Critical Thinking: Valued but Misunderstood in our Classrooms

Today, the phrase "critical thinking" causes salivation among administrators and teachers alike. We value it but are often uninformed, confused, and not clear on it. Frankly speaking, kids need to be thoughtful about what information they absorb and write down.

To do this, we must create a foundation and springboard for critical thinking to be encouraged in our students, especially adolescents. We must create a real, problematic situation for our students followed up with higher level questions such as, "What else do you see? What can you infer? Why? Here we have our contradiction." We cannot just give students the answer; then it is NEVER about thinking. Otherwise, why should students even bother?!

ALL students can critically think, which we often hear but do not often truly believe. We assume struggling readers cannot solve problems, which could not be further from the truth.