Developing Critical Thinking

From Theory to Classroom Practice

Edited by Fernando Naiditch

Publication date:

21 November 2016

Length of book:

196 pages

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

ISBN-13: 9781475818925

Critical thinking requires a deep understanding of the topic at hand and the ability to look at content from diverse, and often unfamiliar, perspectives. Critical thinkers engage with material in innovative and creative ways to analyze, synthesize and assess it in order to reach their own informed conclusions. Developing Critical Thinking: From Theory to Classroom Practice invites readers to revisit their pedagogy to promote this type of inquiry. Scholars and practitioners from several content areas introduce several examples of instructional strategies, classroom practices, and projects at multiple grade levels. Their experiences come together to highlight practical ways to foster students’ critical thinking skills and encourage them to engage in learning in new ways.

Acknowledgments
Introduction: Teaching and Learning Critical Thinking
Fernando Naiditch, Montclair State University, USA
Chapter 1: Understanding Critical Thinking – What is it? Can we teach it? How do we learn it?
Fernando Naiditch,Montclair State University, USA
Chapter 2: Philosophy for Children and Critical Thinking: Creating a Space for Children to Think in a Kindergarten Classroom
Olivier Michaud,Université du Québec à Rimouski, Québec, Canada
Chapter 3: Critical Thinking in Action: A Collaborative Early Childhood Approach to Curriculum Design
Elizabeth Quintero,California State University, Channel Islands, USA
Chapter 4: Promoting Respect through Collaboration: A School Responds to Bullying by Engaging the Community
Jean Ann Slusarczyk & Lucy Villaluz,Franklin Elementary School, Bloomfield, NJ, USA
Chapter 5: Co-construction as a Critical Approach to Mathematics Education
Mark Russo,Pascack Valley Regional High School District, NJ, USA
Chapter 6: Critical Pedagogy and the Teaching of Reading for Social Action
Fernando Naiditch,Montclair State University, USA
Chapter 7: Think Critically and Act Collaboratively: A Critical Framework for Teaching Students with Special Needs
Mark Alter and Joan Rosenberg,New York University, USA
Chapter 8: Creativity and Motivation in the Teaching and Learning Process
Bettina Steren dos Santos, Carla Spagnolo, and Caroline Buker, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Chapter 9: Critical Second Language Pedagogy: Lessons Learned from Teaching Students in Poverty
Fernando Naiditch,Montclair State University, USA
Afterword: Encouraging Teachers’ Growth and Development using Practitioner Research
Kathryn Herr,Montclair State University, USA
About the Editor
About the Contributors

Developing Critical Thinking presents a courageous and progressive voice to the educational discourse, bridging theory and practice. Each chapter is a subtle and persuasive theory of action that encourages teacher growth and development through critical teaching frameworks that blend research with the science of care. The contributors to this wonderful edited volume give new meaning to the now popular idea of 'critical thinking,' opening a new world of possibility where thought begins in the soul. This is a definitive text. It is essential reading.