Teaching Critical Thinking with Education

Technology
By
 Luke Smith
 -
 October 26, 2020 
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Image Source: Julia M Cameron from Pexels

Advanced technology is now available to students at a moment's notice.

From smartphones to augmented reality, education is embracing the use
of technology at all levels. Though its initial applications were used to
reduce pressure on teachers, it has now spread into lesson plans and
student activities.

The educational applications of artificial intelligence and advanced

technology initially focused on alleviating repetitive tasks for teachers.
Computer programs are increasingly used to grade increasingly complex
tests and soon entire papers will be graded this way. Technology has
learned to react to student input and learning styles, creating new
classroom opportunities and challenges.

Teachers have been talking for years about how to teach certain skills by
utilizing technology that is available to us. Critical analysis of supposedly
valid information is necessary now more than ever. To create the next
generation of users and employees that thinks critically about what they
consume, what are some ways that teachers can teach critical thinking
skills to their students?

Increase Collaboration and Engagement

The development of critical thinking skills is one of the most important
skills for students at all levels. Analyzing and synthesizing a variety of
critical thinking in adults. One way to foster this in your classroom is to
use free collaborative resources through websites like google and
Strawpoll.

Assignments to poll classmates, analyze the results, and draw conclusions

engage students in data collection. This can be used for many subjects
and can help students connect with the people and communities that
contribute to data collection. Use it in English classes, for example, to
analyze how different groups respond to themes in a book. In an
environmental sciences class, show how different groups interact with
their ecosystems.

Gamified learning is another opportunity for teachers to create fun,

effective activities. While technology is not a prerequisite for gamifying
your classroom, it greatly assists the process. Many tutoring programs
work on these principles, and critical thinking skills are built by the puzzle
and reward aspect of games. Gamification reinforces the information
learned on a psychological level through repeated reward systems.
Students learn that independent acquisition of information and its
application are their own rewards.

Take Your Students Out of the Classroom

Similarly, you can capitalize on the technology that students carry with
them as a matter of routine. Geocaching can increase teamwork and
develop critical thinking skills. By engaging students outside the walls of
the classroom, you can teach them to find their own resources and draw
their own conclusions.

Virtual reality systems can help teachers expand their curriculums. They
can take class field trips without ever having to leave their seats, and
engage students more actively in their learning by utilizing technology
that makes knowledge centers more accessible and allows students to
gather first-hand information. You can use this technology to take a class
on a field trip, and have them gather information from the exhibits. Blend
technology with traditional fact-finding games to engage them even
further.

Applications of virtual and augmented reality in education gained notoriety

early on. Virtual reality requires specialized equipment to create a 360-
degree interactive environment for students, while augmented reality (AR)
utilizes much simpler technology. Students use their phone and an app to
interact with information, games, and data that is projected into their
physical environment in real-time. This can help students learn about data
collection, and to gamify their learning.

Direct Resources
A key opportunity that technology affords us is connection. Bring experts
into your classroom and teach students the value of learning directly from
a source. Build your students’ confidence in interacting with and
questioning how experts present information by encouraging your
students to ask questions. This can also lead to extensive research
seeking out differing opinions and methods of research or process.

Classroom technology can also let you display many approaches to the
same problems through the use of smart boards and interactive activities.
This fosters greater engagement by helping students find methodologies
that work best for them, while actively analyzing processes. You can instill
critical thinking when it comes to data analysis and gathering, as well as
the statements that are drawn from it.

Another critical way that you can get students engaged is by soliciting
their feedback. Use surveys and polls to gather information from your
students, giving them a direct impact on their education. You can also
illustrate the differences in how data is interpreted, and teach students
about the manipulation of data. Teach students how to accurately
represent their data, and how others may manipulate it, to teach them to
be critical of supposedly well-researched claims.

The use of technology is a growing topic as the resources available to us

continue to expand. By using these tools to engage your students, you
can help them find their way of learning and can instill life-long critical
thinking skills. Using team and community-oriented tactics, you can teach
your students the proper way to present information. You can also teach
them that information can be manipulated, and to be critical of both how
information has been gathered and the conclusions that are drawn from it.
With these tools, you can help create future adults who can critically
evaluate anything that crosses their path.

Related Posts
  8 Engaging Ways to use Technology in the Classroom to
Create Lessons That Aren’t Boring

 10 Fun Web Apps, Games, for Teaching Critical Thinking

Skills

 Panel Explores “Augmented Education”: AR for Teaching and

Learning

 8 Techniques and Tools for Creating Lessons That Actively

Engage Students

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Luke Smith

https://twitter.com/lukesmithwrites

Luke Smith is a writer and researcher turned blogger. Since finishing college he is trying his
hand at being a freelance writer. He enjoys writing on a variety of topics but technology and
education topics are his favorite. When he isn't writing you can find him traveling, hiking, or
gaming.

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