Teaching Critical Thinking Across the Disciplines

Teaching Critical Thinking Across the Disciplines

Stephen BrookfieldUniversity of St. Thomas

www.stephenbrookfield.com

Tweet: #tc5815

Finding a Common Language

• What language will communicate a commonly shared intellectual project that will communicate a shared understanding of what critical thinking entails – for both students and faculty across all disciplines?

• A process of APPRAISAL• Appraise Accuracy / Validity of ASSUMPTIONS• Explore ALTERNATIVE PERSPECTIVES

A Process of Appraisal• Critical thinking as a process of appraisal – we

judge the accuracy & validity of assumptions by viewing them from different perspectives

• Appraisal means sometimes our assumptions are accurate & make sense - & here’s why

• Focusing on Appraisal means we avoid students thinking critical thinking is a process of always finding fault, demolition

• What We Appraise Is How Accurate Are Procedures We Use to Establish Valid Knowledge – thinking like a ……. ???

Someone Who Thinks Critically Can …

• Identify Assumptions Behind Thinking & Actions• Check Assumptions for Accuracy &

Validity• View Ideas & Actions from

Multiple Perspectives• Take Informed Action

An Informed Action…

• One Based on Assessed Evidence or Experience

• One That Has Its Assumptions Known & Checked

• One That Stands a Chance of Achieving Its Intended Consequence

• One That has a Rationale that Can Be Clearly Explained

Why Is Critical Thinking Difficult?• Because it’s hard for us to see our own

assumptions without some kind of peer assistance

• Because we don’t want to questions assumptions – life becomes more difficult

• Because 18-22 year olds are grappling with their intellectual development

Developmentally 18-22 year olds are..

• Moving to ‘Formal Operations’ Stage Starting to Think Abstractly & Conceptually• Can formulate hypotheses • Understand cause & effect• Can apply problem-solving protocols

Developmentally 18-22 year olds struggle with…

• Dialectical thinking – holding 2 ideas in tension; i.e. good leaders should be transparent about the reasons for their actions –v- in some situations the LAST thing you want is to be transparent about your actions

• Contextuality/Relativism – behavior & action can only be fully understood in its historical/social/intellectual context, & context changes EVERYTHING

Developmentally we’re headed to adulthood

• Post-formal Operations (Jan Sinnott): adults who can tolerate ambiguity, understand the role of context

• Informed Commitment (William Perry): adults who can confidently commit to a theory, explanation, or course of action – all the while acknowledging this will be changed & reframed if experience convinces us to do so

Appraising Knowledge How Students Speak

• I assume this idea is accurate because it’s what you told me• I assume this is the right action to fit this situation because

my experience tells me so• I assume this is the right action to fit this situation because

that’s what I saw you do• I assume this scholarship is legitimate because it’s in the text• I am going to act this way because I assume that’s what

others do in this situation• I assume I have understood you correctly because here’s my

precis of your point

How Students Check Assumptions 4 Typical Approaches

• This assumption is accurate because it is corroborated by my peers (Groupthink)

• This assumption is accurate because it is corroborated by experts (Dependence on Authority as De-Facto Correct)

• This assumption is accurate because it is corroborated by own experience (Self-Delusion, Denial & Blind Spots)

• This assumption is accurate because I have tested it out (Flawed Problem Posing)

Categories of Assumptions

• CAUSAL - purport to explain a sequence of events: retroactive or predictive • PRESCRIPTIVE - assumptions about how

things should happen, we should behave• PARADIGMATIC - framing, structuring

assumptions viewed as obvious, common sense, taken for granted

A Personal Example

• Clinical Depression is Caused by External Circumstances

• The Way to Deal With It Is To Reason Through It & Tell Yourself To Snap Out of It

• Medications Are For Those Too Weak To Deal With The World

Rooted in Ideology: PATRIARCHY(Men are to be entrusted with making decisions by virtue of their superior rationality & logic)

A Pedagogic Example

• If I get to class early & arrange the chairs in circles, students will feel respected when they walk in. This will reduce the distance between me & them, & will also create a relaxed, congenial environment for learning

• The Circle is an Arena of Surveillance• I am being Coerced into Speech before you

have earned the right to expect that

The Circle

• Causal: Having Chairs in a Circle creates a Relaxed, Respectful Environment for Learning

• Prescriptive: Good educators Create a Relaxed Environment

• Paradigmatic: I Have Power Over My Classroom Environment

TRADITIONS - ANALYTIC PHILOSOPHY

• ANALYTIC PHILOSOPHY – logical fallacies, argument analysis – inductive, deductive, analogical, inferential

• A good critical thinker is someone who can spot flaws in arguments, identify illogical thought, detect correct & incorrect ladders of inference that someone has constructed, excel in debate, speak articulately, be alert to misuse of language & rhetorical tricks, and consistently identify evidence for assumptions & arguments

TRADITIONS – NATURAL SCIENCE

• NATURAL SCIENCE – hypothetical-deductive method, principle of falsifiability

• A good critical thinker is someone who can generate a plausible hypothesis to explain a sequence of events, can set up an experiment to test the validity of that hypothesis, knows how to respond if the hypothesis is disproven, and views knowledge/theories as valid only if that knowledge/theory is open to being disproved.

TRADITIONS – CRITICAL THEORY• CRITICAL THEORY – uncovering power dynamics,

identifying hegemony &pushing back against ideological manipulation

• A critical thinker is a student who is constantly asking questions about power dynamics in the classroom, in the wider community, and in the discipline. They question who decides what counts as legitimate knowledge & frequently challenge teachers authority & the authority of experts in the field. They consistently link classroom work to broader issues of social justice & equity

TRADITIONS - PRAGMATISM

• PRAGMATISM – experimental pursuit of beautiful consequences (democracy)

• A critical thinker is someone who is always open to rethinking positions & considering new perspectives. They view their actions as contingent & open to improvement & refinement. They regard experience as an important guide to action & see the future as open. Teachers often work pragmatically

When Are Students Ready to Think Critically?

• When they have some grasp of the “Grammar” of a Subject (R.S. Peters)

• Content Grammar – the building blocks of knowledge, fundamental concepts

• Epistemological Grammar – the criteria used to judge good & bad scholarship, establish legitimate & illegitimate knowledge

Question

•What most helps students to think

critically?

What Students Say …• By Instructors MODELING, MODELING & MODELING• When It’s Sequenced – Begin by

Learning Protocols & Over Time Apply These to Our Own Reasoning• Social Learning Process – Peers as

Critically Reflective Mirrors

Critical Incident Questionnaire (CIQ)

•MOMENT MOST ENGAGED AS LEARNER•MOMENT MOST DISTANCED• ACTION MOST HELPFUL• ACTION MOST CONFUSING•WHAT SURPRISED YOU MOST

HOW ADMINISTERED?

• Last 5 minutes of Class• Anonymous• Frequency Analysis of Main Themes• Reported Out at Start of Next Class• Disclose How Results Confirm or Challenge

Your Assumptions / Provide New Perspectives• Disclose Any Changes You Will Make• Negotiation NOT Capitulation

Assumptions Inventories - Teachers

• Here’s the Assumptions I’m Working Under (Causal, Prescriptive, Paradigmatic)

• Here’s Why I Think they’re Accurate & Valid – Evidence / Expert Corroboration

• Here’s How My Assumptions have been Confirmed / Deepened

• Here’s How My Assumptions have Been Challenged

• Here’s the New Assumptions I’ve Discovered

Assumptions Inventories - Teachers

When Constructing this Argument as a Scholar or Taking This Action as a Practitioner here’s:-

• The Evidence That Was Most Accessible to Me• The Evidence I Took Most Seriously• The Evidence Most Open to Question

Assumption Inventories -TeachersIn Assessing My Argument or Action:• Here’s Where I Judge Further Inquiry

is Needed• Here’s How I Judge the Learning To

Fit Clinical Practice• Here’s My Assumptions That Could Not Be Checked Adequately• Here’s a Different Way I Could Have

Thought / Acted

Assumptions Inventories - Students

As I completed this assignment, here’s…• Assumptions I held about the topic that were

confirmed / strengthened / deepened• Assumptions I held about the topic that were

challenged / disturbed• New perspectives or interpretations of the topic I

considered• The most pressing questions about the topic I’m

left with

Ending With Questions

• At the end of a lecture or discussion you end by asking yourself (& students via tweeting) ….

• What’s been missing from this analysis?• What most needs further scrutiny?• What are the chief critiques of what I’ve been

saying?• What unresolved questions am I left with?• What are the most troubling questions we’ve

raised today?

‘Speaking in Tongues’• 3-4 signs posted around the auditorium,

each reflects a distinct theory/analytical framework

• When you stand under a sign you speak ONLY in the language & perspective of that theory

• When students ask questions you go to different stations & answer them ONLY from that perspective

What do YOU think professor?

• You give 2 or 3 Answers – Only 1 Represents Your Actual Opinion

• Students Vote on Whether They Think Answer A), B) or C) is Correct

• Students Assemble in Groups Based on their Responses – all A’s, all B’s & all C’s

• In Answer Groups they Discuss Why They Chose Their Particular Answer

• Class Assembles & Groups Give their Reasons• You Disclose Which Was Your Actual Opinion

Instructor Point-Counterpoint

Models

• Productive Questioning• Respectful Disagreement• Different Perspectives• Perspective Taking• Thoughtful Silence

Structured Devil’s Advocacy

The Clint Eastwood Chair• Here’s information that’s inconvenient for

your argument• What about these ethical / philosophical

issues you ignored?• What would you say to this criticism?• Here’s an assumption that bears further

examination

Chalk Talk

• Instructor writes a question in the middle of the board

• 5-10 minutes of silence is declared• Students write responses to the question on the

board whenever they feel ready• Students & instructor draw lines between similar

comments & add reactions & comments/questions• Ends when board is full or posting stops• Students photo board & post on Blackboard

What Stops It? No Scaffolding

• Definitions, Explanations & Examples of CT Provided in the Syllabus – Same Definition Embedded in School Wide Program & Course Descriptions

• Assessment Rubrics Distributed Containing Examples of Critical Thinking Participation

• Post Examples of Good (& Bad) Student Work Where Critical Thinking is Evident

• Each Assignment Provides an Example of CT • All Assignments Ask Students to Identify & Research

Assumptions

Critical Thinking RubricTo What Extent Did You….

• Provide evidence to confirm or challenge your argument

• Identify assumptions you held about the topic that were confirmed and challenged

• Introduce a new idea, perspective or piece of relevant information

• Ask question(s) that led to a new line of analysis

What Stops It? No Scaffolding

• Assignments Ask Students to Judge Validity of Different Sources Used – web sites, textbooks, wikipedia, etc.

• Assignments Ask Students to Spot the Deliberate Error (1 per unit / module)

• Assignments & Activities Use Common Language of Assumptions - Causal, Prescriptive, Paradigmatic

• Assignments Contain Example (s) of How the Instructor Has Thought Critically About the Topic

What Stops It? No Scaffolding

• Assignments Ask Students to Summarize Assumptions that Have been Confirmed &/or Challenged

• Asks Students to Report New Perspectives or Viewpoints

• End By Asking Students To Raise at least Two Questions about the Topic that the Assignment has Generated

What Stops It? No Scaffolding• Intro. Course for All Incoming Freshmen• Begins with Generic Real-Life Scenarios (reasons for

applying to the university, expectations of what it means to be a student, future goals, assumptions regarding workload, assessment etc.).

• Branch into Subject Specific Examples• Provides Videos of Former Students Talking About

How Critical Thinking Manifested Itself in Their Studies

• Provides Videos of Faculty Explaining How They Apply Critical Thinking in Work & Life

Assessing Critical Thinking

• Pre-test / Post test (Simulations, Scenarios)• Student Critical Thinking Audits• Standardized Tests (Ennis-Weir, New Jersey,

California, CAAP, Watson-Glaser)• Learning Journals Re. Applications in Practice• Multiple Choice Questions in Each Unit

Specifically on Assumptions / Evidence