90 The Delta Pi Epsilon Journal

“It is possible to store the mind with a million facts and still be entirely uneducated.”



Introduction

         





evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience,



information is not enough. To be effective in the workplace (and in their personal



must be able to think critically.

           

policymaking in the United States, educators have promoted eight broad goals

         

social skills and work ethic, citizenship, physical health, emotional health, the

             

            



Volume L, No. 2, Spring/Summer, 2008. 91

solving. Yet many teachers continually struggle to engage students in critical



         



The answer may be in our instructional methods. Two quotes that are often cited





             

strange that we expect students to learn, yet seldom teach them anything about

learning” (p. 1). Although content is important, the process of how students learn

provided as well as examples of critical thinking in business education.

The premise that critical thinking is to knowing as listening is to hearing implies

that critical thinking is a learned skill that must be developed, practiced, and

continually integrated into the curriculum to engage students in active learning.

To support this premise, focused attention needs to be placed on the application of

content, the process of learning, and methods of assessment.

In terms of the application of content, teaching techniques that promote

is a mental habit that requires students to think about their thinking and about

improving the process, it requires students to use higher-order thinking skills –

not memorize data or accept what they read or are told without critically thinking



critical thinking is a product of education, training, and practice.

To link critical thinking skills to content, the instructional focus should be on the

get

the premise that lecture and memorization do not lead to long-term knowledge

92 The Delta Pi Epsilon Journal

not enough thinking. Therefore, lecture and rote memorization do not promote

       





Additionally, assessments should emphasize thinking rather than facts



challenges rather than memory recall (Schafersman, 1991). Subjective tools such

as essay questions and case studies require students to apply their knowledge to



       

processing skills, it is important to review test questions and explain correct









         



to the test” distracts the learning process from student-centered instruction and

places the emphasis on the content. If the focus is on learning, students should be

given the freedom (and responsibility) to explore content, analyze resources, and



reasoning and apply their critical thinking ability to any content area or discipline



it is a systematic and procedural approach to the process of thinking (Scriven &



also learn the process of critically thinking.

          

            

Volume L, No. 2, Spring/Summer, 2008. 93

          

instructors pursue additional content-based instruction during graduate school, but

often have no formal methodological training, much less skill-based instruction.

Second, few instructional materials provide critical thinking resources (Scriven &

  

questions, but instructional materials often lack additional critical thinking

resources.

Third, both teachers and students have preconceptions about the content

that blocks their ability to think critically about the material. Preconceptions

such as personal bias partiality prohibit critical thinking because they obviate



preclude many business teachers (predominantly typing teachers) from changing

their opinion and adopting the acceptable procedure.

Finally, time constraints are barriers to integrating critical thinking skills in the

classroom. Instructors often have a great deal of content to cover within a short

time period. When the focus is on content rather than student learning, shortcuts

such as lectures and objective tests become the norm. Lecturing is faster and easier

than integrating project-based learning opportunities. Objective tests are faster to

      

lecturing is not the best method of instruction, and objective tests are not the best



content-based assessments than students who learned by traditional textbook and



      

           

1). A similar study suggested that problem-based learning activities promoted





       

94 The Delta Pi Epsilon Journal

          

 

        









        

         

        

Although business education students perceive critical thinking as an important

           how to think

critically. Students are not born with the ability to think critically, and their prior

learning experiences often do not require them to think critically. Therefore,

instructors who wish to integrate this skill in their classroom experiences must

           

critically before they can apply the skill to content scenarios. Modeling can be



through” the process of critically thinking.

Further, critical thinking activities should be based on a structure that includes

        



The second element, criteria for assessing thinking, provides students with a

framework for thinking about their thinking. Why do you think Target’s navigational

menus are easier to use than Wal-Mart’s? Why do you like one’s color scheme

over the other? What is your perspective based upon? Providing students with



criteria upon which they can assess their thinking, which is the third element. If

instructors model the criteria for assessing thinking and provide a framework,

students will eventually apply these techniques on their own (Lundquist, 1999).

Volume L, No. 2, Spring/Summer, 2008. 95









techniques into class discussions to support an educational environment where



book, Asking the Right Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking, documented the

          

These questions require students to evaluate the clarity and accuracy of their



all the alternatives? Do they know why they think the way they do? Students need

to determine whether the content they are using is relevant and if their thinking

          

thinking about their thinking.

        





   

virtual chat rooms, and instant messages provide forums for questioning and

critical thinking. In synchronous environments, instructors can question students

as they construct their responses. Although this is not possible with asynchronous

communication, instructors can model the critical thinking process and assign

activities that utilize questioning techniques and critical thinking responses. In

all learning environments, it is important to guide students through the critical

thinking process.

96 The Delta Pi Epsilon Journal

  



the process to create a learning environment where students feel comfortable

thinking through an answer rather than simply having an answer. For example,

peer coaching techniques can engage students in active learning and critical

       



the Six Steps to Effective Thinking and Problem Solving, 





This problem-solving technique guides students through the critical thinking

process and utilizes learner collaboration. Similar strategies include integrating

project-based learning activities that require students to apply their knowledge

           





Many critical thinking strategies have been used successfully in business



high school business students ranked critical thinking as the highest cognitive

an undergraduate business studies program that used experiential exercises to









from both student surveys and assessments indicated that students gained critical





Volume L, No. 2, Spring/Summer, 2008. 97



             

students with the experience of practicing intervention skills and solving complex



that facilitate the integration of critical thinking activities into their courses.

The goal for business educators who want to instill critical thinking skills in

their classrooms is to think of their students not as receivers of information, but

as users of information. Learning environments that actively engage students in

encouraging students throughout the process and modeling thinking behaviors,

           

students who can critically think for themselves and solve real-world problems.

Publication manual of the American

Psychological Association, 5th edition. 

logical Association.

Journal of Instructional

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

of high school business students. Business Education Forum, 56

in Higher Education, 32(1), 11–19.

    Asking the right questions: A guide to

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

  Issues in Accounting

Education, 15

98 The Delta Pi Epsilon Journal







Cognitive process instruction.



         

necessary skills. Business Education Forum, 57



Teachers College

Record, 106

Social Education, 66

   Theory Into Practice, 32



Critical thinking: What it is and why it counts.

    

cthinking7.htm

          

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     

into the effectiveness of problem-based learning in a physical chemistry

laboratory course. Research in Science & Technological Education, 25(1),



mean?” Journal of Education, 35

 

discussions within a course that uses project-based learning. Interactive

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Science

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

an educational paradigm shift. Curriculum Journal, 18