Transcript Using a Critical Thinking Approach When Teaching IT and

Why Johnny Can't Compute:
Integrating Critical Thinking Into a
Computer Literacy Course
Dr. Diane Chaddock
Joe Vitanza
Southwestern Michigan College
Session Structure
 Big picture
 Dispelling the myth of the digital native
 Clarify the essence of computer literacy
 Clarify the essence of critical thinking
 Examine why computer literacy courses are well suited
to teaching critical thinking concepts
 Start to examine teaching and learning strategies
The Digital Native
 Marc Prensky coined the term “digital native” in his
work Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants published in
2001.
 Steve Kolowich - the
myth of the digital
native
What Exactly is “Computer Literacy”?
 Computer Proficiency vs. Computer Literacy
 Computer Proficiency - repetitive tasks - often based
on-rote memorization
 Computer Literacy - allows students to extend their
knowledge by having an ability to adapt new situation
and problems – critical thinking.
Background Information at SMC
 Computer Literacy initiative – approach and
challenges
 What we’ve learned
o External Assessment – Certiport IC3 exams
o Incoming students entering with less computer
skills than expected
o Exposed weaknesses in critical thinking skills
Background Information at SMC (cont.)
 Initial corrections
 Current research study
o Experimental study to
see if infusing critical
thinking into the
computer literacy
course could improve
computer literacy and
critical thinking
outcomes versus a
control group
Critical Thinking
 How important are critical thinking skills for college
students?
 How important is teaching critical thinking within your
degree/program competencies?
 How important is the development of students’ critical
thinking within your courses?
 How well do your instructional strategies instill critical
thinking strategies within your students?
The facts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
 89% of university faculty claimed critical thinking to
be a primary objective of their instruction:
 Only 19% could define critical thinking
 77% had little, limited or no conception of how to reconcile
content coverage with the fostering of critical thinking
 Only a very small minority could clearly explain the meanings of
basic terms in critical thinking
Defining Critical Thinking
 There isn’t any one definition of
critical thinking – it
encompasses a collection of
ideals and the associated
strategies for reaching them
 What are these ideals, and what
are some strategies for reaching
them?
Definition of Critical Thinking
 “Critical thinking is thinking about thinking
while you’re thinking in order to make
that thinking better.”
~ Richard Paul
Defining a 21st Century Education
 By Craig D. Jerald for the
Center for Public Education
argues that the traditional
curriculum is not enough
 Schools must provide
students with a broader set
of “21st century skills” to
thrive in a rapidly evolving,
technology-saturated world.
Some Educational Practices that Discourage
Critical Thinking
 The student’s role is to be a passive recipient of knowledge.
 The student’s role is to memorize and regurgitate information
(they do not understand).
 The teacher’s role is to “dispense” knowledge.
How do we foster critical thinking in classrooms?
 Know your content.
 Know what constitutes critical thinking.
 Rethink your content as a MODE of thinking .
 Design teaching as experiences based in questioning,
problem solving, and thinking.
THE most important things…
 YOU must decide what is most important in YOUR course.
 Teaching for critical thinking will take more time to
prepare.
 Less time is available to spoon-feed facts to the students.
 You must hold students accountable for their learning.
 You must overtly teach the critical thinking skills.
Lecture-based Learning
 “The lecture format of learning is a venerable and popular
approach to content delivery in higher education;
however, it frequently does not encourage active learning
or critical thinking on the part of students.” (Duron,
Limbach, & Waugh, 2006)
 The key is to use an
“engaged lecture” format.
Active Learning
 Active learning can make the course more enjoyable for
both teachers and students.
 For this to happen, educators must give up the belief that
students cannot learn the subject at hand unless the
teacher covers it.
 Students really do not
understand content until they
actively do something with it
and reflect on the meaning
of what they are doing.
The Flipped Classroom
 While there is no one model, the core idea is to flip the
common instructional approach
 Instruction that used to occur in class is now accessed at home,
in advance of class.
 Class becomes the place to work through problems, advance
concepts, and engage in collaborative learning.
 Instruction can be rethought to best maximize the scarcest
learning resource—time.
"I cannot teach anybody anything, I can only make them think.“ ~
Socrates
Socratic Questioning
− Teaching With Questions!
 Socrates' (469 BC - 399 BC) most important
contribution to Western thought may be his
Socratic Method − which solves a problem
by breaking it down into a series of
questions, the answers to which gradually
lead to the problem solution.
Thinking Begins with a Question, not an Answer.
Socratic Questioning
− Teaching With Questions!
 When you have a problem, you probably ask yourself,
"what do I need to know to solve this problem?"
 This is critical thinking! Your students MUST LEARN to
do the same thing.
Elements of the Experimental Group
 A special syllabus
 A “student understanding” form
 Instructors give students a thorough orientation to the
course, emphasizing how it will be taught, how they will
be assessed, and what they should be striving to achieve.
 Instructors explain to the students,
when orienting them to the class,
what will happen on a typical class
day (and why)
Elements of the Experimental Group
 Explain that class time will be a time in which the students
will PRACTICE thinking (within the content) using the
fundamental concepts and principles of the field
 Systematically question students using a Socratic approach
 Design instruction so that students engage in routine
practice in internalizing and applying the concepts they are
learning
 Use engaged lecture
 Use tactics that encourage active
learning
 Model skilled thinking for students
The Foundation for Critical Thinking
http://www.criticalthinking.org
Questions?