EDUC 553: Souza Chapter 7

1. CHAPTER 7
THINKING SKILLS AND
LEARNING
EDUC 553
DR, MURRAY
ROXANNE M. FELICIANO RAMOS

3. INTRODUCTION
• Discuss the characteristics and dimensions of human
thinking.
• Revising Bloom’s Taxonomy.
• Relationship between difficulty, complexity, and
intelligence.

4. CHARACTERISTICS OF HUMAN THINKING
What is thinking?
• How and when we use these aspects often
determine our success and/or failure on
interactions.
Types of Thinking
Information
Recall
Categorize
Analyze
Synthesize
Processing
Summarizing
Thinking
Developing
concepts
Solving
Problems
Intuition
Anticipating
The Future
Learning
Memory
Using
Words
Creativity

5. THINKING AS A REPRESENTATIONAL SYSTEM
• The word itself is not actually that concept,
but it brings forth many associations having
to do with that word.
• It is this recognition of diversity that has led
to the notion of multiple intelligences.
• Thinking patterns vary when encountering
different challenges.
• These semiautonomous variations in
thinking result in different degrees of
success in learning. Beach
Things
Associated
Imagery
Experiences

6. Thinking and Emotion
• Emotions can impede or assist cognitive
learning.
When we like something, we are more likely to
maintain attention and interest in the subject,
and move to higher level thinking.
VS.
When we dislike something, we usually spend
the least amount possible on the subject and
stay at minimal processing level.
 Create activities that promote higher order
thinking.
 Help students recognize the power their
own thinking has at the moment of
problem solve.
Technology May Be Affecting How
Students Think
Information
Avoidance
Dependence
of Internet
Losing their
Critical Thinking Skills

7. THE DIMENSION OF HUMAN THINKING
Assessing
conclusions based
on observations
Forming Conclusions
based on patterns
Finding patterns and generalizing
Observing
BASIC PROCESSES
The tools we use to
transform and evaluate
information.
These conclusions should be
based on evidence, and help
us:
- We form patterns that
help us hypothesize, infer,
and predict.

8. THE DIMENSION OF HUMAN THINKING
Domain-specific knowledge
• Knowledge in a particular content area
Critical thinking
• Making judgments using objective criteria and offering opinion
with reasons.
Creative thinking
• Putting together information to arrive at a whole new concept,
idea, or understanding.
Metacognition
• The awareness one has of one’s own thinking process.
• Monitoring progress while learning and making necessary
changes.
Creative Thinking has
FOUR STAGES:
- Preparation
- Incubation
- Illumination
- Verification

9. Bloom’s Taxonomy (1956) Bloom’s Taxomony (2000)
Knowledge
Comprehension
Application
Analysis
Synthesis
Evaluation
Remember
Understand
Apply
Analyze
Evaluate
Create
VS.

10. LEVEL SKILLS TERMS
Create Putting together parts to form a new plan.
Forming new patterns and structures.
Imagen, compose,
design, infer
Evaluate Judge the value of information based on specific criteria. Appraise, asses, judge,
critique
Analyze Breaking components down so material can be understood. Analyze, contrast,
distinguish, deduce
Apply Use learned material in new situations with minimum of
directions. Practice is essential in this level.
Practice, calculate, apply,
execute
Understand Converting the material from one form to another, by
interpreting the material, or by estimating future trends.
Summarize, discuss,
explain, outline
Remember Rote recall and recognition of previously learned material. Define, label, recall,
recognize

11. IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTICS OF THE REVISED MODEL
Original Model
 Six levels were
cumulative
 Focuses on the cognitive
way of learning
Revised Model
 Flexibility to overlap
levels
 Other ways to view
the levels.
Convergent & Divergent
 Emotional thinking

12. CONNECTING COMPLEXITY AND DIFFICULTY TO ABILITY
Complexity
Through Process
that brain uses to deal
with information
Difficulty
Amount of effort
that the learner must
expend within a level
of complexity to
accomplish an
objective.

13. OTHER THINKING SKILLS PROGRAMS
Habits of Mind
• Created by Arthur Costa and Bena Kallick
• Looks at the characteristics that people demonstrate trying to
solve problems.
• It has identified 16 characteristics, such as: thinking with empathy,
thinking about thinking, striving for accuracy, and others.

14. OTHER THINKING SKILLS PROGRAMS
Understanding by Design (UBD)
• Created by Grant Wiggins and Jay Mcthighe
• Based on two main ideas:
• Focuses on teaching and assessing for deep understanding
and for transfer of learning.
• Designing curriculum backward from those outcomes.
• They propose six facets which include:
• empathy that demonstrates the ability to walk in another’s
shoes,

15. OTHER THINKING SKILLS PROGRAMS
Webb’s Depth of Knowledge (DoK)
• Created by Norman Webb
• Suggests a four level model which is essentially a collapsed model of
Blooms six levels.