By Kim Gillingham
Why Encourage Critical Thinking?
It is important to understand that intelligence and critical thinking are not the same thing. Intelligence is the ability to learn and acquire knowledge and to form judgements based on reason and opinions. It’s affected by each persons mental processing power and ability to move information from short term to long term memory.Critical Thinking however, is the ability to think objectively without the in!uence of your own opinions, biases, prejudices and feelings. It’s the ability to form a conclusion based on facts and evidence and to apply that understanding to a variety of possibilities. It is the essence of originality, problem-solving and innovation.
Why is it Important?
The digital age our children have entered may be full of possibilities. Knowledge acquisition can be directly linked to how fast our $ngers can type on a smart phone and how quick we can read. They can become “experts” in a matter of minutes, watch stimulating and quick videos on any topic, jump into DIY and cooking programs, and get caught up on the latest social trends before we have even
fnished our morning coffee. What this age doesn’t allow for however, is ability to make sense of it all. It doesn’t guard them from acquiring information from unreliable sources, it doesn’t help them to understand the skills and knowledge enough to be able to transfer it elsewhere, it doesn’t give them an opportunity to explore dierent perspectives, and it doesn’t give them the opportunity to create.
For example: Reading a recipe on how to bake a cake will provide the information and maybe even some knowledge about baking, and can ultimately turn out a very decent cake… but then what? Without sharing the experience with others, it reduces the opportunities to perfect the craft. Without understanding the chemistry of the ingredients and the importance of temperature it will be much harder to
problem-solve when your cake isn’t rising or is too dry. Without applying the knowledge to other ingredients no new
cakes or deserts would ever be created. Without Critical Thinking Skills the Great British Bake Off would never have been
born. 😊