Critical Thinking and it's Importance in Education

Abstract

This study explained critical thinking skills in education processes and the importance of thinking critically for a student who attends any education programme. Developing the ability to think critically is an important element for modern education approaches and models. This study intends to give a framework on the concept of thinking critically while teaching or learning. The world is getting both more technical and more complex day by day life environment, that's why the necessity for education increases for each growing generation. The skill of thinking critically is generally accepted as a very vital stage in every field of learning, particularly in the last decades. As a study draws a general suggestion on the importance of critical thinking skills.

Full text

Critical Thinking and it’s Importance in Education
I. Lenin
Assistant Professor
AUCE
Karaikudi
Abstract
This study explained critical thinking skills in education processes and the importance of
thinking critically for a student who attends any education programme. Developing the ability
to think critically is an important element for modern education approaches and models. This
study intends to give a framework on the concept of thinking critically while teaching or
learning. The world is getting both more technical and more complex day by day life
environment, that’s why the necessity for education increases for each growing generation.
The skill of thinking critically is generally accepted as a very vital stage in every field of
learning, particularly in the last decades. As a study draws a general suggestion on the
importance of critical thinking skills.
Key Words: Critical Thinking, Thinking, Learning.
Introduction
Thinking critically will boost creativity and enhance the way you use and manage your
time (Hader, 2005) and critical thinking not only describes the ability to think in accordance
with the rules of logic and probability, but also the ability to apply these skills to real-life
problems, which are not content-independent. . Critical thinking can provide you with a more
insightful understanding of yourself. It will offer you an opportunity to be objective, less
emotional, and more open-minded as you appreciate others' views and opinions. By thinking
ahead, you will gain the confidence to present fresh perspectives and new insights into
burden some concerns.
Thinking
Thinking is the base of all cognitive activities or processes and is unique to human
beings. It involves manipulation and analysis of information received from the environment.
Such manipulation and analysis occur by means of abstracting, reasoning, imagining,
problem solving, judging, and decision-making. The mind is the idea
while thinking processes of the brain involved in processing information such as when we
form concepts, engage in problem solving, to reason and make decisions. The history of
researches on thinking depends upon the time that human beings recognized that they think.
Thinking is one of the features that distinguish humans from other living beings. Thinking is
the manipulation or transformation of some internal representation (Halpern. 2003, p.84). She
says that when we start thinking, we use our knowledge to achieve some objective. In this
sense thinking ability is the basic case of our life because all of us need to achieve an
objective; on the other hand humans have relations in society and whereas nobody is alone.
Descartes argued that thinking is reasoning, and that reason is a chain of simple ideas linked
by applying strict rules of logic (McGregor, 2007). Both learning and thinking are the
concepts which support and complete one another. When considered from this point of view,
whereas learning style and critical thinking concepts have different qualifications, it can be

stated that they can be used jointly. Likewise, when literature is examined, it is seen that there
are researches handling learning styles and critical thinking concepts jointly (Guven &
Kurum, 2004).
Critical Thinking
“Critical thinking is thinking about your thinking while you’re thinking in order to
make your thinking better.”—Richard W. Paul
When the term of ‘Critical Thinking’ is searched, it is understood that there are
meanings of it which are suggested in the frame of philosophy and psychology sciences but
in general sense this term has not got a definite meaning. ‘Critical’, derived from the Greek
word kritikos meaning to judge, arose out of the way analysis and Socratic argument
comprised thinking at that time.( McGregor, 2007) and then the word kritikos passed to Latin
as ‘Criticus’ that is the type of spreading to world languages from it (Hançerlioglu, 1996).
According to Critical Thinking Cooperation (2006) critical thinking is an ability which is
beyond memorization. When students think critically, they are encouraged to think for
themselves, to question hypotheses, to analyze and synthesize the events, to go one step
further by developing new hypotheses and test them against the facts. Questioning is the
cornerstone of critical thinking which in turn is the source of knowledge formation and as
such should be taught as a framework for all learning. Students are frequently conditioned in
their approach to learning by experiences in teacher-cantered, textbook-driven classrooms
(Sharma & Elbow 2000). This situation is a disturbing case for contemporary educators, and
for this reason they would rather choose the latest models and methods which are more
effective in directing students to thinking. Critical thinking occurs when students are
analyzing, evaluating, interpreting, or synthesizing information and applying
creative thought to form an argument, solve a problem, or reach a conclusion. The aim of
Critical Thinking is to promote independent thinking, personal autonomy and reasoned
judgment in thought and action. This involves two related dimensions:
1. the ability to reason well and
2. the disposition to do so.
Critical thinking involves logic as well as creativity. It may involve inductive and deductive
reasoning, analysis and problem-solving as well as creative, innovative and complex
approaches to the resolution of issues and challenges.
Thinking in Education
Education, perhaps the most basic need for people, is the process that provides the
development of human. According to Meyer (1976) the aim of education is to nurture the
individual, to help, to realize the full potential that already exists inside him or her. There has
always been a strand of educational thought that held that the strengthening of the child’s
thinking should be the chief business of the schools and not just an incidental outcome – if it
happened at all (Lipman, 2003). Qualified education should show the way to students about
what and how to learn. While students evaluate what they learned and their learning methods,
they manifest their critical thinking abilities (Emir, 2009).

As Cotton indicates (1991): “If students are to function successfully in a highly technical
society, then they must be equipped with lifelong learning and thinking skills necessary to
acquire and process information in an ever changing world”.
One of the aims of education should be developing students’ thinking skills as well as
motor skills, which is basic goal of contemporary approaches in education. According to
Elder & Paul (2008) students are not passive but active while they are realizing critical
thinking.
Critical Thinking and Education
One of the significant aims of education is to produce learners who are well informed,
that is to say, learners should understand ideas that are important, useful, beautiful and
powerful. Another is to create learners who have the appetite to think analytically and
critically, to use what they know to enhance their own lives and also to contribute to their
society, culture and civilization.
These two aims for education as a vehicle to promote critical thinking are based on certain
assumptions.
1. Brains are biological. Minds are created. Curriculum is thus a mind-altering device.
This raises the moral requirement to treat learners as independent centres of
consciousness with the fundamental ability to determine the contours of their own
minds and lives.
2. Education should seek to prepare learners for self-direction and not pre-conceived
roles. It is, therefore, essential that learners be prepared for thinking their way through
the maze of challenges that life will present independently.
3. Education systems usually induct the neophyte into the forms-of-representation and
realms of meaning which humans have created thus far.
4. Careful analysis, clear thinking, and reasoned deliberation are fundamental to
democracy and democratic life.
On the basis of these considerations the capacity for critical assessment and analysis emerges
as fundamental for enjoying a good quality of life
Teaching Critical Thinking
Every pupil should have an effective skill of critical thinking, and they must not accept
anything for granted but how can you teach thinking critically to students? There are several
ways of organizing for instruction in critical thinking: We can teach a separate course or unit,
we can infuse critical thinking into all that we teach, or we can use a mixed approach. The
first approach of a separate course or unit requires materials that teach specifically for critical
thinking dispositions, skills, and knowledge. The downside is that there may be little transfer
from what the program or materials teach to the rest of the curriculum. Infusion, the second
possible approach, requires that critical thinking be taught as an integral part of all subject
areas (Wright, 2002). According to Hirose (1992) employers complain about employees’ lack
of reasoning and critical thinking abilities. Those abilities are essential because compared
with the jobs in the past the modern work environment requires more thinking and problem
solving abilities. This situation can be adapted to education, too. Teachers had better be

equipped with high critical thinking skills. Critical thinking is not equal with intelligence and
shouldn’t be misunderstood with it. Critical thinking is skill which can be developed (Walsh
and Paul, 1988). As well as critical thinking can be developed, it can be searched and
analyzed with its different dimensions, so this shows that many scientists or experts
hypothesize about critical thinking, because the vitality of critical thinking has been realized
by many people recently. Educators are aware of the fact that critical thinking can be thought.
Studies Conducted on ‘Critical Thinking’
Initial studies conducted on critical thinking began in the years of 1960s.
Researchers have intended to explain critical thinking with two main disciplines thorough
these studies. Philosophical approach has dwelled on norms of good thinking, the concept
and motive of human thought and cognitive skills necessary for an objective world view;
while psychological approach have dwelled on thinking and experimental studies thinking,
individual differences in learning thinking and the concept of problem solving which is a
piece of critical thinking. Now I will give a few examples on the studies of critical thinking.
Kurum (2002) put forward a study at Anadolu University Education Faculty. The goal of
Kurum’s study was to identify critical thinking abilities and the levels of thinking abilities
that constitute this ability and the factors which influenced critical thinking of teacher
trainees studying at Anadolu University Education Faculty. The results of the study showed
that teacher trainees’ critical thinking abilities and all levels of thinking abilities were at mid-
level and that these abilities were affected by different factors such as age, high school types
graduated, score type and level in university entrance exam, program being studied,
education and income level of the family, and activities held for developing themselves.
Paul (1989) conducted a study touching upon the adaptation of critical thinking
dispositions in learning environment. In this study Paul suggests dispositions to be
disciplined and self-directed thinking could be taught. He maintained that critical thinking
was constructed from skills, such as spotting conclusions, examining premises, forming
conclusions and diagnosing fallacies. Thus he proposed that critical thinking be constructed
as ‘disciplined, self-directed thinking which exemplifies perfection of thinking appropriate to
a particular mode or domain of thinking. Critical thinking conceptualised in this way must be
taught with a focus on developing fair-minded, critical thinkers, who were willing to take into
account the interests of diverse persons or groups regardless of self-interest. Paul called it the
dialogical or dialectical thinking model.
Giancarlo, Blohm, and Urdan (2004) were interested in the measurement of critical
thinking disposition in adolescents as illustrated with four successive studies. The results of
their studies provide support for the California Measure of Mental Motivation (abbreviated as
CM3). This study was based on the assumption that critical thinking is a disposition and
provided not only evidence that critical thinking disposition exists in adolescents but also a
valuable tool for assessing this construct. The authors concluded that “CM3 assess the extent
to which individuals perceive themselves as willing and inclined to approach challenging
problems in a systematic, innovative, open-minded, and inquisitive way.”

Conclusion
From the above discussion,Critical thinking is no doubt necessary in every field of
life, but especially for professions that occupy with people. Finkelman (2001) took the
attention and emphasized the importance that the people who work in the field of human
health, especially the people who directly intervene to the person’s life like psychologists,
counsellors and educationalists have to be critical thinkers in both practice and management.
In order for teachers and counsellors to be able to implement critical thinking into their
classrooms they must first be committed to critical thinking and its philosophy.
References
1. American Philosophical Association (1990).Critical thinking: A statement of expert
consensus for purposes of educational assessment and instruction.“The Delphi Report
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2. Bowell, T. & Kemp, K. (2002). Critical Thinking: A Concise Guide. Rutledge Press.
3. Emir, S. (2009). Education Faculty Students’ Critical Thinking Disposition According to
Achedemic Achievement. World Conference Education Science, 1.
4. Giancarlo, C. A., Blohm, S. W., &Urdan, T. (2004). Assessing secondary students'
disposition toward critical thinking: Development of the California measure of mental
motivation. Educational and Psychological Measurement.
5. Guven, M., &Kurum, D. (2004). The relationship between teacher candidates’ Learning
Styles and Critical Thinking Dispositions. An investigation on the Students in Faculty of
Education in Anadolu University, 1.
6. Halpern, D.F. (1996). Thought and Knowledge: An introduction to Critical Thinking. New
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9. Paul, R. (1989). Regarding a definition of critical thinking. Paper presented at the
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