Critical Skills: Thinking

Thinking is the mental process of producing thoughts. These thoughts might be about people, places, ideas, objects—anything that is triggered by a stimulus. For example, a woman may look at the plants on her windowsill and think that it has been a while since she watered them. The plants are the stimulus to her thought. Critical thinking differs from basic thinking because it involves higher level skills such as analyzing and evaluating. Suppose the woman looking at the plants on her windowsill wonders why one plant is wilting and its leaves are turning brown. While trying to find a way to help the plant, she may consider factors such as the amount of water she gives the plant, the amount of sunlight the plant receives, and the type of soil it is planted in. Critical thinking involves analyzing all possible factors without making any assumptions. When individuals think critically, they often do not determine a solution immediately; they take the time to first consider all possible solutions.

Those who think critically improve their thinking. According to the Foundation for Critical Thinking, those who do not think critically may gravitate toward prejudice, generalizations, self-deception, rigidity, and narrowness. By thinking critically, individuals become more open-minded; instead of making rash judgments, they carefully consider all available information. Critical-thinking skills are also valued in the workplace because employees with such skills think "outside the box" when looking for solutions to problems. These employees are less likely to rely on conventional solutions, which may be outdated. Employees who think critically are also usually good decision makers and perform their job well.

Core Skills & Competencies

To think critically, individuals must be able to understand information; apply acquired knowledge to solve problems; analyze information, including arguments, claims, and evidence; synthesize information; and evaluate reasoning to draw conclusions and solve problems. These skills are required for critical thinking in both school and the workplace.

Before critical thinking can occur, information must be understood, or correctly interpreted. In a literature class, students who understand a novel will be able to explain the plot. Employees working for an automotive dealership might read a graph and understand how many cars were sold during the previous year. When individuals think critically they may apply what they have previously learned to a new situation. For example, a teacher might ask students to give an example of someone they know who has had a problem similar to that of the protagonist of a novel. A company's employees may be asked to begin using a new software program that they learned about in a seminar.

Critical thinking often involves analyzing information. Examples include carefully reading two essays about the same subject to compare and contrast the writers' points of view; differentiating fact from opinion in an advertisement; and identifying unstated assumptions in a written work.

When critical thinkers synthesize information, they deconstruct the information and use it in a new way. For example, an individual using this skill might reorganize the points in a persuasive essay to make the essay more convincing. A student might go through college catalogs and compile a list of pros and cons for each institution.

Evaluation is an important critical-thinking skill that occurs after individuals have interpreted and analyzed information. Evaluation often involves drawing a conclusion. For example, a teacher may ask students to determine whether the producer of a video has a bias against a particular subject. A manager may have to evaluate an employee’s performance and determine whether an employee has the necessary skills and experience for a higher level position.

Other critical-thinking skills include communicating ideas and discussing various points of view, asking and answering questions to clarify information, predicting the outcome of a decision, and seeking additional information when needed.

Researchers contend that the ability to think critically differs from the desire to do so. In other words, it is possible for someone to have critical-thinking skills but choose not to use them. Certain dispositions, or habits of mind, often indicate that someone is a critical thinker. These dispositions include open-mindedness, fair-mindedness, curiosity, flexibility, and a desire to be well-informed. Critical thinkers seek self-improvement, make decisions based on valid reasoning, ask questions and find answers, and evaluate options. In contrast, those who do not think critically obey authority figures without question, rarely admit to a lack of knowledge, attribute happenings to coincidence or superstition, make generalizations, and trust the opinions of others instead of gathering evidence.

Research & Theory

The roots of critical thinking can be traced back to the famous Greek philosopher Socrates (470–399 BCE), who believed that individuals should question whether the assertions of those in positions of authority are correct. Socrates contended that individuals should instead gather information themselves. He discovered through rigorous questioning, which he called probing questioning, that people could not justify the stereotypes and generalizations that they considered true. His method of inquiry later became known as Socratic questioning or the Socratic method. Socrates' accomplishments regarding critical thinking were followed by those of Plato, Aristotle and other Greeks who believed that the truth is often different from what it appears to be.

The famous scholar Francis Bacon (1561–1626) wrote what many consider to be the first text on critical thinking, The Advancement of Learning, in 1905. Bacon explains that most people develop bad habits of thought, which he called "idols," that lead them to believe what is not true. Students develop "idols of the school" when they are poorly instructed and forced to follow rules without understanding their purpose. Bacon stresses the importance of gathering information before making decisions, a foundation of critical thinking.

French philosopher René Descartes (1596–1650) likely published the second great text on critical thinking, Rules for the Direction of the Mind, around 1628. Descartes created the principle of systematic doubt, in which he called for all thinking to be questioned and verified. He contended that the only way people can be certain that something is true is to be skeptical. Descartes is famous for saying "Cogito, ergo sum," which means "I think, therefore I am."

Other historical figures followed suit in their belief in the importance of critical thinking. They include Sir Thomas More (1478–1535), Robert Boyle (1677–1691), Sir Isaac Newton (1643–1727), and later Sigmund Freud (1856–1939).

In Folkways (1906), William Graham Sumner expressed his concern that schools seem to turn out students who do not think critically and take for granted the accuracy of half-truths and generalizations. Around the same time, John Dewey published his classic work How We Think (1910). Dewey believed that people do not passively perceive what goes on around them because their mind shapes what they think they see. He stressed the importance of self-regulation of thought to limit misconceptions.

Educational psychologist Benjamin Bloom (1913–1999) significantly contributed to the field of critical thinking when he oversaw a group of cognitive psychologists in 1956 and created Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. The taxonomy classifies questions asked in schools according to the complexity of the thinking involved. Comprehension is the most basic level, followed by Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation. In the 1990s a group of cognitive psychologists led by Lorin Anderson, a former student of Bloom's, revised the taxonomy to better align with teaching in the twentieth century. The revised taxonomy uses verbs instead of nouns and reflects Bloom's own criticisms of his original work. According to the revised taxonomy, Remembering is the most basic level, followed by Understanding, Applying, Analyzing, Evaluating, and Creating.

Studies have found that students who have been taught critical-thinking skills earn better grades, score higher on standardized tests, and are better prepared for college and the workforce. The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) were implemented in the United States in part to foster critical thinking in the classroom. These standards require more rigorous classroom instruction in which they must analyze, synthesize, and evaluate. For example, in the past a teacher might ask students to name the characters in a short story and the town in which the story took place. To meet the requirements of the CCSS, a teacher might ask students whether the narrator of a story is reliable. Students might also be required to back up their assertion with evidence from the story. As of 2016 forty-two states, the District of Columbia, four territories, and the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) have adopted these standards.

Bibliography

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