importance of critical thinking in education pdf

The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Thinking in Higher Education pp 593–603 Cite as

Critical Thinking for Educated Citizenship

• Monique Volman &
• Geert ten Dam  

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10 Citations

Among the competences that are considered necessary for a democratic way of living are “consideration for others,” “helping others,” and “caring for each other” (Westheimer and Kahne 2004). In the past few decades, however, it has been emphasized that a democratic, pluriform society not only requires citizens to be prepared to make their own contributions to society, but also to do that in a critical way (see Ten Dam and Volman 2004; Wardekker 2001). Nowadays people are not expected to “know their place” but to “determine their own position.” Of course, the extent to which a “critical” approach is valued and by whom differs, but “to be critical” has become an undeniable part of Western culture; a critical approach is frequently appreciated more than subservient accommodation. In this vein, definitions of “good citizenship” imply that citizens are willing and able to critically evaluate different perspectives, explore strategies for change and reflect upon issues of justice, (in)equality, and democratic engagement in addition to a capacity to function in a socially accepted and responsible manner within a community (Westheimer 2008). This also requires making choices and knowing why you are making that choice, respecting the choices and opinions of others, communicating about these, thereby forming your own opinion, and making it known. The interest since the 1980s in “critical thinking” as an educational goal reflects these new competences that citizenship in modern society demands.

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© 2015 Martin Davies and Ronald Barnett

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Volman, M., ten Dam, G. (2015). Critical Thinking for Educated Citizenship. In: Davies, M., Barnett, R. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Thinking in Higher Education. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137378057_35

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Critical thinking definition

Critical thinking, as described by Oxford Languages, is the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgement.

Active and skillful approach, evaluation, assessment, synthesis, and/or evaluation of information obtained from, or made by, observation, knowledge, reflection, acumen or conversation, as a guide to belief and action, requires the critical thinking process, which is why it's often used in education and academics.

Some even may view it as a backbone of modern thought.

However, it's a skill, and skills must be trained and encouraged to be used at its full potential.

People turn up to various approaches in improving their critical thinking, like:

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Usage of critical thinking comes down not only to the outline of your paper, it also begs the question: How can we use critical thinking solving problems in our writing's topic?

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