The mission of this task force is to educate faculty about the importance of integrating critical thinking into their courses so in turn they can teach students how to think critically. This is dictated through the core values proposed by Focus 2011 which identify our teaching to be:
- Market Driven
- Experientially Based
- Employment Focused
- Student Centered
- Globally Oriented
I want our discussions on this initiative to be based on your comments and suggestions. My role would be that of a moderator. With that the case, post your feelings on critical thinking and the key areas you feel the task force should discuss.
Thank you.
Alan
9 comments:
I think it would be valuable to share what parts of our course/s are focussed on critical thinking. For example, at the moment I believe that most of my FIT courses (Word, Powerpoint, Excel, Access and Computer Concepts)focus too much on learning "skills" - individual ways of doing things. This would include learning how to make something 'bold' or 'italic' rather than the 'why' we should do things. This term I am using some different textbooks looking at these courses from a project-based approach.
This forces the students to think much more globally about their work and encourages and helps develop students critical thinking skills in these areas. - Maureen Lloyd-James
I would agree with Mareen that we do spend too much time on "skill-based" education but I would also argue that this is still a necessary part of the learning process. We just need to tone it down. In the workplace, one will need both critical thinking and problem solving skills as well as the ability to follow directions and do specifically what is asked (which traditional teaching methods support.) The problem is that most faculty do not do much critical thinking projects/assignments. If we can get support from faculty to do this, I think it will go a long way in giving our students the skills they need to be successful in the workplace (and in life!)
I feel that this should not replace or affect any of the skill based training that is done in class. Perhaps it should be a value added component of every class. Once they acquire some critical thinking ability, it could enhance every class they take during their career. The question becomes where or what classes do we start inserting it in, so that it can be used and discussed in other classes? How, where and what critical thinking fundamentals should they receive?
Absolutely - the skills are needed and always will be but I believe they should be stepping stones to the bigger picture. If we focus on the end result, and help the students to do this to, the 'skills' becoming the necessary stepping stones on the way. We want to make sure we see the 'forest' and not just the 'trees'... and to me that is where the problem solving/ critical thinking comes in. A whole brain thinking approach! :) PS who is TD is that TED???
Does anyone think that there are certain classes which should not introduce a critical thinking component?
Research shows that critical thinking is a vital component for all courses. As noted by Tsui (2002) higher cognitive skills, such as the ability to think critically are invaluable to students futures; they prepare individuals to tackle a multitude of challenges that they are likely to face in their personal lives, careers, and duties as responsible citizens. I humble state, that in order to decipher how to integrate this into the curriculum, we first have to puruse the literature indepth. Some good things to read are: Learning to Think Things Through: A Guide to Critical Thinking Across The Curriculum, by Gerald Nosich and How We Think by John Dewey. A commonly used assessment tool to determine how to implement this into the curriculum, is the Watson Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal. Further, we can also review the Richard Paul's Model of Critical Thinking.
It is necessary for us to step back and focus on the big picture; take on the job not of professor but someone given the function to implement this tool in the classroom. Then, ask the question,what is the best way to do this? We might feel that we are doing everything right in our classroom, however, when we read the literature, we will be astonished. When we are thinking of critical thinking we also have to think of cultures and the effects in the classroom, we have to explore distance learning and virtual classrooms. This is a big project, however, we can get it done.
Brenda
In response to the question posed by Allan, I am of the view that the critical thinking component should be integrated in all the classes. However, for the pilot phase, we should decipher which classes to focus on at the outset when initiating the component. I think we should select courses from different majors/departments. As a group we should pull all the courses together, review indepth, and then make a decision. We should have a copy of the syllabi used by the professors for the courses in order to gain a better understanding of the structure and content of the course.
I agree that we need to identify the courses. How about HOSP 4060?
In order to accurately pinpoint the courses, I think that we should first convene with the Department Chairs to identify a few courses at least for the pilot program. I will meet with the Chair of the Arts & Science Department, and also have a dialogue with selected faculty members. On completion, I will provide my feedback on the blog. I think this is a significant way to get off the foundation.
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