We

are the students of

todayattending the schools
of yesterdaysbeing taught
by teachers of the pastwith
methods from the middle
ages to solve problems of
the future Author Unknown

 What

will the world be

like 20 years from now?
What skills will students
need to be successful in
that world?
What would learning
look like if it was
designed around your
answers?

 Learning

& Innovation Skills

Creativity & Innovation

Critical Thinking & Problemsolving
Communication &
Collaboration

Teacher-directed
Direct Instruction
Knowledge
Content
Basic Skills
Theory
Curriculum
Individual
Summative
Assessments
Learning for
School

Learner-centered
Collaborative
Instruction
Skills
Process
Higher-order Thinking
Practice
Life Skills
Group
Community
Formative
evaluations
Learning for Life

What is Critical Thinking?

Why we need Critical thinking students.

Critical Thinkers & Critical Thinking

Using Critical Thinking
The Goals of Critical Thinking
Developing Problems
Solving problems
Practice

Questions for Assessment

Focused thinking
There are two basic thinking skills - critical and
creative thinking.
Critical thinking is the ability to think clearly
and rationally.
Creativity is a matter of coming up with new
and useful possibilities. They are both crucial
for solving problems and discovering new
knowledge
Thinking with a definite purpose (goal)
Can be a complex & involved process

An active process that involves constant

questioning

The significant problems we face cannot be

solved at the same level of thinking we were at
when we created them.

An Albert Einstein Quote on Creativity

Critical thinkers: distinguish between fact and opinion; ask questions;

make detailed observations; uncover assumptions and define their terms;
and make assertions based on sound logic and solid evidence.

Ellis, D. (1997) Becoming a Master Student.

Critical thinking is best understood as the ability of thinkers to take charge

of their own thinking. This requires that they develop sound criteria and
standards for analyzing and assessing their own thinking and routinely
use those criteria and standards to improve its quality.

Elder, L. and Paul, R. (1994, Fall) "Critical thinking: why we must transform our teaching." Journal of
Developmental Education.

One of the largest and most neglected

responsibilities in school is to develop in each
child the ability to think well. Materials used in
schools must be worthwhile, but their main
function is to furnish the means for practice in
thinking.
Critical thinking is most sorely needed in the
world today.

Lee, J.M. and Lee, D.M. (Eds.) (1950) Guiding life in the school: The
child and his curriculum. (2 Ed.) New York: Appleton-CenturyCrofts,Inc.
(1st Edition 1936)

Critical reflection of our courses indicates that many

of us are victims of the traditional approach to the
teaching of exact sciences.
A fair criticism of our present courses is that they are
too nearly limited to a giving back by students of
information which we, or our textbook writers, deem
essential.
Many times we fail to distinguish between learning and
memorizing.
David Aptekar, Mackensie High School, Detroit, 1945

Everyday & Everywhere

Academics, professionals, scientists, teachers , &
students, and everyone who makes choices

Decision making, solving problems & puzzles,

making connections, understanding issues,
evaluating evidence and discovering new
information

 Finding

Meaning
Seeking Logic
Searching for reason
Looking answers
Developing facts and opinions
Appreciating different points of
view

Think about your thinking

Think about why you make your choices
and decisions
Think about why the world is the way it is
Practice every day!

Word problems
Math problems
Puzzles
Games of strategy

Lets eat grandma.

Lets eat. Grandma.

Keeping and open mind

Being objective Keeping yourself subjective
Avoiding looking for the easy answer
Having sound, verifiable evidence
Using different perspectives (even if you
disagree with them)

Admitting there may be more than one right

answer
Asking yourself Am I willing to change my
mind?
Knowing this can be a time consuming process
Understanding that in the process there will be
new challenges

Start with basic, ordinary problems and then

add additional requirements.
Good critical thinking problems should cross
content areas and require the student to recall
information from other curriculum areas.

Math & Logic

Science (Chemistry, Biology, Physics, etc.)
Geography
History
Connect to students everyday lives (to a social
context)

For any problem

list:
What you know
What you need to
find (usually a single answer)
What tools you have
to help solve the
problem
What else do I need
to find out to solve
the problem?

What
do I
Know?

What
must I
Find?

What
Tools do
I have?

What
else do I
need to
find out?
*

* Where do I need to go to find this

information if I dont remember it?

Always Draw a picture

The solution to some problems are

influenced by many factors
Background, experience, and education
The social context
Subjectivity of the problem solver
The personal beliefs, values, assumptions, and
preferences of the problem solver

Some critical thinking problems need not

have a set solution.
In this case the way a problem is solved in
the important factor.
Each student may come up with a
different way to solve the problem and a
different answer.

The solution must be possible and the answer

must be plausible.

How many 5 Baht

coins, stacked
flat, will it take to
reach the top of
the Empire State
Building in New
York City?

How many pair of

shoes can you
make from a
spherical cow?

Start each day (class) with a thinking

problem.
Allow students to challenge each other
with problems.
Use problems that require logical thinking

Logic problems
Logic puzzles
Lateral logic problems
Requires the most abstract thought

Read out (at normal pace) the colour of each word,

not the word itself, without making a mistake.

Red Yellow Blue Green

Yellow Red Green Blue
Green Red Blue Yellow
Yellow Green Red Blue
Yellow Blue Red Green
Yellow Green Red Blue
Red Green Blue Green
Green Yellow

Sometimes we need
to teach with humor
and give our students
a chance to have
some fun

 Removing

an
appendix is called an
appendectomy,
removing tonsils is
called a
tonsillectomy.
What is it called
when they remove a
growth from your
head?

Answer A haircut

Creative thinking involves creating

something new or original. It involves the
skills of flexibility, originality, fluency,
elaboration, brainstorming, modification,
imagery, associative thinking, attribute
listing, metaphorical thinking, forced
relationships. The aim of creative thinking is
to stimulate
curiosity and promote divergence

Good teaching is as much about passion as

it is about reason. Its about motivating
students not only to learn, but teaching
them how to learn, and doing so in a
manner that is relevant, meaningful and
memorable.
Good teaching is about substance and
treating students as consumers of
knowledge. Its about doing your best to
keep on top of your field

Good teaching is about listening,

questioning, being responsive and
remembering that each student and class is
different.
Good teaching is about not always having a
fixed agenda and being rigid, but being
flexible, fluid, experimenting, and having
the confidence to react and adjust to
changing circumstances

Good teaching is also about style. They

realize that they are the conductors and
that the class is their orchestra. All students
play different instruments and at varying
proficiencies. A teachers job is to develop
skills and make these instruments come to
life as a coherent whole to make music.
Good teaching is about humor.

Good teaching is about caring, nurturing

and developing minds and talents. Its
about devoting time, often invisible, to
every student. Its also about the thankless
hours of grading, designing or redesigning
courses and preparing materials to still
further enhance instruction.
Good teaching is supported by strong and
visionary leadership

At the end of the day, good teaching is

about having fun, experiencing pleasure
and intrinsic rewards.
Good teachers practice their craft not for
the money or because they have to, but
because they truly enjoy it and because
they want to. Good teachers couldnt
imagine doing anything else.