Critical Thinking & Problem Solving

Critical Thinking and Problem Solving are closely linked competencies because the ability to think critically helps when tackling problems and seeking solutions. Critical thinking relates to one's ability to "acquire, process, interpret and analyse information to make informed decisions." (Government of Ontario, 2015, p. 56) The idea that critical thinking involves only "criticism" is a misconception, and it is more accurate to consider critical thinking as a type of thinking that uses criteria to judge or assess something (Gini Newman & Case, 2015). There are opportunities to find and solve problems in many areas of the curriculum. On this page you will find some resources to help you explore the concept of Critical Thinking and Problem Solving in more depth.

This year I learned about a critical thinking tool called "The Dashboard", which can be used as a visual to invite students to think critically, at any age level. I used it several times this year by giving students a statement at the beginning of a unit, (i.e. In grade 3 Social Studies: "During the 1700s, First Nations and Early Settler communities had a cooperative relationship."), and then having the students indicate their opinion using the dashboard, citing evidence for this opinion. (The students could select their position on the dashboard: Strongly Disagree, Somewhat Disagree, Somewhat Agree, or Strongly Agree.) After learning more about the issue, students would reassess their positions. It was a great way for students to consider topics with a critical thinking lens.

For more information about this and other critical thinking strategies to use in the classroom, I highly recommend reading the book "Creating Thinking Classrooms: Leading Educational Change for a 21st Century World" by Garfield Gini Newman and Roland Case .

Learning to code affords the opportunity to problem solve because in order to make a program run, coders need to figure out the necessary sequence of code, and solve problems in doing so. Many apps provide the opportunity for students to learn to code. One of my favourite applications to use is "Scratch", which uses block coding. There are many resources available on the Scratch website to teach the basics of using this program, as well as to provide guidance for going into more depth with coding. I know many students who have also sought "How to" videos on Youtube and had great success with creating complex games using these instructions.

There are also online games that support building an understanding of coding, which may be engaging for young learners. You may find a collection of these at the BrainPOP website.

The Buck Institute for Education provides a fantastic webpage that functions as a Resource List for Critical Thinking in Problem Based Learning with a multitude of links to strategies and ideas for supporting the development of critical thinking skills. I highly recommend taking the time to explore the resources listed in it. You can find it here.