What Do We Mean by the Term ‘Critical Thinking?

Firstly, there is no single, commonly agreed definition of the term ‘critical

thinking’.

However, most commonly as teachers we use it to refer to what are known as

the higher-order thinking skills.

These higher-order thinking skills are skills that require us to think in a deeper,
more complex manner.

If you are familiar with Bloom’s taxonomy, think of the upper levels of the
hierarchy - analyze, evaluate, create. We could also add infer to this list of
critical thinking skills.

Put simply, critical thinking requires the student to engage in an objective

analysis of a topic and evaluate the available information in order to form a
judgment.

Critical thinking demands a systematic approach to evaluating new

information. It encourages us to question and reflect on our own knowledge
and how we arrive at the opinions we have and make the decisions we make.
THERE ARE NO FORMAL CRITICAL THINKING STANDARDS, BUT
THESE ATTRIBUTES OUTLINED BY MONASH UNIVERSITY
CAPTURE THE ESSENCE OF WHAT STUDENTS AND TEACHERS
SHOULD ASPIRE TO IN THE CLASSROOM.

 Why Is Critical Thinking Important?

Our students need to be able to think critically to make rational decisions on

what to believe or what course of action to take.

An inability to think critically can leave students vulnerable to muddied

thinking and the possibility of believing in unsound ideas.
Critical thinking helps students to filter the wheat from the chaff, intellectually
speaking.

Developing strong critical thinking skills helps students to eliminate dubious

data to leave only the strongest, most reliable information.

At its core, critical thinking is about having good reasons for our beliefs. It
helps us to navigate through bias (our own and that of others) to avoid
manipulation or becoming enslaved by our feelings. These are essential skills in
an age of overwhelming information.

Helping our students to develop their critical thinking skills not only inoculates
them against embracing flawed ideas, but these skills are also some of the most
in-demand by employers and this looks set to continue to be so well into the
future.

This is due to the ever-increasing pace of technological change. It is impossible

to accurately predict the specific requirements of many future jobs. One thing is
for sure though, so-called soft skills such as critical thinking will ensure
students will be able to adapt to whatever shapes the workplace of the future
will take.

Teaching Critical Thinking 

There are any number of ways to introduce critical thinking into the classroom,
either as discrete activities, or interwoven into lessons with other stated
objectives. However, it is helpful to students to take the time to teach a variety
of strategies to help them think critically about the ideas they encounter which
will help them form their own opinions.

An opinion based on critical thinking does not rely on gut feeling, but rather on
rational reasoning which often requires some form of initial research.

Let’s start by taking a look at some ways you can encourage critical thinking in
your classroom, especially in the research process.

THIS IS AN EXCELLENT GUIDE TO TEACHING CRITICAL THINKING

SKILLS

A complete guide to teaching Critical Thinking

This 180 page e-book is an excellent resource for teacher’s looking to
implement critical thinking in the classroom.

It is packed full of great content whether you are just starting out, or looking to
go further.

It makes relevant connections to technology, STEM, critical and creative

thinking.

Teaching Strategies: A Step-by-Step Approach to

Critical Thinking
The following process is a useful template to teach students. When embarking
on their own research, this template provides a step-by-step process which they
can use to structure their investigations.

1. Format the Question

In the age of the Internet, access to information is longer the major hurdle
facing the inquisitive student investigator. If anything, the real problem now is
knowing how to appropriately sift through the almost inexhaustible amount of
information out there.

The key to this filtration process is the formulation of the research question.
How the question is composed and formatted will inform exactly what
information the student is looking for and what information can be discarded.

The type of question formatted here will depend on the purpose of the research.
For example, is the question intended to establish knowledge? Then, it may
well be a straightforward What type question, for example, What are the
consequences of a diet high in processed sugars?

If the question is geared more towards the use of that information or

knowledge, then the question may be more of a Why type question, for
example, Why do some commentators claim that a diet high in processed
sugars is the greatest threat facing public health?

One extremely useful tool to assist in formatting questions that make demands
on student critical thinking abilities is to employ Bloom’s taxonomy.
2. Gather the Information

Once the question has been clearly defined, then the process of gathering the
information begins. Students should frequently refer back to their research
question to ensure they are maintaining their focus.  

As they gather information in relation to their question, reference to their initial

question will help them to determine the relevance of the information in front
of them. They can then weigh up whether or not the information is helpful in
moving them further towards answering their initial research question.

3. Apply the Information 

The ability to think critically about information is of no use unless the

understandings gained can be applied in the real world.

The most practical application of this skill is seen when it is used to inform
decision-making. When faced with making a decision, encourage students to
reflect on the concepts at work in regards to the choice they face.

They must look at what assumptions exist and explore whether their
interpretation of the issue is a logically sound one. To do this effectively, they
will also need to consider the effects of that decision.

4. Consider the Implications

“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.”

As the old proverb suggests, our well-intended decisions can sometimes lead to
unforeseen negative consequences. When considering paths of action, we need
to encourage our students to reflect deeply on all possible outcomes of those
actions: short, medium, and long term.

Unintended consequences are outcomes that are unforeseen and can often undo
much of the good of the original decision.

There are many fascinating examples of this phenomenon that are easily found
online and can be interesting to share with the students.

One such example was uncovered by the economist Sam Peltzman. He found
that when mandatory seat-belt legislation was passed in some of the US states
the number of fatalities of drivers did go down as a result. However, he also
found that this was offset by an increase in fatalities among pedestrians and
cyclists as drivers felt safer wearing seat belts and many drove faster as a result.

5. Explore Other Points of View

This is the final testing ground of an opinion that has been forged in the fires of
critical thinking. Though students will have been exposed to competing ideas
earlier in the research stage, they should now take the time to measure their
matured opinion against these other points of view.

Exploring alternative viewpoints helps us to evaluate our own choices and to

avoid stagnating in our own biases and innate preferences. Doing this helps us
to make the most informed decisions possible.

Now that we’ve had a look at a step-by-step approach to critical thinking, let’s
take a look at some creative ways to help students exercise those critical
thinking muscles in the classroom. Getting critical doesn’t have to be boring!

Critical Thinking Games and Activities

The Barometer: Find Out Where You Stand

When considering where we stand on issues, it’s important to realise that things
don’t always have to be a zero-sum game.  Things don’t have to be all or
nothing.  Students need to learn that opinions can be nuanced and that often
there exists a spectrum of opinion on any given issue.

In this activity, give the students a controversial issue to consider. Assign the
extremes on the issue to opposite ends of the classroom and instruct students to
arrange themselves along a continuum based on how strongly they feel about
the issue.

They’ll likely need to engage in some free-flowing conversation to figure this

out and setting a time limit will help ensure this discussion doesn’t go on
endlessly.

 
Draw an Analogy: Making Lateral Links

This game encourages students to think creatively and indirectly about an idea
or a subject and it can be used in practically any context. It encourages students
to make comparisons between seemingly unconnected things by analyzing both
for any underlying concepts that may link them together somehow - no matter
how tenuously!

Start by asking your students a creative question based on the topic or idea you
are exploring together in the classroom. The format of these questions should
closely follow a similar pattern to the following examples:

●      How is raising a child like building a house?

●      Why is an egg like a hunk of marble?

●      How is a bookshelf like a lunchbox?

The more inventive the elements in each question are, the more challenging it
will be for the students to make links between the two of them.

This game can generate some interesting responses and is easy to differentiate
for students of all ages. Younger students may enjoy a simpler question format
such as ‘Smell is to nose as sight is to…’ where the links between the elements
are much more obvious.

For older students, remember too that when devising the questions the links
between the different elements do not have to be obvious. Indeed, as far as
you’re concerned they do not even have to exist. That’s for the students to
explore and create.

Build Critical Thinking Skills with Brain Teasers

Brain teasers are great fun and an enjoyable way to fill a few minutes of class
time, but they also provide great exercise for students’ critical thinking
abilities. Though they are often based on unlikely premises, the skills acquired
in solving them can have real-world applications.
Let’s take an example to see how this works. Ask your students the following
teaser - you might want to set a time limit and have them write their answers
down to put some added pressure on:

A rooster sits on a barn and is facing west. The wind is blowing eastward at a
speed of 15 kilometers per hour. The rooster lays an egg. Which cardinal
direction does the egg roll? 

The answer is, of course, that there is no egg. Roosters are male and therefore
can’t lay eggs.

One of the reasons why so many will get this simple teaser wrong is that
despite knowing that a rooster is a male chicken, they overlook it due to the
casualness with which it’s thrown into the teaser.  

The other reason is the misdirection caused by the quite meticulous detail
provided. Students are likely to pay too much attention to the details such as the
speed of the wind, its direction, and the direction of the rooster is facing.

All these irrelevant details distract the students from the fact that the only
information required to solve this teaser is actually provided by the 2nd word of
the riddle.

There are numerous brain teasers freely available on the Internet. Weaving
them into your lessons gives students opportunities to sharpen their critical
thinking skills by sorting relevant from irrelevant details and encouraging
students to analyze closely the relevant details provided.

Build the Habit and Become a Critical Thinke

In this article, we have taken a look at some concrete ways to practice critical
thinking skills in the classroom. However, becoming a critical thinker is much
more about developing consistent critical thinking habits in our approach to
ideas and opinions.

To help your students develop these habits, be sure to encourage intellectual

curiosity in the classroom. Ask students to examine their own assumptions and
evaluate these in light of opposing opinions and available evidence.

Create opportunities in your lessons to explore advertisements and even

political statements together. Fight the urge to impart your own beliefs and
biases in favor of allowing students to determine the credibility of the sources
themselves. Encourage them to draw their own conclusions.

Consistently insist that your students provide evidence to support their

conclusions when they express opinions in classroom discussions.

In time, the habit of critical thinking will inform how your students approach
any new information that they come across. This will leave them better able to
think clearly and systematically and better able to express themselves
coherently too.

In this article, we have taken a look at some concrete ways to practice critical
thinking skills in the classroom. However, becoming a critical thinker is much
more about developing consistent critical thinking habits in our approach to
ideas and opinions.

To help your students develop these habits, be sure to encourage intellectual

curiosity in the classroom. Ask students to examine their own assumptions and
evaluate these in light of opposing opinions and available evidence.

Create opportunities in your lessons to explore advertisements and even

political statements together. Fight the urge to impart your own beliefs and
biases in favor of allowing students to determine the credibility of the sources
themselves. Encourage them to draw their own conclusions.

Consistently insist that your students provide evidence to support their

conclusions when they express opinions in classroom discussions.

In time, the habit of critical thinking will inform how your students approach
any new information that they come across. This will leave them better able to
think clearly and systematically and better able to express themselves
coherently too.