How to help students understand the need to critically think
I find that students in my classes want to know what is going to be on their tests and the answers they need to study. This takes the critical thinking aspect out of the equation. It does not help if someone else teaching the same subject will do this. It can also hurt class retention when the students want this and do not get it. Often they stop coming and do not seek or accept help. Students become overwhelmed by the amount of material they need to study in a short period of time which is what happens in excelerated learning programs.
I have prepared a study guide of what they need to know about to pass the tests but some students are not satisfied with this. I also emphasize things by saying they need to know this. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Alexandra,
Great strategies for a beginning instructor. You are offering a variety of ways for the students to get and remember the content. The "think-pair-share" is very effective as you mention. Keep up the good work of providing all the different forms of input for your students.
Gary
As a fresh college grad, I know and understand the importance of critical thinking in a student's education. As a new instructor I utilize techniques such as redirecting lower order questions (i.e. yes/no questions). This immediately engages the students to find the answer for themselves through analysis. I also try and ask only open-ended, higher-order questions where critical thinking is absolutely necessary.
In the first few weeks of teaching I have also found that my students request a VERY thorough study guide. For every class I prepare a powerpoint that covers all the content they need to know in order to prepare for their exam, yet I still find them wanting a word-for-word handout of the test as a study guide.
What I have found that seems to be working well (i.e. the student's test grades are improving) is setting aside time for a review session utilizing a technique called think-pair-share. I ask a similar question to the test question based off my power point slides, I ask them to individually answer the question, pair up with a partner to discuss their reasoning behind why they came up with that particular answer, and finally to share their reasoning with the class. If there is wide spread confusion I spend extra time going over that particular content area in many ways (lecturing, videos/images, and/or having them physically doing it themselves if applicable).
I have used this method as well. I find that pointing out key material and connecting the dots with the students helps too.
Marilyn
Hi Amjad,
Problem solving and critical thinking is going to be a part of their daily lives. The more experience they can gain in this area the better their careers are going to progress. Keep up the good work.
Gary
The critical thinking part of the course is the true indicator of whether the student has grasped the concept and can then apply that knowledge to answer a clinical question (I teach a course in Allied Health). For many students this is challenging and want to avoid. But I always include this question format in my tests. I tell the students that every time they are going to be with a patient, a clinical question needs to be addressed. Just keep 'plugging' away.
One technique I've used in my classes is what I'd call a guided quiz. My students have difficulty with some of the more abstract concepts that they need to comprehend in order to develop their critical thinking skills. At the end of class, I list 5 questions on the board: this will be the quick quiz at the beginning of next class. The questions are based on the key concepts that we have covered in that class session. This also serves as a review and an encouragement since they can easily score 100%. The weaker students sometimes have to email me for the answers, especially those with poor note taking and reading skills. I'm sometimes surprised at the incorrect answers the stronger students give--but they have time to re-adjust their understanding before they get even more confused.
James,
I have found that if I give the students access to a copy of the PowerPoint presentation they are more likely to take additional notes on them. When I did not do this I found that they were spending so much time trying to take every note down that they were not listening to the other information being given. It also works as a good study tool, but I always stress they need to read the chapter as well.
according to our hand book 30 min before each class time
Hi James,
I would suggest that you give your students guided notes. These are outlines of the course lectures with certain key elements missing. As you the instructor go through the lecture they can fill in these points. This is a good re-enforcer of the students. Doing home work is a good thing for the students as well. This puts them into a commitment position since they have to invest some time and effort to acquire the knowledge and skills of the course.
Gary
As a new instructor my question is how to guide the student along with his studies and the preperation for the outcome of tests. Is it incorrect to have small amounts of home work on the harder portions of the material? do things like you will see this again help in ongoing class reminders?
Hi Dianne,
You are doing the right things. I would add to your list the use of guided notes. They help the students to work through the lectures and capture the essential content which in turn becomes questions on the tests.
Somewhere in the learning process responsibility has to come into play for the students. Giving them the answers to the quiz questions does take away their ability to problem solve and think for themselves a requirement when working. I try to push this point very hard with my students.
Gary
