what does critical thinking look like in a classroom

16 Characteristics Of A Critical Thinking Classroom

How do you know if your students are thinking critically in the classroom? Here are examples that might be good indicators.

What Are The Characteristics Of A Critical Thinking Classroom?

by Terry Heick

The premise here is straightforward: clarifying what critical thinking might ‘look like’ in the classroom. Put another way, what are some indicators that rational thought and careful, critical thinking is not just ‘visible,’ but a part of the culture of a classroom.

In Critical Thinking Is A Mindset , I offered that, “Just as math can be said to be a kind of language and science is a way of thinking, critical thinking (while also being a ‘way’ of thinking) is first a state of mind–a  willingness  to do so both preceded and proceeded by a motley collection of presuppositions and premises and tendencies and cognitive defaults and even eventually personality traits that manifest when you read a book or have a discussion or skim a news headline or research an idea.”

I also discussed this idea in Teaching Disruptively, when I said, “inquiry-based learning (or critical thinking) that doesn’t just encourage students to ‘discover’ some preselected poet you had in mind, but find their own reasons for reading poetry—then finding their own poets.And perhaps most of all, by creating self-directed learners that can ask the right question at the right time within the right community to affect the kind of change that lasts.”

This concept also surfaced in dozens of other things I’ve written over the years, from Characteristics Of High-Performing Classrooms to Are You Teaching Content Or Are You Teaching Thought? to Correcting The Deficit In Critical Thinking when I wondered if maybe we should, create “learning models that require critical thinking–learning models that cannot function if students (all students) don’t think critically. This would be much like a rowboat where everyone has to row and stops if someone stops rowing; alternatively, break apart the boats completely so every student must row themselves.) someone stops rowing; alternatively, break apart the boats completely so every student must row themselves.”

Which brings us to this post. How do you know if your students are ‘thinking critically’? Of course, the answer depends on a scores and scores of factors, from the grade level and content area you teach to your relationships with students and the nature of your curriculum, units, lessons, and activities. But below are some examples that, if witnessed with any consistency at all, might be a good sign that your students are thinking.

What Are Indicators Of Critical Thinking?

Beliefs and ‘stances’ change if/when new data emerges.

The quality of knowledge and data is more important than an intellectual ‘stance’ of personal opinion.

Claims made–by anyone from the teacher and students to the authors and experts they study–are required to withstand clinical, good faith intellectual scrutiny.

Emotions are separated from reason. That is, they are seen as effects of thoughts rather than equal to thoughts or worthy of similar scrutiny, application, validation, acclaim, etc.

Unpredictability and ‘disruption’ (of ideas, some planning, assessment forms, traditional thinking patterns, etc.)

‘Intellectual divergence’ where thinkers seek to be in the company of evidence, truth, data, and perspective and are ‘diverge’ from one another/you/authors, etc. not emotionally (though that’s okay at times) but conceptually and intellectually.

‘Truth’ is based in reason and affection rather than opinion and belief.

Learning is inquiry-driven (through curiosity and knowledge demands), not curriculum-driven.

Students ask–then improve–questions to drive lessons, projects, discussions, etc.

The language of reason is used: words and phrases that clarify and endorse uncertainty and the need for more knowledge/data, sentence stems that clarifying positions or seek to clarify others, neutral transitional statements, etc.

Literacy in fallacies and biases. That is, heuristics, cognitive biases, and logical fallacies are discussed frequently and without ‘great prompting’ and effort.

The legacy of ideas and their origin/momentum/endorsement/change over time in response to data and new thinking, etc.

Humility. (This is at the core of rational, critical thought. Humility says, ‘I’m not sure’ or ‘I don’t know enough to have an informed opinion’ or ‘Let’s gain knowledge so that we can reduce uncertainty.’)

Students ask more questions than the teacher.

Questions are valued over answers.

Questions are revisited, updated, and revised.

Founder & Director of TeachThought

The Will to Teach

Critical Thinking in the Classroom: A Guide for Teachers

In the ever-evolving landscape of education, teaching students the skill of critical thinking has become a priority. This powerful tool empowers students to evaluate information, make reasoned judgments, and approach problems from a fresh perspective. In this article, we’ll explore the significance of critical thinking and provide effective strategies to nurture this skill in your students.

Why is Fostering Critical Thinking Important?

Strategies to cultivate critical thinking, real-world example, concluding thoughts.

Critical thinking is a key skill that goes far beyond the four walls of a classroom. It equips students to better understand and interact with the world around them. Here are some reasons why fostering critical thinking is important:

• Making Informed Decisions:  Critical thinking enables students to evaluate the pros and cons of a situation, helping them make informed and rational decisions.
• Developing Analytical Skills:  Critical thinking involves analyzing information from different angles, which enhances analytical skills.
• Promoting Independence:  Critical thinking fosters independence by encouraging students to form their own opinions based on their analysis, rather than relying on others.

Creating an environment that encourages critical thinking can be accomplished in various ways. Here are some effective strategies:

• Socratic Questioning:  This method involves asking thought-provoking questions that encourage students to think deeply about a topic. For example, instead of asking, “What is the capital of France?” you might ask, “Why do you think Paris became the capital of France?”
• Debates and Discussions:  Debates and open-ended discussions allow students to explore different viewpoints and challenge their own beliefs. For example, a debate on a current event can engage students in critical analysis of the situation.
• Teaching Metacognition:  Teaching students to think about their own thinking can enhance their critical thinking skills. This can be achieved through activities such as reflective writing or journaling.
• Problem-Solving Activities:  As with developing problem-solving skills , activities that require students to find solutions to complex problems can also foster critical thinking.

As a school leader, I’ve seen the transformative power of critical thinking. During a school competition, I observed a team of students tasked with proposing a solution to reduce our school’s environmental impact. Instead of jumping to obvious solutions, they critically evaluated multiple options, considering the feasibility, cost, and potential impact of each. They ultimately proposed a comprehensive plan that involved water conservation, waste reduction, and energy efficiency measures. This demonstrated their ability to critically analyze a problem and develop an effective solution.

Critical thinking is an essential skill for students in the 21st century. It equips them to understand and navigate the world in a thoughtful and informed manner. As a teacher, incorporating strategies to foster critical thinking in your classroom can make a lasting impact on your students’ educational journey and life beyond school.

1. What is critical thinking? Critical thinking is the ability to analyze information objectively and make a reasoned judgment.

2. Why is critical thinking important for students? Critical thinking helps students make informed decisions, develop analytical skills, and promotes independence.

3. What are some strategies to cultivate critical thinking in students? Strategies can include Socratic questioning, debates and discussions, teaching metacognition, and problem-solving activities.

4. How can I assess my students’ critical thinking skills? You can assess critical thinking skills through essays, presentations, discussions, and problem-solving tasks that require thoughtful analysis.

5. Can critical thinking be taught? Yes, critical thinking can be taught and nurtured through specific teaching strategies and a supportive learning environment.

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• Research Article

Critical Thinking Skills in the Classroom and Beyond

Teaching Strategies

Becoming a critical thinker isn’t an unreachable goal. As Arthur Aufderheide, the Mummy Doctor, once said, “All knowledge is connected to all other knowledge. The fun is in making the connections.”

What does that have to do with critical thinking? Everything! Critical thinking is taking our natural curiosity and making meaningful connections. We solve problems daily, and critical thinking plays an essential role in the process. Observing, analyzing, and maybe even failing as we process solutions to life’s everyday puzzles is necessary. Critical thinking isn’t about acting on your beliefs. It extends to reasoning, communication, reflection, and action.

With roots dating back to the mid-late 20th century , the term "critical thinking" has evolved through the years. It takes discipline to critically think because it requires questioning, open-mindedness, and problem-solving skills . Developing critical thinking skills in students is vital to success in all content areas and extracurricular activities.

What does critical thinking look like in the classroom?

Critical thinking in the classroom looks like examining and brainstorming. It’s a fearlessness to analyze, test, and even reject ideas. It’s metacognition , which is simply thinking about thinking. Critical thinking happens when teachers ask thought-provoking questions and resist the urge to generate ideas for students.

What can teachers do to foster critical thinking?

• Ask questions without one specific answer to find.
• Allow students to explain their thinking with pictures, numbers, or words.
• Support the productive struggle .
• Brainstorm as a whole class so that students hear the thoughts of others.
• Compare and contrast! Get students to recognize and understand different sides to one issue.
• Make connections to prior knowledge.
• Encourage students to dig deeper by considering and analyzing alternatives to their first reactions and answers.
• Have students explain why they chose to do tasks in certain ways.
• Share helpful processes to try when things seem tricky. Invite students to give their tips.
• Provide opportunities for students to gather and evaluate information .
• Don’t stop when an assignment is over. Take valuable time for reflection.

Critical thinking beyond the classroom

Critical thinking is one skill that transfers from the classroom to the real world. It’s also necessary for success in academic and professional careers . Every single one of us has to ask purposeful questions and communicate our thoughts effectively. Critical thinking is more than that! It improves decision-making and objective reasoning. It allows us to move beyond emotional reactions to analysis, conclusions, and positive and negative consequences. True critical thinking also involves reflection to see the cause and effect of our decisions.

Critical thinking is one skill that transfers from the classroom to the real world.

Helping your students develop critical thinking skills benefits the whole child. A lot is going on in their worlds. Understanding how to think through decisions is a crucial skill. Set your students up for success with plenty of opportunities for critical thinking in your classroom!

ExploreLearning delivers critical thinking opportunities in math and science that are serious fun! Take a closer look!

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How To Promote Critical Thinking In Your Classroom

Promoting Thinking

November 25, 2006, by The Critical Thinking Co. Staff

Modeling of critical thinking skills by instructors is crucial for teaching critical thinking successfully. By making your own thought processes explicit in class - explaining your reasoning, evaluating evidence for a claim, probing the credibility of a source, or even describing what has puzzled or confused you - you provide a powerful example to students, particularly if you invite them to join in; e.g., "Can you see where we're headed with this?" "I can't think of other explanations; can you?" "This idea/principle struck me as difficult or confusing at first, but here's how I figured it out." You can encourage students to emulate this by using them in demonstrations, asking them to "think out loud" in order for classmates to observe how they reason through a problem.

Develop the habit of asking questions that require students to think critically, and tell students that you really expect them to give answers! In particular, Socratic questioning encourages students to develop and clarify their thinking: e.g., "Would your answer hold in all cases?" "How would you respond to a counter-example or counter-argument?" "Explain how you arrived at that answer?"

This is another skill that students can learn from your example, and can use in working with each other. Providing regular opportunities for pair or small group discussions after major points or demonstrations during lectures is also important: this allows students to process the new material, connect it to previously learned topics, and practice asking questions that promote further critical thinking. Obviously, conveying genuine respect for student input is essential. Communicating the message that you value and support student contributions and efforts to think critically increases confidence, and motivates students to continue building their thinking skills. An essential component of this process is the creation of a climate where students feel comfortable with exploring the process of reasoning through a problem without being "punished" for getting the wrong answer.

Researchers have found consistently that interaction among students, in the form of well-structured group discussions plays a central role in stimulating critical thinking. Discussing course material and its applications allows students to formulate and test hypotheses, practice asking thought-provoking questions, hear other perspectives, analyze claims, evaluate evidence, and explain and justify their reasoning. As they become more sophisticated and fluent in thinking critically, students can observe and critique each others' reasoning skills.

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Critical thinking for teachers and students

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 teachers 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, and critical and creative thinking.

Teaching Strategies: A Step-by-Step Approach to Critical Thinking

The following process is a useful template for teaching students. When embarking on their research, this template provides a step-by-step process that they can use to structure their investigations.

1. Format the Question

In the age of the Internet, access to information is no 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 questions to ensure they are maintaining their focus.  

As they gather information concerning 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 helps move them further toward answering their initial research question.

3. Apply the Information  

The ability to think critically about information is of no use unless the understanding 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 regard 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 opinions against these other points of view.

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

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.

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 conclusions.

Fostering Future Thinkers: 10 Dynamic Strategies for Cultivating Critical Thinking in the Classroom

• Socratic Questioning: Encourage students to engage in thoughtful discussions by employing Socratic questioning. This method involves asking open-ended questions that prompt deeper exploration of concepts, helping students develop analytical and reasoning skills.
• Real-World Problem-Solving: Integrate real-world problems into the curriculum, allowing students to apply critical thinking skills to authentic situations. This hands-on approach fosters practical problem-solving abilities and encourages creativity.
• Debate and Discussion: Organize debates and class discussions to expose students to diverse perspectives. This not only enhances their critical thinking but also teaches them how to construct persuasive arguments and consider alternative viewpoints.
• Case Studies: Utilize case studies from various fields to present complex scenarios. This challenges students to analyze information, identify key issues, and propose effective solutions, fostering critical thinking within specific contexts.
• Critical Reading and Writing: Emphasize critical reading and writing skills. Encourage students to analyze texts, identify main arguments, evaluate evidence, and express their thoughts coherently in writing. This enhances both analytical and communication skills.
• Concept Mapping: Introduce concept mapping as a visual tool to help students organize thoughts and relationships between ideas. This technique enhances their ability to see the bigger picture and understand the interconnectedness of concepts.
• Problem-Based Learning (PBL): Implement problem-based learning approaches, where students work collaboratively to solve complex problems. This method promotes critical thinking, teamwork, and the application of knowledge to real-world situations.
• Cognitive Dissonance Activities: Engage students in activities that provoke cognitive dissonance, challenging their existing beliefs or assumptions. This discomfort encourages critical examination and reflection, leading to intellectual growth.
• Metacognition Development: Foster metacognition by prompting students to reflect on their thinking processes. Encourage them to analyze how they approach problems, make decisions, and solve challenges, promoting self-awareness and self-correction.
• Role-Playing Scenarios: Create role-playing scenarios that require students to step into different perspectives or roles. This immersive approach encourages empathy, perspective-taking, and the ability to analyze situations from multiple viewpoints, enhancing overall critical thinking skills.

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Inspiring Critical Thinking in Classrooms

By using a few strategies, teachers can encourage positive learning outcomes..

Posted January 29, 2015

By Dr. John Rich , Rameeka Manning & Brionne Cage

What does critical thinking in the classroom actually look like? In the interest of bridging the gap between aspiration and achievement in the area of critical thinking, Browne & Freeman (2000) suggest a list of characteristics that distinguish classrooms which regularly encourage critical thinking from those that do not. Their purpose was to provide specific advice to educators and faculty members who are trying to incorporate critical thinking into their practice. Critical thinking was operationally defined as “a set of skills and attitudes that enables a reader or listener to apply sensible standards to the reasoning of speakers and writers”. According to Browne & Freeman, educators can elicit critical thinking by incorporating certain design characteristics in their classes. These include: 1) frequent evaluative questions, 2) the encouragement of active learning, and 3) creating developmental tension.

Frequent Evaluative Questions

Critical thinking is very much a participant activity. However, which student activities are more likely to speed up or enhance critical thinking? According to Browne & Freeman, the primary behavioral characteristic of critical thinking classrooms is that the classroom is filled with a flurry of questions. The teacher asks some of them and the students ask others, often to one another. To start off, critical thinking requires comprehension or an understanding of the material. Teachers can provide a considerable benefit to the students just from asking “Why?” Some other questions that can move thinking to a deeper level include:

• What words or phrases are used in an ambiguous form?
• What evidence is provided for the claims in the reasoning?
• What important information is missing from the reasoning used by the author?
• What other conclusions can reasonably be drawn based on the evidence provided?

Critical thinking can be usefully promoted as understanding the use of these questions, knowing how to find answers to them and enjoying the process of asking these at appropriate times. However, they do point out that none of these can be effectively asked or answered without the assistance of a trained educator.

Encouragement of Active Learning

According to Browne & Freeman, encouraging the asking and answering of critical questions is just one aspect of a larger body of educational practices called “active learning” that can identify a classroom as one where critical thinking is being encouraged. Teachers in higher education sometimes have a “top down” model of their instructional role. They are the experts of knowledge and students are the seekers. Therefore, the one with the knowledge speaks and the one seeking listens. However they believe this form of teaching fails to provide students with the opportunity to practice using the knowledge under the supervision of a skilled mentor. For the teacher to improve active learning and critical thinking requires awareness of the delicacy of oral communication. Providing students with frequent opportunities for practicing evaluation skills and attitudes allows them to experiment with critical thinking.

Many of the professors at our university put us into “active groups” to answer questions, and then—based on our individual answers we might have to come up with one agreeable answer to the overall question. This helped us as students to develop insight on a subject through the perspective of another student. It also helped us to strengthen our dialogue and articulate the material better. The strength of the “active group” is that it enables personal involvement with the material, thereby creating discussion and evaluation.

Developmental Tension

Another distinguishable characteristic discussed by Browne & Freeman is “creating a little developmental tension” (p.305). This can be done through controversial discussions. Controversy is a type of academic conflict where two or more students’ information, ideas, and conclusions are incompatible and they seek to come to an agreement. Controversy is special because it increases the probability that evaluative thinking will occur. Controversy creates a state of discomfort for the reader. “Thinking begins only when a state of doubt about what to do or believe exists; all conscious thought has its beginning in uncertainty.”(p.305) Doubt, however, motivates thinking and controversy presents situations in which doubt naturally arises.

By inspiring controversy purposely, a professor can engage in a form of “intellectual affirmative action” (p.308) where minority positions are given fair treatment. According to Johnson & Johnson (2002), structured academic controversy increases students’ perspective taking abilities. By evaluating controversies in the classroom, educators are promoting an atmosphere of reflection that can result in acceptance or rejection through reasoned judgment and allow students to contradict ideas more.

In conclusion, Browne & Freeman state that when teachers and students come together to improve critical thinking, “cognitive magic” is possible. However, the effectiveness of these strategies is linked to the willingness of both student and teacher to engage in the hard work necessary to realize this exciting aspiration.

Browne, N & Freeman, K. (2000). Distinguishing Features of Critical Thinking Classrooms. Teaching in Higher Education, Vol. 5 No. 3,301-209

Johnson, D. & Johnson, R. (2002). Critical Thinking through Structured Controversy. Educational Leadership , 58-63

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Developing critical thinking skills in the classroom

April 29, 2021

Critical thinking skills in the classroom: A teacher's guide to developing higher-order thinking and student reasoning.

Main, P (2021, April 29). Developing critical thinking skills in the classroom. Retrieved from https://www.structural-learning.com/post/what-is-critical-thinking

What is critical thinking?

Critical thinking is important in every aspect of our lives. It helps us make decisions, solve problems , and learn new information. But how do we develop these skills in school?

In order to become a well-rounded person who has developed critical thinking skills, students must first understand the importance of developing these skills. This means teaching students how to analyze data, evaluate arguments, and draw conclusions from evidence.

This article will help teachers teach critical thinking skills in the class room. We'll look at how to teach critical thinking skills using examples from history, science, math, literature, and art.

Critical thinking has been defined and re-defined by many teachers over the years and it's one of those essential abilities we want our students to develop. However, looking at the breakdown of the term as the two words that comprise it provides a simple, yet accurate definition.

The Critical Thinking process involves the use of the mind to incorporate prior experience and basic knowledge about a subject matter in order to reach conclusions. Critical thinking has a few definitions. In this article we are focused on what critical thinking looks like in the classroom.

We are interested in how we can make more logical and accurate thinking a classroom habit that every school can adopt. To examine the topic of critical thinking we have to look beyond the purely philosophical perspective and explore the latest cognitive science . For example, we now know the importance that knowledge plays in developing critical thinking, you can't have one without the other. Expert thinking is a domain specific skill and the subject disciplines act as a catalyst for enhancing this life long skill. We also know the importance of retrieval practice in developing higher order thinking.

Low stakes quizzing is not just rote learning, it plays an important part in freeing up our working memory to do more of the creative work. If we no longer have to strain to remember the facts and figures, our mental capacities can be put to work in more creative ways . Within the article we will also put forward some ideas about how to promote critical and creative thinking across your school.

Logical reasoning is one of the three main components of critical thinking. This component requires students to think critically about a problem and then apply logic to solve it. Students must understand the difference between logical and illogical arguments and recognize when someone is using logical fallacies.

Why critical thinking is important

Critical thinking is a process that is often viewed as a more intense version of just plain old thinking. In education, critical thinking is a disciplined process that has stuck around for a while now – but how is this coveted skill really different from just plain old thinking? Frankly, sometimes, it's not. The two terms can be used interchangeably, and often are.

Consider a teacher who is urging a student “think harder” or “think differently”. What the teacher is actually saying is: “think critically in order to reach a more complex solution”. We are not always conscious of the multitude of cognitive actions at our disposal, the Universal Thinking Framework addresses this issue by providing child-friendly explanations of the various ways in which we can think.

These can be chained together to create a logical inquiry that any student can follow. The idea being that over time, children begin to develop critical thinking dispositions that cause reflective thinking and advance the mental process. Increasing our repertoire of cognitive actions improves a students decision making process as they are simply more aware of the directions their learning could move in.

We have divided the various types of thinking using these key questions:

• How do I get started?
• How should I organise my ideas?
• How do I know this?
• How can I communicate my understanding?
• What can I do with my new knowledge and understanding?

All of the sections provide teachers with a systematic approach to encourage reflective thinking . The questions that are posed to the learner are designed to break down a complex process into basic skills. These thinking skills, over time can be mastered and understood. Having the different types of thinking available to both educators and students means that logical thinking can be achieved more readily and can eventually become an attitude of mind. The mental actions are accompanied by critical thinking questions . Teachers can use critical thinking questions to promote rational thinking. 

Reflective thinking is employed when a solution is needed, or in school when there is a connection that needs to be drawn between two or more concepts. Therefore, critical thinking is, in essence, the thought processes that result from disapproval of the solutions and connections that already exist, or a lack thereof.

Mental skills or learning behaviours?

School leaders love to see and hear teachers incorporating the idea of crosscutting concepts into their daily instruction. That is, concepts and skills can be used and developed in more than one subject matter, and therefore more than one class. I don't think I have ever had an administrator who has not asked me how I plan to collaborate with my colleagues in order to make instruction more meaningful and applicable to my students' lives.

Upon further consideration of this popular interview question, there should really only ever be one acceptable response to such a question – “I will make it a priority to routinely engage my students in the practice of critical thinking so that they can grow that skill and use it in other classes as well as outside of the school” … or something along those lines.

It remains true that practice leads to confidence and increased ability. Therefore, as students learn what the process of thinking critically feels like for them, they will be able to replicate that feeling by replicating their actions in other classes. When critical thinking is used as a part of the daily routine, it becomes less scary to use that skill when faced with a problem, regardless of the subject matter .

Critical thinking is, therefore, a crosscutting concept to be planned for and incorporated into a teacher's daily lesson plans as well as the scope and sequence of a course. If you want a practical way of integrating critical thinking into your lessons, our mental modelling approach using the building block method might be a good place to start. The playful approach encourages children to organise their ideas and in doing so, engage in critical reasoning.

Principles of critical thinking

Despite its value in all subjects , one uncertainty that educators run into is the idea of what Daniel T. Willingham (2019) calls transfer. That is, whether or not the ability to think critically in one subject or in relation to one problem will automatically lead to similar abilities in other subjects or problems. As Willingham (2019) explains, the research on this idea is not necessarily all in agreement. Consequently, educators are faced with a task that seems to be in flux and altogether unanswered. While frustrating, this is not necessarily a new ask for educators.

Some scholars claim that the ability to think critically in one subject will naturally transfer to all other subjects , which is why it is so inherently valuable as a skill. Others argue that this is not the case, and that is why it is crucial to intentionally teach students how to think critically in all situations and across all subjects. With this quality still largely disagreed upon, it is difficult to know how best to proceed when attempting to teach and develop critical thinking skills.

Do students ever possess a true foundation of critical thinking skills and abilities, or do they regress back to a point of utter confusion with the introduction to each new problem? How can educators make these skills stick for their students ? What do students need to understand in order to be able approach problems from a critical thinking perspective regardless of the discipline or subject matter? How can we train students to recycle prior experience and previous solutions when faced with new problems?

Assessing students analytical thinking

Critical thinking is a high-level goal that educators everywhere strive toward for their students. Many “teacher moves” exist solely to work toward this purpose. However, repeatedly asking higher-order thinking questions in class and on tests, is merely the method that best demonstrates that the skill of thinking critically has already been developed. That is to say that just asking these types of questions as often as possible is not a sufficient method for the true development of this skill.

When we ask higher-order thinking questions in class or on assessments , we are ultimately trying to analyze whether or not students have that ability; or to what level they have mastered that ability. However, it stands to reason that the only way to develop this skill cannot be to simply ask more of these types of questions more often, since this is just the method of measurement. So, the question now becomes - what are the steps that lead up to a student being able to successfully encounter and respond to these higher-order thinking questions that show their ability to think critically? The answer is actually quite simple– continue to teach and prioritize critical thinking skills in every possible situation, regardless of how many times it has been reviewed.

What about critical thinking dispositions ? It has been argued that this ability is not a distinct cognitive skill but a set of critical thinking dispositions or habits of mind. Ron Ritchart talks through the argument here.

If your school is interested in implementing more critical thinking in your classrooms, you might want to start by sharing some key ideas with your staff. Our professional development approach gives staff access to the principles that underpinned critical thinking. We can help educators measure the impact of the interventions in the classroom.

How can we develop reasoning skills?

Notice that in the answer above, the onus is placed on the educator rather than the student. There is not necessarily a numbered universal list of steps to take when given a critical thinking problem that we can give to students as a road map and post as an anchor chart in the classroom. Quite the opposite, educators are charged with the vague task of teaching students how to access prior knowledge and experience and apply it in a way that will benefit them.

Ultimately, if students can manipulate their understanding and experience into a process and application that works for the task or question at hand, they are able to think critically . However, the ability to think critically in one situation does not predict with any real degree of certainty the same ability in a novel situation, especially one that seems more challenging to a student.

One characteristic that tends to make students believe that one situation is more difficult than another is subject matter. Students are not able to generalize solutions that they have already thought through because the subject matter is so different. Willingham (2019) refers to this as the surface structure of a problem and gives the example of an inability to derive the solution for a medical problem even though it is essentially the same as the solution to military/tactical problem that the group had just worked through.

However, since the surface structure of these problems seems so different, participants were not able to transfer the reasoning behind the solution to the tactical problem to the medical problem.Teachers see this difficulty with students all the time across subjects, which means that the real task for teachers to tackle is teaching students how to recognize the deep structure of a problem.

According to Willingham (2019), strong critical thinkers claim that they are able to recognize the deep structure of problems presented to them in their field of expertise, but not necessarily in other fields. This is both comforting and disconcerting for teachers. It is comforting because it shows that it is normal for it to be a challenge for students to be able to transfer critical thinking skills from one problem to another. However, it is disconcerting because it seems nearly impossible for teachers to be able to overcome this barrier if experts still encounter this barrier regularly.

All things considered, the seemingly realistic approach to the task of developing critical thinking skills in students through consistent practice seems to have a few clearly actionable approaches that are also memorable due to the alliteration they produce: collaboration , comparison and content knowledge. This form of knowledge is certainly important in everyday life. 

Collaborative problem solving skills

Collaboration is the act of working with another person or other people in order to achieve a common goal or solve a common problem. In as many ways as possible, teachers should incorporate collaboration into their lessons. Initially, it may seem as though this practice takes away from the development of independent critical thinking since weaker thinkers can lean on stronger thinkers or just more dominant personalities. However, since subject-matter experts are easily able to identify the deep structure of problems within their area of expertise, it stands to reason that pairing experts together who excel in different areas and presenting them with a complex problem will yield the best results.

Of course, in any given group of students, there may not be identifiable “experts”, however, the idea is that the different perspectives and experiences that students bring with them will intuitively lead them to a problem from different angles . This type of natural exposure to different approaches serves to model for students how it is possible to think differently about a similar problem. With continued modelling and wider exposure, students will gradually learn to intentionally incorporate different ways of thinking and to continue to seek out differing perspectives when searching for a solution to a problem.

Logical thinking and careful thinking are often cited as being ways of thinking critically. The Cornell Critical Thinking Test and Watson Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal both claim to be able to measure critical reasoning and critical thinking ability. 

Comparisons and critical thinking

While telling students what the deep structure of a problem is might seem fairly simple, the fact is that telling does not equate to teaching, nor does it always result in learning, especially when a skill is involved . Therefore, one way to begin to lead students to be able to identify and extract the deep structure of a problem is to have them compare.

When asked to compare two (or more) problems with contrasting surface structures, students are forced to look harder for the similarities. While this may be met with resistance and frustration at first, when coupled with the practice of modelling these types of comparisons, students will begin to understand that there are similarities to be found after all, and how those comparisons can help lead to a practical and applicable solution.

Academic Arguments

Identification, construction , and evaluation of arguments are crucial parts of critical thinking.

People often use the term "argument" to refer to a quarrel between people in everyday life. To a logician or critical thinker, an argument is not a statement, it is a collection of statements , with one being the conclusion and the rest being premise or assumption.

The way students attain in subjects is by reading the views of the academic writing of others. The way students achieve in a formal exam setting is by writing the academic argument of their own. So without academic argument writing we cannot learn, or teach, or persuade. One way of promoting argumentation is by teaching students to create argument maps . This practical approach of developing an analysis of arguments means that students can visualise the main points in an easy-to-understand format. 

Domain Knowledge and critical thinking

Sometimes, educators tend to avoid questions and practice activities that can be labelled as “ basic recall ” because they are said to be low in rigour. However, when attempting to develop critical thinking skills , it should be noted that domain knowledge expertise is achieved through extensive knowledge of the foundational aspects and facts of a topic. Willingham (2019) explains that effective critical thinking about a problem often comes from a place of confidence in the subject matter, which is born from extensive knowledge about it.

Being able to see alternative viewpoints, argument with evidence (and spot bad arguments) and avoid faulty reasoning can become habits of mind that are nurtured throughout a students career. Additionally, sometimes a complex solution is merely the sum of many smaller and more routine solutions. There is value in teaching and focusing on content in school , as it breeds experts. When paired with the challenge of critical thinking in order to solve real-world problems, new interest can also be bred for a subject that students may previously have seen little use for.

Five tips for improving critical thinking in your classroom

Critical thinking abilities are essential skills for students to develop. Here are five tips for improving critical thinking skills in your classroom :

1. Teach Students How to Think Critically

Teaching students how to think critically involves helping them understand the difference between facts and opinions. Facts are true statements that can be proven using evidence. Opinions are beliefs based on personal experiences, feelings, values, and preferences.

Students often confuse facts with opinions. For example, “I am going to the store to buy milk.” This statement contains no opinion. It is simply stating a fact. On the other hand, “Milk tastes good.” This statement expresses an opinion.

When teaching students how to think critically, focus on helping them distinguish between facts and opinions. Helping students learn how to think critically will improve their ability to analyze information and solve problems.

2. Encourage Critical Thinking

Encouraging students to think critically means encouraging them to question everything. If you ask students questions such as “Why did you write that?,” “What makes you say that?,” or “How would you prove that?,” you encourage them to think critically.

Asking questions helps students become better thinkers . Questions allow students to explore issues and come up with answers themselves. Asking questions encourages students to think deeply and analytically.

3. Use Real World Examples

Real world examples are helpful for teaching students how to think. Using real world examples allows students to apply concepts to situations outside of school.

For example, if you teach students how to identify logical fallacies, you can show them how to recognize these errors in arguments. Showing students how to identify logical fallacy gives them practice identifying common mistakes made by others.

4. Provide Feedback

Providing feedback is another effective method for teaching students how to improve their critical thinking skills. Giving students positive and constructive criticism improves their performance.

Giving students negative feedback does not improve their performance . Negative feedback may discourage students from trying again. Positive feedback motivates students to continue working toward success.

#5. Model Good Critical Thinking Skills

Modelling good critical thinking skills is one of the most effective methods for teaching students how to become better thinkers. Teaching students how to think critically requires modeling good critical thinking skills.

Good critical thinking skills include asking open-ended questions, analyzing data, evaluating sources, and recognizing logical fallacies.

By showing students how to think critically and model good critical thinking skills, you can help them develop into successful learners.

In a world where artificial intelligence is on the rise and continuously developing, a humanized value such as critical thinking is increasingly important. Reliance on technology makes life simpler in many ways, but simultaneously makes the possession of certain skills and abilities more attractive to potential employers and more beneficial for individuals who possess them.

Critical thinking allows for creativity when problem-solving and promotes independence and confidence. Should technology ever fail, those who are able to think critically in a variety of situations will be the ones who are valued the most.

Willingham, D. T. (2019). How to Teach Critical Thinking. Education: FutureFrontiers.

http://www.danielwillingham.com/uploads/5/0/0/7/5007325/willingham_2019_nsw_critical_thinking2.pdf

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What Is Critical Thinking and Why Do We Need To Teach It?

Question the world and sort out fact from opinion.

The world is full of information (and misinformation) from books, TV, magazines, newspapers, online articles, social media, and more. Everyone has their own opinions, and these opinions are frequently presented as facts. Making informed choices is more important than ever, and that takes strong critical thinking skills. But what exactly is critical thinking? Why should we teach it to our students? Read on to find out.

What is critical thinking?

Source: Indeed

Critical thinking is the ability to examine a subject and develop an informed opinion about it. It’s about asking questions, then looking closely at the answers to form conclusions that are backed by provable facts, not just “gut feelings” and opinion. These skills allow us to confidently navigate a world full of persuasive advertisements, opinions presented as facts, and confusing and contradictory information.

The Foundation for Critical Thinking says, “Critical thinking can be seen as having two components: 1) a set of information and belief-generating and processing skills, and 2) the habit, based on intellectual commitment, of using those skills to guide behavior.”

In other words, good critical thinkers know how to analyze and evaluate information, breaking it down to separate fact from opinion. After a thorough analysis, they feel confident forming their own opinions on a subject. And what’s more, critical thinkers use these skills regularly in their daily lives. Rather than jumping to conclusions or being guided by initial reactions, they’ve formed the habit of applying their critical thinking skills to all new information and topics.

Why is critical thinking so important?

Imagine you’re shopping for a new car. It’s a big purchase, so you want to do your research thoroughly. There’s a lot of information out there, and it’s up to you to sort through it all.

• You’ve seen TV commercials for a couple of car models that look really cool and have features you like, such as good gas mileage. Plus, your favorite celebrity drives that car!
• The manufacturer’s website has a lot of information, like cost, MPG, and other details. It also mentions that this car has been ranked “best in its class.”
• Your neighbor down the street used to have this kind of car, but he tells you that he eventually got rid of it because he didn’t think it was comfortable to drive. Plus, he heard that brand of car isn’t as good as it used to be.
• Three independent organizations have done test-drives and published their findings online. They all agree that the car has good gas mileage and a sleek design. But they each have their own concerns or complaints about the car, including one that found it might not be safe in high winds.

So much information! It’s tempting to just go with your gut and buy the car that looks the coolest (or is the cheapest, or says it has the best gas mileage). Ultimately, though, you know you need to slow down and take your time, or you could wind up making a mistake that costs you thousands of dollars. You need to think critically to make an informed choice.

What does critical thinking look like?

Source: TeachThought

Let’s continue with the car analogy, and apply some critical thinking to the situation.

• Critical thinkers know they can’t trust TV commercials to help them make smart choices, since every single one wants you to think their car is the best option.
• The manufacturer’s website will have some details that are proven facts, but other statements that are hard to prove or clearly just opinions. Which information is factual, and even more important, relevant to your choice?
• A neighbor’s stories are anecdotal, so they may or may not be useful. They’re the opinions and experiences of just one person and might not be representative of a whole. Can you find other people with similar experiences that point to a pattern?
• The independent studies could be trustworthy, although it depends on who conducted them and why. Closer analysis might show that the most positive study was conducted by a company hired by the car manufacturer itself. Who conducted each study, and why?

Did you notice all the questions that started to pop up? That’s what critical thinking is about: asking the right questions, and knowing how to find and evaluate the answers to those questions.

Good critical thinkers do this sort of analysis every day, on all sorts of subjects. They seek out proven facts and trusted sources, weigh the options, and then make a choice and form their own opinions. It’s a process that becomes automatic over time; experienced critical thinkers question everything thoughtfully, with purpose. This helps them feel confident that their informed opinions and choices are the right ones for them.

Key Critical Thinking Skills

There’s no official list, but many people use Bloom’s Taxonomy to help lay out the skills kids should develop as they grow up.

Source: Vanderbilt University

Bloom’s Taxonomy is laid out as a pyramid, with foundational skills at the bottom providing a base for more advanced skills higher up. The lowest phase, “Remember,” doesn’t require much critical thinking. These are skills like memorizing math facts, defining vocabulary words, or knowing the main characters and basic plot points of a story.

Higher skills on Bloom’s list incorporate more critical thinking.

True understanding is more than memorization or reciting facts. It’s the difference between a child reciting by rote “one times four is four, two times four is eight, three times four is twelve,” versus recognizing that multiplication is the same as adding a number to itself a certain number of times. When you understand a concept, you can explain how it works to someone else.

When you apply your knowledge, you take a concept you’ve already mastered and apply it to new situations. For instance, a student learning to read doesn’t need to memorize every word. Instead, they use their skills in sounding out letters to tackle each new word as they come across it.

When we analyze something, we don’t take it at face value. Analysis requires us to find facts that stand up to inquiry. We put aside personal feelings or beliefs, and instead identify and scrutinize primary sources for information. This is a complex skill, one we hone throughout our entire lives.

Evaluating means reflecting on analyzed information, selecting the most relevant and reliable facts to help us make choices or form opinions. True evaluation requires us to put aside our own biases and accept that there may be other valid points of view, even if we don’t necessarily agree with them.

Finally, critical thinkers are ready to create their own result. They can make a choice, form an opinion, cast a vote, write a thesis, debate a topic, and more. And they can do it with the confidence that comes from approaching the topic critically.

How do you teach critical thinking skills?

The best way to create a future generation of critical thinkers is to encourage them to ask lots of questions. Then, show them how to find the answers by choosing reliable primary sources. Require them to justify their opinions with provable facts, and help them identify bias in themselves and others. Try some of these resources to get started.

5 Critical Thinking Skills Every Kid Needs To Learn (And How To Teach Them)

• 100+ Critical Thinking Questions for Students To Ask About Anything
• 10 Tips for Teaching Kids To Be Awesome Critical Thinkers
• Free Critical Thinking Poster, Rubric, and Assessment Ideas

More Critical Thinking Resources

The answer to “What is critical thinking?” is a complex one. These resources can help you dig more deeply into the concept and hone your own skills.

• The Foundation for Critical Thinking
• Cultivating a Critical Thinking Mindset (PDF)
• Asking the Right Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking (Browne/Keeley, 2014)

Have more questions about what critical thinking is or how to teach it in your classroom? Join the WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook to ask for advice and share ideas!

Plus, 12 skills students can work on now to help them in careers later ..

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Thinking Classrooms: How To Promote Critical Thinking In Class

The Thinking Classroom is an approach to teaching that prioritizes the development of students’ critical thinking skills. In this type of classroom, the teacher acts as a facilitator rather than a traditional lecturer. Students are encouraged to actively engage with the material and collaborate with their peers.

The key to a Thinking Classroom is to focus on the process of learning rather than simply the acquisition of knowledge. This means that teachers must create opportunities for students to think critically, solve problems, and reflect on their learning.

We’ve rounded up the 14 practices of a Thinking Classroom below. 

What are the 14 Practices of a Thinking Classroom?

The fourteen principles of a Thinking Classroom are designed to promote a classroom environment that encourages critical thinking, problem-solving, and collaboration. 

Here’s a summary of each principle to help teachers create an engaging and effective learning environment:

1. Classroom Culture of Thinking

Create a classroom culture that values thinking, learning, and intellectual development. Start with thinking tasks that are separate from your curriculum. This eases the transition to everyday thinking classroom activities. It’s hard for students to think deeper and for longer periods, so this transition should be gradual. You can start with non-curricular tasks as an ice breaker at the beginning of the school year.

2. Opportunities to Think in Groups

Provide opportunities for students to think and engage in meaningful group learning experiences. The Thinking Classroom practices emphasize “visibly random groups” that change frequently. This reduces social anxiety in the group and decreases communication barriers. 

3. Vertical and Non-permanant Workspaces

You may have noticed that the traditional method of having students sit at their desks and take notes is only sometimes the best way to promote active thinking in your classroom. Recent research has shown that students are more engaged and productive when standing and working on vertical non-permanent surfaces (VNPSs) like whiteboards, blackboards, or windows. The fact that the surface is non-permanent encourages risk-taking and experimentation, while the vertical orientation prevents students from disengaging. 

4. Room Layout

Research has shown that traditional, front-facing classrooms promote passive learning. At the same time, a more flexible, de-fronted setup—where students are free to face any direction—can be much more effective in promoting active thinking and engagement. So when designing your classroom layout, it’s essential to consider how the physical space can support the learning you want to see.

5. Answer Questions that Promote Thinking

You answer hundreds of questions each day in class. But not all of the questions encourage your students to keep thinking. Here are the common types:

• Proximity questions: Questions students ask because you’re close by and convenient.
• Stop-thinking questions: Questions students ask so they can mark a task complete. (i.e., Is this right?)
• Keep-thinking questions: Questions that help them along, so they can continue working through a task.

Answer only questions that keep students thinking.

6. Give Tasks in the Right Manner

Give tasks early in class while students are standing around a teacher. Give verbal tasks, and avoid visual cues that promote passive learning. This differs from the traditional manner of giving examples from the textbook or a worksheet.  

7. Homework

Stop giving homework and instead give students opportunities to check their understanding. Make it optional so students can freely engage with authentic practice. 

8. Promote Student Autonomy

As step 5 outlines, don’t solve problems for students. Let them struggle so they build confidence in their independence. This may mean asking a peer for help or looking around the room for a hint. When students are on their own, they take ownership of their learning. 

9. Give Support So Students Can Learn at Their Own Pace

Encourage students to learn at their own pace by creating hints, extensions, and practice that meets them where they are in their learning. This is different from the typical guided practice that occurs in most classrooms. 

10. Consolidate Lessons

Consolidation is crucial to help students combine different parts of a task or activity and ultimately form a more comprehensive understanding of the concept taught. Traditionally, teachers have relied on methods like showing, telling, or explaining to help students achieve their learning objectives.

In a thinking classroom, consolidation takes a different approach. Instead of relying on teacher-led instruction, consolidation works upward from the basic foundation of a concept. By drawing on the student work produced during their thinking on a common set of tasks, teachers can help students develop a deeper understanding of the concept.

To facilitate this process, teachers should provide open-ended questions, encourage peer-to-peer discussions, or engage in activities that allow students to explore and experiment with the concept taught.

11. Give Students Autonomy Over Notes

Only one in five students review their notes again after taking them in class. Give students the option of choosing which notes to take while learning. They are more likely to refer back to notes later.

12. Evaluate Values That Matter Most

If you want your students to participate, take risks, and persevere in the classroom, you should incorporate these values into evaluations. Assessment should go beyond curriculum knowledge. 

13. Bring Students into Formative Assessment

Your students need to understand where they are and where they need to be with their learning. This means that they need to be a partner in formative assessment . Like students taking the lead over homework, they need to take the lead on owning their success in formative assessment. 

14. Assessment Needs to Connect to an Outcome

Use assessments that measure and value thinking and understanding, not just rote memorization. This may look like standards-based grading. Students need to understand what they know and don’t know after they complete an assessment.

By implementing these principles, teachers can create a dynamic and engaging classroom that promotes deep learning and helps students develop the critical thinking and problem-solving skills they need to succeed in school and beyond.

TeacherMade helps teachers infuse technology into their Thinking Classrooms.

TeacherMade does more than convert PDFs into online activities. Teachers use TeacherMade to promote critical thinking skills. You can incorporate the Thinking Classroom practices with TeacherMade:

• Every TeacherMade assignment is a non-permanent surface. Students can complete assignments again and again until they have reached mastery. 
• Create a culture of practice rather than homework and worksheets. With TeacherMade, you can choose to grade or not grade assignments. Students can complete practice as many times as they need.
• TeacherMade supports asynchronous learning so that students can learn at their own pace.
• Students are more involved with formative assessment when they receive instant feedback via auto-grading. 
• You can leave feedback, hints, and notes so that students fully understand their assessment results.

TeacherMade transforms teaching materials into interactive digital lessons and saves teachers time with instant autograding. Our platform integrates seamlessly with major systems for personalized student engagement.

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Critical Thinking: Facilitating and Assessing the 21st Century Skills in Education

So many times we hear our students say, “Why am I learning this?”

I believe that Critical Thinking is the spark that begins the process of authentic learning. Before going further, we must first develop an idea of what learning is… and what learning is not.  So many times we hear our students say, “Why am I learning this?” The reason they ask is because they have not really experienced the full spectrum of learning, and because of this are actually not learning to a full rewarding  extent! We might say they are being exposed to surface learning and not authentic (real) learning. The act of authentic learning is actually an exciting and engaging concept. It allows students to see real meaning and begin to construct their own knowledge.  Critical Thinking is core to learning. It is rewarding, engaging, and life long. Without critical thinking students are left to a universe of concepts and memorization.  Yes… over twelve years of mediocrity! When educators employ critical thinking in their classrooms, a whole new world of understanding is opened up.   What are some reasons to facilitate critical thinking with our students? Let me begin:

Ten Reasons For Student Critical Thinking in the classroom

• Allows for necessary inquiry that makes learning exciting
• Provides a method to go beyond memorization to promote understanding.
• Allows students to visualize thoughts, concepts, theories, models & possibilities.
• Promotes curriculum standards, trans-disciplinary ideas & real world connections.
• Encourages a classroom culture of collaboration that promotes deeper thinking.
• Builds skills of problem solving, making implications, & determining consequences.
• Facilitates goal setting, promotion of process, and perseverance to achieve.
• Teaches self reflection and critique, and the ability to listen to others’ thoughts.
• Encourages point of view  while developing persuasive skills.
• Guides interpretation while developing a skill to infer and draw conclusions.

I am excited by the spark that critical thinking ignites to support real and authentic learning in the classroom. I often wonder how much time students spend in the process of critical thinking in the classroom. I ask you to reflect on your typical school day. Are your students spending time in area of surface learning , or are they plunging into the engaging culture of deeper (real) learning?  At the same time … how are you assessing your students? So many times as educators, we are bound by the standards, and we forget the importance of promoting that critical thinking process that makes our standards come alive with understanding. A culture of critical thinking is not automatic, though with intentional planning  it can become a reality. Like the other 21st century skills, it must be built and continuously facilitated. Let’s take a look at how, we as educators, can do this.

Ten Ways to Facilitate Student Critical Thinking in the Classroom and School

• Design Critical Thinking Activities.  (This might include mind mapping, making thinking visible, Socratic discussions, meta-cognitive mind stretches, Build an inquiry wall with students and talk about the process of thinking”
• Provide time for students to collaborate.  (Collaboration can be the button that starts critical thinking. It provides group thinking that builds on the standards. Have students work together while solving multi-step and higher order thinking problems. Sometimes this might mean slow down to increase the learning.)
• Provide students with a Critical Thinking rubric.  (Have them look at the rubric before a critical thinking activity, and once again when they are finished)
• Make assessment of Critical Thinking an ongoing effort.  (While the teacher can assess, have students assess themselves. Self assessment can be powerful)
• Concentrate on specific indicators in a rubric.  (There are various indicators such as; provides inquiry, answers questions, builds an argument etc. Concentrate on just one indicator while doing a lesson. There can even be an exit ticket reflection)
• Integrate the idea of Critical Thinking in any lesson.  ( Do not teach this skill in isolation. How does is work with a lesson, stem activity, project built, etc. What does Critical Thinking look like in the online or blended environment? Think of online discussions.)
• Post a Critical Thinking Poster in the room.  (This poster could be a copy of a rubric or even a list of “I Can Statements”. Point it out before a critical thinking activity.
• Make Critical Thinking part of your formative  and summative assessment.   (Move around the room, talk to groups and students, stop the whole group to make adjustments.)
• Point out Critical Thinking found in the content standards.  (Be aware that content standards often have words like; infer, debate, conclude, solve, prioritize, compare and contrast, hypothesize, and research. Critical Thinking has always been part of the standards. Show your students Bloom’s Taxonomy and post in the room. Where are they in their learning?
• Plan for a school wide emphasis.  (A culture that builds Critical Thinking is usually bigger then one classroom. Develop school-wide vocabulary, posters, and initiatives.)

I keep talking about the idea of surface learning and deeper learning. This can best be seen in  Bloom’s Taxonomy. Often we start with Remembering.  This might be essential in providing students the map to the further areas of Bloom’s. Of course, we then find the idea of Understanding. This is where I believe critical thinking begins. Sometimes we need to critically think in order to understand. In fact, you might be this doing right now. I believe that too much time might be spent in Remembering, which is why students get a false idea of what learning really is. As we look at the rest of Bloom’s ( Apply, Analyze, Evaluate, and Create) we can see the deeper learning take place. and even steps toward the transfer and internalization of the learning. Some educators even tip Bloom’s upside down, stating that the Creating at the top will build an understanding. This must be done with careful facilitation and intentional scaffold to make sure there is some surface learning. After-all, Critical Thinking will need this to build on.

I have been mentioning rubrics and assessment tools through out this post. To me, these are essential in building that culture of critical thinking in the classroom. I want to provide you with some great resources that will give your some powerful tools to assess the skill of Critical Thinking.  Keep in mind that students can also self assess and journal using prompts from a Critical Thinking Rubric.

Seven Resources to Help with Assessment and Facilitation of Critical Thinking

• Habits of Mind  – I think this is an awesome place to help teachers facilitate and assess critical thinking and more. Check out the  free resources page  which even has some wonderful posters. One of my favorites is the rubrics found on this  research page . Decide on spending some time because there are a lot of great resources.
• PBLWorks  – The number one place for PBL in the world is at PBLWorks. You may know it as the BUCK Institute or BIE. I am fortunate to be part of their National Faculty which is probably why I rank it as number one. I encourage you to visit their site for everything PBL.  This link brings you to the resource area where you will discover some amazing  rubrics to facilitate Critical Thinking. You will find rubrics for grade bands K-2, 3-5, and 6-12. This really is a great place to start. You will need to sign up to be a member of PBLWorks. This is a wonderful idea, after-all it is free!
• Microsoft Innovative Learning  – This   website  contains some powerful rubrics for assessing the 21st Century skills. The link will bring you to a PDF file with Critical Thinking rubrics you can use tomorrow for any grade level. Check out this  two page document  defining the 4 C’s and a  movie  giving you even more of an explanation.
• New Tech School  – This amazing PBL group of schools provide some wonderful Learning Rubrics in their free area.  Here you will find an interesting collection of rubrics that assesses student learning in multiple areas. These are sure to get you off and started.
• Foundation for Critical Thinking  –  Check out this  amazing page  to help give you descriptors.
• Project Zero  – While it is not necessarily assessment based, you will find some powerful  routines for making thinking visible . As you conduct these types of activities you will find yourself doing some wonderful formative assessment of critical thinking.
• Education Week  – Take a look at this resource that provides some great reasoning and some interesting links that provide a glimpse of critical thinking in the classroom.

Critical Thinking “I Can Statements”

As you can see, I believe that Critical Thinking is key to PBL, STEM, and Deeper Learning. It improves Communication and Collaboration, while promoting Creativity.  I believe every student should have these following “I Can Statements” as part of their learning experience. Feel free to copy and use in your classroom. Perhaps this is a great starting place as you promote collaborative and powerful learning culture!

• I can not only answer questions, but can also think of new questions to ask 
• I can take time to see what I am thinking to promote even better understanding 
• I can attempt to see other peoples’ thinking while explaining my own 
• I can look at a problem and determine needed steps to find a solution 
• I can use proper collaboration skills to work with others productively to build solutions 
• I can set a goal, design a plan, and persevere to accomplish the goal. 
• I can map out strategies and processes that shows the action involved in a task. 
• I can define and show my understanding of a concept, model, theory, or process. 
• I can take time to reflect and productively critique my work and the work of others 
• I can understand, observe, draw inferences, hypothesize and see implications.

cross-posted at  21centuryedtech.wordpress.com

Michael Gorman oversees one-to-one laptop programs and digital professional development for Southwest Allen County Schools near Fort Wayne, Indiana. He is a consultant for Discovery Education, ISTE, My Big Campus, and November Learning and is on the National Faculty for The Buck Institute for Education. His awards include district Teacher of the Year, Indiana STEM Educator of the Year and Microsoft’s 365 Global Education Hero. Read more at  21centuryedtech.wordpress.com .

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How to Build Curiosity and Critical Thinking Within the Classroom

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Editor’s Note: Ali Giska , a literacy coach in Berlin, Maryland, participated in the Teachers for Global Classrooms Program (TGC) and traveled to Brazil. The experience inspired her to work to instill curiosity in her students.

During my global education experience in Brazil, I experienced firsthand the sheer power of curiosity and wonder. My host teacher took me on a day trip to visit an isolated school in the mountains. As the tiny village school came into view, I could see that nine or so classrooms surrounded an open-air square where students with guitars were gathered in a semi-circle to greet us. They sang and strummed, and then their teachers joined us all for a meal.

I had so many questions! I asked the students about their interest in music, their life on the mountain, and the subjects in school they enjoyed the most. They had just as much interest in my life as a teacher in the United States. Together, we were engrossed in wonder.

When I returned home from my trip, I reflected on how I could ignite that same feeling of wonder within the walls of the classroom. I reflected on whether my current practices truly sustained that curiosity in the classroom and encouraged students to innovate, explore, and wonder. I began to ask myself these questions:

• How am I modeling curiosity for my students?
• How does my learning environment support critical thinking and wonder?
• How can I continually encourage students to be curious about the world?

Teacher Modeling Through Read Alouds

As educators, we need to stay curious ourselves. While experiences like teaching abroad and global classroom programs can certainly build our awareness and curiosity, we can model our openness to new perspectives right in the classroom. One way to do this is by reading a variety of provocative, engaging texts, both fiction and non-fiction, to students of any age.

Read alouds can bring the world to our classrooms, and the more awe we find in books, the more enticing these words will be to our students. Literacy expert Lucy Calkins acknowledges that we can’t physically take all of our students to experience various parts of the world. However, we can bring the world to them through books. In The Art of Teaching Reading , she says reading aloud can “give our children the words that will take them to new worlds, launch new investigations, and introduce new concepts.”

Thinking and wondering aloud is a way to model curiosity and make it accessible to every student. The key is to start with books that truly matter to you and your students, and then use phrases and questions like these:

• I’m starting to think differently about...
• What else can I learn about this?
• I wonder why the author...

As teachers ponder aloud while reading, students then engage in that same critical thinking both independently and with their peers.

The key to modeling curiosity is to be authentic. When teachers are genuinely enthralled by the world around them, students will be too. Inquiry teacher Jennifer Barnes models this by carrying a tape measure to all of her non-fiction read alouds. When she reads animal statistics, like the length of a giraffe’s tongue, she stretches the tape measure out in front of a sea of rapt eyes. Her curiosity about the world comes to life in front her students in authentic ways.

A Learning Environment Based on Inquiry

Dialogue and inquiry are cornerstones for a classroom rich in curiosity and critical thinking. Yet, students ask fewer and fewer questions as they progress through school. This can change with the right learning environment. If the culture of a classroom promotes inquiry, respect, and risk-taking, students begin to value asking questions just as much as giving answers. What does this look like in the classroom and how can teachers facilitate inquiry?

The Question Formulation Technique (QFT) process facilitates curiosity and critical thinking . It allows students to drive the inquiry by asking their own questions that are sparked by a question focus. Dan Rothstein and Luz Santana, developers of QFT and the Right Question Institute, stress that the question focus is a stimulus for jumpstarting student questions, and not a question itself. In fact, it is quite the opposite—it is meant to stimulate thinking that is then expressed through questions.

After students record their questions, they then review, sort, and act on these wonderings. In classrooms where QFT is used frequently, students feel more in control of their learning, more willing to take risks, and more engaged in learning. They are empowered by the freedom to seek out answers to the things in the world that interest them. It is a powerful tool that creates independent thinkers and self-directed learners.

The Outcomes of Sparking Curiosity

Educators who model curiosity and provide a classroom environment allowing students to do the same are building global citizens. They are building citizens who care about the world around them and are willing to understand vastly different perspectives. When students are truly curious about the world, they stop and listen. This critical skill teaches them to empathize, build relationships, and form new opinions.

When students turn and talk during a read aloud, they have opportunities to be truly curious about the ideas in the text and how others view them. When students become listeners and develop genuine curiosity, they ask, “Why did you just say that? Can you tell me more?”

During the QFT process, students learn to not only ask questions, but to refrain from judging the questions of others. They begin to accept other perspectives and ways of looking at the world. This acceptance then leads to more questions as one curious and open mind ignites another.

We also must remember that curiosity and critical thinking do not follow a script--they can be messy, unpredictable things. If we can embrace this, nurture the chaos, then we can gently guide students to see the world with wondrous eyes.

Connect with Alison , Heather , and the Center for Global Education on Twitter.

Quote image created on Pablo .

Photo caption: Fifth graders respond to an illustration depicting slavery using the QFT process.

Photo taken by and used with permission of Christina Mcquaid.

The opinions expressed in Global Learning are strictly those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions or endorsement of Editorial Projects in Education, or any of its publications.

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Critical Thinking: A Guide For The Classroom And Beyond

“Clear, critical thinking should be at the heart of every discipline in school and a cultivated habit outside it too.” – Sir Ken Robinson

One of the great responsibilities for educators is to prepare students for the future in a complex and ever-changing world. As society and employment opportunities evolve, there is a greater need to develop 21st-century skills , such as critical thinking .

As an experienced educator, I understand the need to adapt to new challenges and equip students with the tools they need to navigate life beyond the classroom. This has become especially important during these uncertain times of the global pandemic.

The pandemic has placed further pressure on educators to adapt to new ways of working which also requires some critical thinking of their own.

This article will guide you through the fundamentals of Critical Thinking and provide tried and tested methods to use in your classroom and everyday life.

Critical Thinking Quick Guide:

• What is Critical Thinking?

Analytical Thinking vs Critical Thinking

Developing thinking skills, critical thinking in the classroom, critical thinking activities, critical thinking practice, barriers to critical thinking, food for thought, what is critical thinking.

“Critical thinking can be defined in a number of different ways consistent with each other, we should not put a lot of weight on any one definition. Definitions are at best scaffolding for the mind. With this qualification in mind, here is a bit of scaffolding: critical thinking is thinking about your thinking while you’re thinking in order to make your thinking better . ” – Richard Paul, author of Critical Thinking: How to Prepare Students for a Rapidly Changing World.

There is often a misconception that critical thinking is a negative process to disprove something. It would be more constructive to consider it as a means of putting an idea into perspective and seeing the bigger picture.

Critical thinking provides an opportunity to analyze and reflect on ideas. It also enables you to suspend past assumptions and self-doubt.

Analytical Thinking is a linear process which allows you to break down and review complex information. This type of thinking uses reasoning and logic to analyze the information presented, identify patterns and trends, and present facts and evidence.

Critical Thinking includes an element of analytical thinking but goes much further. It’s a more holistic process that results in a judgement of the validity of information using other sources. Critical thinking requires a detailed evaluation of the information. You should check for accuracy, any bias or assumptions, assess the conclusions and whether the evidence supports the conclusion.

Both of these skill sets should be developed to allow greater depth of thinking.

“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” – Albert Einstein

When developing an academic curriculum, educators often refer to Bloom’s taxonomy – a model used to classify learning objectives. Within this model, thinking skills are categorized into lower and higher order thinking skills:

Lower order thinking skills – knowledge, comprehension and application Higher order thinking skills – analysis, synthesis and evaluation

The higher order thinking skills that students need for critical thinking can be assessed using a number of criteria:

• Use of information
• Questioning abilities
• Aptitude for communication and collaboration
• Ability to keep an open mind
• Ability to draw conclusions
• Self-awareness

Whilst this is not an exhaustive list, it is a good starting point for identifying learning outcomes and developing specific skills.

There are many tools that students can use to support their learning, such as interactive resources, social media and discussion groups to share thoughts and opinions. Connecting to others and the world around us can also help us to develop a greater understanding of ourselves.

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” – Aristotle

“ How do you know that? ”

These two simple questions formed the basis of many interactions with students in my classroom, regardless of age or subject matter. When a student gave an answer to a question, I would ask one of these questions to encourage them to elaborate on their response. My students knew that I didn’t just want an answer but for them to demonstrate how they had arrived at the answer; I was interested in their critical thinking skills. Students would then consider if there were other ways to arrive at the same conclusion or whether there were alternative answers. They were also encouraged to ask their own questions to probe deeper into their thinking.

This simple resource can help students reflect and question their own thinking and ultimately develop their independent thinking skills for future learning.

Whilst this is just one anecdotal example to enhance critical thinking, there are many effective activities that you can use in the classroom with your students.

Continuum Line: Give students a key statement and a continuum line with ‘Always’ at one end and ‘Never’ at the other end. Students should determine where they would place themselves on the line and provide reasoning for their decisions. This task generates discussion and debate around the key statement. Some students may decide to change their position of the line throughout the course of the debate but persuasion is not the aim here. The purpose of the task is to elicit a range of viewpoints around the statement to support critical thinking.

Silent Debate: Set a number of written statements on large pieces of paper around the classroom. Students are then asked whether they agree or disagree with the statement. They should add their reasoning and also be encouraged to add to the ideas of others. This alternative to the traditional oral debate encourages everyone to contribute at the same time and promotes collaboration. It can be particularly effective for quieter class members.

Fact or Opinion?: Ask students to identify the facts and opinions within authentic articles or editorials. Encourage them to analyze the language and explain how they can distinguish the evidence from their beliefs.

All of these activities can be easily adapted from the classroom to online platforms such as Trello or Zoom breakouts rooms.

Check out this Critical Thinking Workbook for more examples.

“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact; everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.” – Marcus Aurelius.

In critical thinking, it is important not to willfully accept the all information presented. Question assumptions and ideas to determine whether or not you are seeing the bigger picture. ‘Fake News’ is a prime example of this.

Try these tips to hone your skills:

• Identify inconsistencies, errors, and omissions
• Find and understand links between ideas
• Develop systematic ways of solving problems
• Recognize problems before building any arguments
• Foster your curiosity – is there something else that hasn’t been explored?

A Closed Mind Everyone has opinions and their own perspective on some issues. If your bias is so strong that you are unwilling to consider any other perspectives, this leads to closed-mindedness. Your bias may be based on research outcomes that you consider unlikely to change. But critical thinkers know that even the basis of some knowledge can change over time. Check your assumptions to apply critical thinking.

Misunderstanding The Truth Or Facts We may occasionally accept beliefs presumed to be true but have little evidence to justify them. To demonstrate critical thinking, it’s crucial to distinguish facts from beliefs and to dig deeper by evaluating the "facts" and how much evidence there is to validate them.

Trusting Your Instincts When you trust your gut instincts, this is largely based on sensing or feeling. Using intuitive judgment is actually the last thing you should do if you want to demonstrate critical thinking, as you are less likely to question your assumptions or bias.

Lack Of Knowledge This barrier could be two-fold. Firstly, you may lack the knowledge and understanding of the higher-order skills required for critical thinking. Secondly, you may lack knowledge of the topic you need to evaluate. Recognizing this lack of understanding and carrying out research to close the knowledge gap will help to reduce the barrier.

Lack Of Effort Recognizing that critical thinking is not necessarily over-thinking is significant to removing this barrier. Even if you have developed the necessary skills, it is important to have the willingness to engage in the process of critical thinking.

Overcoming these barriers will help you to:

• Reinforce your problem-solving skills
• Boost your creativity
• Encourage curiosity
• Foster independence
• Develop your range of skills
• Provide you with a skill for life

Have you been evaluating the information presented in this guide?

Did you find yourself challenging or agreeing with points that have been raised?

Have you considered alternative ideas or new ways of thinking?

Are you think differently after reading this article?

If the answer is YES , you are already on the path to Critical Thinking!

Join us for more discussions at Aristotle’s Café .

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Educationise

11 Activities That Promote Critical Thinking In The Class

Ignite your child’s curiosity with our exclusive “Learning Adventures Activity Workbook for Kids” a perfect blend of education and adventure!

Critical thinking activities encourage individuals to analyze, evaluate, and synthesize information to develop informed opinions and make reasoned decisions. Engaging in such exercises cultivates intellectual agility, fostering a deeper understanding of complex issues and honing problem-solving skills for navigating an increasingly intricate world.

Through critical thinking, individuals empower themselves to challenge assumptions, uncover biases, and constructively contribute to discourse, thereby enriching both personal growth and societal progress.

Critical thinking serves as the cornerstone of effective problem-solving, enabling individuals to dissect challenges, explore diverse perspectives, and devise innovative solutions grounded in logic and evidence. For engaging problem solving activities, read our article problem solving activities that enhance student’s interest.

52 Critical Thinking Flashcards for Problem Solving

What is Critical Thinking?

Critical thinking is a 21st-century skill that enables a person to think rationally and logically in order to reach a plausible conclusion. A critical thinker assesses facts and figures and data objectively and determines what to believe and what not to believe. Critical thinking skills empower a person to decipher complex problems and make impartial and better decisions based on effective information.

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• 8 Free Math Problem Solving Websites and Applications

Importance of Acquiring Critical Thinking Skills

Critical thinking skills cultivate habits of mind such as strategic thinking, skepticism, discerning fallacy from the facts, asking good questions and probing deep into the issues to find the truth. Acquiring critical thinking skills was never as valuable as it is today because of the prevalence of the modern knowledge economy.

Today, information and technology are the driving forces behind the global economy. To keep pace with ever-changing technology and new inventions, one has to be flexible enough to embrace changes swiftly.

Today critical thinking skills are one of the most sought-after skills by the companies. In fact, critical thinking skills are paramount not only for active learning and academic achievement but also for the professional career of the students.

The lack of critical thinking skills catalyzes memorization of the topics without a deeper insight, egocentrism, closed-mindedness, reduced student interest in the classroom and not being able to make timely and better decisions.

Incorporating critical thinking lessons into the curriculum equips students with the tools they need to navigate the complexities of the modern world, fostering a mindset that is adaptable, inquisitive, and capable of discerning truth from misinformation.

Benefits of Critical Thinking for Students

Certain strategies are more eloquent than others in teaching students how to think critically. Encouraging critical thinking in the classroom is indispensable for the learning and growth of the students. In this way, we can raise a generation of innovators and thinkers rather than followers. Some of the benefits offered by thinking critically in the classroom are given below:

• It allows a student to decipher problems and think through the situations in a disciplined and systematic manner
• Through a critical thinking ability, a student can comprehend the logical correlation between distinct ideas
• The student is able to rethink and re-justify his beliefs and ideas based on facts and figures
• Critical thinking skills make the students curious about things around them
• A student who is a critical thinker is creative and always strives to come up with out of the box solutions to intricate problems

Read our article: How to Foster Critical Thinking Skills in Students? Creative Strategies and Real-World Examples

• Critical thinking skills assist in the enhanced student learning experience in the classroom and prepares the students for lifelong learning and success
• The critical thinking process is the foundation of new discoveries and inventions in the world of science and technology
• The ability to think critically allows the students to think intellectually and enhances their presentation skills, hence they can convey their ideas and thoughts in a logical and convincing manner
• Critical thinking skills make students a terrific communicator because they have logical reasons behind their ideas

Critical Thinking Lessons and Activities

11 Activities that Promote Critical Thinking in the Class

We have compiled a list of 11 critical thinking activities for students that will facilitate you to promote critical thinking abilities in the students. By incorporating these activities, educators can introduce real-world examples of critical thinking in the classroom, empowering students to apply these skills in everyday situations.

We have also covered problem solving activities that enhance student’s interest in our another article. Click here to read it.

1. Worst Case Scenario

Divide students into teams and introduce each team with a hypothetical challenging scenario. Allocate minimum resources and time to each team and ask them to reach a viable conclusion using those resources.

The scenarios can include situations like stranded on an island or stuck in a forest. Students will come up with creative solutions to come out from the imaginary problematic situation they are encountering. Besides encouraging students to think critically, this activity will enhance teamwork, communication and problem-solving skills of the students.

This critical thinking activity not only pushes students to devise innovative solutions in challenging scenarios but also strengthens their teamwork, communication, and problem-solving abilities, making it an engaging and educational experience.

Read our article: 10 Innovative Strategies for Promoting Critical Thinking in the Classroom

2. If You Build It

It is a very flexible game that allows students to think creatively. To start this activity, divide students into groups. Give each group a limited amount of resources such as pipe cleaners, blocks, and marshmallows etc.

Every group is supposed to use these resources and construct a certain item such as building, tower or a bridge in a limited time. You can use a variety of materials in the classroom to challenge the students. This activity is helpful in promoting teamwork and creative skills among the students.

Incorporating critical thinking games like this into your classroom not only promotes teamwork and creativity but also challenges students to think outside the box as they work together to build their structures.

It is also one of the classics which can be used in the classroom to encourage critical thinking. Print pictures of objects, animals or concepts and start by telling a unique story about the printed picture. The next student is supposed to continue the story and pass the picture to the other student and so on.

This engaging exercise is one of the most effective critical thinking activities for kids, as it encourages them to use their creativity and problem-solving skills while working together to construct innovative structures with limited resources.

4. Keeping it Real

In this activity, you can ask students to identify a real-world problem in their schools, community or city. After the problem is recognized, students should work in teams to come up with the best possible outcome of that problem.

5. Save the Egg

Make groups of three or four in the class. Ask them to drop an egg from a certain height and think of creative ideas to save the egg from breaking. Students can come up with diverse ideas to conserve the egg like a soft-landing material or any other device. Remember that this activity can get chaotic, so select the area in the school that can be cleaned easily afterward and where there are no chances of damaging the school property.

6. Start a Debate

In this activity, the teacher can act as a facilitator and spark an interesting conversation in the class on any given topic. Give a small introductory speech on an open-ended topic. The topic can be related to current affairs, technological development or a new discovery in the field of science. Encourage students to participate in the debate by expressing their views and ideas on the topic. Conclude the debate with a viable solution or fresh ideas generated during the activity through brainstorming.

7. Create and Invent

This project-based learning activity is best for teaching in the engineering class. Divide students into groups. Present a problem to the students and ask them to build a model or simulate a product using computer animations or graphics that will solve the problem. After students are done with building models, each group is supposed to explain their proposed product to the rest of the class. The primary objective of this activity is to promote creative thinking and problem-solving skills among the students.

8. Select from Alternatives

This activity can be used in computer science, engineering or any of the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) classes. Introduce a variety of alternatives such as different formulas for solving the same problem, different computer codes, product designs or distinct explanations of the same topic.

Form groups in the class and ask them to select the best alternative. Each group will then explain its chosen alternative to the rest of the class with reasonable justification of its preference. During the process, the rest of the class can participate by asking questions from the group. This activity is very helpful in nurturing logical thinking and analytical skills among the students.

9. Reading and Critiquing

Present an article from a journal related to any topic that you are teaching. Ask the students to read the article critically and evaluate strengths and weaknesses in the article. Students can write about what they think about the article, any misleading statement or biases of the author and critique it by using their own judgments.

In this way, students can challenge the fallacies and rationality of judgments in the article. Hence, they can use their own thinking to come up with novel ideas pertaining to the topic.

10. Think Pair Share

In this activity, students will come up with their own questions. Make pairs or groups in the class and ask the students to discuss the questions together. The activity will be useful if the teacher gives students a topic on which the question should be based.

For example, if the teacher is teaching biology, the questions of the students can be based on reverse osmosis, human heart, respiratory system and so on. This activity drives student engagement and supports higher-order thinking skills among students.

11. Big Paper – Silent Conversation

Silence is a great way to slow down thinking and promote deep reflection on any subject. Present a driving question to the students and divide them into groups. The students will discuss the question with their teammates and brainstorm their ideas on a big paper.

After reflection and discussion, students can write their findings in silence. This is a great learning activity for students who are introverts and love to ruminate silently rather than thinking aloud.

Incorporating critical thinking activities for high school students, like silent reflection and group brainstorming, encourages deep thought and collaboration, making it an effective strategy for engaging both introverted and extroverted learners.

Finally, for students with critical thinking, you can go to GS-JJ.co m to customize exclusive rewards, which not only enlivens the classroom, but also promotes the development and training of students for critical thinking.

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4 thoughts on “ 11 Activities That Promote Critical Thinking In The Class ”

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Thanks for the great article! Especially with the post-pandemic learning gap, these critical thinking skills are essential! It’s also important to teach them a growth mindset. If you are interested in that, please check out The Teachers’ Blog!

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How to Turn Your Math Classroom Into a ‘Thinking Classroom’

The researcher Peter Liljedahl evangelizes for practices that prioritize and stimulate more hard thinking in classrooms.

In traditional math classrooms—and in classrooms where challenging, unfamiliar work is often assigned, more generally—the progression " I do, we do, you do” often becomes the default approach to learning, according to researcher and professor of mathematics at Simon Fraser University, Peter Liljedahl.

It makes sense in many cases, particularly when difficult concepts need to be addressed in time windows that are compressed by bell schedules, holiday breaks, and summer vacation. But used too frequently, this approach, Liljedahl recently told the Cult of Pedagogy , inhibits higher order thinking and results in students who “mimic” teachers. Students who engage in too much rote work miss out on some of the challenging, sometimes confusing work that builds up their self esteem to face difficult thinking tasks in the future.

“By and large students spend most of their class time not thinking, at least not in ways we know they need to think in order to be successful in mathematics.” Liljedahl explains. “If they’re not thinking, they’re not learning.”

Liljedahl, the author of Building Thinking Classrooms in Mathematics, Grades K-12: 14 Teaching Practices for Enhancing Learning advocates for “Thinking Classrooms”, which offers a different take on how classroom work is organized, how tasks are assigned, and how students learn and work together. His conclusions are based on more than a decade of research, experimentation, and collaboration with over 400 K-12 teachers.

In a 2017 article for Edutopia , Liljedahl clarified that a “non-thinking” classroom is “predicated on an assumption that the students either could not or would not think.” When presented with difficult problems, students in these classrooms have a hard time pushing through to find their own solutions, he argued, and often wait for teachers to step in to do the heavy lifting for them. 

To stimulate independent thinking, Liljedahl says, reorganize some of your classroom approaches: Start with hard puzzles and problems that push kids to their limits; confront the fundamental passivity of classroom seating; and use highly structured group activities to promote discussion, peer review, and iterative thinking. 

Starting With ‘Thinking Tasks’

Instead of starting a lesson with direct instruction, give students novel “thinking tasks” they can work on, ideally in groups. Liljedahl describes these tasks as problem solving activities and mental puzzles that, early on in the school year, should be “highly engaging, non-curricular tasks” to motivate students and get them in the mindset of challenging themselves. As the school year progresses and students become more accustomed to this mode of working and thinking, the activities and challenges can be replaced with tasks directly related to the curriculum. 

Liljedahl points out that the tasks should be carefully sequenced so they get incrementally more challenging. “The goal of thinking classrooms is not to get students to think about engaging with non-curricular tasks day in and day out—that turns out to be rather easy,” he told Cult of Pedagogy . “Rather, the goal is to get more of your students thinking, and thinking for longer periods of time, within the context of curriculum, which leads to longer and deeper learning.” 

Liljedahl has a long list of sample “thinking tasks” to look through. They include challenging dice-related problems, such as: Imagine a typical 6-sided die, and notice that the sum of opposite faces is always seven. The one is across from the six, the two is across from the five, and so on. Now imagine that you were making your own six-sided die that did not have this restriction. How many different dice could be made?

Use Standing, Randomized Group Work  

Central to Liljedahl’s approach is student collaboration and group work. Instead of grouping students by ability, or allowing them to choose their own groups to work in, his research has shown him students work more effectively—and are more likely to contribute—in randomized groups. According to Liljedahl , interviews with students show that randomized groups “break down social barriers within the room, increase knowledge mobility, reduce stress, and increase enthusiasm for mathematics.” 

At Design39Campus , a K-8 school in San Diego, eighth grade math teacher Kyle Asmus puts Liljedahl’s approach into practice by using a random group generator (such as this one from Classtools or this one from Keamk ) to ensure that different kids work together across multiple exercises. 

To ensure that all students feel included, Asmus assigns group roles: The scribe writes down possible solutions; the speaker communicates the group’s thinking to the broader classroom; the inquirer asks the teacher questions; and the manager makes sure the rest of the group stays on track. 

Having students stand while they engage in this collaborative, messy thinking is yet another way to engage them, according to Liljedahl: It makes them much less likely to withdraw from the work, or assume that others will handle it. “It turns out that when students are sitting, they feel anonymous,” Liljedahl told Cult of Pedagogy . “And when students feel anonymous, they disengage.” 

Work on Non-Permanent, Vertical Surfaces  

In a thinking classroom, students put notebooks away and participate in group work while standing at vertical non-permanent surfaces such as whiteboards, blackboards, or windows—surfaces that Liljedahl believes promote more risk-taking. 

According to Liljedahl, his experimentation with students shows that when comparing a group working on a whiteboard versus a group working on flip chart paper, the group working on whiteboards start working within 20 seconds. 

“They’ll start making notations on the board. They’ll try anything and everything because they feel like they can just erase it if it’s wrong,” he told Cult of Pedagogy . Meanwhile, students working on chart paper take upwards of three minutes to make a single notation, because, Liljedahl said, they often wait until what they write is perfect—“and that hesitation leads to a lower form of thinking.”

Design39 students also practice Liljedahl’s “vertical surfaces” learning technique, which Asmus says promotes “high quality collaboration” and facilitates “questions and rich conversations” among students. According to Asmus, when students are presented with challenging tasks and work vertically, the time for students to get to a task is not only quicker, but the time they spend on a task is longer. 

The large surfaces spread out around the room also allow students to see the work their peers are doing in other groups, and build off of each other’s understanding. “It makes it easy for the whole class to see what everybody else is doing so we can be inspired by each other’s ideas,” said Iniyaa, a student in Asmus’ class. 

Answer the Right Questions

As students work vertically in groups, teachers can easily see how they’re progressing and bounce around the room. Questions will undoubtedly arise, but Liljedahl says teachers should avoid answering questions asked for the purpose of reducing student effort and getting to an answer more quickly—such as “is this right?” Instead, they should prioritize addressing student questions that will lead to further independent thinking. 

In her elementary school classroom in Brooklyn, teacher Tori Filler says that instead of rushing to provide hints and solutions to the hard parts of a lesson, she often asks them to evaluate what’s tough about it, and encourages them to sort it out on their own before stepping in to help. 

If most of the class is struggling, ask more questions and turn the struggle into a productive discussion for everyone. Asking questions like “What makes this hard?” or “What have we tried?” gets students to think metacognitively and develop the skills to push through challenging work on their own. 

Evaluate What You Value

To succeed in a thinking classroom, students need to develop skills like perseverance, academic courage, collaboration, and curiosity, among others. But according to Liljedahl, if we want students to develop these competencies, then we should find ways to evaluate them on it. 

“What we choose to evaluate tells students what we value, and, in turn, students begin to value it as well,” he writes. 

He argues for a mix of both formative and summative assessment in math classrooms that focus less on end products and student ranking, and more on the work leading up to those end products and collaboration between groups to get there. 

The educators at Bite Sized Learning , for example, suggest evaluating students on the work they produce, but also on how well they persevere and make an effort in response to challenges, how well they set individual goals and monitor progress toward achieving them, and how well they share information and resources with group members to solve problems and make decisions. 

Liljedahl’s own formative assessments focus on informing students “about where they are and where they’re going in their learning.” This can take the form of observations, check-for-understanding questions, or even unmarked quizzes. Summative assessments, meanwhile, “should focus more on the processes of learning than on the products, and should include the evaluation of both group and individual work,” Liljedahl writes. 

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Critical Thinking Skills Toolbox

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• Appendix A. Author's Impressions of Vignettes

Dental education has a longstanding history of telling and showing students what they need to know. Today's students may not receive the type of instruction that allows them to transform learning and make it their own.

Learning how to teach students to use critical thinking skills requires fundamental shifts in beliefs about and planning for teaching. Some dental educators ask, "What does critical thinking look like in the clinic? In the classroom? How do I successfully teach students to use critical thinking skills when they don't read before class or attend class regularly" This toolkit is designed to begin answering those questions.

The Critical Thinking Skills Toolbox was developed and written by Linda S. Behar-Horenstein, Ph.D., Distinguished Teaching Scholar and Professor at the University of Florida. The author can be reached at [email protected] .

Checklist for Teaching Basic Critical Thinking Skills

• What percentage of the time do I encourage students to explain or demonstrate what they know?
• What percentage of the time do I dominate teaching in the classroom or clinic with teacher-talk?
• What percentage of the time do I include teacher-student discussion in the classroom or clinic?
• What percentage of the time do I devote teaching time in the classroom or clinic to having students provide rationale for “what” they think and to explain “how” and “why” they know?
• What percentage of the time do I use questions to check for student understanding?
• What percentage of the time do I ask students to identify the cues that indicate or contraindicate treatment and to explain why these cues are relevant to prospective treatment outcomes?
• What percentage of the time do I ask students to describe how their understanding of body systems, like the cardiovascular system and related diseases, impact oral health?
• What percentage of the time do I ask students to rephrase what I have just told them?
• What percentage of the time do I ask students questions in order to identify why a patient is not responding to treatment as he or she should?
• What percentage of the time do I explicitly explain to students how they will be evaluated on their clinical skills?
• What percentage of the time do I ask students to explain to me the differences between a poor and an excellent tooth preparation?

If you find that you are talking for 50% or more of your instructional time, then you are likely to benefit from this toolkit.

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Democrats Approve Party Platform—Written Before Harris Became Nominee

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The Democratic Party approved its 92-page policy platform Monday, on the first day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago—though the document is largely outdated as it was written before Vice President Kamala Harris was nominated to replace President Joe Biden at the top of the ticket.

Rev. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson attend Day 1 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at ... [+] the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 19, 2024. (Photo by MIKE SEGAR/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

The platform —which was approved by the party platform committee July 16, five days before Biden dropped out—is written as though Biden is still the presumptive nominee and details a continuation of his policies, mentioning the president nearly 300 times, compared to just over two dozen mentions of Harris.

Much of the document is dedicated to criticizing former President Donald Trump and drawing a contrast between him and Biden—Trump’s name appears 150 times in document, which states the former president “has a very different vision” from Democrats, “one focused . . . on revenge and retribution, not on the American people, but on himself.”

The platform reiterates Biden’s call for a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians and touts his push for an “immediate and lasting ceasefire deal” to end the war between Israel and Hamas, along with the delivery of humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people and a $14 billion aid package for Israel that Biden signed into law, but it does not mention an arms embargo on Israel—a key demand for pro-Palestinian protesters and the “uncommitted” delegates who opposed Biden’s nomination in protest of his Israel-Hamas war policies.

The platform repeats Democrats’ push for a $15 minimum wage for all workers and highlights the increase in minimum wage under Biden to $17.20 an hour for federal contractors, along with his administration’s proposal for a $10,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers—Harris on Friday proposed up to $25,000 in down payment assistance for first-time homebuyers.

It calls for a minimum 25% income tax rate for billionaires and promises to tamp down on life insurance “tax shelters” and various other tax loopholes used by wealthy Americans, while “reviving [IRS] enforcement against wealthy and corporate tax cheats.”

The platform vows to protect access to abortion by fighting restrictions in court, easing access to abortion medication and supporting abortion-related legal defense services, while attacking Trump for his role in Roe v. Wade’s reversal, alleging he “undermined access to contraception as president” and “opened the door to laws that rip away access” to in vitro fertilization.

What To Watch For

Biden’s daughter, Ashley Biden, is expected to introduce her father ahead of his speech at the DNC on Monday. Harris and First Lady Jill Biden are expected to join the president onstage. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez , D-N.Y., will also speak on opening night.

Key Background

The convention convenes in Chicago less than a month after Biden dropped out of the race on July 21 and Harris became the party’s presumptive nominee. More than 99% of delegates formally voted to place her and vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz at the top of the ticket on Aug. 6 in a virtual roll call—a formality typically reserved for the convention, though Democrats will still hold a ceremonial roll call to recognize Harris and Walz’s nomination. The convention comes as Democrats have been reenergized by Harris’ entrance into the race following weeks of division and panic in the wake of Biden’s June 27 debate with Trump.

Further Reading

Here Are The Biggest DNC Speakers—Bidens, Obamas, AOC And These Republicans (Forbes)

What To Know About The Democratic National Convention Starting Tomorrow: Major Speeches, Protests And More (Forbes)

Trump Vs. Harris 2024 Polls: Harris Leads In 2 Major Surveys—Up 6 Points In 1 Poll (Forbes)

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