Universal Intellectual Standards by Linda Elder and Richard Paul Universal intellectual standards are standards which must be applied to thinking whenever one is interested in checking the quality of reasoning about a problem, issue, or situation. To think critically entails having command of these standards. To help students learn them, teachers should pose questions which probe student thinking; questions which hold students accountable for their thinking; questions which, through consistent use by the teacher in the classroom, become internalized by students as questions they need to ask themselves. The ultimate goal, then, is for these questions to become infused in the thinking of students, forming part of their inner voice, which then guides them to better and better reasoning. CLARITY: Could you elaborate further on that point? PRECISION: Could you give more details? DEPTH: How does your answer address the complexities in the question? BREADTH: Do we need to consider another point of view?
Paul-Elder Critical Thinking Framework — University of Louisville Ideas To Action Critical thinking is that mode of thinking – about any subject, content, or problem — in which the thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking by skillfully taking charge of the structures inherent in thinking and imposing intellectual standards upon them. (Paul and Elder, 2001). The Paul-Elder framework has three components: The elements of thought (reasoning)The intellectual standards that should be applied to the elements of reasoningThe intellectual traits associated with a cultivated critical thinker that result from the consistent and disciplined application of the intellectual standards to the elements of thought According to Paul and Elder (1997), there are two essential dimensions of thinking that students need to master in order to learn how to upgrade their thinking. Elements of Thought (reasoning) The "parts" or elements of thinking are as follows: Universal Intellectual Standards Clarity Could you elaborate? Could you illustrate what you mean? Could you give me an example?
The Importance of Generalizations in Social Studies | Bridging the Gap Shiveley & Misco (2009) suggest that generalizations are a logical step in teaching kids to think critically about what they know and transferring that knowledge to a variety of topics within the social studies. After understanding the relationship between “fact” and “concept” students will be capable of producing high-quality generalizations that eliminate isolation of ideas and stimulate crossover and relevance to the social studies curriculum. Research Summary The authors suggest that a critical component to understanding the need for generalizations is the ability to discern between fact and concept. Fact: a specific and often isolated piece of information that is believed to be true and which can be confirmed by empirical evidenceConcept: an idea used to organize a class of objects or experiences, typically one or two words, which may be concrete (dog, chair) or abstract (love, justice).Generalizations: a statement of a relationship between two or more concepts. Citation: Like this:
Concept-Based Curriculum and Instruction for the Thinking Classroom - H. Lynn Erickson - Google Books Facts, Concepts, and Generalizations - Explanations and examples Examples:Concepts: Flowering plants have flowers that develop into fruits, roots, stems, and leaves. The following are also concepts: flowers, light, magnifying glass, animals, rock, soil, erosion, magnet, force, energy, Concepts summarize and categorize objects. The difficulty of learning a concept depends on the number of characteristics, the abstractness or concreteness, and the reasoning that connects the characteristics. The abstractness of a concept is related to how the concept can be experienced. Examples: Magnets attraction is stronger the closer they are to each other.
ch7think Problem Solving Techniques Metacognition Thinking about One’s Thinking | Putting Metacognition into Practice Thinking about One’s Thinking Metacognition is, put simply, thinking about one’s thinking. Initially studied for its development in young children (Baker & Brown, 1984; Flavell, 1985), researchers soon began to look at how experts display metacognitive thinking and how, then, these thought processes can be taught to novices to improve their learning (Hatano & Inagaki, 1986). Metacognitive practices increase students’ abilities to transfer or adapt their learning to new contexts and tasks (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, p. 12; Palincsar & Brown, 1984; Scardamalia et al., 1984; Schoenfeld, 1983, 1985, 1991). Metacognitive practices help students become aware of their strengths and weaknesses as learners, writers, readers, test-takers, group members, etc. The absence of metacognition connects to the research by Dunning, Johnson, Ehrlinger, and Kruger on “Why People Fail to Recognize Their Own Incompetence” (2003). References
Teaching Kids to Think for Themselves Once upon a time in school, a child would have a few classes on “logic” or “critical thinking.” It’s too bad that such lessons do not exist any longer. So, it’s a parent’s job to teach critical thinking to their child. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Now, how do you translate these ten points so that you can guide a child through the steps? Then, use the “translation for children” below to guide a child think through the critical thinking process. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. For younger children, it might be a good idea to note with pencil and paper the answers that they give you, so that you can review it with them once they complete the list. Remember that there are two keys to helping a child to learn to think logically and critically: how we as adults model and demonstrate the steps in our daily lives, and being consistent in leading the child through the steps when they need to use them, instead of doing all of their thinking for them!
CriticalThinking.org - Critical Thinking Model 1 To Analyze Thinking We Must Identify and Question its Elemental Structures Standard: Clarityunderstandable, the meaning can be grasped Could you elaborate further? Could you give me an example? Standard: Accuracyfree from errors or distortions, true How could we check on that? Standard: Precisionexact to the necessary level of detail Could you be more specific? Standard: Relevancerelating to the matter at hand How does that relate to the problem? Standard: Depthcontaining complexities and multiple interrelationships What factors make this a difficult problem? Standard: Breadthencompassing multiple viewpoints Do we need to look at this from another perspective? Standard: Logicthe parts make sense together, no contradictions Does all this make sense together? Standard: Significancefocusing on the important, not trivial Is this the most important problem to consider? Standard: FairnessJustifiable, not self-serving or one-sided Do I have any vested interest in this issue? Think About... Gather...
Reasoning Training Increases Brain Connectivity Associated with High-Level Cognition 121 3Share Synopsis A number of studies across various domains– from juggling to taxi navigation to meditation to music to motor learning to processing speed– demonstrate the importance of experience on patterns of neural connectivity. Finally, the cognitive ability domain is catching up. In recent years, neuroscientists have discovered a large-scale brain network critical for novel and complex goal-directed problem solving. One of the most exciting findings in the past few years is that coordination among the key players of this network is substantially affected by training and experience. In a more recent hot-off-the-press analysis, Mackey, Alison Miller Singley, and Bunge used the same study sample to investigate whether intensive reasoning training would result in stronger communication within the prefrontal parietal network. First, there was an effect of the course. To be sure, this doesn’t negate the role of biology. © 2013 Scott Barry Kaufman, All Rights Reserved
Copy of 6 Hats & The Pledge by DawnTheresa GoodmanRodriguez on Prezi The magical theory of relativity by Petra Marjai on Prezi acknowledging uncertainty | tolerance for ambiguity CC Image Source: According to systems theorists like Donella Meadows, if our efforts as individuals or institutions mean we’re trying to exert control over existing conditions, this kind of thinking is likely to prove counter-intuitive. Interesting. Some pointers about control: it’s a “manifest delusion”intervention will generate unpredictable results“norm settings” or defaults amplify incompetence“human development in a turbulent world” resists control measuresirony prevails (Michael, 1999, p. 8). So where does that leave our management squad, coordinators, executive teams, administrative crew and their ilk? Educational authors frame the directional schemata with pursuit of moral purpose: Makes sense to me in my current frame of reference; this was our school nearly two years ago: Reality is, the experience hasn’t been too painful, either. What is possible? Movement is the key idea here. For that insight, I’m left feeling grateful. Like this: