Critical Thinking Problem Solving

Thinking Critically and Problem Solving

When students are given the facts they require, they memorize those facts and use them to serve their short-term goals, which consists of passing tests and graduating to a higher class. However, when you give students critical thinking skills, they will be able to find the needed information for themselves. Students will be able to evaluate the qualities and consequences of that information. Students will also be able to utilize that information to solve any problems at hand. As educators, it is our job to provide students with the skills and strategies they need to think critically and problem solve. Critical thinking can be defined as considering things objectively, including the positives and negatives …show more content…
At any time logic is needed to solve a problem, critical thinking is crucial. As an educator, rather than giving students the facts to memorize information, critical thinking skills should be taught to assist a student to ask questions, seek alternative answers, try hypothesis, and consider other viewpoints. Critical thinking helps students formulate the correct questions, asses possible answers, judge the creditability of information, and make concrete judgments based on the data. Teaching critical thinking skills should be a part of every curriculum. Acquiring knowledge without critical thinking skills is simply an act of memorization. The memorization of facts can be destructive for students. For example, many students pass tests using intelligence and memorization. Yet, as educators, it is our job to give students a true education by fostering critical thinking and problem solving skills. Not only do critical thinking skills give students the ability to understand what they have read or been shown, but these skills also build upon that knowledge without incremental …show more content…
I would have the students retell a story that they have read, but using their own words. Rather than just responding to specific questions with facts, the students will be encouraged to summarize the main ideas of the story. Asking questions that do not have direct answers in the story is beneficial, because this makes the students infer and draw their own conclusions based on their understanding of the story. For example, I would ask a student what they thought the author meant when this happened. Asking students to analyze character and setting elements in the story are beneficial, because it gives them an opportunity to compare and contrast within the story and outside of the story. To increase critical thinking skills even more I could have the students relate the story to their own lives or outside events. This can be defined as synthesizing, in which students begin to use the information in new ways and apply it to different