How to Develop Critical Thinking Skills Through Science
Critical thinking involves challenging basic assumptions and using facts to gain a deeper understanding of a situation or problem. It is not a skill that comes naturally to humans; critical thinking must be learned. Science is an excellent tool to teach critical thinking. Natural and life sciences rely on rational thinking, observation and experimentation. All of these are traits which are necessary to critical thinking.
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Instructions
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Gain a full understanding of what it means to think critically. Critical thinkers do not rely on emotions and unproven assumptions to make their conclusions. They examine the facts impartially and thoroughly, develop a hypothesis, and experiment to prove the hypothesis correct. In-depth observation is an essential part of this process.
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Start the critical-thinking process by asking your students a question whose answer necessitates further examination. Discuss the best way to answer the question, and emphasize the need to look deeper to find the explanation. Keep the question age appropriate. For example, third graders would not understand the pH scale. Ask younger students whether, for instance, a plant can survive without sunlight.
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Teach students to think critically by running an experiment. Every experiment starts with a hypothesis, which is basically the question which must be answered. Collect the necessary materials and put students into groups. The experiment's instructions should be clear and easy to follow. Encourage students to carefully observe the data involved in the experiment.
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Discuss the experiment when students finish. Students should share the process they used to complete the experiment, as well as what they learned about observation and making logical conclusions from available facts.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit experiment image by Andrey Kiselev from Fotolia.com
