2. What is Critical Thinking?
• Conceptualising
• Applying
• Analysing
• Synthesising
• Evaluating
• Observation
• Experience
• Reflection
• Reasoning
• Communication
3. Does Technology Support This?
Old teaching methods New teaching methods
Technology has revolutionised the way in which students learn as they
are harder to engage without the use of technology.
5. Supports each learning style
• Visual Learners - Mind Maps, Venn Diagrams etc.
• Auditory Learners – Podcast, Vodcasts etc.
• Kinaesthetic Learners – Typing, Touchscreen Devices
6. Does Technology Support Critical
Thinking?
YES it does.
• Engaging Learners
• Collaboration
• Supporting Learning Styles
7. References
• Johnson, R. T., & Johnson, D. W. (1986). Action research: Cooperative learning in the science classroom. Science and Children, 24, 31-32.
• Totten, S., Sills, T., Digby, A., & Russ, P. (1991). Cooperative learning: A guide to research. New York: Garland
• http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/journals/ed_lead/el200512_prensky.pdf
• http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/defining-critical-thinking/766
Images:
• http://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en&q=critical+thinking+and+technology&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.&biw=1024&bih=453&wrapid=tlif134830414566410&u
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• http://www.google.com.au/imgres?q=learning+styles&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1024&bih=453&tbm=isch&tbnid=0Gw2RixNrwJkZM:&imgrefurl=http://gwegner.ed
ublogs.org/2009/01/31/learning-styles-or-learning-preferences-in-the-classroom/&docid=3pdItzV5V-
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• http://www.google.com.au/imgres?um=1&hl=en&biw=1024&bih=453&tbm=isch&tbnid=9DwOARkAlDt2BM:&imgrefurl=http://www.maths.lancs.ac.uk/department/
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• http://www.google.com.au/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1024&bih=453&tbm=isch&tbnid=Fv471MA0QbitpM:&imgrefurl=http://hardacre.screaming.net/educat
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• http://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en&sugexp=les%3B&pq=prensky+2005+&cp=12&gs_id=1r&xhr=t&q=collaboration&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.&biw=1024&b
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• http://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en&sugexp=les%3B&pq=prensky+2005+&cp=12&gs_id=1r&xhr=t&q=collaboration&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.&biw=1024&b
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• http://www.google.com.au/search?hl=en&sugexp=les%3B&pq=prensky+2005+&cp=12&gs_id=1r&xhr=t&q=collaboration&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.&biw=1024&b
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• Clip art- thinking.
Editor's Notes
First of all we need to ask ourselves what is critical thinking? Before it is possible to answer this question, it is important to understand just exactly what critical thinking means in this context. And to think critically, according to Michael Scriven & Richard Paul (2001), involves the process of actively and skilfully applying, analysing, and evaluating information gathered from, observation, experience, reflection, as a guide to careful evaluation and judgement on a particular topic or problem. In other words, to think critically is a more rigorous way, in which we think. A process that is commonly used to achieve high order thinking is Bloom’s Taxonomy it provides the six levels of cognitive thinking. Which are 1. Knowledge, which understands the materials being put to you. 2. Comprehension, being able to put someone else’s thoughts words or actions into your own. 3 Application, which is the complete understanding of the material, and being able to put that knowledge into action. 4. Analysis, which involves breaking down information into its component parts, in order to make clear how the ideas are ordered, related, or connected to other ideas. 5. Synthesis, being able to use information analysed along with other information in order to make an original piece. 6. Evaluation, the process used after the information is understood and analysed and having the reasons to support it after this the decision on a belief can be taken.
Does Technology support?Once there is a better understanding of what critical thinking Is, it is possible to set out and discover whether or not technology has the ability to support critical thinking, or as some may argue, technology only hinders the process. These people who maintain we have been learning for centuries without technology, they are the ones that pose the question, why do we now need to start teaching with it? It is this fraction of the population that also believe that all technology does, is come as a distraction to learners rather then grabbing their attention and aiding in a higher order thinking process. But it is these select few who are wrong, as explained by Prensky (2005) who states that students today are digital natives and that their “language” is ICT’s, so what better way to teach an audience that has such a different “language” than to speak their own “language” which is more familiar to them. In addition to this, the introduction of technology into our education system has become a necessary endeavour, as students these days are more stimulated outside of the classroom, at home, work or play, through the use of their own personal ICT devices such as the IPod and IPhone etc. It is when these students unplug from the virtual realm that they are so accustomed to and then enter the classroom where technology is not present, they are naturally disengaged with the subject material offered to them and therefore they are not interested. This can lead them to become bored and divert their energy to disturbing other students, who are trying to learn. Knowing this it is only practical to bring technology into the classroom to support high order thinking and a deeper understanding of the subject matter being taught. By engaging with these students different technologies have the ability to make these disengaged students more interested but most importantly, it helps to make them willing to learn. Students that are willing to learn gain curiosity, which in turn curiosity leads to questions, and when students form these questions on their own they are gaining a deeper understanding of the material, and when student have more of an understanding, it makes them more interested in what is being taught. The importance of this is, that it has also has been proven that when you are interested in something, you are more likely to retain that information. In this case, because the students have an understanding and are more comfortable when using technology, they are far more likely to retain the information provided by it.
Engaging students and allowing them to be more receptive and willing to learn is not the only way in which Technology supports critical thinking. Technology can also provide various exciting and interesting ways to collaborate through the use of engaging online teaching tools. Collaboration in its own right, has been proven time and again to be an effective teaching tool as supported by Johnson and Johnson (1986) who gives evidence that collaboration achieves higher levels of thought and retain information longer than students who work quietly as individuals it also allows the input of many different opinions giving a greater understanding of a particular topic and different ways in which to look at a problem. The shared learning gives students an opportunity to engage in discussion, take responsibility for their own learning, and thus become critical thinkers (Totten, Sills, Digby, & Russ, 1991).
Additionally, technology is also brilliant for supporting all the different types of learning styles. Being able to cater to various types of learning styles means, each individual is absorbing the information put to them and are able to connect with that particular information, allowing for a deeper understanding and high order thinking. There are three main learning styles in which individuals learn at their best, the first is visual learners, they learn best through the use of Mind maps and Venn diagrams, etc. There are auditory learners, who are most engaged when listening an example would be Podcasts. Then there are the kinaesthetic learners, who learn best by touch, typing and the use of touch screen devices are good examples with technology. In understanding these different learning styles and how the individual learns, it is possible to teach in such a way that learners are able to analyse information coming in rather than just trying to remember it.
As this presentation has shown, through the use of different sources and by taking a look at the way in which the students of today interact with the world around them, it is easy to see that the use of technology supports critical thinking. It engages learners that would otherwise be bored and disinterested in the subject matter, it allows learners to collaborate with one another and their teachers, by sharing their ideas and inspiring one another, and it provides support for any type of learning style. It is for these reasons that technology supports critical thinking.
