Critical Thinking And The Baccalaureate Curriculum Summary

Arons, Arnold B. "'Critical Thinking' and the Baccalaureate Curriculum." Liberal Education 71.2 (1985): 142-155.

The article assesses the elements involved in critical thinking. It goes ahead to give evidence on all the aspects involved and how they are related. It explains the gaps in knowledge as some of the factors involved in critical thinking while at the same time distinguishing between a fact and a conjecture. It also distinguishes an idea and the name of the idea while providing definitions. The article looks for hidden assumptions, outlines on how to perform hypothetico-deductive reasoning as scrutinizes the idea of inductive and deductive reasoning as well as intellectual self-reliance. It also outlines the stages involved in the

As writing communicates to a reader in a coherent way, it applies language which emerges from the communities experiences as a way of communicating to that specific community. In order to be accepted in a particular community, one is often required to show competence within a particular discourse which clarifies that a writer has to internalize the language conventions of that specific community to foster an effective thinking on the topic. Brufee defines this aspect as internalized social speech. The article concludes that a writer internalizes a collaborative exchange within their imagination as part of their writing process. The writer therefore cannot detract himself from the social nature of an act.

McPeck, John E. "The Meaning of Critical Thinking." Critical Thinking and Education. New York: St. Martin Press, n.d. (1992): 5- 25.

The article examines critical thinking as thinking with skepticism on a particular field or subject. However, the thinker is required to have the skills linked with practitioners in that particular field. The application of drills and practice that encourage use of critical thinking in a particular field helps to foster a better understanding of critical thinking by students. As such, McPeck advocates that students should be motivated to apply critical thinking skills in their various fields. McPeck claims that for learning the concepts of a field, all subjects use rhetorical

Kitchener analyzes the 7-stage model of reflective judgment development while relating the reflective judgment to the Piagets formal operations. He describes hoe reflective judgment is determined while having a criteria to show what stage an individual is in. The article summarizes research on the particular model while focusing on research relating to educational level and age to the 7- stage model.

Moll, Michael B., and Robert D. Allen. "Developing Critical Thinking Skills in Biology." Journal of College Science Teaching (1982): 97- 100.

Moll examines the efforts applied by the faculty of biology in West Virginia University in teaching critical thinking skills to new biology students. As the students are introduced to biology, critical thinking skills are essential to foster an effective understanding of biology concepts and knowledge. The campus applies videos and discussions during classes in order to enable students apply various concepts as they are taught; derive the concepts from data and observations; as well as practicing scientific processes. Moll presents an assessment of the particular program which includes data on improvement of student’s critical thinking. The article concludes that education might help students to progress through the critical thinking