EDUC 6642 Critical Thinking and Creativity in the Classroom

A study of the principles of critical thinking, inquiry, creativity and problem solving, and evaluation of currently available programs. Processes for developing higher order thinking skills across the curriculum are explored. The purpose of this course is to help candidates acquire the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to design instruction to facilitate development of critical/creative habits of mind in diverse student populations. (Pre-service certificate not required. Field experience required.)

Credits

3

Typically Offered

fall, spring

Student Learning Outcomes

What are critical thinking skills and why are they necessary for effective teaching? What is creativity and how can it be nurtured in the classroom? Since the early 1980’s, educators have been criticized for perpetuating a “riding tide of mediocrity” by requiring of students primarily rote memorization of disassociated facts and details. Today, most educators agree that the focus of learning should be on how to use information for creative problem solving, analysis, evaluation, and other higher order tasks. At the conclusion of the course, students should be able to:

1. Describe a theory of knowledge. What is knowledge and how do we acquire it? (To be reflected upon and revised throughout the course.)) [INTASC Standard 4]
2. Generate a definition of critical thinking drawn from critical examination of others’ views and of one’s own life experiences. (To be reflected upon and revised throughout the course.) ( [INTASC Standard 5]
3. Generate a definition of creativity drawn from others’ views and from one’s own experiences. (To be reflected upon and revised throughout the course.) [INTASC Standard 5]
4. Describe/interpret the theoretical bases of the thinking skills movement, including characteristics of the learner that very much affect critical thinking—e.g., attitudes/beliefs, learning style, motivation, metacognitive knowledge, etc. [INTASC Standard 1]
5. Describe/apply the research – based evidence on factors that stimulate creative problem solving in the classroom and describe how to use those factors at the P-12 level. ( [INTASC Standard 5]
6. Exhibit improved critical/creative thinking skills in the areas of application, analysis, synthesis, evaluation, and problem solving/decision making. ( [INTASC Standard 5]
7. Exhibit knowledge of models for teaching higher order thinking skills, including teaching metacognitive strategies. 9) [INTASC Standard 1]
8. Evaluate higher order thinking skills of students [INTASC Standard 6]
9. Teach the class about one critical or creative thinking program or strategy that is designed to accomplish its goals effectively. [INTASC Standard 9