scholarly journals Commentary: Fiction as a Transformative Tool

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 29-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Leavy

This piece explores the potential of ction as a powerful pedagogical tool within and beyond the academy. Drawing on professors’ examples, literary neuroscience, and my experience as an author of sociological ction and editor of the Social Fictions book series, I suggest how ction can be used to foster critical thinking, consciousness- raising, forge micro-macro connections, engage learners in deep re ection, teach substantive content, and promote understanding and empathy across di erences.

Author(s):  
Alexandra-Niculina Babii

The digital era has determined a very easy creation and propagation of fake news. As a consequence, it has become harder for people to fight this malicious phenomenon. However, the only weapon that can have results in this informational war is critical thinking. But who should use it? The creators of fake news that do this for different reasons? The social platforms that allow the circulation of fake news with ease? Mass media which does not always verify with much attention and rigour the information they spread? The Governments that should apply legal sanctions? Or the consumer that receives all the fake news, him being the final target? Even if critical thinking would be useful for every actor on fake news’ stage, the one who needs it the most is the consumer. This comes together with the big responsibility placed on his shoulders. Even if others are creating and spreading disinformation, the consumer must be aware and be careful with the information he encounters on a daily basis. He should use his reasoning and he should not believe everything just because it is on the Internet. How can he do that? Critical thinking seems to be a quite difficult tool to use, especially for non-specialized individuals. This paper’s aim is to propose a simplified model of critical thinking that can contribute to detecting fake news with the help of people’s self judgement. The model is based on theories from Informal Logic considering the structure of arguments and on Critical Discourse Analysis theories concerning the patterns found in the content of the information.


2010 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 278-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edson Ronaldo Guarido Filho ◽  
Clóvis L. Machado-da-Silva

This article is based on the assumption that the construction of scientific knowledge is a social process characterized by the recursive dynamic between the social and intellectual dimensions. In light of this statement, we investigated how the construction of the institutional perspective is delineated in the context of organizational studies in Brazil from 1993 to 2007, considering transformations in its substantive content as well as the social organization of scientists. The study is based on documentary research of published articles in scientific journals and at academic events. We analyzed social networks of authorship in order to map the cooperation relationships between researchers, and we also used scientometric analysis, based on cited and co-cited authors, for mapping the intellectual framework throughout the period under study. The findings reveal that social ties among scientists in the field of institutional theory are representative of intellectual affinity, which means that there are social mechanisms working in the process of diffusion of ideas and formation of shared understandings, both aspects regarded to social embeddedness of researchers in the clusters in which they belong.


2003 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 446-454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heinrich Mintrop

Using the representative database of the Second International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) Civic Education Study, this article takes a look at civic education through the lens of expert scholars, teachers, and students. The data reveals that, as some of the experts reported, political interest is not pervasive among students and classrooms are not places where a culture of debate, controversy, and critical thinking flourishes for students. But things have changed if civic education was primarily an imparting of facts about national history and the workings of the political system. As for teachers, now the discourse of rights and the social movements associated with it top the list of curricular concerns. Large majorities of teachers share with national scholars a conceptualization of civic education as critical thinking and value education, repudiating knowledge transformation as ideal, and they recognize the wide gulf that exists between these ideals and reality. As for many students, political disinterest notwithstanding, forms of participation born out of social movements and community organizing are the preferred channels of political activity. And yet, it seems the experts have a point: the field is not where it should be.


Eksponen ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-66
Author(s):  
Berta Apriza

Education functions to upgrading, forming, character and develop civilization nation. Having the ability to think and actions to effective and creative in the realm of abstract and concrete can be used as self development independently. Students need to armed with critical thinking skills, systematic, logical, creative, and cooperate effectively to obtain, choose, and manage an information. Mathematics learning is directed to develop critical thinking skills and discussed open and objective because mathematics having strong and structure clear and links between the concept of the one with another concept. By analyzing learning needs of mathematics, formulate and designed a learning programs, choose a strategies and evaliated them correctly to get good results. The ability critical thinking is very important in studying new matter and that known way, and learn to ask effectively and reach a conclusion consistent with the facts. Mathematic learning with problem based learning is the concept of better used activity of the student during learning. In accordance with statements from Westwood (2008: 31) stated that PBL: 1) propel oneself directly in learning, 2) prepared students to critical thinking and analytical, 3) give opportunity to students to identify, find and use numerous this approuch in should think, 4) is the learning is very closely related to the real world and motivate students, 5) involving activeness in integrating information and skills of various the discipline, and 6) knowledge and strategy by the possibility of will be maintained and tranferred to the learning situation other, improve the ability to communicate and the social skills needed to cooperation and teamwork. By chance the learning process as an alternative in solving mathematical problems with using the ability critical think an to cultivate the scientific attitude of student.


Obiter ◽  
2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theo Broodryk

This article will explore the use of writing-intensive courses across the law curriculum, vested in the belief that writing, as an articulation of thinking, enhances learning where it is meaningfully and intentionally embedded into a course structure. The article commences by pointing out that law students often regard the writing process and the critical thinking process as mutually exclusive and therefore fail to appreciate that writing is in fact the end-result of a process of argumentation or analysis. As a result of students‟ inability to engage effectively in a process of critical thinking, they tend to reach closure too quickly when presented with a critical-thinking problem. Consequently, students often fail to engage in a process of exploratory thinking, enabling them to suspend judgment and to enter into the spirit of opposing views. The article specifically focuses on the writing strategy recently implemented by the Faculty of Law, Stellenbosch University with the primary aim of establishing a coordinated approach to the development of research and writing skills within the LLB programme as an integral part of legal education within the Faculty. The Strategy is intended to enhance the writing and research skills of LLB students through a number of interrelated interventions implemented across the entire LLB programme. A principal aim is to inculcate both generic and specific writing skills in LLB graduates in a manner that is integrated into the curriculum. A key component of the Strategy, on which the article will focus, entails the identification and development of writing-intensive courses in terms of which writing and research assignments are integrated into substantive courses. Writing-intensive courses support the notion of “writing to learn” as opposed to “learning to write” and thus encourage critical thinking. They are assignment-centred rather than text- and lecture-centred; they are structured so as to enable exploratory thinking (and thus writing); they encourage students to become actively involved in their own learning processes; and they consist of assignments that require students to arrive at well-reasoned conclusions and solutions, testing them against relevant criteria and standards, justifying their ideas in writing or other appropriate modes. In these courses, students are instructed on writing skills alongside the substantive content of the particular course and given exercises to develop such skills with reference to the substantive content of the course. Each course is focused on specific writing skills and successive courses are focused on developing these skills. The article concludes by dealing with the practical difficulties and benefits associated with the development of writing-intensive courses, one of which is the fact that students not only develop generic writing skills, but they also develop specific writing skills within the academic discourse of our environment – they therefore do not only learn to write, but to write in law.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Anne Shelton ◽  
Maureen A. Flint

PurposeTranscription is an integral component to qualitative research, and as such, the ways that researchers discuss transcription in the literature matter. Scholarly discussions on the “how” and “why” of transcription not only shape discourse within interview data-based fields; they inform the ways that researchers understand the roles and ramifications of transcribing. This study aims to provide a comprehensive literature review of articles on transcription published in qualitative methods journals over the past 25 years, offering implications for research practice and pedagogy.Design/methodology/approachThe literature review asked: How do qualitative researchers discuss transcription/transcribing? The authors first reviewed how transcription was discussed in the literature in qualitative studies in the social sciences broadly. Based on the findings, the authors then conducted a comprehensive literature review in 14 qualitative methods journals.FindingsThe authors found that overall, authors discussed transcription either as a technical tool or as a complex, researcher-constructed process. Specifically, utilitarian discussions of transcription emphasized transcription accuracy and efficiency, while theoretical discussions of transcription emphasized a continuously analytic and researcher-constructed process.Originality/valueThis study offers a comprehensive overview of the past 25 years of articles published on transcription. The authors conclude with a discussion of articles that bridge the theoretical and utilitarian discussions, as well as considerations for using transcription as a pedagogical tool for teaching qualitative research methods.


2010 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 655-675 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia M. Camp ◽  
Anne L. Schnader

ABSTRACT: While critical thinking is necessary for accountants in today’s business world, cultivating students’ critical thinking skills in an accounting classroom can be a challenge. The extant literature suggests that debate is a well-established pedagogical tool for enhancing student critical thinking skills, yet debate is not often used effectively in accounting classrooms. We provide suggestions for developing debates for use in the accounting classroom and two examples of debates used by the authors. The first requires students to argue for or against the extension of tax provisions currently being deliberated by Congress. The second requires students to examine the provisions of Sarbanes-Oxley and propose amendments to the bill.


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