From Reflection to Self-Assessment: Methods of Developing Critical Thinking in Students

The main task of a higher education institution is to prepare a student for professional duties in a rapidly changing world. To effectively perform this task, it is necessary to give students not only knowledge but also to develop the necessary skills and abilities, in particular to develop critical thinking. The purpose of this work was to develop a methodology for the development of critical thinking of students, as well as to investigate its effectiveness. The study used the method of synthesis, which developed a method of developing critical thinking of students. To diagnose the effectiveness of the proposed method used the test "Critical Thinking" L. Starkey adapted by O. Lutsenko. In the study the peculiarities of the development of such critical thinking skills as reflective thinking, self-analysis, awareness of one’s own achievements and shortcomings, choice of problem-solving strategy, use of cognitive models of learning (Socratic dialogue, Paul & Elder taxonomy) are revealed. It was found that the development of critical thinking was achieved through a comprehensive combination of self-assessment and reflection, performing exercises to develop the ability to clearly articulate the problem, find, analyse and interpret relevant information, draw the right conclusions and explanations.The results of this study can be useful to researchers and university professors who are looking for effective methods of developing critical thinking in students.

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Self-Assessment of Critical Thinking Skills in EFL Writing Courses at the University Level: Reconsideration of the Critical Thinking Construct

10.31219/osf.io/njhs4 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Arab World English Journal ◽

Youssef Nadri ◽

Adil Azhar

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Formative Evaluation ◽

Evaluation Process ◽

Thinking Skills ◽

Two Dimensions ◽

Critical Thinking Skills ◽

Assessment Practices ◽

Metacognitive Skills ◽

Self Assessment ◽

Efl Writing

The Critical Thinking (CT) component has by now secured a key place within EFL curriculum aims and objectives. The integration of a CT dimension into the teaching of the writing skill in particular has received considerable attention in research. However, research has also pointed to the failure of assessment practices to evaluate CT development. It is within this context that the present work advocates a standard based approach to the assessment of CT in EFL writing that aligns assessment criteria to the critical abilities articulated in the learning outcomes (i.e., standards). This fosters a conception of CT measures that associates components of CT with higher order writing skills. Accordingly, the first objective of the study is to empirically test the relationship between CT dispositions and metacognitive strategy use in an attempt to establish a model of writing (self-)assessment that combines these two dimensions. As assessment is viewed as a formative evaluation process subservient of learning, the study also targets the students’ self-assessment strategies during the writing process. To this purpose, a questionnaire has been designed, and administered to 100 students at the Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences in Rabat to tap their perceptions and use of CT skills. The data analysis revealed that critical thinking development and assessment are metacognitive in nature; it follows that metacognitive skills such as planning, self-evaluating and reflecting are to be used as an essential vehicle in the development of Critical Thinking skills. This points to the paramount role of CT-informed formative (self-)assessment practices in benefiting ELT writing learners.

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MENINGKATKAN KEMAMPUAN BERPIKIR KRITIS MELALUI BERMAIN SAINS PADA ANAK TK A DI LABORATORIUM PAUD YASMIN KABUPATEN JEMBER TAHUN AJARAN 2018/2019

EARLY CHILDHOOD : JURNAL PENDIDIKAN ◽

10.35568/earlychildhood.v2i2b.289 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2 (2b) ◽

pp. 30-36

Author(s):

Misyana Misyana ◽

Indah Mayasari

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Problem Solving ◽

Thinking Skills ◽

Class Action ◽

Critical Thinking Skills ◽

Guided Discovery ◽

Group A ◽

The Right ◽

Academic Year ◽

Collection Methods

ABSTRAK Pada abad 21 dimana masyarakat sudah menggunakan teknologi, layak kalau anak-anak usia dini juga dipersiapkan untuk memiliki kemampuan yang lebih baik, utamanya di kemampuan berpikir. Sudah saatnya anak diberikan kegiatan yang lebih menantang dan menggunakan strategi yang tepat sehingga kemampuan anak benar-benar dapat meningkat lebih baik. Salah satu upaya untuk meningkatkan kemampuan berpikir kritis anak melalui bermain sains, salah satu permainan yang disukai anak yaitu bermain balon. Strategi yang dipergunakan untuk meningkatkan kemampuan anak, pemecahan masalah (problem solving) dan penemuan terbimbing (Guided Discovery). Masalah yang akan dipecahkan pada tindakan ini adalah bagaimana permainan sains dapat meningkatkan kemampuan berpikir kritis anak, pada kelompok A (4-5 tahun) di Laboratorium Paud Yasmin Jember tahun ajaran 2018/2019. Adapun jenis penelitian yang dilakukan peneliti adalah tindakan kelas, metode pengumpulan data yang digunakan dalam penelitian kali ini peneliti sebagai guru dan guru sebagai observer, wawancara dan dokumentasi. Data yang dikumpulkan berupa aktivitas anak selama kegiatan bermain sains, hasil wawancara dengan anak dan guru kelompok A. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian dapat disimpulkan bahwa bermain sains dapat meningkatkan keterampilan berpikir kritis secara signivikan. Secara klasikal dari 15 anak terdapat 13 anak yang berkembang kemampuan berpikir kritisnya secara individual dan 2 anak yang belum berkembang. Diketahui perkembangan kemampuan berpikir kritis anak secara klasikal yang diperoleh 86,66% yang berarti perkembangan kemampuan berpikir kritis anak kelompok A secara klasikal tercapai. Kata Kunci: berfikir kritis, bermain sains, PAUD. ABSTRACT In the 21st century where people have used technology, it is feasible that early childhood are also prepared to have better abilities, especially being able to think. It's time for children to be given more challenging activities and use the right strategies, and the children ability can really improve better. One of the efforts to improve children's critical thinking skills through playing science, one of the games that children love is playing balloons. Strategies used to improve children's ability, problem solving and guided discovery. The problem that will be solved in this action is how the game of science can improve children's critical thinking skills, in group A (4-5 years) in the Laboratory of Paud Yasmin Jember 2018/2019 academic year. The type of lecturers conducted is class action lectures, data collection methods used in this lecture are observation, interviews and documentation. Data collected in the form of children activities during science playing activities, results of interviews with children and teacher of group A. Based on the results of lecturers, it can be concluded that playing science can improve critical thinking skills in a significant way. Classically from 15 children there are 13 children who develop their critical thinking skills, and 2 children are undeveloped. It is known that the development of children critical thinking abilities classically is 86.66% which means that the development of children critical thinking abilities in group A is classically achieved. Keywords: Critical thinking, science games, PAUD.

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Fostering Critical Thinking Using Instructional Strategies in English Classes

Handbook of Research on Critical Thinking and Teacher Education Pedagogy - Advances in Higher Education and Professional Development ◽

10.4018/978-1-5225-7829-1.ch016 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 299-316

Author(s):

Şenol Orakcı ◽

Mehmet Durnali ◽

Osman Aktan

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Learning Strategies ◽

Language Learners ◽

Critical Literacy ◽

English Language ◽

Thinking Skills ◽

Critical Thinking Skills ◽

English Language Teaching ◽

Self Assessment ◽

English Classes

The aim of the chapter is to provide both theoretical and practical ideas about critical thinking development within English language teaching contexts. Encouraging language learners to be critical thinkers is important in teaching English as a foreign language. However, achieving the goal remains a challenge. Using various strategies together seem to be effective when properly implemented. Therefore this chapter outlines these strategies which include communicative language tasks, using authentic meaningful texts, using critical literacy, being aware of whole-brain learning, adopting a reflective teaching, enabling students to become autonomous, using explicit instruction, teacher questioning, using active and cooperative learning strategies, using literature in English classes, using creative drama, and adopting self-assessment. Teachers can enable learners to have critical thinking skills and more efficient English lessons by combining these strategies in a new way or by designing critical thinking activities in the classroom.

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Accumulation of Content Validation Evidence for the Critical Thinking Self-Assessment Scale

Journal of Nursing Measurement ◽

10.1891/1061-3749.25.1.156 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 25 (1) ◽

pp. 156-170 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Girija Gopinathan Nair ◽

Laurie-Ann M. Hellsten ◽

Lynnette Leeseberg Stamler

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Content Validity ◽

Cognitive Skills ◽

Thinking Skills ◽

Critical Thinking Skills ◽

Assessment Instrument ◽

Assessment Scale ◽

Monitoring Methods ◽

Self Assessment ◽

Content Relevance

Background/Purpose: Critical thinking skills (CTS) are essential for nurses; assessing students’ acquisition of these skills is a mandate of nursing curricula. This study aimed to develop a self-assessment instrument of critical thinking skills (Critical Thinking Self-Assessment Scale [CTSAS]) for students’ self-monitoring. Methods: An initial pool of 196 items across 6 core cognitive skills and 16 subskills were generated using the American Philosophical Association definition of CTS. Experts’ content review of the items and their ratings provided evidence of content relevance using the item-level content validity index (I-CVI) and Aiken’s content validity coefficient (VIk). Results: 115 items were retained (range of I-CVI values = .70 to .94 and range of VIkvalues = .69–.95; significant atp< .05). Conclusion: The CTSAS is the first CTS instrument designed specifically for self-assessment purposes.

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Case Briefs in Legal English Classes

Studies in Logic, Grammar and Rhetoric ◽

10.1515/slgr-2016-0012 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 45 (1) ◽

pp. 7-20 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Stĕpánka Bilová

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Collaborative Work ◽

Legal Reasoning ◽

Real Life ◽

Relevant Information ◽

Thinking Skills ◽

Critical Thinking Skills ◽

Legal Issue ◽

Learning Activity ◽

English Classes

Abstract A case brief can be described as a succinct summary of a case which specifies the facts, procedural history, legal issue(s), court decision and legal reasoning supporting the judgment, even though exact formats may vary. Case briefing is a demanding activity which is required from students during their law studies. The goal is to teach students to focus on the essential parts of the case and to obtain a thorough understanding of the case and the reasoning, which means the students need to employ their analytical and critical thinking skills. The course of English for academic legal purposes (as part of English for specific purposes) can also benefit from implementing case briefs. Students are exposed to useful legal vocabulary while the cases themselves bring real life examples of the law, which can increase students’ interest and motivation. The paper briefly introduces the literature on the methodology of teaching case briefing and on case briefs within the linguistics research and then describes a sample activity on case briefs from legal English classes. My experience shows that it is important to provide students with sufficient scaffolding for completing the task successfully. Even though the students feel they are easily and quickly acquainted with the format and the language used, they encounter problems when preparing particular cases. The activity combines both individual and collaborative work, oral and written outputs and peer reviewing. Case briefing is a valuable learning activity; nevertheless, some students may find it difficult as they need not only language skills, but also general critical thinking skills. The teacher should therefore facilitate their work, help them practice the ability to find relevant information, identify the issue, and comprehend the reasoning behind.

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CRITICAL THINKING DEVELOPMENT OF NON-LINGUISTIC STUDENTS THROUGH THE EDUCATIONAL FOREIGN-LANGUAGE TEXT

Pedagogical Review ◽

10.23951/2307-6127-2021-2-124-134 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 124-134

Author(s):

Инна Вячеславовна Шукурова ◽

Наталья Евгеньевна Чеснокова

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Foreign Language ◽

English Language ◽

Relevant Information ◽

Thinking Skills ◽

Educational Process ◽

Critical Thinking Skills ◽

Language Resources ◽

Extraneous Material ◽

Language Text

Рассматривается вопрос развития критического мышления студентов средствами иностранного языка. Оценивается место и роль дисциплины «Иностранный язык» в развитии универсальных компетенций студентов и в их адаптации к современным требованиям, предъявляемым будущим специалистам. Представлены составляющие умения критического мышления, которые позволяют осмысливать полученную информацию, обобщать и отделять ее от второстепенных фактов, формулировать выводы, оценивать. Средством развития критического мышления студентов выбран учебный иноязычный текст, который рассматривается не только как источник информации, но и как средство активизации мыслительной деятельности. Отмечается недостаток методик, способствующих развитию критического мышления. Описывается возможность использования таксономии педагогических целей Б. Блума в работе с учебным текстом. Таксономия позволяет правильно ставить образовательные цели, формулировать мотивирующие задания и отслеживать прогресс в развитии умений. Приведен пример работы с учебным текстом по принципу таксономии, который дает возможность корректировать учебную деятельность студентов, направленную на развитие их критического мышления. The article considers the process of students’ critical thinking development through the English language resources. The authors highlight the importance of English in the developing of students’ universal competencies and their adaption to the current professional requirements. The article outlines the essential critical thinking skills that allow students to comprehend the received material, break down the material into its constituent parts, to distinguish relevant information from extraneous material, to synthesize, to infer and evaluate it. The educational foreign-language text is used as a means of students’ critical thinking development. The authors emphasize the text’s multifunction nature and its contribution into enhancement of students’ thinking activity. Despite the teachers’ keen interest in the process of critical thinking developing some authors prove the lack of methods and techniques promoting its growth. The article gives an overview of Bloom’s taxonomy and outlines its application in the educational process. The taxonomy is widely used to set educational objectives, to formulate motivating exercises and monitor headway in knowledge and skills developing. The study shows that not all textbooks and tasks are intended to enhance critical thinking skills. So, the authors analyzed their English textbook and changed their approach to work with the texts. The article describes the experience proving that new challenging tasks help students comprehend the received information, distinguish relevant facts, summarize and learn to evaluate.

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Critical thinking skills for diagnosis process application from the perspective of nursing students and professors

Acta Scientiarum Health Sciences ◽

10.4025/actascihealthsci.v42i1.47681 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 42 ◽

pp. e47681

Author(s):

Fernando Riegel ◽

Maria da Graça Oliveira Crossetti

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Nursing Students ◽

Information Search ◽

Education Institution ◽

Thinking Skills ◽

Point Of View ◽

Critical Thinking Skills ◽

Nursing Diagnosis ◽

South Of Brazil ◽

The Individual

Identify, from the experiences of nursing students and their professors, the critical thinking skills necessary for applying the diagnosis process to clinical practice. Descriptive-exploratory with qualitative approach. The study was conducted at a higher education institution in the south of Brazil, after approval from the Research Ethics Committee, under CAEE No 72294917.7.0000.5347. It had the participation of five nursing students and four nursing professors through focal group sessions. The content analysis technique was used for data analysis. The most remarkable holistic critical thinking skills identified from the point of view of the nursing students were: analysis and knowledge; from the professors' perspective, they were: analysis, information search, clinical experience, knowledge transformation, contextual perspective, intuition, prediction and comprehension. With the findings of this research, professors will be capable of implementing strategies focused on the individual needs of students in order to qualify teaching practices as to the nursing diagnosis process.

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Critical Thinking as a Dimension of Constructivist Learning in Social Studies Education: A Study of Teachers’ Attitudes in Secondary Education

Journal of Studies in Education ◽

10.5296/jse.v10i2.16763 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 1

Author(s):

Ali Emad Muhammad

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Social Studies ◽

Instructional Strategies ◽

Thinking Skills ◽

Critical Thinking Skills ◽

Social Studies Teachers ◽

Self Assessment ◽

Constructive Learning ◽

Teachers Attitudes ◽

Self Learning

This study examined social studies teachers’ attitudes towards critical thinking as a dimension of constructive learning. The purpose of this study was indeed to develop a better understanding of the use of instructional approaches by experienced teachers to enhance critical thinking skills and improve student learning of social studies. The study was conducted in the city of Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan with 20 experienced social studies teachers in 8 public secondary schools. Qualitative approach was preferred for this study. The interview with each of the 20 teachers was conducted individually and their social studies classes are observed separately. The results of this study revealed that teachers have little knowledge and understanding of instructional strategies that foster critical thinking. The teachers believed that students can benefit from using self-learning, self-assessment, involving in peer learning, meaningful and reasonable response process and express curiosity through questioning how and why. This study also explored some obstacles when teachers practice instructional strategies that enhance critical thinking in learning social studies.

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Critical Thinking Competence and its Impact on Acquisition of Basic Principles of Enterpreneurship Among Business Students in Latvia

European Integration Studies ◽

10.5755/j01.eis.1.15.29248 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 1 (15) ◽

pp. 47-55

Author(s):

Iveta Linina ◽

Velga Vevere

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Information Processing ◽

Business Education ◽

Business Students ◽

Thinking Skills ◽

Critical Thinking Skills ◽

The Self ◽

Self Assessment ◽

Self Evaluation ◽

Study Process

Critical thinking is mental process of analysis and evaluation of information. The source of information can be experience, reflection, observation, communication, etc., as well as study process. Business education is based on the ability to navigate the market situation and make informed decisions. The aim of the research is to determine correlation between business students information processing skills according to certain criteria and students’ self-evaluation of their information processing skills. Based on this, the authors of the investigation study the theoretical basis of critical thinking with the monographic or descriptive method, with the help of a questionnaire assess students' ability to critically evaluate the situation and make decisions based on it. This study will provide an understanding the need for critical thinking and its development in the process of business education. Two research questions are put forward: (1) What is the self-assessment of critical thinking skills by the business students? (2) What are the differences between the self-assessment and the assessment according to the proposed criteria? In the result, the authors conclude that by studying the importance of critical thinking in educating business students, it is possible to increase market understanding and decision-making competence for students. Critical thinking is the skills of business students to start a successful business.

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Importance and development of Critical Thinking in BA Academic Writing Course

enadakultura ◽

10.52340/lac.2021.646 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ketevan Gochitashvili ◽

Giuli Sha bashvili

Keyword(s):

Critical Thinking ◽

Academic Writing ◽

Relevant Information ◽

Thinking Skills ◽

Critical Thinking Skills ◽

Main Research ◽

Professional Career ◽

Writing Course ◽

Specific Activities ◽

Secondary Information

Critical thinking is a complex phenomenon, that helps the learner to separate relevant information from irrelevant and unnecessary information, to evaluate and explain events and facts, to formulate a clear argument objectively, to deliver the right message to the target audience, and to find ways to solve the problem. Critical thinking is directly related to the teaching of academic writing and is a transferable skill that helps students both to complete other university courses successfully and to build a further professional career. The aim of the paper is to identify the challenges and problems faced by both instructors and students at the university level in Georgia in terms of developing critical thinking skills while teaching/learning an academic writing course. Moreover, the paper presents specific activities to solve the given problems. The paper offers teachers the basic strategies and techniques that can be used to achieve the goals set out in the curriculum. The following research methods are applied: questionnaires and classroom observation.The following factors can be named as limitations of the research: relatively small number of students; The study was conducted for only one semester.The analysis of the questionnaires revealed the following issues related to critical thinking and writing for the students: lack of ability to formulate an objective critical opinion, reliability of sources, formulation of main research questions and hypotheses, generalization, separation of main and secondary information, focus on key issues and formulation of logical coherent conclusions.The paper suggests specific activities and questions for the development of critical thinking that are needed to process a text or information.The use of these approaches and methods should be implemented at different levels of the course. The teacher in advance should design and plan activities that will be used during the class. Critical thinking development activities should be combined with all the assignments and activities covering all the topics of the course. In the process of searching the proper materials, the student should master the techniques of working on sources, the criteria for determining the reliability and relevance of sources. In addition, the student should be able to process a significant amount of materials, merge main and secondary information, paraphrase the information, and integrate it into their own text in accordance with academic standards. As a result, the student should be able to evaluate the material retrieved and present and argue their own position.

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