Critical Thinking
Critical thinking is the ability to think clearly and rationally. It includes the ability to
engage in reflective and independent thinking. Someone with critical thinking skills is
able to do the following :
*understand
the logical connections between ideas
*identify, construct and evaluate arguments
*detect inconsistencies and common mistakes in reasoning
*solve problems systematically
*identify the relevance and importance of ideas
*reflect on the justification of one's own beliefs and values
Bloom’s
Six Levels
Knowledge, Comprehension
Application, Analysis, Synthesis,
Evaluation
Applying Bloom’s
Knowledge – List the items used by
students while working in a chemistry lab
setting.
Comprehension – Explain why chemists like
carbon the best of any elements
Application – Demonstrate what tool a
chemist would use to properly start the
bunsen burner
Analysis – Compare a buret to a pipet.
Synthesis – Propose how the periodic table
would be different if there were no Inert
Gases.
Evaluation – Judge whether the mole is the
most important unit in chemistry. Defend
your opinion.
Warm-Up Activities
• www.teachnology.com/worksheets/critical_thinking/
• Puzzles, Brain Teasers
• Brain Games
• Problem Solving
• Word Vocabulary
• Math Puzzles
• Science Problems
Critical Thinking Questions You Can Ask
About Anything.
What is the purpose, goal, or point?
What is the problem or issue being solved or described?
On what data or evidence is the decision / definition / problem based?
What inferences are being made from what kind of data, and are these
inferences legitimate?
What is the solution, outcome, or resolution of the problem or issue?
What are the short-term and long-term implications of the solution /
consquences of the outcome?
What are the biases or assumptions behind the inferences, selection or
collection of data, or framing of the problem / experiment?
What are the basic concepts or terms being used? How do these definitions
affect the framing / understanding of the problem?
What point of view is being expressed? What political / ideological /
paradigmatic considerations inform or govern or limit point of view?
How would someone from a related but different discipline look at the
problem / solution / issue, and could an interdisciplinary approach improve
the analysis / discussion / evaluation?
21st Century Tools
• Etherpad.com
(http://typewith.me/gtn4F271s7)
• SurveyMonkey.com
• Classtools.net
• www.google.com/educators/index.html
• 123facts.com
• webquests
Rubric
• Using a rubric to validate student performance
• Many options at your fingertips
• Meta-cognitive assessements
Project Based Learning; Webquests
• www2.ufrsd.net/staffwww/stefanl/Webquest/
Atoms/index.htm
• oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~cb338090/Web%20Ques
t/planewebquest_.htm
• sciencespot.net/Pages/otrail.html
• www.sciencenetlinks.com/matrix.php
• www.thinkfinity.org/