What did we talk about?

Critical/Creative Thinking

Grammar/Vocabulary

Digital/Technology/Web

Games/Fun Autonomy

Reading

Writing Listening

Speaking

Pronunciation

What did we talk about?

Digital/Technology/Web 21Critical/Creative Thinking 12Speaking 11Pronunciation 7Reading 7Games/Fun 4Listening/Writing 4Autonomy 3Grammar/Vocabulary 3

conferenceseminarworkshopteacherideasuniversity

Critical Thinking

in Actionby Lindsay Clandfield

ABCI ConferenceJuly 2012g

What is critical thinking?

A “floating signifier” Higher and lower level

skills Critical thinking and

the argument Critical thinking in ELT Critical literacy

Critical thinking taxonomies

Higher order and lower order thinking skills

Lower order thinking:

receive

recite

direct medium

trasmit knowledge

reproduce knowledge

Higher order thinking:

manipulate

transform meaning

solve problems

construction

uncertainty

environments & opportunities

Critical thinking and the argument

Critical thinking in ELT

Distinguishing fact from opinion

Challenging assumptions

Keeping an open mind to different possibilities and solutions. (Day, 2003)

Critical literacy

Sees education as a social and political act.

Imagines other possibilities and realities.

Examines origins and implications of worldviews.

Questions what is presented as universally true.

Learn about others and about ourselves.

Text exploitation

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.

Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

Facts vs Opinions

It is the 49th state of the USA.The capital is Juneau.It is a great place.The name Alaska means “great land”.The people are the friendliest in the world.The coldest temperature recorded was -62ºC.Cold weather in Alaska is nicer than in other places.

Facts vs Opinions 2

The concept of a lottery goes back to ancient times. There were lotteries in ancient China, Greece and Roman societies.

Lotteries exploit poor people. Families with low incomes spend more on lotteries than families with high incomes.

Lottery projects have funded major projects in health, arts and education.

Identifying implicit argumentsbased on Cottrell, S. Critical Thinking Skills Palgrave Macmillan

Employees would do very well to bear in mind that all forms of trade union association are not viewed favourably.

Employees are not to discuss their rates of pay with other workers.

If you don’t do as expected you will lose your job or suffer some other penalty.

The threat is implicit.

People in our country believe in honesty and decency.

We don’t believe in stealing or cheating the state.

Now, officials are allowing thousands of people to emigrate here from other countries.

People from other countries are more likely to be dishonest.

No evidence presented to support this view.

Identifying implicit arguments

When we say smaller classes and flexible hours, we really mean smaller and flexible.

When we offer excellence in language teaching, we do not take the promise lightly.

All our teachers are native speakers.

Other language schools probably lie about class size and flexible hours.

Native speaker teachers are excellent teachers.

Identifying implicit arguments

Critical thinking and language work:Conditionals

Looking critically at language:The passive

Critical thinking in Images

Using ELT to raise awareness about issues affecting people with mobility disability.

THANK YOU!