One also has to be confident in the thinking process. As we judge our thoughts and are confident in what we do, then there are usually positive actions from our responses
Discipline is essential to the critical thinking process. Any process needs discipline if it is to be carried out on a regular basis and continually refined and honed. Just like exercise of the body promotes health and agility, the critical thinking process is an exercise with needs discipline and regular utilization in order to become better at the process and more effective at the utilization of the process.
Victoria,
I agree that this type of support is needed by our students. They need to develop self discipline and rigor in their ability to propose solutions to problems and then think critically about how the solutions would work in that situation. Many of them don't want to invest the time nor the effort to be that type of critical thinkers and limits them as them move into their career.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I agree with the information of this course, students don't want to do an extra effort, generally they want everything already digested. I really think that depends on us as lecturers or professors to be strict and teach them even as an adults to be more disciplined like: be on time for your class, deliver their assingments on time, make reviews each class to check if they are understanding your class.
Jennifer,
Great advice that you are giving. Was talking with a young person the other day in a culinary arts program in one of our local community colleges and he was complaining that the only sites he could find to work in to gain experience wanted him to work nights and weekends. He didn't want to do either because those times conflicted with his social time. Thinking that he may not be thinking accurately in terms of what a career in culinary arts really entails.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I see this all the time in my classes because I have such s diverse student mix. Some students have spent 10 years in the food industry and then come to school to get to the next level, while other students have never worked in a restaurant or just graduated high school. There are often less experienced students that complain about how hard it is to find an externship or job that doesn't require nights/weekends or pay well. I always have to remind them that they have to put in the time and get some experience before they can expect any "breaks". Just because you're earning a degree doesn't mean you will automatically be an executive chef.
Patricia,
I agree with your comments about the need for personal discipline. Many of the students I have do not want to develop self discipline because it involves effort. They just want to do a Goggle search and move on. I strive to help them to understand that a critical thinker and problem solver is going to be valued in the workplace and thus be more successful.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Personal discipline helps with critical thinking because a person will take time to research, listen and explore different thoughts and perspective of subjects. Personal discipline = learning and learning brings on more educated descision making.
Richard,
Personal discipline seems to be lacking in many of the students that enroll in our schools today. I encounter it all the time with my students. They don't want to invest the time or effort to "think" through a problem and come up with viable solutions. It takes effort to slow them down and help them see the value of a comprehensive approach to critical thinking and the pay off that will come from it.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Critical thinking and the decisions that result from that exercise often affect more than that particular individual. Because of this potential "ripple effect", personal responsibility and accountability play a significant role when one initiates the critical thinking process. Discilpine (especially personal discipline) "fuels" the engine that drives the decision. Attention to detail, analysis of data, and effective response time are a must! These can create difficult challenges, especially when a technologically-programmed culture demands fast, simple, and generic. By practicing discipline throughout the critical thinking process, one tends to be less distracted by outside influences, and better able to keep their decision-making focus self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored and self-corrective.
Richard,
Flailing seems to be the most common approach today for many students. They don't want to take the time to develop skills that will help them to be problem solvers, they just want to google something and call it good. You make a number of very good points in relation to how students need to proceed with their critical thinking development.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Time management; without that no thinking can be terribly efficient. Also focus, if you are wandering through different ideas and thoughts keeping on track is impossible, not to mention deciding what the best of several ideas are. Then too the old adage, "Fail to plan, plan to fail" has a lot of truth to it. Flailing around makes it very difficult to be successful in any consistent fashion.
Jessica,
Great definition of personal discipline. This is what our students need to understand and develop if they are going to be successful in their careers.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Betty,
Thank you for these comments. In our "entitlement culture" self discipline has taken a real hit. Students do not want to invest the time nor effort in the development of this most important skill. Self discipline makes career development possible. The more our students invest in their education and career growth the more their careers will grow. They need to get a grasp on the fact that just because they paid tuition to go to school they did not buy an A. They must earn a grade based upon hard work and personal discipline.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Having personal discipline means that one can dedicate time to, and focus on, the task at hand. This means that one will take the necessary time to thoroughly explore the issue so that the best judgment/decision is made. Discipline is a crucial trait to develop in becoming an effective critical thinker.
Personal discipline is a must in critical thinking. As mentioned by others, people like instant gratification; most don't want to have to think or "work" for an answer. They are used to being catered to either by others or technology. I believe that we as parents and instructors must lead to learning personal discipline. We shouldn't always make the decisions for our children; instead, we should guide them in how to make sound decisions.
Christopher,
Thank you for your analysis because I think it is right on target. Technology has given us so much but it still boils down to the human factor when it comes to problem solving. To be good at it requires a lot of effort and discipline as you mention. The challenge is getting our Gen Ys to see the value of this approach.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
It strikes me that the Gen Y students that populate so many of my courses seem to lack discipline as we define it here, which is curious as they seem adept in self educating when so inspired (they can navigate through the nuances of the newest phone/apps with an impressive amount of focus). The quality that seems lacking is the ability to take one's time and not be satisfied with the fastest or easiest answer, and often this is where they fall short. In moving straight to the "what", they often miss the "why", and discipline allows you to gain that piece of the puzzle and allows critical thinking to truly take place. I think that those who educate see this more clearly, as being prepared to answer a range of questions or explain something in more than one way is so very important to make our students understand.
Very true as to the type of students we see in the class room and steps toward involving their critical thinking skills.
Mardi,
Thank you for making these comments about discipline. You are right that it is often though of as being negative rather than an essential skill needed for success. Helping them to see the value of self discipline is a challenge and it takes a lot of examples before they start to slowly see that discipline is what it takes to create a future for themselves. An example I use about self discipline is the within six weeks of starting a diet or exercise program 96% of the people will have quit. This piece of data says a lot about discipline in our country today.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
