Concepts and Instructional Strategies

Part I

Introduction to Critical Thinking

3 Key Questions

Why do we need critical thinking?

What is critical thinking?

How do we design instruction to foster critical thought?

Why do we need critical thinking?

Critical thinking isn’t natural.

Walking vs. Ballet Just rational enough

3 tendencies

1. Seek evidence that supports our existing belief and ignore contradicting evidence.

2. Rate evidence as good or bad depending on whether or not it supports or conflicts with our belief. (egocentric standards)

3. We stick to our beliefs despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

Diagnosis BiasTendency to ignore evidence or make it fit

our preconceived preference or conclusion.

EMT and Alaskan nativesHow Doctor’s Think the 7 min. diagnosisPerformance Labels (SWAY)When we read! (The House)

“Standards” TypicallyUsed in Thinking

“It’s true because I believe it” (innate egocentrism)

“It’s true because we believe it” (innate sociocentrism)“It’s true because I want to believe it” (innate wish fulfillment)

“It’s true because I have always believed it.”(innate self-validation)“It’s true because it is in my selfish interest to believe it.” (innate selfishness)

More Non-intellectual “Standards”

It’s true because someone in a position of perceived power (or authority) said it is true.

It’s true because it’s beyond my (our) ability to fully understand it. (lacking confidence in reason)

Non-Critical Thinking StandardsFunExcitingFeels goodAttention-gettingPopularPatrioticFree

ChicSpontaneousAdvantageousEasyBeneficial to me Deeply moving/felt

Belief Preservation

Tendency to make evidence subservient to belief.

“Tendency to use evidence to preserve our opinions rather than guide them.” (Van Gelder)

Belief Preservation

Francis Bacon – humans tend to see things through an “enchanted glass, full of superstition and imposture” rather than through a clear, transparent glass.

Intrinsic tendency toward illusion, distortion and error.

“Invisibly corrupts our thinking and contaminates our beliefs” (Van Gelder)

Just as a skilled archer must adjust her aim for a breeze, so too does a critical thinker seek to be aware of

his/her biases, blind spots, and assumptions.

Why is it Important?What is It?How Does it Improve Teaching and Learning?

Critical Thinking

What is Critical Thinking?

To be clear in writing:1)      state2)      elaborate (In other words…)3)      exemplify and/or illustrate

Write your understanding of critical thinking, in this form:

1)     Critical thinking is …..2)     In other words…3)     For example …

Critical Thinkingis a self-directed

processby which we take deliberate stepsto think at the

highest level of quality.

critical thinking: disciplined, self-guided thinking

aimed at living a rational life.

Thinking thatanalyzes thinking

Thinking thatassesses thinking

Thinking thatdevelops within itself

intellectual habits

thinking thatcombats its native

egocentricity

Overview slide

Critical Reading Strategy

Work in pairs. Person A, Person B. Critically read the following slide together, using the following method:

a.  Person B reads one sentence aloud, then states in his/her own words what has been read. In other words, person B interprets the sentence.

b. Person A then either agrees with the interpretation or offers a different interpretation, adds to the interpretation, etc.

c. Rotate roles after each sentence. Move down page.

d.  During this process, do not critique what you are reading, merely interpret.

Why Critical Thinking?

The Problem: Everyone thinks; it is our nature to do so. But much of our thinking, left to itself, is biased, distorted, partial, uninformed or down-right prejudiced. Yet the quality of our life and that of what we produce, make, or build depends precisely on the quality of our thought. Shoddy thinking is costly, both in money and in quality of life. Excellence in thought, however, must be systematically cultivated.

A Definition: Critical thinking is the art of analyzing and evaluating thinking with a view to improving it.

A well cultivated critical thinker:raises vital questions and problems,

formulating them clearly and precisely;gathers and assesses relevant information,

using abstract ideas to interpret it effectively;comes to well-reasoned conclusions and

solutions, testing them against relevant criteria and standards;

thinks open-mindedly within alternative systems of thought, recognizing and assessing, as need be, their assumptions, implications, and practical consequences;

and communicates effectively with others in figuring out solutions to complex problems.

3 Key Questions

Why do we need critical thinking?

What is critical thinking?

How do we design instruction to foster critical thought?

LOGIC OF

Instruction

Content

Student Thinking

Booth Tarkington, author

“He had learned how to pass examinations by ‘cramming’; that is, in three or four days and nights he could get into his head enough of a selected fragment of some scientific or philosophical or literary or linguistic subject to reply plausibly to six questions out of ten. He could retain the information necessary for such a feat just long enough to give a successful performance; then it would evaporate utterly from his brain, and leave him undisturbed.”

On what George Amberson had learned in college, from the Magnificant Ambersons (1918)}

Circle – Dots

Typical student beliefs. Learning should be fun.Learning should be easy.If I do what the teacher says, that’s all that

matters.Learning means doing what the teacher says.

All I need to do is the absolute minimum to get an A.

I shouldn’t have to waste my time learning anything I can’t use.I believe that learning biology is a waste of my time.

Cheating to get by is fine because all I need is the piece of paper (the degree/diploma) to get a job anyway.

Three Types of “Knowledge”

Inert InformationActivated Ignorance Activated Knowledge

Poincare

“Science is built of facts the way a house is built of bricks, but an accumulation of facts is no

more science than a pile of bricks is a house!”

Content is:

Understood by thinkingConstructed by thinkingModified by thinkingApplied by thinkingQuestioned by thinkingAssessed by thinking

Therefore, to learn content

students have to think it into their thinking using their thinking.

Critical thinking provides the tools students need to think through content.

Critical thinking is a system of thinking that opens up all other systems of thinking.

Critical Thinking Critical Thinking ≠ ≠

Something you add onto everything else Something you add onto everything else Rather Rather

= = The Way You Do The Way You Do Everything You DoEverything You Do

The Critical Thinking MindThe Critical Thinking Mind

==

The Educated MindThe Educated Mind

The critical thinking mind is the educated mind

The StandardsClarity PrecisionAccuracy SignificanceRelevance CompletenessLogical FairnessBreadth Depth

Intellectual TraitsIntellectual HumilityIntellectual Perseverance Intellectual AutonomyIntellectual IntegrityConfidence in ReasoningIntellectual CourageIntellectual EmpathyFair-mindedness

The ElementsPurpose InferencesQuestions ConceptsPoints of view ImplicationsInformation Assumptions

The Underlying Principles of Critical Thinking

must be applied to

as we develop

CLARITY

1. State: give a brief explanation

2. Elaborate: expand on your explanation

3. Exemplify: give a concrete example

4. Illustrate: use metaphor, analogy, picture

StateElaborateExemplify

SEEI

STATE in your own words what someone else has said or written or the key concept, problem or question at issue.

ELABORATE on your statement. In other words…

EXEMPLIFY: give an example of the concept from your life and from the content.

ILLUSTRATE: create an analogy, metaphor, simile, graph, chart, cartoon, etc.

Original Bloom’s Taxonomy

Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy

Bloom’s Re-conceptualized

Illustration Based on St. Edward’s University, Center for Teaching Excellence, 2001

Comparing Approaches

Teacher-directedTraditional mode of instruction in the USA

Student-centered Students are engaged in the process of

actively figuring something out / reasoning through a significant problem.

Teacher-directed (confusing)

There are 12 Christmas trees and five are cut down. How many are left standing?

What intellectual moves does this assignment initiate?

What intellectual skills are targeted?

Teacher-directed (clearer)There are 12 Christmas trees standing. Of

those, five are cut down. How many are left standing?

What intellectual moves does this assignment initiate?

What intellectual skills are targeted?

Student-centered

Susan says that if there are 12 Christmas trees standing and of those five are cut down, then seven are left standing. But George says that is incorrect.

Who is correct and why?How did you arrive at your answer?

Jim Braly, The Oregonian, Jan. 11, 2009

Philosophy Example

Possible Traditional Assignment

“As a group, discuss your reaction to Plato’s Crito.”

Philosophy Example cont’dAn assignment that fosters critical thought

may ask instead:

“In a group of three, propose a list of significant questions you would like to have the teacher address or the class discuss regarding Plato’s Crito. Your initial list (which you will hand in to the instructor) should include a dozen or so questions…. (next slide)

Then reach consensus on what you consider your three best questions. Your recorder will write these questions on the board and will explain to the class why your group considers them pertinent, interesting, and significant questions raised by Crito. Time: 15 minutes.”

Source: Bean, p. 152

Eight Questions Students Can Ask to Figure out the Logic of a Subject or Discipline:1.What is the main purpose of the subject?

2.What are the key issues, problems, and questions addressed within the subject?

3.What kinds of information are pursued within the discipline?

4.What types of inferences or judgments are made?

5.What key concepts inform the discipline?

6.What key assumptions underlie the discipline?

7.What are some important implications of studying the discipline?

8.What points of view are fostered within the discipline?

To what extent do you see any of the following acting as obstacles to substantive learning in your context?

Intellectual arroganceIntellectual conformityIntellectual lazinessIntellectual hypocrisyCompetition Little confidence in reasoning

How do you help students learn the skills needed to form

clear, probing questions?

What did we do today?

Instructional Strategies

SEEISTATE in your own words what someone else

has said or written or the key concept, problem or question at issue.

ELABORATE on your statement. In other words…

EXEMPLIFY: give an example of the concept from your life and from the content.

ILLUSTRATE: create an analogy, metaphor, simile, graph, chart, cartoon, etc.

Critical Reading (1)Work in pairs.

a.  Person B reads one sentence aloud, then states in his/her own words what has been read. In other words, person B interprets the sentence.

b. Person A then either agrees with the interpretation or offers a different interpretation, adds to the interpretation, etc.

c.  Do not critique, merely interpret. d. Switch roles and move on to next sentence.

Role Play (2) PartnersPurpose: Address two differing interpretations

to an issue or problem. ‘A’ takes a pro side.‘B’ argues con side.Switch when prompted.

Usually after 2-3 minutes.

Develops intellectual depth and empathy.

Engaged Lecture: 10/3

Lecture for no more than 10 minutes.

Have students process for at least 3 minutes

Formulating QuestionsPeriodically stop class and have students

write down a question they have as they think through the content.If they do not have a question, write: “I am

not thinking well enough to have a question.”

Periodically stop class and have students write down the question at issue (under discussion)

Challenge Inert KnowledgeTake any fact in the course content.

Have students think of the fact as a hypothesis.

Challenge students to explain the background logic that informs the fact.

What are your students’ intellectual needs?

What can be done within our instruction to help students become:

Agents for change?Life long learners?Intellectually and culturally flexible?

Your Thinking can either

Trap You

Free You

Hold youHostage within

uncritically held

beliefs

Open your mind

to new ways of thinking

Trap or free

Wednesday, April 6 3:00-4:30pm EDT(You will receive new login instructions via

email.)

Part II: