“Halpern (2014). Thinking, an introduction.” - Article summary

The twin pillars of critical thinking are knowing how to learn and knowing how to think. Critical thinking is a necessary skill for the future. Critical thinking is a broad term that describes reasoning in an open-ended manner with an unlimited number of solutions and involves constructing a situation and supporting the reasoning that went into a conclusion.

Nondirected or automatic thinking are not part of critical thinking. Cognitive process instruction refers to utilizing the knowledge we have accumulated about human thinking processes and mechanisms in ways that can help people improve how they think. Critical thinking is best cultivated in a school environment that encourages students to ask questions.

There are four steps to critical thinking instruction:

1. Explicitly learn the skill of critical thinking
2. Develop the disposition for effortful thinking and learning
3. Direct learning activities in ways that increase the probability of trans-contextual transfer
4. Make metacognitive monitoring explicit and overt

A good critical thinker:

1. Has the habit of planning
2. Has motivation for critical thinking
3. Is flexible and open to new ideas
4. Has persistence
5. Acknowledges errors
6. Is willing to change stances
7. Does not use self-justification
8. Is mindful
9. Is consensus-seeking
10. Uses metacognition
11. Recognizes when critical thinking is necessary

Critical thinking requires motivation to exert the conscious effort needed to work in a planful manner, to check accuracy, gather information and to persist when the solution is not obvious.

Self-justification refers to making excuses for a mistaken belief in order to protect the self-image. Mindfulness refers to the simple act of drawing novel distinctions. Consensus-seeking refers to an openness in thinking that allows members of a group to agree on some aspects of a solution and disagree on others. Recognizing when critical thinking is necessary is also important. Metacognition refers to our knowledge of what we know and the use of this knowledge to direct further learning activities.