Due to the nature of the school curriculum, more able students are rarely challenged until they reach higher levels of the system. They do not find it difficult to memorise information or completely master basic processes. Their natural ability to think is not really tested. An adroit mind wants problems to solve and challenging concepts to understand. It is very important for such a mind to learn the tools for approaching more difficult problems, so that they thrive and flourish later on in their intellectual careers.
The critical thinking process requires deep, structured thought, even for seemingly simple problems. Through Socratic questioning (an iterative process of refining an argument down to its core), a problem can be distilled and opened up, revealing many facets and levels from which a child can learn and expand their awareness of the world. It can be applied to myriad topics, making all manner of material fertile ground for the development of thinking skills.
Looking at the critical thinking process, it is with questioning that it all begins. It is of the highest importance to ask good questions. Having an understanding of the right questions to ask enables the enquirer to elicit more useful information. For instance, open ended questions divulge richer information than closed ended questions such as the type which give a yes/no answer, or which can be answered with a piece of factual information.
The data gathered from these questions then needs to be sorted, linked and formatted in a coherent way. Reasoning skills then give the student the tools for coming to a conclusion based on the data. The process up to this point becomes very important when a student is writing essays or formulating arguments, as the logical framework gives them confidence to express their opinions and explain themselves.
Once an argument has been presented, either made by the student themselves, or by someone else, the conclusions can be evaluated. This requires a student to make value judgements. The process of Socratic questioning and logical reasoning gives the student a framework for determining how a conclusion fits within their own values. To some extent, this requires experience of the world to develop a coherent and mature set of values, however it is important for the student to be continually developing this faculty. The sense of self-determination gives confidence and self- esteem which feeds back in a positive loop to the thinking process.
Creative thinking complements reasoning and problem solving, as students are encouraged to use their imagination to seek out innovative responses and solutions beyond what is proposed, obvious or expected. This iterative process is strengthened through the use of trial and error. This obviously involves �error�, so students are taught to understand that it is OK to be wrong, indeed it is a good thing, as it is a signpost denoting an opportunity for improvement and is, indeed, an essential part of learning.
The critical thinking process should be encouraged at all times. A child can be asked open ended questions, getting them to think about any information that is given to them whilst watching TV or listening to conversations of adults or in something that they have read or heard from anywhere. The key is to prompt the above process, asking questions that get a child to access their own knowledge and develop their ideas, rather than simply asking questions that test the extent of that knowledge. They should understand that there isn�t necessarily a �correct� answer and that the important thing is to form an opinion through a reasoned process.
Once the habit of questioning has been formed by the child, it is a process that they can go through on their own, whilst at school or outside of school, transforming even seemingly mundane topics into an opportunity to satisfy a mind that craves challenge.
�Critical thinking is a desire to seek, patience to doubt, fondness to meditate, slowness to assert, readiness to consider, carefulness to dispose and set in order; and hatred for every kind of imposture.� � Francis Bacon (1605)
