I am a teacher and believe it is important to foster the critical-thinking skills in students. According to some, critical thinking allows individuals think more independently and solve problems better while also improving their communication and reducing cognitive bias. Critical thinking can improve student’s abilities as collaborators. They become more open-minded to different perspectives, and empathic to other people’s experiences. They learn how to engage in constructive conversations, even with people they don’t agree with. This helps them to come up with win-win situations or to change their perspective.
There is also growing concern about the fact that critical thinking skills are being lost by students. Half of all students worldwide perform below the lowest level of critical thinking. It is clear that educators must take action to improve critical thinking in order to develop better collaborators. Expose students to Diverse Points of View
The best way to promote critical thinking is by exposing them to different viewpoints. This can be a difficult area for education to succeed in. Teachers often go to extremes to impose their views on students or to avoid any controversial topics. In an AMLE interview, award-winning author and educator Debbie Silver explained that it is possible to educate about inaccurate statistics, biased reporting and fact checking, without having to take a position on the issue. We should do this. It isn’t our job to tell kids what to believe, but to show them how to do so. Literature and films can show passion for issues, but it is important to maintain a balance. “I believe that we should promote peaceful disagreement and support American values, such as the freedom of speech and religion guaranteed by the Constitution.” There are many different viewpoints on topics in various fields. Educators should think about how they can expose their students to them in a manner that encourages critical thinking and exploration. Encourage Interdisciplinary Education
College students often become almost entirely locked in their major and only enroll in classes directly relevant to the degree they are pursuing. This approach, while understandable and logical, can lead to a missed opportunity in developing critical thinking.
Exposure to experiences that are outside of a student’s main discipline is a great way for them to improve their critical thinking and knowledge. MindChamps is a Singapore-based global organization that specializes in early learning. They have developed a program that focuses on linking fundamental concepts of numeracy and language with social skills using an interdisciplinary music literacy approach. This program was the subject of extensive research, which revealed that this approach helped students to outperform peers both in language and math literacy as well as music literacy. The Test of Early Mathematical Ability showed a 5.3% improvement in accuracy. Students who took part in MindChamps interdisciplinary programs achieved higher results than the control group over a period of two years, despite having similar materials, teaching methods, curriculum, and teacher training. Students may not have the same access to these specialized interdisciplinary courses, but can achieve similar results by taking classes that are outside of their main major. Students can benefit from classes that challenge them to use different thinking styles or skills. They will also be able to improve their abilities in other courses.
Encourage Collaborative Inquiry Based Learning
Giving students more opportunities for collaborative inquiry-based experiences will help them develop their critical thinking. Students will always benefit more from a practical experience, regardless of what the topic is. The experience is even more beneficial when students are forced to collaborate with others. The Eberly Center of Carnegie Mellon University states that “properly structured group projects reinforce skills relevant for both individual and group work. These include the ability to break complex tasks down into steps and parts, manage time and plan, improve understanding through discussions, receive and give feedback on performance and challenge assumptions. Students can develop collaborative skills through group projects. They are able to solve more complicated problems, as well as delegate responsibilities and share different perspectives. As part of experiential learning, students can learn how to work with other people by balancing the dynamics in a group. This will give them valuable experience that they can use to develop their skills for their career. Making critical thinking central to learning
Students must take the responsibility of engaging with the instructor and materials, and develop their own skills in critical thinking. Instructors must be aware of the way they present material and determine if they provide opportunities for students to learn critical thinking. By creating a learning environment that fosters critical thinking in students, educators will better prepare them to succeed.
