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Critical Thinking

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Nima A. Hussein
University Of Kufa
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 Critical Thinking
Prof. Dr. Nima Al-Asadi / College of Education - University of Kufa

This theoretical framework was written within the second chapter of the doctoral
thesis tagged (the effectiveness of two educational models according to the (STS)
approach) in achievement and the development of critical thinking and the ability to
make decisions to solve problems for the students of the Department of Life Sciences)
for the researcher Dr. Nima Abdul-Samad Hussein at the University of Baghdad College
of Education for Pure Sciences Ibn Al-Haytham 2009 Pages 56-66

Preface: Thinking is one of the qualities that distinguishes man from other creatures,
and it is a concept that has many dimensions and differing opinions and viewpoints
about it. The researcher will present some of them:

And (Rugger, 1988) sees it as a hypothetical concept that refers to an internal process
that is attributed to an intentional, selective, interactive cognitive mental activity
towards searching for a solution to a problem, making a decision on an issue, satisfying
a desire to understand an issue, knowing a specific word, or a definitive answer to a
question and learning it. the individual from the available environmental conditions.
And he (Barell, 1991) defines it as a series of mental activities that the brain performs
when exposed to a stimulus that is received by one or more of the five senses, which in
its broad sense is the process of searching for meaning in a situation or experience.
(Abu Jadu, 2003) adds to the previous definition that it is a purposeful and evolutionary
behavior that is formed from the interplay of abilities, personal factors, cognitive
processes and knowledge of the subject around which thinking is taking place.

(De Bono, 2001) provides a definition for it that defines it by immaterial events in the
mind and mental process, regardless of reaching a result, which is the deliberate
investigation of experience for a purpose, and this purpose may be understanding,
decision-making, planning, solving problems, judging things or doing do something

While (Kosslya & Rosenberg, 2004), referred to in (Al-Rimawi et al., 2004), it is the
manipulation of information in the brain. The researcher concludes that these and
other definitions confirm the complexity of the concept of thinking and that, like other
abstract concepts, it is distinguished by the difficulty of measuring it directly or
determining its nature, and that researchers present a definition of it with the aim of
distinguishing it from other concepts that may fall under it, such as critical thinking,
creative thinking, scientific thinking and mathematical thinking. Thinking above
cognitive and others.

(Jarwan, 1999) cited twenty-four descriptions and types of thinking that are a witness
to the researchers' interest in studying the concept of thinking and its types, and
explained that it is a complex concept consisting of three components:

1- Complex cognitive processes (such as problem solving) and less complex (such as:
understanding, application, and inference) and metacognitive directing and controlling
processes.

2- Special knowledge of the content of the article or topic.

3- Preparations and personal factors (attitudes and tendencies).

Thinking Levels

The researchers noted that the level of complexity in thinking depends mainly on the
level of difficulty and abstraction in the required task. When an individual faces an easy
task such as mentioning his name or his phone number, he answers automatically
without feeling the need for mental effort, but when he is asked to visualize the world
without electricity, for example, he will find He is faced with a more difficult task that
requires him to perform a more complex mental activity.

The levels of thinking were classified by several classifications, including the

classification of (Jarwan, 1999), which classified them into two types:

1- Basic thinking (lower-level)

It includes many skills, including knowledge, acquisition, observation, comparison, and

application, which researchers agree that mastering them is necessary before moving
to the levels of complex thinking.
2- Complex thinking (higher-level)

It is the thinking that includes complex or multiple solutions and includes issuing a
judgment or giving an opinion. Most of the specialized references agree that it includes
five types:

1- Critical thinking

2- Creative thinking

3- Problem sloving

4- Decision making

5- Metacognative thinking T.

Critical thinking

The English word (Critical) derives from the Latin origin Criticus or Greek Kritikos, which
means the ability to distinguish or pass judgments. .

Although the concept of critical thinking in contemporary educational literature has

been affected by this traditional view, many researchers point out that it is not possible
to reach the truth simply by criticizing the validity of the hypothesis or the information,
and the task must be completed by moving to another advanced stage such as solving
the problem or generating new hypotheses.

Critical thinking is a form of thinking that an individual resorts to to evaluate things and
make appropriate decisions. This type of thinking overlaps with other thinking patterns,
such as creative thinking and problem solving. It is based on many steps, and it requires
the individual’s ability to think objectively, examine and evaluate all evidence and
choose appropriate alternatives in order to Access to objective judgments or decisions.

Critical thinking has been defined in educational and psychological literature with
several definitions, including:

(Watson & Glasser, 1964) defined it as examining beliefs and suggestions efficiently
and effectively in light of the evidence that supports them and the facts related to
them, rather than jumping to conclusions.
While (Good, 1972) defined it in the Dictionary of Education as thinking that is based
on the foundations of accurate evaluation of premises and evidence, and reaching from
them to results with the utmost caution, taking into account the factors related to the
situation. And (Razzouk, 1977) defined it in the Encyclopedia of Psychology as thinking
that depends on a careful examination of all the premises and evidence, and then
depends on the slow progression, step by step, and is guided by the topics to the
maximum extent possible in order to reach sound results characterized by health and
stability, taking into account the accuracy in comparing the results with what other
research has reached. Accepting the data, putting it in the cash balance and evaluating
it.

And (Ennis: 1985) believes that it is reasonable contemplative thinking that focuses on
making a decision about what we think or do, and what this requires of hypotheses,
questions, alternatives, and plans for experimentation.

And he (Beyer, 1985) defines it as the process of deciding the reliability of the given
information or knowledge and stating its value and accuracy. (Udall & Daniels, 1991)
defines it as solving problems or verifying and evaluating something based on
previously agreed criteria. And (Lipman, 1991) defines it as thinking that is
characterized by sensitivity to the situation and its inclusion of self-corrective controls
and its adoption of criteria in reaching judgment. (Ghanem, 1995) believes that it is a
type of thinking in which the information that the individual has is subjected to a
process of analysis, sorting and scrutiny to find out its suitability to what other
information he has, whose validity and reliability are confirmed, in order to distinguish
between sound and wrong ideas. It is defined by (Jarwan, 1999) a complex and
purposeful mental activity governed by the rules of logic and inference and leads to
predictable outcomes.

It is defined by (Qatami and Qatami, 2000) the individual's own ability to deal with
what is given to him or asked to perform it, as he does not reach everything that is
given to him as postulates, but rather he has to look into it and have a personal opinion
based on convincing self-evidence to accept or reject this matter.

(Moqbel, 2003) believes that it is the individual's ability to express a supportive and
opposing opinion in different situations, with convincing reasons for each opinion. It is
defined by (Al-Waqfi, 2003) a pattern of thinking based on examining the solutions
given to a problem to show whether these solutions are logically acceptable and
consistent with the known data in the field of the problem.

And he defines it (Ibrahim, 2004) as the skill of distinguishing between assumptions and
generalizations, between facts and allegations, between revised and unedited
information, and judging the extent of the truth, value and validity of something.

Finally, Ali (2008) defines it as a mental process that depends on the use of logical
reasoning rules aimed at issuing sound judgments and making sound decisions in the
light of the evidence and arguments presented.

The researcher believes that the previous definitions tried to identify the factors and
skills included in critical thinking, and that they differed in the premises of their
description of the concept of critical thinking. He described it as a mental ability such as
the definition of (Qatami and Qatami) and (Muqbil), and there are those who described
it as a process or mental activity such as the definition of (Beyer), (Jarwan) and (Ali).
The researcher can extract the main elements of it, which are:

A type of thinking in which information is subjected to an evaluation process.

2- The existence of a set of criteria, criteria and logical rules in the light of which it is
carried out.

3- It requires a basic sub-skill set to critique information, ideas or situations.

4- Deliberation is required in the issuance of judgments and objectivity towards the

situation that requires criticism.

The development of interest in critical thinking:

The interest in critical thinking and its skills has been the focus of the care of
philosophers and educators since ancient times, and it can be traced back to the
teaching practices of (Socrates) about 2500 years ago, when he was asking a series of
questions to his interlocutors that made them unable to justify their logical confidence
in what they knew. Interest in critical thinking in the last century dates back to the
period between (1910-1939), which was represented in the works of (John Dewey), in
which he used the terms Relative Thinking and Inquiry, which he adopted in his
scientific method, and which were echoed in his book (How we think).
Then (Glasser Edward) and his colleagues in the period between (1940-1960) gave a
broader meaning to critical thinking to include an increase in what preceded the
examination of phrases and then define the concept of critical thinking during the work
of (Robert Ennis) and his colleagues in the period (1962-1979) to include only the
examination and evaluation of data And after the exception of thinking in a problem-
solving style and the scientific style of critical thinking.

This concept expanded in the period (1980-1992) to include aspects of thinking in a

problem-solving style, and (Alkin, 1992), referred to in (Al-Khalili and others, 1996)
states that the interest of contemporary education in critical thinking does not exceed
two decades, as the impact of the behavioral school in education The American school
contributed to neglecting the interest in the development of thinking until the
seventies of the last century. general and critical thinking in particular.

2-5. Critical thinking criteria:

It means the general specifications agreed upon by researchers in the field of critical
thinking, which are taken as a basis for judging the quality of the deductive or
evaluative thinking that the individual practices in dealing with the problem or topic at
hand. Critical thinking in particular:

1- Clarity: It means that the statement is clear.

2- Accuracy: that is, the statement is correct and documented.

3- Integration: Precision: fulfilling the subject's right of treatment and expressing it

without addition or subtraction.

4- Relvance: The extent of the relationship between the question and the intervention
or the statement with the topic of discussion or the problem at hand.

5- Depth: The intellectual treatment fits with the complexities of the problem and the
complexity of the subject.

6- Breadth: Takes all aspects of a problem or topic into account.

7- Logic: organizing, sequencing, and interconnecting ideas in a way that leads to a

clear meaning or a result resulting from reasonable arguments.
(Al-Khalili et al., 1996) believes that critical thinking takes place in light of a set of
criteria, the most important of which are:

1- Open-mindedness and no stagnation in opinion.

2- Objectivity in making judgments and avoiding self-bias.

3- Slowness in issuing judgments.

2-6. Characteristics of a critical thinker:

(Harnadek, 1998) mentioned in (Al-Khadra, 2005) mentioned a number of qualities that

characterize a good critical thinker, namely:

1- Open-mindedness towards new ideas.

2- He does not argue about something he knows nothing about.

3- He knows when he needs more information about something.

4- Know the difference between an outcome that may be true and an outcome that
must be true.

5- Knows that others have different ideas about the meanings of words.

6- He tries to avoid common mistakes in analyzing things.

7- He wonders about everything he does not understand.

8- It tries to separate emotional thinking from logical thinking.

9- He tries to build his vocabulary and increase it constantly so that he can understand
what others are saying.

critical thinking skills :

Through the researcher's review of the literature of critical thinking, he found that
there is a difference in viewpoints between researchers in determining critical thinking
skills, according to (Watson & Glasser).

Knowing assumptions or postulates, interpretation, evaluating arguments, deduction,

inference.
The relationship of critical thinking with other variables and types of thinking:

Relationship between critical thinking and creative thinking:

(Carin, 1993) and (Alkin, 1992), referred to in (Al-Khalili et al., 1996), see that critical
and creative thinking are two manifestations of one thing, and the separation between
them in terms of appearance only, as good thinking includes something of creative
thinking and something of critical thinking in At the same time, when addressing an
issue, it is necessary to think of alternative solutions, and this is an aspect of creative
thinking, and we need the other aspect of thinking, which is critical thinking to exclude
impossible or inappropriate solutions, so they go hand in hand and it is not possible to
practice one of them in isolation about the other.

Alkin has expressed his criticism of the separation between them and supported him in
that (Al-Waqfi, 2003) because creative thinking calls for leaving the space for thought
to explore the solutions that appear, and critical thinking expands its scope to select
the best ideas and the most correct solutions. for problems.

Develop critical thinking:

The views of those interested in thinking varied about the appropriate methods for
developing critical thinking, and three trends emerged:

The first direction (independent method): is through teaching critical thinking a topic
independent of the content of the course, and (Ennis, 1985) believes that it is possible
to develop critical thinking through an independent course in which students acquire
general mental skills.

De Bono, referred to in (Qatami, 2001), is one of the most enthusiastic of this trend, as
he sees the possibility of teaching critical thinking like teaching any other subject.

In this method, a special program of critical thinking is built and a specialist trains the
students.

The second trend: is done through the content of curricula and study materials, which
is known as the method of integration and integration. Critical thinking is developed
within the study materials and part of the usual classroom lessons, and the content of
the lesson in which the skill is presented is part of the curriculum.
The third trend: combining the two methods, as critical thinking is taught as an
independent subject that has its teachers, lessons and tests, as well as the inclusion of
critical thinking skills within the academic content of science, language, social and other
subjects.

After reviewing these trends, the researcher sees the possibility of applying each
direction, taking into consideration the availability of the basic requirements for it, as
the first trend can be applied by creating and preparing staff specialized in the
development of thinking, and preparing specialized programs for students within the
classroom and it achieves the goal directly.

As for the second trend, it can be applied by preparing qualified teachers of different
subjects and training them to develop this kind of thinking and introducing them to its
concept, skills and working methods, and this implicitly achieves the goal.

As for the third trend, it can be applied through independent lessons to teach critical
thinking and through specialized experts and its development within the study subjects
by qualified teachers.

This suggests (Al-Khalili et al., 1996) some measures that contribute to the
development of critical thinking within the school curriculum, including:

1- Directing students' attention to identifying the problems presented and analyzing

the information.

2- Assigning students to activities in the form of gas and issues that draw attention and
interest and challenge the minds so that the learner plays a prominent role in the
discussion and dialogue.

3- Asking questions that contribute to a deeper understanding of the problems and

issues under discussion.

4- Arousing doubt about the logical link between the variables and the results.

5- Confirming the reliability of the sources and the prudence in issuing judgments.

6- Directing students' attention to thinking about their thinking or what is known as

metacogniton.
 7- Encouraging students to engage in dialogue and discussion, put forward ideas and
accept the other opinion and criticize it objectively.

8- Invite students to think about every piece of information they get.

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