Module 2: What Is Critical Thinking?
As we have been discussing, culture influences every aspect of a person's life. Intercultural encounters can therefore be a site of conflict and misunderstanding in terms of emotional issues, stereotypes, and a difference in values. This does not necessarily need to be the case, however. Intercultural encounters can be very positive and can enrich the lives of all involved. Intercultural competence is needed to make intercultural encounters more likely to be positive. An essential part of intercultural competence is the ability to think critically. Critical thinking is necessary for understanding perspectives other than one's own and for effective problem solving. In this reading we will look more closely at what critical thinking is.
Since we have examined the difference between high-context and low-context cultures already through the Frank (2013) article, many examples in this reading will use this contrast to illustrate the main points.
- Critical thinking examines assumptions (Epstein, 2003). Many of the assumptions that we have are based on our culture. For example, a person from a low-context culture may assume that it is always better to be direct when speaking. A person from a low-context culture needs to be critically aware of this assumption, especially when dealing with people from high-context cultures. We have many attitudes and assumptions that are deep culture elements and are very hard for us to see (Frank, 2013). Because of this, being aware of all of our assumptions is a difficult task that requires discipline and work.
- Critical thinking is thinking that is free (as free as possible) from bias and prejudice (Haskins, 2006). Because different values are expressed in different ways, people from high-context cultures are likely to consider people from-low context cultures too blunt. At the same time, people from low-context cultures are likely to consider people from high-context cultures too secretive. Critical thinking requires us to understand things in their context.
- Critical thinking distinguishes fact from opinion (Debela & Fang, 2008). Because of different assumptions and different styles of communication, it is common for someone from one culture to think that people from another culture are rude. But this is just an opinion, not a fact. Very often the behavior that appears rude to one person is entirely appropriate behavior within certain cultural contexts.
- Critical thinkers imagine and explore alternatives (Brookfield, 1987). As we are seeing, it is necessary to understand other people’s point of view to fully understand any situation. To understand someone's intentions, it is necessary to understand their perspective.
- Critical thinking is based on certain "universal intellectual values" (Scriven & Paul, n.d.):
- clarity: We must think clearly.
- accuracy: We must not base our thinking on incorrect information.
- consistency: If we apply a rule to one context, we must apply that rule to all similar contexts.
- depth: Considering only surface information is not enough.
- breadth: We must consider a wide range of information.
- fairness: We need to be fair.
All of these require careful thinking, time, and a reduction of bias.
- Critical thinking is a process (Debela & Fang, 2008). From the points above, we can see that critical thinking takes time and effort. It is a process; it does not happen in an instant.
- Critical thinking can be learned, and critical thinking can be taught (Debela & Fang, 2008). In part because critical thinking is a process, critical thinking is a skill that improves with practice. Critical thinking can be described and broken down into steps, and this is how critical thinking can be taught.
Specific techniques that are used to teach critical thinking include discussion, problem-based tasks, and the use of small groups (Brookfield, 1987; Debela & Fang, 2008). It is interesting to note that these teaching techniques are also frequently cited as particularly good ways of teaching foreign languages.
If you would like to read more about how to define and teach critical thinking, we encourage you to read Debela & Fang (2008) or any of the other references listed below.
References
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
Brookfield, S. (1987) Developing critical thinkers: challenging adults to explore alternative ways of thinking and acting. San Francisco: Jossey Bass.
Debela, N., & Fang, B. (2008). Using discussions to promote critical thinking in an online environment. 
Journal of Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics, 72-77. Retrieved from http://www.iiisci.org/journal/cv$/sci/pdfs/e183sl.pdf
Epstein, R. L. (2003). The pocket guide to critical thinking. (2nd ed.) Toronto, Ontario: Wadsworth.
Haskins, G. R. (2006). A practical guide to critical thinking. Retrieved from http://www.fkm.utm.my/~kasim/mech/smj3513/criticalthinking2.pdf
Scriven, M. & Paul, R. (n.d.) Defining critical thinking. Retrieved November 22, 2006, from http://www.criticalthinking.org/
Suggested Further Reading
(This content is licensed under CC BY 4.0 or CC0 and is free for public use.)
El Mouhtarim, S. (2018). Integrating Critical Thinking Skills in Reading Courses at the University Level The Case of Faculty of Letters and Humanities, Beni-Mellal, Morocco . Arab World English Journal, 9(3), 331–344. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol9no3.22
Li, Z., & Yang, C. (2014, May). Reading-to-write: A practice of critical thinking. Journal of Arts and Humanities, pp. 67-71. Retrieved from http://www.theartsjournal.org/index.php/site/article/view/478/270
Nosratinia, M., Abbasi, M., & Zaker, A. (2015). Promoting second language learners’ vocabulary learning strategies: Can autonomy and critical thinking make a contribution? International Journal of Applied Linguistics & English Literature, 21-30. Retrieved from http://www.journals.aiac.org.au/index.php/IJALEL/article/view/1265/1255
Șchiopu, L. (2018). Integrating metacognition and critical thinking skills in the exploration of culture in EFL classroom . Retrieved from http://www.ijopr.com/index.php/ijopr/article/view/63/28
Sobkowiak, P. (2016). Critical thinking in the intercultural context: Investigating EFL textbooks . Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 6(4), 697. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2016.6.4.7
(This content is copyrighted, and cannot be adapted in any way, or distributed after the end of this course. It is not Public Domain or Creative Commons-licensed, and therefore not for public use.)
Debela, N., & Fang, B. (2008). Using discussions to promote critical thinking in an online environment. Journal of Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics, 72-77. Retrieved from http://www.iiisci.org/journal/cv$/sci/pdfs/e183sl.pdf
To cite this page:
World Learning. (2018). What is critical thinking? In "Integrating Critical Thinking Skills into the Exploration of Culture in an EFL Setting" [Online course].
Nhận xét
Đăng nhận xét