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| From : http://www.uleth.ca/education/story/4087 |
In reflecting on the matter of critical thinking, in preparation for the upcoming assignments of the course, I have come to realize that I really know very little about critical thinking. I don't remember ever being explicitly taught to be a critical thinker.
So my initial questions as I pondered on the issue, were what exactly is critical thinking? Is critical thinking a function of intelligence or in-depth knowledge about a subject, a function of an argumentative or inquiring nature? It seems to me that the more knowledgeable I am about a subject, the better or more confident I am at thinking critically about it. The less I know, the more I feel challenged about the process.
Elder and Paul (1996) define critical thinking as the "ability and disposition to improve one’s thinking by systematically subjecting it to intellectual self-assessment" (para. 6. 1996). This led me to a self-reflection about whether or not I systematically assess my own thinking, from an academic perspective. Perhaps I do, but it is surely inconsistent. I am curious by nature but definitely not argumentative, at least not out loud.
Elder and Paul make the following assumptions about critical thinking :
"(1) that there are predictable stages through which every person who develops as a critical thinker passes, (2) that passage from one stage to the next is dependent upon a necessary level of commitment on the part of an individual to develop as a critical thinker, is not automatic, and is unlikely to take place “subconsciously,” If Elder and Paul are right about critical thinking as a staged development, where do I stand? This article was helpful in determining this more precisely.
After careful consideration, I would assess that I have reached the stage of practicing thinker, as per Elder and Paul theory. Is that a good thing? According to these scholars, this would mean that I recognize my weaknesses in critical thinking but am taking steps to systematically analyze the way I think in a variety of domains in my life. I believe this process really started when I began meditating, being mindful of my thoughts, sitting there quietly, watching them go by, pondering on the why's and the wherefore's of these thoughts. I am now consciously trying to think about issues from a number of angles, challenging the meaning of my thoughts and the thoughts of others, the expressed points of view, the assumptions and inferences made. I find myself doing it repeatedly during the course of the day. I don't always have a different idea or thought. But I wonder nonetheless.
Hopefully, this process of learning to think critically will evolve further with the work required in this course. There are many opportunities to improve here. I think I will reflect on that.
Elder, L. & Paul, R. (1996). Critical thinking development: a stage theory. Retrieved from: http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/critical-thinking-development-a-stage-theory/483
I really like how you critically applied this article to your own critical thinking. It seemed that you even progressed in your own thinking about the topic in writing your post - ie, going from thinking of critical thinking as argumentative to challenging one's and others' assumptions and trying to see things from different points of view. This it seems to me in the essence of critical thinking.
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