Ideas to Action (I2A)
Using Critical Thinking to Foster
Student Learning and Community Engagement
Presentation for
Psychological & Brain Sciences Faculty
April 28, 2008
Introductions
• I2A Team
Dr. Patty Payette Dr. Cathy Bays Dr. Edna Ross
Executive Director
Delphi Specialist
for Assessment
Delphi Specialist
for Critical Thinking
Hannah Anthony, Program Assistant Senior
Ideas to Action Implementation
Ideas to Action (I2A): Using Critical
Thinking to Foster Student Learning
and Community Engagement is our
Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP),
and we need to show measurable
progress to the Southern
Association of Colleges and Schools
(SACS) by April 2012.
I2A and “Connecting the Dots”
“Our extensive consultation with all University constituencies
yielded a surprisingly strong and clear call for education
focused on the skills and knowledge needed to deal with
real-world issues and problems, an education in which
students can see the importance of the parts (the
courses) to the whole (their education as citizens and
workers).” [QEP Report, 2007]
skills and
knowledge
real-world issues the parts to the
& problems
whole
http://louisville.edu/ideastoaction/files/finalreport.pdf
I2A: What are the components?
Sharpen our
existing focus
on building
critical thinking
skills in the
general
education
program…
…..continuing
through
undergraduate
major courses
with an emphasis
on applying and
refining those
skills…
…resulting in a
culminating
experience, such
as a senior
thesis, research,
service learning
project,
internship, or
capstone project
that fosters
engagement
I2A Thematic Priority: Community Engagement
Central Messages about I2A
• Prompted by Undergraduate Program Accreditation
• Enhancement of critical thinking, student engagement
• Psychological & Brain Sciences Department an exemplar
• Renewed focus on community engagement
• Assessment process under development
• Some programs in place; more being developed
U of L Strategic Plan 2020:
http://louisville.edu/provost/fromtheprovostitems/stratplan0308.html
Critical Thinking Definition
adopted for I2A
Critical thinking is
the intellectually disciplined process
that results in
a guide to belief and action.
(From: Scriven and Paul, 2003)
A Well-Cultivated Critical Thinker:
 Raises vital questions and problems, formulating them
clearly and precisely
 Gathers and assesses relevant information, using abstract
ideas to interpret it effectively
 Comes to well-reasoned conclusions and solutions, testing
them against relevant criteria and standards
 Thinks open mindedly within alternative systems of
thought, recognizing and assessing, as needs be, their
assumptions, implications, and practical consequences
 Communicates effectively with others in figuring out
solutions to complex problems
(Richard Paul and Linda Elder, the Foundation for Critical Thinking:
http://www.criticalthinking.org/)
Richard Paul-Linda Elder
Critical Thinking Model
Intellectual Standards
must be applied to
The Elements of Thought
in order to develop
Intellectual Traits
which will produce a well-cultivated
Critical Thinker
Intellectual Standards
CLARITY
ACCURACY
PRECISION
RELEVANCE
DEPTH
BREADTH
LOGIC
SIGNIFICANCE
FAIRNESS
COMPLETENESS
Miniature Guide, 2008, p. 8-10
Miniature Guide, 2008, p. 3-6
The Intellectual Traits
• Intellectual Humility • Intellectual Integrity
• Intellectual Courage • Intellectual
Perseverance
• Intellectual Empathy
• Confidence in
• Intellectual
Reason
Autonomy
• Fairmindedness
Miniature Guide, 2008, p. 13-15
Paul Elder Critical Thinking Model
Pilot Program
• The specific components of the PaulElder model of critical thinking were
used to adapt an existing assignment or
to create or revise a new assignment in
which one outcome is to foster a
specific critical thinking skill(s).
Paul Elder Model Pilot
Program Participants
William A Brantley--Communications
Karen Chandler--English
Julia Dietrich--English
Stuart Esrock--Communications
Gerald Evans--Engineering
Karen Gray--Humanities
William Hoston—Physics
Rich Lewine--Psychology
Mary Makris—Modern Languages
Carol S O'Neal—College of Education and Human Development
Edna Ross--Psychology
Robert S Urekew--Philosophy
Psych 201 Assignment:
1. INTRODUCTION
What basic question is the Experimenter trying to answer? What is the general problem
area?
2. METHODS
a)
What or who were the experimental subjects?
b)
What task did they perform, or what test(s) did they take, or what characteristic(s) were
measured?
c)
What was the design of the study? Was it experimental or correlational?
If experimental: Were there different groups of subjects or were the same subjects exposed
to different treatments at different times, or both? What independent variable or
variables were manipulated? What dependent variable or variables were measured?
If correlational: How many variables were measured, and what were they?
3. RESULTS
What were the results? Did groups differ in performance, or did subjects' performance
differ under as a result of treatment? If correlational, what were the relationships found
among the variables measured?
4. DISCUSSION
What are the implications of the study? What questions remain for further research?
This is the section to summarize the contribution of the study to research in the area of
the study focus.
BEFORE
Psych 201 Assignment
1. What is the main purpose of this article?
(State as accurately as possible the author’s purpose for writing the article or for doing the research.)
2. What is (are) the important question(s) the author of this article is trying to address?
(Figure out the key question(s) in the mind of the author when s/he wrote the article about the research that was conducted.)
3. What kind of study was done? (Case study, survey, etc.)
3a. Justify your answer as to why it is what you say it is.
3b. What are the independent and dependent variables?
3c. Who are the subjects?
4. What facts, data, evidence or experiences does the author use to address the important question of the article?
5. What are the main inferences/conclusions in this article?
(Identify the key conclusions the author comes to and presents in the article)
6. Do the author’s conclusions follow from the data/evidence presented? Why or why not?
7a. What are the implications if we take the author’s line of reasoning seriously? (What consequences are likely to follow if
people take the author's line of reasoning seriously?)
7b. What are the implications if we fail to take the author’s line of reasoning seriously?
(What consequences are likely to follow if people ignore the author's reasoning?)
AFTER
Psych 201 Assignment
• Instead of summarizing, we
are now asking students to
critically analyze.
Some reactions from Pilot Program
Participants
• “Being involved [in this program] reinvigorated my
teaching.”
• “Very helpful to hear other [instructors] talk about their
experiences teaching critical thinking.”
• “I’m becoming a better teacher because of [this program].”
• “I spend more time thinking about how the students think
and I also spend more time explaining to students why I do
things in a certain way.”
New Program Coming
for Fall ‘08
Faculty Learning Community
on Critical Thinking
• A community of 10-12 faculty members
• Cross-disciplinary ongoing dialogue, structured
activities & reflection
• Sustained and scholarly support for instructional
design and assessment principles
• Use of the Paul-Elder critical thinking model
What are the goals/objectives?
• To increase and enhance faculty engagement in I2A
• To increase and enhance faculty expertise and application of
the Paul-Elder critical thinking model in a specific course
• To create a library of faculty and student artifacts related to
I2A implementation
• To increase faculty collaboration across disciplines
• To develop a cohort of FLC graduates who can serve as I2A
advocates after completing the program
• To nourish scholarly teaching and the scholarship of teaching
and its application to I2A and student learning.
Who is eligible?
• Any part-time, term, tenure track, or
tenured faculty member who will be
teaching during Fall 2008 may be
nominated.
• The I2A FLC can include faculty
members with and without prior
experience with I2A and/or the Paul
Elder critical thinking model.
For more information
Please visit:
http://louisville.edu/ideastoaction