Critical Thinking Studies?

[SpaceFluffer]

Anyone know of studies examining students who have been taught critical thinking, either by infusing critical thinking in regular classes, or by taking specific critical thinking classes?

 

[athon]

Unfortunately it's not a big field for research in pedagogy. It's changing, and this is something I've long been looking for myself (hence if anybody does have anything, I'd be just as interested in reading it).

The thing is, it's an incredibly difficult thing to survey.

Athon

 

[blutoski]

Anyone know of studies examining students who have been taught critical thinking, either by infusing critical thinking in regular classes, or by taking specific critical thinking classes?

I helped with such a study about five years ago. It's set up a little different than you describe: the students are taking a critical thinking course, and given a standard test at the beginning, at the end, and one year after.

We used:

• Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (WGCTA)
• California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST)
• California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory (CCTDI)

I'd suggest hitting the internet for studies using these tests/surveys. They're found in educational indexes, psychological indexes, and philosophical indexes.

 

[SpaceFluffer]

Thanks for the replies. If you put those test acronyms into Google Scholar you get quite a few hits, so I'll see what I can turn up.

 

[Larry Barrieau]

I wonder how long critical thinking "sticks" once you're out of the course. How many have seen the light and how many slid backwards and how many never bought the concept.

I do what I can with my 7th graders. I wish there were 8,9,10,11,and 12th grade teachers to follow up what I do. But there aren't and even though I've offered help, they are too set in following the same old curriculum they are comfortable with. Even better, I wish there were 1,2,3,4,5, and 6th grade teachers to lay the groundwork before me. Not much interest there either.

 

[SpaceFluffer]

Larry, how much impact do you think standardized testing has? Do teachers teach more what they're 'supposed to' because of the tests?

 

[blutoski]

I wonder how long critical thinking "sticks" once you're out of the course. How many have seen the light and how many slid backwards and how many never bought the concept.

My observation is that generic critical thinking is not very useful. It enables a Christian Fundamentalist to accuse Darwinists of making ad hominem attacks, begging the question, &c. It just adds to the vocabulary, but I've never seen it change a worldview.

For example, when I took an introductory course (university transfer 3-credit philosophy course titled: Critical Thinking), everybody passed, but the Iranian immigrant who co-wrote my term project ended up with twenty more reasons to accuse Westerners of cultural prejudices. He showed me ironclad logical arguments for why infidels should be killed.

 

[blutoski]

I've never seen it change a worldview.

Oh, I should add: the professor who taught the course also taught an extension program (evening, non-university-transfer) course in transcendental meditation, and his PhD was in the metaphysics that proves the existence of a monotheistic God.

This fellow remains the school's authority on critical thinking. He does not, however, have a naturalistic worldview.