critical thinking in other languages

Critical Literacy in a Foreign Language: Deeper Insights into Theory

• First Online: 14 June 2022

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• Nizar Kamal Ibrahim   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4632-0355 19  

Part of the book series: English Language Education ((ELED,volume 29))

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The present chapter explains the three main theoretical orientations that underpin critical literacy: the Freirean, the feminist and poststructuralist, and the text analytic. The differences among the three orientations have resulted from the varied schools of thought that gave rise to them and, more importantly, from the sensitivity of critical literacy to contextual variation. It is this sensitivity that motivates the question: Which approach is more relevant to EFL contexts? In responding to this question, the main characteristics of each approach will be explained, and an argument for adopting the complementary views of two of them will be made.

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Ibrahim, N.K. (2022). Critical Literacy in a Foreign Language: Deeper Insights into Theory. In: Critical Literacy Approach to English as a Foreign Language . English Language Education, vol 29. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-04154-9_4

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5 Ways to Boost Critical Thinking in World Language Classes

One way to raise students’ engagement is to ask them to do more work—meaningful work with authentic materials from the target culture.

As teachers, we’ve all experienced lessons that fell flat. The students were uninspired or disengaged, and wore blank, expressionless faces. While these moments can feel disappointing and discouraging, they help us learn and improve by honing our instructional choices.

These experiences have provoked me to think differently about my lessons—what could I do differently? Where was I going wrong? I realized that part of the reason my students seemed uninspired in these moments was likely because I was not asking them to do much. They were not thinking critically, making cultural comparisons, or problem-solving. This realization led me to boost the levels of rigor and critical thinking in my world language classes.

5 Ways to Increase Students’ Critical Thinking

1. Evaluate the questions you’re asking: Are your questions crafted to produce detailed, in-depth responses, or do they lead to one-word answers? Do they allow students to draw on their personal experiences or offer their opinions? Do they inspire students to passionately debate, or to engage in an exchange with a peer? Are students answering these questions enthusiastically? Let’s look at an example of a flat question versus a dynamic one.

“Why is global warming a serious issue?” is an important question, but it doesn’t require students to offer details about their thoughts or opinions on the matter, and it is unlikely to result in an enthusiastic response. Changing it to, “How could the effects of global warming impact or change your future life, and how does this make you feel?” directly solicits students’ perspectives. This question gets students thinking about their own lives, which can heighten their engagement.

2. Place culture at the core of your lessons and units: Language teachers are not solely responsible for teaching a language—we should also be exposing our students to the culture(s) associated with the target language. Our students often make deeper connections with cultural aspects of the language rather than with the linguistic ones. Embrace this!

If a Spanish teacher, for example, is teaching a unit about foods, they can focus on the Mediterranean diet in Spain and make a connection to healthy lifestyle practices. If they’re teaching a unit about the environment, they might focus on why Costa Rica is a leader in sustainability and ecotourism. Weaving cultural points into essential questions adds another layer of rigor to our units of study.

Try requiring that students make cultural comparisons between their native culture(s) and the target one. This gives them the opportunity to think critically about their own cultures and allows them to recognize that not every culture is the same, guiding them to be more culturally competent global citizens.

3. Plan lessons and design activities with Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy: Some powerful verbs featured in Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy —such as recall , interpret , infer , execute , differentiate , critique , and produce —draw attention to the skills we want to develop in our students.

For example, we want our students to interpret authentic resources such as infographics or podcasts. We want them to infer the meaning behind the titles of news articles or short stories. We want them to differentiate between cultural practices in the target language country and the United States. We want them to critique statements or texts that we present to them, and we want them to produce well-executed pieces of writing or oral presentations.

Let these verbs guide your methods and lesson planning. Engaging in the acts of recalling, interpreting, inferring, executing, differentiating, critiquing and producing will aid your students in accomplishing more rigorous tasks.

4. Incorporate authentic resources: There’s no better way to expose students to culture and higher-order thinking than with authentic resources—real-life materials from the target country, including infographics, articles, songs, films, podcasts, commercials, written ads, and so on.

Authentic resources need not be reserved for higher-level classes—they can be used at any level. Adapt the task—not the resource—for the appropriate level. Level one students often need an authentic resource to pique their interest in the language and culture. For example, when teaching novice students about foods and eating habits in the target country, incorporate an authentic menu for them to examine and analyze. Create a basic task like a graphic organizer for them to complete with the menu. They don’t need to understand every word in order to complete the task. Intermediate level students can likely interpret an authentic resource with little to no assistance.

Using authentic resources can entice students to continue on their language learning journey, igniting their curiosity. Such resources also present an increased level of rigor and challenge. Students are required to evaluate and analyze an authentic cultural product when evaluating these resources.

5. Give students independence: While it’s sometimes tempting to lecture students and control the entirety of the class period, releasing some control can be empowering. Let students think independently and design some of their own tasks. Require them to problem-solve. Give them choices. Let them own their learning and take an active role in it. Giving students time to work independently fosters a rigorous environment in which students are able to think critically without constant assistance.

Rather than providing questions immediately after reading an article with your students, allow them to come up with the questions. Identify key vocabulary by asking students which words they associate with the given topic instead of providing a list. And instead of leading every class discussion, assign students different jobs in group discussions, or allow them to take turns facilitating a whole-class discussion. When students are given a chance to lead, they generally rise to the occasion, which can lead to deeper learning.

Critical Thinking & Language Learning

From a very young age, learning a language is of utmost importance. Starting from our mother tongue, we then learn another language (usually English, Spanish, German or French). Learning – and teaching- methods though, don’t always work as expected. Conventional teaching and learning techniques are starting to become a feature of the past now, as new methods are considered to be more efficient. One of these techniques is critical thinking.

Critical Thinking Defined

Second of all, it also occurs when we look at a specific issue or problem, from more than one perspective. Third of all, it also occurs when we criticize something, in a constructive way. For example, disagreeing with the words of a journalist, while pointing out the problem and supporting our opinion with arguments. Also, when critically viewing new information, we can find more meanings that might be indirect.

Critical thinking affecting Language Learning

The first person who supported the use of Critical thinking in education was the American philosopher John Dewey. According to his beliefs, teaching Critical thinking to the students is actually the ultimate goal of education.

In addition, learning a language can be achieved by many practical activities that combine critical thinking with the material taught in class. Hence, learning becomes more inclusive and practical.

Critical thinking improving Language Learning

Furthermore, when a student participates in such activities, he/she becomes an “active participant”, as he/she interacts with other students while constructing his/her learning. Through this process, the student perceives the knowledge learned at the moment in his/her own way, and because of this fact, this knowledge is remembered – and used- more easily (learning stops being too theoretical and is applied in practice).

Overall, critical thinking allows a learner to “process” a language, and perceive it in his/her own way. Therefore, language learning becomes easier, more efficient, and applicable.

Language learning improving Critical Thinking Skills

Per the above fact, it is useful to mention that critical thinking skills are improved through the process of language learning. Critical thinking and language learning support each other at a level where Critical thinking can almost teach you the language itself.

Furthermore, while learning a language a person can participate in various activities where different kinds of critical thinking are unlocked. Therefore, critical thinking becomes more spherical. As a necessary and useful process, language learning provides critical thinking with a lot more dimensions.

The kind of relationship between Critical thinking and language learning

In other words, critical thinking is not dependent on language learning, when it comes to its improvement and formation whereas language learning needs critical thinking, as it has the goal of being as much efficient as possible.

On An Ending Note

https://unitec.researchbank.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10652/3680/revised-critical-thinking-paper-May-2016-.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

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4 ways to increase critical thinking in the English language classroom

Much of what we do in the language classroom is focused on fluency and accuracy. Most teachers aim for students to use vocabulary and grammar accurately, and be able to read and listen with enough understanding to answer comprehension questions. However, language learning is different from other academic subjects, many of which are based around retention of knowledge.

Learning a second language involves a lot more than simply remembering the right words to use. The more that students activate their critical thinking brains, and employ Higher-Order Thinking Skills (HOTS), the more they will develop flexibility, confidence and the ability to self-evaluate in the work that they do, making them better language users in any situation where they have to use the language they learn.

Critical thinking includes a range of HOTS which can be useful to language learning, enabling students to develop learning strategies which can help them to work independently and develop in their own ways beyond the classroom and the set curriculum that you teach . Fostering a critical / analytical environment takes students further than simply supplying correct answers to pass tests, or repeating memorised chunks of language which may not apply to their real lives. Here are some simple ways of facilitating critical thinking in your classroom:

Ask for more than just information

The vast majority of questions asked by teachers in the language classroom are designed for students to answer based on something they have just been told, or that they need to remember from previous classes. In most cases, the teacher already knows the answer to the questions, which have been designed for teaching rather than actual sharing of information. Questions where the answer is already known are called ‘display’ questions, and are a useful teaching tool. However, the level of thinking required to answer them is not highly cognitive. Often, students either know the answer or they don’t - there is little room for calculation, deduction or other higher types of reasoning.

Rather than simply asking students for the answers to the questions they are studying, or for the information in the texts they read, push them to tell you more about aspects of the text which are not explicitly mentioned in the writing. This type of ‘referential’ question leads to much more authentic, spontaneous and personal information sharing, and requires more reflective and critical thought. Examples of higher-order referential questions (here, for a reading or listening exercise) might be:

Why does the writer use the word ‘_______’ in this sentence?

Why do you think the writer starts the article in this way?

Do you agree with the writer when she says ‘________’? Why?

Do you think the writer feels positive / negative / happy / sad / worried… by the topic? Why?

What does the word/sentence ‘__________’ make you think of?

Some of these questions are quite high-level in terms of the language needed to respond, but questions about simple tone or feeling, or emotional response questions, can be used with lower-level learners to help them reflect on their reaction (and the author’s feeling) about the writing. This takes the student out of the traditional understanding / comprehending / answering factual questions from the text that may restrict their thinking as they read.

Get students deducing meaning from context

Another area of language where critical thinking can be used is in vocabulary study. Traditionally, teachers focus very strongly on accuracy of meaning when teaching new words, then find ways of helping students to remember the words effectively. However, the majority of new words that a student meets, both in and out of the classroom, will not be the focus of specific teaching stages with a teacher going through pronunciation, meaning and use .

More critical/analytical approaches to vocabulary can help students to develop independent strategies for dealing with new words without constant support. The skill of deducing meaning based on language clues is an invaluable skill for anyone using a second language, and a skills which can be developed in the classroom. All that is needed are some ways of spotting the clues in a new word, sentence or paragraph, which can reveal different aspects of meaning:

At word level, a lot of meaning can be deduced from prefixes, suffixes and stems. By getting students to identify the stem meaning of a word, then applying prefixes and suffixes, they will be surprised at how they can decode new meanings more easily, as in:

Undeniable = prefix: un- + stem: -deny- + suffix: -able

If a student knows the word ‘deny’, they can build the meaning of

un- (not) + -deny- (refuse) + -able (be able to)

This kind of inductive work leads to activities with word families, where one stem word can be explored for all its related forms: deny, denial, deniable, undeniable, etc., building several words form a single, known root.

In sentence examples, clues to meaning (contextual clues) can be designed and added in to help students deduce new meanings, as in:

Janine was happy, but Bob was miserable

The key clue here comes from the contrast marker ‘but’ - if students know the meaning of happy, and they know that ‘but’ is followed by a contrasting idea, then they can deduce that ‘miserable’ means ‘unhappy’, even if they have never seen the word before.

Presenting vocabulary in a sentence context like this takes students beyond the level of single word meanings, and gets them using other information around a new word to think critically and engage with meaning in different ways. By teaching your students the skill of deducing meaning, you can save a lot of time teaching new words one by one, and get them working with different examples on their own, or working with a partner.

Use project-based activities

Another way of developing higher-order skills is by focusing students on the processes that they follow when they learn. A great way of doing this is to get them working on projects rather than individual language tasks. Projects are different toothed types of activity because they involve collaboration and allocation of work between different members of a group to get the job done. The process of planning, delegating and taking responsibility for different aspects of a project can involve some high-level critical thinking and reflection (if it is planned into the project by the teacher).

Projects usually result in more complex outcomes than single activities, so require more different skills than just language use. The discussion, role-setting, preparation and creative processes all require different types of interaction and communication, all of which are more authentic than general language-focused pair-work.

Working together to create a poster presentation, a board game or a labelled model involves different language and social skills, leadership, compromise and strategy-setting, which can be performed in English if the students’ level is high enough, or in the students’ first language (in a specific planning stage) if it isn’t. By following the procedure below, you can incorporate HOTS, language and other skills to produce an effective project outcome:

inform students of the goal of the project - what product are they working towards?

Students break the project into parts and assign roles to each group member (in first language with lower-level groups)

Students produce a plan for creation of the project, step by step to get everything done in good order and within the time limit (again, in first language if necessary)

Students each work on their role for the project, keeping in communication with each other at each step

Group members check each others’ work for accuracy of language, quality and how well it fits the project brief from 1)

In larger classes, further critical thinking can be developed by having each group present their work to another group for feedback - what do the other group(s) think of their work? Each group writes action points to improve their product and goes back to make any changes they think are necessary.

Each group presents their project to the class, either in a show-and-tell style, or by moving from project to project to view each others’ work.

Develop students’ reflective skills

Self-reflection is one of the highest of the HOTS. Without stopping to evaluate any task that we have done, it is much more difficult to develop better ways of doing a good job in future. This applies to language learning as much as it does to any other kind of activity.

A simple way of bringing self-reflection into he classroom is to include a short stage at the end of each activity that you do, or at the end of each class, which focuses on how students performed. Some simple questions that can prompt self-reflection after a period of class activity are:

How do you feel after completing this activity?

Did you find it easy or difficult? Why?

What did you find most useful in that activity?

How did you complete the activity? What did you do first, then what did you do?

If you did it again, what would you do differently?

You don’t need to ask all of these questions after every activity, but questions like these can prompt a little bit of thought about how students are working, not just whether they succeeded in a task or not. This can raise awareness about learning strategies, thought processes and how different students approach different types of activity . They can also inform you about how your students work, and therefore how they might benefit from different types of support from your teaching.

As we have seen, critical, analytical and higher-order work can be incorporated into the language classroom without too much disturbance of your planned work. A few small additions here and there, and some rethinking of tasks and activities, can raise the level of thinking that goes on, and help students to help themselves when they come to perform in English in situations outside the classroom. Start by including some small critical or reflective questions in your classes, and see how your students respond. You (and they) might be surprised at the results!

Tom Garside is Director of Language Point Teacher Education. Language Point delivers the internationally recognised RQF level 5 Trinity CertTESOL in a totally online mode of study , and the RQF level 6 Trinity College Certificate for Practising Teachers , a contextually-informed teacher development qualification with specific courses which focus on online language education or online methodology.

If you are interested to know more about these qualifications, or you want take your teaching to a new level with our teacher education courses, contact us or see our course dates and fees for details.

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How might language affect critical thinking performance?

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Research output : Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

This study examined whether language structure or language proficiency might affect students' critical thinking performance. Previous research has claimed that many non-Western students struggle with the demands of demonstrating critical thought. Two language-related causes have been suggested: one concerning structural limitations in the non-Western students' first language, and the other concerning their second language proficiency. In Study 1 described here, reports written by 110 Japanese second year university students, who had received instruction in academic discourse for critical evaluation (which is one aspect of critical thinking), were analyzed for use of evaluative statements. No disadvantage was found for use of the Japanese language, which is considered as having a more indirect structure that may make critical evaluation more difficult. Measurements of language proficiency in English and Japanese, however, were found to correlate with production of evaluative statements in those respective languages suggesting that language proficiency could affect critical evaluation use. In Study 2, the same task was given to 43 first year students who had not yet received the same instruction. Analysis revealed similar patterns in their written work but at a lower level, suggesting that the second year students had benefitted from the skills instruction. Furthermore, unlike the second year students, the first year students evidenced no correlations between their language proficiency scores and their production of evaluative statements, suggesting that proficiency on its own is inadequate: students need instruction on the specific language forms and structures to use to demonstrate critical thinking in their written work.

• Cognitive cost
• Critical evaluation
• Critical thinking skills instruction
• Language proficiency
• Language structure

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• Critical Thinking Arts and Humanities 100%
• Student Year Arts and Humanities 100%
• Evaluative Statements Keyphrases 75%
• Second-year Students Keyphrases 50%
• Written Work Keyphrases 50%
• First-Year Student Social Sciences 50%
• Evaluation Use Keyphrases 25%
• Student Struggle Keyphrases 25%

T1 - How might language affect critical thinking performance?

AU - Manalo, Emmanuel

AU - Sheppard, Chris

N1 - Funding Information: This research was supported by a grant-in-aid (23243071) received from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. Publisher Copyright: © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. Copyright: Copyright 2016 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.

PY - 2016/9/1

Y1 - 2016/9/1

N2 - This study examined whether language structure or language proficiency might affect students' critical thinking performance. Previous research has claimed that many non-Western students struggle with the demands of demonstrating critical thought. Two language-related causes have been suggested: one concerning structural limitations in the non-Western students' first language, and the other concerning their second language proficiency. In Study 1 described here, reports written by 110 Japanese second year university students, who had received instruction in academic discourse for critical evaluation (which is one aspect of critical thinking), were analyzed for use of evaluative statements. No disadvantage was found for use of the Japanese language, which is considered as having a more indirect structure that may make critical evaluation more difficult. Measurements of language proficiency in English and Japanese, however, were found to correlate with production of evaluative statements in those respective languages suggesting that language proficiency could affect critical evaluation use. In Study 2, the same task was given to 43 first year students who had not yet received the same instruction. Analysis revealed similar patterns in their written work but at a lower level, suggesting that the second year students had benefitted from the skills instruction. Furthermore, unlike the second year students, the first year students evidenced no correlations between their language proficiency scores and their production of evaluative statements, suggesting that proficiency on its own is inadequate: students need instruction on the specific language forms and structures to use to demonstrate critical thinking in their written work.

AB - This study examined whether language structure or language proficiency might affect students' critical thinking performance. Previous research has claimed that many non-Western students struggle with the demands of demonstrating critical thought. Two language-related causes have been suggested: one concerning structural limitations in the non-Western students' first language, and the other concerning their second language proficiency. In Study 1 described here, reports written by 110 Japanese second year university students, who had received instruction in academic discourse for critical evaluation (which is one aspect of critical thinking), were analyzed for use of evaluative statements. No disadvantage was found for use of the Japanese language, which is considered as having a more indirect structure that may make critical evaluation more difficult. Measurements of language proficiency in English and Japanese, however, were found to correlate with production of evaluative statements in those respective languages suggesting that language proficiency could affect critical evaluation use. In Study 2, the same task was given to 43 first year students who had not yet received the same instruction. Analysis revealed similar patterns in their written work but at a lower level, suggesting that the second year students had benefitted from the skills instruction. Furthermore, unlike the second year students, the first year students evidenced no correlations between their language proficiency scores and their production of evaluative statements, suggesting that proficiency on its own is inadequate: students need instruction on the specific language forms and structures to use to demonstrate critical thinking in their written work.

KW - Cognitive cost

KW - Critical evaluation

KW - Critical thinking skills instruction

KW - Language proficiency

KW - Language structure

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84974603780&partnerID=8YFLogxK

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84974603780&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.tsc.2016.05.005

DO - 10.1016/j.tsc.2016.05.005

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:84974603780

SN - 1871-1871

JO - Thinking Skills and Creativity

JF - Thinking Skills and Creativity

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The Mediating Role of Critical Thinking Abilities in the Relationship Between English as a Foreign Language Learners’ Writing Performance and Their Language Learning Strategies

Maryam esmaeil nejad.

1 Department of English Language Education, Islamic Azad University, Zanjan Branch, Zanjan, Iran

Siros Izadpanah

2 Assistant Professor of Applied Linguistics, Islamic Azad University, Zanjan Branch, Zanjan, Iran

Ehsan Namaziandost

3 Department of English, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord Branch, Shahrekord, Iran

Behzad Rahbar

4 Assistant Professor of Linguistics, Faculty of Persian Literature and Foreign Languages, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

Associated Data

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.

Recent developments in the field of education have led to a renewed interest in the mediating role of critical thinking abilities (CTA) in the relationship between language learning strategies and the intermediate English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners’ writing performance. Oxford Placement Test (OPT) was run to homogenize the participants, and 100 intermediate learners out of 235 were selected. Then, two valid questionnaires of Ricketts’ Critical Thinking Disposition and Oxford’s Strategy Inventory for Language Learning were administered. Having administered the questionnaires, the researchers asked the participants to sit for a writing test. The data collected from the questionnaires and as well as the scores of their writing performances were analyzed through SPSS (25.00). The results showed a significant relationship between (a) learning strategies and learners’ writing performances, (b) the sub-sets of learning strategies and learners’ writing performances, and (c) CTA and learners’ learning strategies. However, CTA did not play a mediating role in the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and writing performance. Based on the results of the study, one might also conclude that strategies seemed to play a more important role in the performance of learners especially their writing performances. Therefore, this study had useful contributions for students, teachers, and curriculum designers. Findings of this research could assist teachers to be aware of learners’ strategies in learning writing and help their students to be responsive to using learning strategies in their learning process and create a satisfactory learning context for using learning strategies. Therefore, learners were able to become independent and feel responsibility for their own learning. Secondly, curriculum developers could take advantage of the findings to include learning strategies training into the curriculum. As a result, students were able to use strategies in their learning process more easily and finally, the results might pave the way for improving the research findings.

Introduction

This study examined the relationships between writing performance and language learning strategies (cognitive, metacognitive, social, affective, memory-related, and compensation). It also intended to determine the relationship between intermediate English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners’ critical thinking abilities and their writing performances. There are some factors which could affect language learning strategies by learners. According to some researchers’ different variables such as age, gender, language proficiency, motivation, anxiety, aptitude, and cultural background affect using language learning strategies by students (e.g., Berridge, 2018 ; Esteves et al., 2021 ). However, a quick review of the global literature shows that little attention is given to the role of critical thinking in learners’ choice of learning strategies as well as their writing performances.

Recent developments in the field of critical thinking abilities have also led to a renewed interest in EFL learners’ writing performance ( Renatovna and Renatovna, 2021 ). It is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the role of critical thinking abilities ( Warsah et al., 2021 ). Recently, the focus of the teacher-oriented viewpoint has changed to a learner-centered perspective ( Reshadi and Aidinlou, 2012 ; Al Sharadgah, 2014 ; Yaralı and Aytar, 2021 ). Learners are now in charge of their learning more than ever. In other words, more learners take more responsibility to make the best use of language learning strategies (LLSs) and be conscious of their own individual needs ( Teng, 2020 ; Parra et al., 2021 ). New learning strategies are introduced to the learners to develop their personable attainments in the language learning process ( Sutiani et al., 2021 ).

Learning strategies are made up of mental processes – thoughts or behaviors – that help learners understand, learn, or sustain new information ( Panahandeh and Esfandiar, 2014 ; Jiang et al., 2021 ). The concept of learning strategies plays a crucial role in the study of second or foreign language learning. Even though many studies have been done to implement learning strategies, the idea of learning strategies is still obscure. Dörnyei and Skehan (2003) , Rajaee Pitenoee et al. (2017) , and Chang et al. (2021) assert that the opinion behind learning strategies has not been critically examined because the concepts and definitions have been inconsistent so far. Critical thinking abilities play a significant role in language learning and teaching. Choosing critical thinking abilities, among other skills and strategies, is to help students do writing performance difficulties and teachers who try to help do their students’ writing performances.

In addition, few studies have been carried on to compare the learning strategies of cognitive, metacognitive, and social/affective, memory-related strategies with writing performances. Besides, no studies, to the best knowledge of the researchers, had ever embarked on investigating the mediating role of critical thinking abilities in the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ writing performance and their learning strategies. A quick review of the global literature shows that little attention is given to the role of critical thinking abilities in learners’ choice of learning strategies and their writing performances.

In a nutshell, this study aimed to evaluate the mediating role of critical thinking abilities in the relationship between EFL learners’ writing performance and their language learning strategies.

Review of Literature

Learning strategies and writing performance.

Learning strategies are defined as “proceedings or stages used by a learner to comfort the attainment, storage, detection or use of information” ( Rigney, 1978 cited in Aslan, 2009 , p. 45). O’Malley and Chamot (1990) defined learning strategies as the particular thoughts or compartments that everybody uses to understand, learn, or maintain new information. On the other hand, Chamot (2004) , Bagheri (2015) , and Zarrinabadi et al. (2021) claim that learning strategies are the purposive thoughts and behavior that students take to earn a learning goal. More importantly, successful learners have their unique techniques to learn. Rubin (1975) and Stern (1975) have been the first scholars who analyze the idea of successful language learning. This idea makes us more curious to discover more about the nature of the learning and learning process. Consequently, the majority of the research performed until now has been focusing on the detection, explanation, and categorization of learning strategies ( Pradhan and Das, 2021 ; Tran and Tran, 2021 ).

The relationship between language learning strategies (LLS) and writing performance (WP) has been the subject of much research over the last 20 years ( Goudarzi et al., 2015 ; Wale and Bogale, 2021 ). According to Green and Oxford (1995) , the picture is not crystal clear because a lot of research has focused on overall strategy use only and not considered individual strategy use or variations. In a study done by Saricoban and Saricaoglu (2008) in Turkey, it was found that compensation strategies had a positive correlation with academic achievement (p. 172) while affective strategies were negatively correlated. Students who used affective strategies were less successful than others. Griffiths (2004) , in a study at a private language school in Auckland, found that “there was a significant relationship between strategy use and language proficiency” (p. 82). The study showed that the “Advanced students reported a higher average frequency of use of each strategy than did elementary students” (p. 78). These studies imply that we can raise levels of proficiency by teaching these strategies. These studies may not have shown a clear causality in any direction between language proficiency and strategy use; however, it can be logically concluded that there are significant relationships between the two.

According to Oxford (1990) , learning strategies are categorized into direct and indirect strategies. Also, each category is divided into subcategories which are placed under the labels. Learners directly use direct strategies in the learning process to produce the target language. These strategies include memory strategies which are responsible for retrieving and storing information, cognitive strategies which learners use to process new information; and learners use compensation strategies to compensate for lack of enough knowledge in the target language ( Goudarzi et al., 2015 ; García-Sánchez and García-Martín, 2021 ; Zarrinabadi et al., 2021 ). As Oxford (1990) states, these strategies assist students to be more independent, identify their learning strengths and weaknesses, and be self-reliant in their language learning process. Therefore, learning strategies help learners to become competent in using a language. Based on Oxford and Burry-Stock (1995) , strategies are techniques or behaviors used unconsciously by learners to improve their understanding and use the target language. O’Malley and Chamot (1990) proposed a very comprehensive classification of learning strategies. Their tri-faceted classification is as follows:

• 1. Metacognitive strategies: It includes supervisory processes in planning for learning, supervising one’s understanding and production, and assessing to what extent individuals have achieved a learning goal.
• 2. Cognitive strategies: Mentally speaking, manipulating the materials to be learned through interaction by visualizing mental pictures or connecting the material with the previously known items. Physically speaking, categorizing the things to be learned meaningfully or summarizing the essential items to be known.
• 3. Social-affective strategies: Learner’s interact with others to look for help in learning, such as posing questions for cooperation or using some affective to control learning.

Critical Thinking Abilities and Writing Performance

In modern society, even in everyday life, people frequently need to deal with complicated public and political issues, make decisions, and solve problems ( Bagheri, 2015 ; Zarrinabadi et al., 2021 ). To do this efficiently and effectively, citizens must evaluate critically what they see, hear, and read. Although a massive amount of printed material is available in all areas in the age of “information explosion,” it is still easy to feel overwhelmed. But the information piled up on people’s desks and in their minds is of no use due to the enormous amount of it. Thus, they need to read selectively and sort out the bits and pieces that are interesting and useful for them. To do so, strong critical reading and critical thinking skills are indispensable ( Morgan and Shermis, 1994 ).

Writing is a complex process that needs much effort to be completed. Numerous researchers believe that writing is a skill that requires learning and practicing ( Fathi et al., 2019 ; Neimaoui, 2019 ; Wale and Bogale, 2021 ). Also, Langan (1987) , Reid (1993) , and El-Freihat and Al-Shbeil (2021) , note that writing is a craft skill that can be taught and learned. For effective writing in EFL classrooms, ELT practitioners ( Badger and White, 2000 ; Paltridge, 2004 ; Rahayu, 2021 ) suggest three following approaches: product, process, and genre. According to Zamel (1983) , Liu and Hansen (2002) , and Indah (2017) , the process approach focuses on the composing process, whereby writers express their notions as they attempt to transfer the meaning. According to Gabrielatos (2002) and Hall (2017) , a product approach is a traditional approach, in which students are motivated to copy a model text while the genre approach is the newcomer and an outcome of the communicative language teaching approach. The readers are at the center of this approach since its readership must successfully accept it.

The word “writing” means the text in written form in the process of thinking, constructing, and coding language into such text ( Tabibian and Heidari-Shahreza, 2016 ; Irzawati et al., 2021 ; Namaziandost et al., 2021 ). Since writing is one of the skills in first and second language learning, all skills have a relationship. As an instance, Harmer (1991) , Rahimi and Karbalaei (2016) , Taghinezhad et al. (2018) , and Yan (2018) believe that one skill cannot be carried out without the other, and it is impossible to communicate without listening, and people seldom write without reading.

The relation between writing and thinking is that writing is thinking if one cannot think clearly, one cannot write clearly. Writing develops thinking skills. It improves the thinking process and contributes to the development of thinking skills because an individual has to clearly state ideas and lay out arguments in such a way as to cultivate higher order of thinking. Regarding the relationship between both, the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis (1956 in Errihani, 2012 ; Jiang et al., 2021 ; Wale and Bogale, 2021 ) is suggestive in the context of English as a Foreign Language as it contends that cognitive activity is determined by language. The cognitive activity can be reflected in written text and later be understood well by the audience determined by the strength of the language ( Díaz Larenas et al., 2017 ; Rahayu, 2021 ). Consequently, the primary concern of second language (L2) writers is primarily on linguistics, as noted by Errihani (2012) . Therefore, critical thinking ability reflects their linguistic skill represented by their writing, which reflects the background knowledge.

The Relationship Between Critical Thinking Abilities and Learning Strategies

Literature on the relationship between critical thinking and language learning strategies is not much. However, a number of studies have been conducted so far. In a survey conducted by Nikoopour et al. (2011) , they surveyed the relationship between CTA and the use of LLS by Iranian language learners. Their findings reveal a significant correlation between direct and indirect LLS such as cognitive, meta-cognitive, and social with critical thinking. At the same time, no relationship was discovered between CTA and memory, compensation, and affective strategies. In another study by Ku (2009) , they aimed to examine the role of meta-cognitive strategies in critical thinking. Based on the findings, “good critical thinkers” are more active in meta-cognitive activities.

Although critical thinking ability is not directly measurable and is not easy to teach, there is always a chance to enhance these strategies through deliberate teaching ( Willingham, 2007 ; Nikoopour et al., 2011 ; Mosley et al., 2016 ). Learning strategies can develop and improve it ( Loving and Wilson, 2000 ; Seymour et al., 2003 ). The teacher is responsible for its development ( Choy and Cheah, 2009 ). Willingham (2007) stated that one of the fundamental purposes of education is to enable students to think critically, but this goal is incompetently met. As the 21st century is the age of information technology, critical thinking abilities are a crucial requirement to select and evaluate the reliability of the information ( Grabau, 2007 ). Asian students lack the required skill as it is not commonly emphasized in schools ( Egege and Kutieleh, 2004 ; Djiwandono, 2013 ). Learning activities have been used to develop the critical thinking skills of the learners for years. Literature suggests cooperative learning is very fruitful for developing students’ social skills, language acquisition, and academic achievement and fostering critical thinking skills ( Ghaith, 2003 ; Sadeghi, 2012 ). Students who learn through strategies have a chance to develop their thinking. Students’ face-to-face interaction promotes critical thinking abilities ( Fahim and Eslamdoost, 2014 ). Group discussions effectively stimulate and develop ideas, which is the first requirement of critical thinking abilities ( Devi et al., 2015 ). The student’s critical thinking abilities can be enhanced through cooperative learning. In collaborative learning, students have a chance to group discussion, evaluate and synthesize the information, and consider the solution as students are responsible for their learning. Cooperative learning promotes interaction among students, which helps develop critical thinking abilities ( Devi et al., 2015 ; Mahmoodi and Dehghannezhad, 2015 ).

This study examined the relationships between writing performance and language learning strategies (cognitive, metacognitive, social, affective, memory-related, and compensation). This study also intended to determine the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ critical thinking abilities and their writing performances. Based on the analysis, one might also conclude that strategies seemed to play a more important role in learners’ performance, especially their writing performances. Therefore, this study had valuable contributions for students, teachers, and curriculum designers.

All in all, reviewing the literature so far indicates that the impact of CTA on language skills and sub-skills has not received as much attention as warranted. Moreover, rare studies, if any, have been done in this regard Iranian context. Thus, to cover these gaps, the researchers aim to explore if CTA has any role in the relationship between language learning strategies and the intermediate EFL learners’ writing performance. To this purpose, the following research questions were proposed:

• 1. Is there any significant relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and their writing performances?
• 2. Is there any significant relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ cognitive strategy (CS), metacognitive strategy (MS), social strategy (SS), affective strategy (AS), compensation strategy (CS), memory-related strategy (MS), and their writing performances?
• 3. Is there any significant relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ critical thinking abilities and writing performances?
• 4. Is there any significant relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and their critical thinking?
• 5. Does critical thinking ability play a mediating role in the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and writing performances?

Materials and Methods

Participants.

The participants of this study were 235 male and female Iranian EFL learners at different language institutes in Zanjan, Iran who were selected based on the convenience sampling method. Oxford Placement Test (OPT) was run to make the participants homogeneous, and 100 learners were selected as the final participants. According to the OPT, 37 people had advanced level scores and 98 people had elementary level scores who were excluded from the study. That is, low- and high-level average scores based on the OPT were summarized and included in the study [Mean (SD) = 37.5 ± 9.15]. The selected participants were all EFL intermediate learners at language institutes ranging from 18 to 35 years of age. More details about the participants can be seen in Table 1 .

Demographic characteristics of the participants.

Instruments

In line with the purposes of this research, three instruments were used:

• (1) OPT: To meet the purposes mentioned above, at first, a language skill test version 2, including 60 items matching cloze passages and multiple-choice questions were managed to sure the concord of the learners. The test items most focused on grammar and vocabulary. The participants were given 30 min to answer. Those learners whose scores fell between 30 and 39 were considered intermediate ones.
• (2) Critical Thinking Dispositions Questionnaire ( Ricketts, 2003 ) : Used to measure the intermediate EFL learners’ critical thinking disposition. The questionnaire contained 33 statements on the Likert 5-point scale. The minimum mean and maximum scores that could be achieved were 33, 99, and 145. Three sub-components of the questionnaire are creativity with 11 sentences, sophistication with nine statements, and dedication with 13 statements. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficients for the invention, sophistication, and commitment subcomponents are 0.64, 0.53, and 0.82, respectively. The reliability coefficient of the instrument was stated to be approximately 0.76 by PakMehr et al. (2010) .
• (3) Strategy Inventory for Language Learning Questionnaire ( Oxford, 1990 ) : The following inventory included in this analysis was the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) questionnaire used to classify LLS students. The SILL questionnaire was developed by Oxford (1990) and was used without alteration in this research. It comprised 50 items that included six types of LLSs: recall strategies, cognitive strategies, compensation strategies, metacognitive strategies, affective strategies, and social strategies. The questionnaire was a 5-point Likert scale that ranged from 1 ( Never or almost never true of me ), 2 ( Usually not true of me ), 3 ( somewhat true of me ), 2 ( usually true of me ), and 5 ( always or almost always true of me ).

Writing Performance

In order to measure the writing performance of the participants, they were asked to sit for a writing exam in the class. An argumentative topic titled “Using a computer every day can have more negative than positive effects on your children. Do you agree or disagree?” was introduced to the intermediate learners to compose a well-formed essay.

There were many different types of rubrics in the literature for assessing writings. One of the appropriate scales for rating the writing of learners was Cooper’s (1997) scale. This rubric includes different criteria for assessing learning writing performance. Cooper’s (1997) checklist is shown below:

Rating scales covered “Task Achievement,” “Coherence and Cohesion,” “Lexical Resource,” and “Grammatical Range and Accuracy.”

In the holistic grading method, as illustrated in Figure 1 , the reader assigns a single score from 0 to 6 (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6) to an essay based on overall writing quality.

Cooper’s classification of writing rating scale. 6, outstanding; 5, very good; 4, good; 3, adequate; 2, less than adequate; 1, poor; 0, no substantive response.

Each essay was scored based on the four scales of “Task Achievement,” “Coherence and Cohesion,” “Lexical Resource,” and “Grammatical Range,” and “Accuracy.” In the end, the average of the five scales showed the last score given to any essay by each rater. Subsequently, the average score given by the two raters represented the writer’s final score.

In order to obtain fair answers to the study questions alluded to above, the following steps have been taken. First, the OPT was spread among EFL students from different institutes in Zanjan to assess the participants’ homogeneity and choose advanced language learners. One hundred participants receiving scores from 30 to 39 were selected as the final sample. Second, the Critical Thinking Dispositions Questionnaire (CTDQ) ( Ricketts, 2003 ) was distributed among the intermediate EFL learners. The CTDQ questionnaire included 33 Likert items. Moreover, the Approach Inventory questionnaire ( Oxford, 1990 ) for language learning was administered to the selected intermediate learners. It was a 50-item questionnaire with a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (never or almost never applies to me) to 5 (always or almost always applies to me).

Afterward, the participants were asked to sit for an essay writing test. An argumentative topic entitled “Using a computer every day can have more negative than positive effects on your children. Do you agree or disagree?” was introduced to the intermediate earners to compose a well-formed essay on. Two raters scored all the essays based on Cooper’s (1997) rubric scale. The average score given by the two raters accounted for the learners’ final writing score. In the end, the scores of their writing performances and the data gathered from the SILL and Critical Thinking Disposition questionnaires were put into SPSS version 25 to be calculated.

The study was an ex-post-facto design since there were no treatments at all. Having collected the results, the researchers recorded the scores in computer files for statistical analysis using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.0. After homogenizing the students as intermediate, to measure the relationship between the variables (SILL and SILL components and writing performance), since the normality was met, seven Pearson correlation tests were conducted. In addition, another Pearson correlation test was run to find if there was a significant relationship between critical thinking abilities and writing performance. Furthermore, the Pearson correlation test was conducted to measure the relationship between learning strategies and intermediate EFL learners’ critical thinking abilities as a whole. Finally, to figure out whether critical thinking abilities would play a mediating role in the relationship between learning strategies and writing performance, the Sobel test was used.

This study aimed at investigating the mediating role of critical thinking abilities in the relationship between learning strategies, including cognitive, meta-cognitive, memory-related, compensation, social, and affective strategies, and intermediate EFL learners’ writing performance. First of all, it was necessary to check the normality distribution. Thus, a One-Sample Kolmogorov–Smirnov Test was run.

Based on the statistics in Table 2 , all the p -values are higher than 0.05 ( p > 0.05), it, thus, can be concluded that all the variables benefit from a normal distribution. Accordingly, the researchers are allowed to utilize parametric analysis of the data. The research questions of this study are answered in this part. The related descriptive analysis of all variables will be discussed before defining the inferential analysis:

Normality tests: One-sample Kolmogorov–Smirnov test.

As Table 3 shows, regarding the number of participants ( N = 100), the mean and the SD of writing performance are 4.22 and 3.27, respectively. The means for critical thinking abilities and learning strategies are 112.56 and 195.20, respectively.

Descriptive statistics of the research variables.

First of all, regarding the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and their writing performances, the results of Pearson correlation displayed in Table 4 [ r (98) = 0.865, p < 0.05 representing a large effect size] it can be concluded that there was a significant relationship between learning strategies and writing performance.

Pearson correlation: Learning strategies with writing performances.

Moreover, considering the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ CS, MS, SS, AS, CS, MS, and their writing performances, a Pearson correlation was run, which shows that there was a significant relationship between EFL learners’ CS, MS, SS, AS, CS, MS, and their writing performance ( p < 0.05) ( Table 5 ).

Pearson correlation: CS, MS, SS, AS, CS, and MS with writing performances.

In addition, to check the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ critical thinking abilities and their writing performances, the Pearson correlation analysis in Table 6 [ r (98) = 0.843, p < 0.05] indicates that the relationship between critical thinking abilities and writing performance was significant.

Pearson correlation: CTA with writing performances.

Furthermore, regarding the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and their critical thinking abilities, Pearson correlation results show a significant relationship ( p < 0.05) ( Table 7 ).

Pearson correlation: CTA with learning strategies.

Lastly, considering the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and their writing performances, the following conceptual model was used to illustrate the direct impact of learning strategies on writing performance.

As it is shown, the direct impact of learning strategies on writing performance is 0.847, with the SD of 0.05. Regarding the fact that p < 0.05, it is believed that direct impact is significant. The conceptual model below shows the mediating role of critical thinking abilities in the relationship between learning strategies and writing performance:

As depicted above, the impact of the mediating role of CTA on writing performance was 0.035, with the SD of 0.024. Since p > 0.05, it is concluded that the impact of CTA on writing performance is not significant. As also illustrated above, the impact of learning strategies on CTA is 6.057, with the SD of 0.209. Because p < 0.05, it is concluded that the impact of learning strategies on CT is significant. Besides, the impact of learning strategies on writing performance, with the mediating role of CTA, is 0.638, SD = 0.152. Regarding the p -value, which is less than 0.05 ( p < 0.05), it is concluded that the impact of learning strategies on writing performance, with the mediating role of CTA, is not significant because the Z value of the Sobel test is 1.46 and p > 0.14. Thus, CTA does not play a mediating role in the relationship between learning strategies and writing performance.

As stated earlier, this study made an effort to find answers to all research questions concerning the relationship between the three variables CTA, learning strategies, and writing efficiency. Reasonable methods have been used to obtain the answers needed for each question. The study found that high CTA students outperformed low CTA students. Cognitive and metacognitive techniques are not independent; they operate together as learners undertake the process of writing.

Both learning strategies and CTA played an essential role in students’ writing performance. CTA is highly related to writing performance, and it was proved those with high CTA did better in their writing performance, especially when the subject was a bit controversial. Furthermore, it was shown that utilizing learning strategies would improve learners’ writing performance. In other words, the more use of strategies, the better scores in writing performance.

As seen before, the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and their writing performance was significant. In addition, the relationships between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies subsets, including cognitive, metacognitive, affective, social, memory-related, and compensation strategies, and their writing strategies were all significant, meaning all the six subsets were significantly correlated with writing performances. The result of this study is in line with the studies done by Chamot (2004) , Berridge (2018) , Al-Jarrah et al. (2019) , Teng (2020) , Chang et al. (2021) , and Parra et al. (2021) in that metacognitive strategies together with its subsets of planning, organizing, and evaluating strategies are related to EFL learners’ writing performances. Besides, this study also confirmed the findings of Pradhan and Das (2021) and Tran and Tran (2021) that there was a positive correlation between English academic achievement and metacognition. In harmony with Teng (2020) and Jiang et al. (2021) , metacognitive strategies could yield the highest mean scores of EFL learners’ writing performances.

In congruence with the finding of Yan (2018) , García-Sánchez and García-Martín (2021) , and Parra et al. (2021) , this study showed a positive correlation between cognitive and metacognitive strategies of learners with their writing performances. Compatible with the findings of Díaz Larenas et al. (2017) and Rahayu (2021) , this study also showed that metacognitive and cognitive strategies would benefit EFL learners’ writing performance.

As Díaz Rodríguez (2014) asserts, this study also illustrated that cognitive and metacognitive strategies are not independent from one another; they work together while the learner is performing the task of writing. Following Rajaee Pitenoee et al.’s (2017) outcome, cognitive and metacognitive strategies would affect Iranian intermediate EFL learners’ writing performance. Meanwhile, in line with Azizi et al. (2017) , this study also confirmed that metacognitive strategies would contribute to higher proficiency in writing. In addition, as Tabrizi and Rajaee (2016) and Tran and Tran (2021) put forward, this study also concluded that cognitive and metacognitive writing strategies would help learners improve their writing. Besides, in agreement with Panahandeh and Esfandiar (2014) , this study showed that metacognitive strategies were positively correlated with writing performance.

However, as opposed to Rahimi and Karbalaei (2016) , who did not find any relationship between the use of metacognitive strategies and writing performance of EFL Iranian learners, this study concluded that metacognitive strategies were highly correlated with writing performance. Compatible with the findings of Goudarzi et al. (2015) and Wale and Bogale (2021) , the results of this study depicted that metacognitive awareness strategies highly affect achievement scores, and there was a significant correlation between metacognitive awareness strategies and their task performance.

Concerning the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ CTA and their writing performance’, it was revealed that intermediate EFL learners’ critical thinking abilities were significantly correlated with writing version. As Neimaoui (2019) , Renatovna and Renatovna (2021) , and Saenab et al. (2021) claim, this study justified that critical thinking ability plays a significant role in EFL learners’ writing performances. Furthermore, consistent with the finding of Hall (2017) and Warsah et al. (2021) , this study concluded that critical thinking abilities could lead to an improvement in EFL learners’ writing performances. Moreover, in agreement with Indah (2017) and Yaralı and Aytar (2021) , this study also stated that EFL learners’ writing performance was influenced by critical thinking. Furthermore, in line with Al Sharadgah (2014) , this study also depicted that those benefiting from a high level of critical thinking abilities would show a more remarkable improvement in their writing. In line with Taghinezhad et al. (2018) , this study proved that critical thinking abilities would improve students’ writing performance. This study also corroborated Golpour’s (2014) finding that critical thinking abilities would play a crucial part in learners’ writing performance. In other words, high critical thinkers were better in writing compared to low critical thinkers.

Considering the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and their critical thinking, it was shown that these two variables were significantly correlated. This study is in line with Bagheri (2015) and Zarrinabadi et al. (2021) , who reported a significant relationship between CTA and language learning strategies. Besides, this study also confirmed Nikoopour et al. (2011) . They surveyed the relationship between CTA and the use of language learning strategies by Iranian language learners. Their findings revealed a significant correlation between cognitive, meta-cognitive, and social strategies with critical thinking. However, as opposed to the results of this study, no relationship was discovered between CTA and memory, compensation, and affective strategies. Besides, congruent with the findings of Ku and Ho (2010) , this study found “good critical thinkers” are more active in meta-cognitive activities. Furthermore, this study proved Mahmoodi and Dehghannezhad’s (2015) findings that there was a significant and positive correlation between CTA and language learning strategies.

Regarding the mediating role of critical thinking abilities in the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and their writing performances’, based on the statistical analysis, it was affirmed that CTA did not play a mediating role in the relationship between intermediate EFL learners’ learning strategies and their writing performances. As opposed to the researcher’s expectations, and as opposed to the fact that CTA was correlated with both learning strategies and writing performance, this study did not prove that CTA plays a significant role in the relationship between the other two variables. In other words, and surprisingly speaking, CTA does not guarantee the learners’ improvement in their writing performance.

In the present research, an effort was made to examine the importance of CTA to learners in general and their writing output in particular. As stated earlier, this analysis concluded that there was a significant association between CTA and the writing achievement of EFL intermediate learners. In addition, there was a significant association between learning methods and writing achievements. Furthermore, there was a significant association between the six subgroups of learning strategies and writing results. It was concluded that all the sub-sets of cognitive, metacognitive, memory-related, social, affective, and compensation strategies were highly correlated with writing performance, meaning the use of these strategies would lead to a better performance in the task of writing. In addition, as opposed to what the researcher had envisaged, it was proved that although CTA had correlations with both writing performance and learning strategies, it did not play a mediating role in the relationship between learning strategies and writing performance of intermediate EFL learners.

The present study’s findings have shown that more concentration should be placed on critical thinking abilities to enhance students’ academic writing performance. Based on the outcomes of the study, it could be concluded that students benefiting from a very high level of CTA did better in their performances than those lacking such a high degree. The findings of this study demonstrate that the students could be more prosperous in their performances if they learn to think critically and if they are aware of the strategies. This attitude can be helpful for all Iranian English students who wish to be competent in perfect performances, especially in their writing performances.

The construction of CTA and learning methods has given rise to looking at teaching, training, and evaluation differently. Taking into account students’ needs, desires, and abilities, CTA pedagogy provides resources for authentic learning. The findings of this study depict that the students could be more successful writers if they boost their CTA and their learning strategy use. This can help all Iranian English students who long to be proficient in perfect performances in their writing tasks. In addition, educators can forecast effective language behaviors by defining CTA learner profiles at various stages of growth. Teachers must also understand that different CTA-level learners vary in their learning. Teachers might benefit from the study’s findings to realize their students’ levels of CTA, and their use of learning strategies would help them develop a sense of competence while being prepared for a performance. CTA is a vital tool that would alleviate writing performance and operate as a practical way to improve the quality of language learning.

In the first place, the results of this study can help teachers know learners’ plans in learning writing and assist their students in being responsive to use learning plans in their learning steps and creating a good learning context for using learning plans. Thus, students can become self-sufficient and accept responsibility for their learning. Secondly, curriculum developers may take advantage of the findings to include learning strategies training into the curriculum. As a result, students can use strategies in their learning process more efficiently. The current study can also assist in solving the problems of EFL teachers and learners in enhancing the level of cognitive and meta-cognitive abilities. The results may apprise educators that assisting learners in increasing their level of analysis and monitoring in learning is vital in learning.

Data Availability Statement

Author contributions.

All authors listed have made a substantial, direct, and intellectual contribution to the work, and approved it for publication.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher’s Note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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Critical Thinking: Building a Key Foundation for Language and Literacy Success

Did you know that school curriculums around the world are increasing their focus on critical thinking skills? Experts on early childhood development agree that the basic skills of reading, writing and math are no longer enough – children also need to learn to think critically if they’re going to be successful in today’s complex world.

What Is Critical Thinking?

Critical thinking happens when children draw on their existing knowledge and experience, as well as on their problem-solving skills, to do things like:

• Compare and contrast
• Explain why things happen
• Evaluate ideas and form opinions
• Understand the perspectives of others
• Predict what will happen in the future
• Think of creative solutions

Why is critical thinking so important?

Critical thinking is a fundamental skills for both language and literacy success.

• Language − Language and critical thinking grow together and nurture each other’s development. As children engage in critical thinking, their language skills expand because they’re encouraged to develop and use more complex language with words like “because”, phrases with “if” and “then” and different verb tenses. Conversely, as children’s language development progresses, their ability to think critically grows as well.  
• Literacy − To truly understand the meaning of a book, children must be able to do more than recognize and sound out letters and words. They must also “read between the lines” to figure things out that are not actually stated in the book. To do this, they must use critical thinking skills like problem-solving, predicting and explaining. Encouraging this kind of thinking early in a child’s life prepares her for understanding the books she’ll read on her own later on.  

When and How Does Critical Thinking Develop?

Research shows that children begin to think critically at a very young age. These skills develop during the natural, back and forth conversations children have with the important adults in their lives.

As soon as children are able to speak in sentences, they’re ready for you − the parent, caregiver or educator − to nurture the critical thinking skills that will prepare them for success in school. Whether you’re reading a book or taking a walk in the park, any time is a good time to build critical thinking.

Tips for Building Critical Thinking – It’s all about the E’s and P’s!

Use the arrows to scroll through the E’s and P’s and get a fun tip from the 2016 Calendar for promoting each one!

Helpful articles on critical thinking

More Than ABCs: Building the Critical Thinking Skills Your Child Needs for Literacy Success Get more fun tips on building children’s E’s and P’s during book reading. Read article

Teaching Children to Think: Meeting the Demands of the 21st Century Learn more about the evolving role of early childhood educators and what governments around the world are doing to increase the focus on critical thinking. Read article

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Critical Issues in Cybersecurity Litigation

In the domain of cybersecurity, litigation poses a significant threat to organizations, as the consequences of a data breach or cyberattack can lead to costly lawsuits, reputational damage, and financial losses. Evolving legal standards and liability frameworks, such as those established in the Yahoo! and Equifax cases, hold organizations accountable for protecting sensitive information. Regulatory compliance, incident response, and crisis management are vital in mitigating liability, while third-party vendor risk management and cyber insurance coverage can further reduce exposure. Effective electronic discovery and evidence protocols, as well as crisis communications, are also indispensable in managing complex litigation. Understanding these critical issues is paramount to developing a thorough cybersecurity strategy.

Table of Contents

Evolving Legal Standards and Liability

As the cybersecurity landscape continues to shift, a growing body of case law is establishing new legal standards and liability frameworks for organizations to navigate. This evolution is vital, as it sets the tone for how courts will hold organizations accountable for cybersecurity breaches. Court precedents, such as the Yahoo! and Equifax cases, have established that organizations have a duty to protect sensitive information and can be held liable for failing to do so. These precedents have also highlighted the importance of implementing reasonable security measures and disclosing breaches in a timely manner.

Jury expectations also play a significant part in shaping these legal standards. As cybersecurity awareness increases among the general public, juries are becoming more sophisticated in their understanding of cybersecurity issues. This shift in jury expectations puts pressure on organizations to demonstrate that they have taken adequate measures to prevent breaches and respond effectively in the event of an incident. As a consequence, organizations must stay abreast of emerging legal standards and liability frameworks to mitigate the risk of litigation and reputational damage. By doing so, they can reduce their exposure to costly lawsuits and maintain the trust of their customers and stakeholders.

Data Privacy and Regulatory Compliance

Organizations must navigate a complex web of data privacy regulations, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), to maintain compliance and avoid severe penalties. Failure to comply can lead to significant fines, reputational damage, and legal liability. To mitigate these risks, organizations must implement robust data privacy measures, such as data anonymization, to protect sensitive information.

Organizations should adopt privacy frameworks that align with these regulations to guarantee compliance. By implementing data anonymization and other privacy measures, organizations can reduce the risk of data breaches and non-compliance. Additionally, adopting a privacy framework can help organizations demonstrate compliance and mitigate legal liability in the event of a data breach or regulatory audit.

Note that a data breach or regulatory audit can have severe consequences, including fines, reputational damage, and legal action.

Incident Response and Crisis Management

What happens when a data breach or cyberattack occurs, and an organization's defenses are breached? The aftermath can be chaotic, with sensitive data compromised, reputations tarnished, and legal liabilities looming. Effective incident response and crisis management are vital to mitigating the damage. A well-crafted Crisis Plan should be in place, outlining emergency protocols for containment, assessment, and remediation. This plan should identify key stakeholders, assign tasks and responsibilities, and establish communication channels. Emergency Protocols should be triggered immediately, involving law enforcement, forensic specialist, and legal counsel as necessary. The response team should prioritize data containment, network isolation, and system restoration, while also addressing stakeholder concerns and managing public perception. Throughout the crisis, incident response teams must maintain meticulous records, documenting every step taken to respond to the breach. By having a robust Crisis Plan and Emergency Protocols in place, organizations can minimize the impact of a cyberattack, reduce legal exposure, and maintain business continuity.

Third-Party Vendor Risk Management

Effective third-party vendor risk management is critical to preventing cybersecurity breaches. A thorough approach involves evaluating vendor cybersecurity posture, conducting thorough due diligence, and allocating risk through contractual provisions. By implementing these measures, organizations can mitigate the likelihood of vendor-related security incidents and associated litigation.

Assessing Vendor Cybersecurity

Evaluating the cybersecurity posture of third-party vendors is a vital component of managing risk in today's interconnected business landscape. Organizations rely on vendors to provide goods and services, but these relationships can introduce significant cybersecurity risks. To mitigate these risks, it is imperative to evaluate the cybersecurity practices of vendors.

Conducting vendor audits is a pivotal step in evaluating vendor cybersecurity. These audits should review the vendor's security policies, procedures, and controls to verify they conform to industry standards and good practices. Additionally, supply chain assessments can help identify potential vulnerabilities in the vendor's supply chain, which can have a ripple effect on an organization's own cybersecurity.

Organizations should also consider the vendor's cybersecurity certifications, such as SOC 2 or ISO 27001, as well as their incident response plan and breach notification procedures. By taking a proactive approach to evaluating vendor cybersecurity, organizations can better manage risk and prevent potential cybersecurity breaches. Effective vendor risk management requires ongoing monitoring and evaluation to confirm that vendors continue to meet the organization's cybersecurity standards.

Due Diligence Process

A thorough due diligence process is vital for third-party vendor risk management, as it enables organizations to meticulously assess the cybersecurity posture of potential vendors before onboarding them. This process involves an exhaustive evaluation of the vendor's security controls, policies, and procedures to identify potential risks and vulnerabilities.

During the due diligence process, organizations should:

• Conduct security audits to assess the vendor's compliance with industry standards and regulations
• Review the vendor's incident response plan to verify it aligns with the organization's own incident response plan
• Evaluate the vendor's cybersecurity governance structure to guarantee accountability and oversight
• Analyze the vendor's mergers and acquisitions history to identify potential security risks inherited from previous targets

Contractual Risk Allocation

In third-party vendor risk management, contractual risk allocation plays a vital function in establishing clear boundaries and responsibilities for cybersecurity obligations between organizations and their vendors. This allocation is essential in determining the extent of liability in the event of a cybersecurity breach. Effective contractual risk allocation involves risk shifting, where the party most capable of managing a particular risk assumes the responsibility.

Cyber Insurance Coverage and Disputes

As organizations increasingly rely on cyber insurance to mitigate the financial impact of cyberattacks, disputes over policy coverage and claims handling are becoming more prevalent. Ambiguities in policy language can lead to disagreements between insurers and policyholders regarding the scope of coverage, while claims handling disputes can arise from disagreements over the handling and processing of claims. These issues can have significant implications for organizations seeking to recover losses from cyber incidents, highlighting the need for careful policy review and effective claims management strategies.

Policy Language Ambiguities

Ambiguous policy language, a perennial source of controversy in cyber insurance coverage disputes, frequently stems from vague definitions of key terms, such as 'cyber attack' or 'security breach'. This lack of clarity can lead to policy gaps, where insureds are left without coverage for unforeseen events. The interpretation of ambiguous policy language often favors the insurer, leaving the insured to bear the financial burden of a cyber incident.

• Insurers may exploit policy ambiguities to deny claims, leaving businesses vulnerable to financial losses.
• The lack of standardization in policy language creates uncertainty, making it difficult for insureds to understand their coverage.
• Ambiguity in policy language can lead to costly litigation, diverting resources away from cyber defense.
• In the wake of a cyber attack, unclear policy language can exacerbate the crisis, causing further reputational damage.

To mitigate these risks, it is crucial for insureds to carefully review policy language, identifying potential gaps and ambiguities. By doing so, they can negotiate with insurers to clarify policy terms, providing them with adequate coverage in the event of a cyber incident.

Claims Handling Disputes

Disputes frequently arise during the claims handling process when cyber insurers unreasonably delay or deny claims, sparking contentious debates over policy coverage and interpretation. These disputes often center on insurance gaps, where policyholders believe they have coverage for a specific type of cyber incident, only to find that the insurer disagrees. Policy exclusions, which are often vaguely drafted, can also lead to claims handling disputes. Insurers may argue that a particular exclusion applies, while policyholders contend that it does not.

In such cases, policyholders may claim that the insurer is engaging in bad faith by denying or delaying payment. Conversely, insurers may argue that policyholders failed to comply with policy requirements or misrepresented facts during the application process. The consequences of these disputes can be severe, with policyholders facing financial ruin and reputational damage. It is vital for policyholders to carefully review their policies and understand the scope of coverage, as well as the claims handling process, to minimize the risk of disputes. Effective claims handling is key to maintaining trust between policyholders and insurers, and resolving disputes efficiently is vital to maintaining that cyber insurance remains a viable risk management tool.

Electronic Discovery and Evidence

Electronically stored information (ESI) has become a crucial component of litigation in cybersecurity cases, necessitating a thorough understanding of electronic discovery and evidence protocols to ensure the admissibility and integrity of digital evidence. As cybersecurity incidents increasingly involve complex digital trails, the importance of effective data retrieval and digital forensics cannot be overstated.

In the context of electronic discovery, it is essential to consider the following critical factors:

• Data Preservation : Ensuring that potentially relevant ESI is properly preserved to prevent spoliation or loss of critical evidence.
• Data Mapping : Identifying and understanding the location, scope, and complexity of ESI to inform discovery strategies.
• Digital Chain of Custody : Maintaining a meticulous record of the handling, storage, and transfer of digital evidence to establish its authenticity and integrity.
• Early Case Assessment : Conducting a rapid and thorough review of ESI to identify key issues, risks, and opportunities, enabling informed litigation strategies.

Crisis Communications and Reputation

As the digital footprint of cybersecurity incidents expands, effective crisis communications and reputation management become vital components of litigation strategy, enabling organizations to mitigate reputational damage and maintain stakeholder trust. In the aftermath of a cyberattack, swift and transparent communication is vital to salvaging an organization's reputation. This requires a well-planned crisis messaging strategy that addresses the concerns of various stakeholders, including customers, investors, and regulators. A key aspect of reputation salvage is to establish a narrative that acknowledges the incident, outlines remedial measures, and demonstrates a commitment to preventing future breaches. Effective crisis messaging must be concise, empathetic, and consistent across all communication channels. It is imperative to have a dedicated crisis communications team in place, equipped with the necessary skills and resources to respond promptly and effectively. By doing so, organizations can limit reputational damage, maintain stakeholder trust, and ultimately reduce the financial and legal implications of a cybersecurity incident.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can cybersecurity experts testify as expert witnesses in court?.

In court proceedings, cybersecurity professionals can testify as witness authorities if they meet Witness Qualifications, demonstrating unique knowledge and proficiency. Admissibility Standards, such as Daubert or Frye, govern witness authority testimony, guaranteeing trustworthy and pertinent evidence is presented to the court.

Are Cybersecurity Attacks Considered Acts of War or Terrorism?

Cybersecurity attacks, depending on severity and intent, can be considered acts of war or terrorism, warranting National Security protocols and International Cooperation to combat and prosecute perpetrators, protecting critical infrastructure and maintaining global stability.

What Is the Role of AI in Detecting and Preventing Cybercrimes?

In cybersecurity, AI plays a crucial function in detecting and preventing cybercrimes through advanced threat intelligence and real-time analytics, while upholding AI ethics are maintained, and cyber forensics are integrated to facilitate incident response and evidence-based prosecution.

Can Companies Be Sued for Not Implementing Adequate Cybersecurity Measures?

Companies can face legal action for failing to implement adequate cybersecurity measures, exposing them to cyber liability claims and allegations of corporate negligence, particularly in cases of data breaches or unauthorized access to sensitive information.

Do Cybersecurity Laws Vary Significantly Across Different Countries?

Cybersecurity laws indeed vary substantially across countries, driven by diverse approaches to data sovereignty and cross-border compliance, leading to a complex regulatory landscape that necessitates nuanced understanding and adaptability for global organizations.

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