggestion.

I liken it to the situation of teaching a child to brush his or her teeth. At first, you teach the
skill. Then you repeat, encouraging the habit of performing the task. Finally, at some point, you
hope that children develop the inclination to brush their teeth without encouragement.
Somewhere along the line, theyll recognize that there are values to brushing their teeth (e.g., teeth
are clean; their breath smells better; teeth remain healthy; etc.) and find they are motivated to
brush their teeth without needing prodding to do so. Or, it may be that they simply brush their
teeth out of habit. Either way, they are doing this new skill over and over again without
prompting. I wish to develop the same intrinsic motivation or habitual action in my students for
the utilization of thinking skills. Some may find the value in thinking and, therefore, employ these
skills without needing to be told to, while others may simply use the skills out of habit. Either way,
students are applying deep thinking strategies more often in their lives.

To do this, I need to have my students reflect on the benefits of thinking as we perform these
routines in the classroom and continue performing the routines over and over again. This can help
them develop a value for thinking and a cognizance of situations in which using critical thinking
skills is beneficial.

When a culture of thinking is created in a classroom, thinking becomes a community affair.
Rather than activities that take place strictly within the mind, mental actions are shared and
communicated among students and teachers. Vygotskys (1978) interactional theory of
development recognizes the value of social interactions in higher cognitive functioning. Improved
levels of thinking arise when students interact and share their ideas (Tharp, 1991). In a classroom
in which thinking is an action shared aloud, students have opportunities to talk about their
thoughts and react to other students ideas. Replacing the traditional method of teacher presenting
new learning to students with self-directed learning that emerges from student conversations not
only promotes active thinking, it develops lifelong learners (Rader, 2011).

Enculturating thinking dispositions is described in different ways by various researchers, but
the message is the same throughout all of these guides: thinking can and should be infused in the
conversations, activities and environmental aspects of a classroom rather than separated out to be
taught in a distinct lesson or two. Present in all classroom cultures of thinking are models of
thinking, consistent expectations for thinking within the environment, explicit instruction in
thinking to develop ability, and the opportunity for practice and reinforcement within meaningful
contexts (Ritchhart, 2002, p. 51).

What did building a culture of thinking look like in 5th grade?
To develop a culture of thinking in my classroom, I needed to make thinking more visible to
students by talking about thinking, giving time for it, and encouraging deeper thinking through
specific activities. I needed to surround activities or tasks we did in the classroom (everything
from watching a video clip to researching a new topic) with structures that encourage deeper
thinking. Then, in addition to teaching thinking strategies and using them, I needed to give time to
reflect on the value of thinking.

Since skillful thinking entails many different mental actions (e.g., questioning, considering
multiple perspectives, generating creative solutions, etc.) it made sense to select one technique to
focus on with my 5
th
graders. I chose to promote my students thinking skills toward actively
wondering about new informationasking questions and making connections to it to broaden
their understanding. My experience teaching fourth and fifth graders led me to conclude that
commonly, students at this age are hesitant to ask questions and make connections to drive their
learning. I wanted to encourage active engagement with new topics to encourage deep
understanding rather than shallow comprehension or memorization. Neal Postman promotes the
teaching of questioning to students. He stated,

All the knowledge we have is a result of our asking questions; indeed question-asking is the
most significant intellectual tool human beings have. Is it not curious, then, that the most
significant intellectual skill available to human beings is not taught in school (as cited in Rothstein
& Santana, 2012, p. 12).

Reaching further back, Peter Abelard, a French medieval philosopher stated, The first key to
wisdom is constant questioning by doubting we are led to enquiry, and by enquiry we discern
the truth (as cited in Fisher, 2005, p. 53). With this encouragement, I chose to focus on the
thinking technique of questioning and making connections in my classroom.

What changed? I modeled and verbalized my own thinking (i.e., questioning and connecting) so
that students could see the process I go through to understand new ideas or material; posted
visual displays that showed our thinking process such as connection webs and wondering walls;
and provided opportunities for skillful thinking and time for reflection about thinking.
Additionally, I used one of Harvard Project Zeros Visible Thinking Routines called Question
Starts (Visible Thinking Question, n.d.) described in Appendix A to promote creative questioning
and thinking around new topics. This routine helps to guide students in generating questions in
recognition that teaching students to ask their own questions is important. According to Rothstein
and Santana, When students learn to ask their own questions, they can immediately become
better learners and, in the long run, become effective contributors to building a strong economy
and a more thoughtful and engaged democratic citizenry (2011, p. 12). I used the Question Starts
routine with my students and modified the topics I chose for focus based on guidance from
Rothstein & Santanas Question Formulation Technique (2011).

How did I hope my students would benefit? I was interested in seeing if students finished the school
year feeling more confident about how to approach new information. Specifically, I wanted to see
them engage in thinking about a new topic (becoming curious about it), delve into new topics
deeper, and connect topics to prior experiences or knowledge to make them more familiar and
accessible. I also hoped that my students would begin to see the value in using critical thinking
skills, and internalize them to motivate employing them independently. The plan I implemented to
encourage these changes and to analyze the results of my efforts is included in the Methods
section and summarized in Appendix B: Procedures for Creating a Culture of Thinking.