The term commonly used to describe this form of productive, structured thinking is “logic,” but logic describes a number of systems for reasoning systematically.įormal logic reduces words and ideas to symbols that can be manipulated, for instance, much like numbers and symbols used in mathematics.

But such debates, while thoughtful and constructive, should not obscure the fact that there is widespread consensus regarding what skills constitute critical thinking, as well as substantial research on how those skills can be taught successfully.įor example, critical thinking involves thinking in a structured way.

That paralysis derives partly from debates within the critical-thinking community over how the term should be defined. One barrier that has kept us from making more progress in critical-thinking education over the last several decades is the perception that we still do not understand the concept well enough to determine how teaching critical-thinking skills can be integrated into the curriculum. Fortunately, we are in a position to do so without having to overturn the current higher education system or break the bank. With perils mounting, many of them attributable to too little critical thinking about the subjects that matter most, we clearly must do more to ensure today’s students become tomorrow’s skilled thinkers. Those statistics were included in Academically Adrift, the 2011 book by Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa, which caused a stir when the authors asserted that students made little to no progress in critical-thinking ability during their college years. Courses dedicated to the subject can be found in the catalogs of many colleges and universities, while the latest generation of K-12 academic standards emphasize not just content but also the skills necessary to think critically about content taught in English, math, science and social studies classes.ĭespite this progress, 75 percent of employers claim the students they hire after 12, 16 or more years of formal education lack the ability to think critically and solve problems - despite the fact that nearly all educators claim to prioritize helping students develop those very skills. We have certainly made progress in critical-thinking education over the last five decades. Similarly, our democracy is today imperiled not by lack of access to data and opinions about the most important issues of the day, but rather by our inability to sort the true from the fake (or hopelessly biased). For close to 50 years, educators and politicians from classrooms to the Oval Office have stressed the importance of graduating students who are skilled critical thinkers.Ĭontent that once had to be drilled into students’ heads is now just a phone swipe away, but the ability to make sense of that information requires thinking critically about it.

Thomas paine common sense read