Critical thinking continues to be one of the most important skills that employers seek in the workplace.

The leading global consulting firm, McKinsey & Company recently reported that cognitive skills, which include critical thinking, are essential to future-proof individuals’ ability to work.  Of 56 ‘distinct elements of talent’ (or DELTAS), cognitive skills represent 16.  Critical thinkers, according to McKinsey & Company, are able to problem solve, reason with logic, mitigate bias, and discern fact from fiction (Dondi et al., 2021).

But critical thinking isn’t just about gaining the necessary skills for the world of work. It is widely accepted that the ability to think critically drives innovation, informs participatory democracy, and enables individuals to counter ever increasing avenues of misinformation (Ellerton, 2022). A universal understanding of logical structures benefits society when individuals can evaluate claims and arguments objectively.

It’s no wonder then that ‘critical and creative thinking’ remains a priority in Version 9.0 of the Australian Curriculum. As such, the explicit teaching of critical thinking is an expectation of all teachers within Townsville Catholic Education. The problem is that critical thinking is tricky to understand and even trickier to incorporate into a busy curriculum schedule. However, if improving individuals’ capacity to participate in society, whilst maintaining a competitive edge in the modern business environment, is a goal of education, and it can be achieved by cultivating critical thinking skills, it is important to ask how critical thinking skills are defined, how such skills can be developed, and when is it best to develop them.

What is Critical Thinking?

Critical thinking is not easy to define. This is partly due to differing beliefs about the relationship between thinking and knowledge. Is critical thinking foundational for the creation of knowledge or is a rigorous knowledge base required before critical thought can take place? There are arguments for both positions with evidence to back up each (for examples, see Ellerton, 2020; Willingham, 2008).

Regardless of the philosophical nature of critical thinking, it would be logical to assume that thinking cannot happen in a vacuum and must draw on pre-existing knowledge. But sometimes, we ‘don’t know what we don’t know’ and it is our critical thinking that indicates where further information is needed. Critical thinking, therefore, starts with the individual and their ability to question and challenge their own assumptions and knowledge. The development of metacognitive skills, and understanding one’s own thinking, is a key aspect of critical thinking.

Some definitions of critical thinking refer to ideas of ‘higher-order thinking’ or ‘general reasoning abilities’ and state that critical thinking is a pre-requisite component of problem solving. The Australian Curriculum general capability of Critical and Creative Thinking explains that:

‘critical thinking involves students analysing and assessing possibilities against criteria for judgement. They construct and evaluate arguments, and use information, evidence and logic to draw reasoned conclusions and to solve problems’. (ACARA, n.d.)

Dr Peter Ellerton, curriculum director of the University of Queensland’s Critical Thinking Project, argues that it is crucial to understand the defining characteristics of critical thinkers alongside a definition of critical thinking. An analogy he describes is from the world of sport: it would be meaningless to consider the theoretical constructs of athletics without considering the athlete; the long jump is just a sandpit without someone to complete the jump. Many of us, like the Olympian long-jumper, possess the necessary skills to complete the long jump, but without dedicated time, effort and training, few of us will be able to take home a gold medal in long jump at the next Olympics. The same is true for critical thinking; the innate ability to think does not automatically grant a place at the philosophers’ table. Taking time to teach, nurture, and develop critical thinking skills is required.

So, how do we help our students become expert critical thinkers? What are the skills we need to dedicate our time to develop? The Australian Curriculum offers some assistance, again within the context of the general capabilities:

‘Dispositions such as inquisitiveness, reasonableness, intellectual flexibility, open- and fair-mindedness, and a readiness to try new ways of doing things are enhanced by critical and creative thinking. Students consider alternatives and develop persistence throughout the learning continuum.’ (ACARA, n.d.)

Critical thinking then is not merely about being ‘smart’, but rather about a set of specific dispositions and attitudes that a critical thinker possesses. As Ellerton emphasises, it is the quality of thinking, which can be positioned against the so-called values of inquiry, that is of greater concern to teachers than the complexity of the problem being thought about.

When should we start to cultivate the dispositions of critical thinking in our learners?

Nurturing critical thinking should begin in the early years of education. It’s perhaps easier to identify the dispositions of critical thinking in younger learners; few would argue against exploratory play as beneficial for early development. Yet, as learners progress through school, curriculum content demands leave less and less time to focus on critical thinking development. Careful consideration of the role of critical thinking in all year levels is important.

That’s because the evidence shows that efficient critical thinking impacts educational outcomes. For example, Noremore et al. (2024) found that a critical thinking approach to the teaching of writing improved NAPLAN scores from Year 4 onwards whilst other researchers, working with Year 1 students, confirmed that an explicit focus on the teaching of thinking promotes cognitive development and enhances general reasoning ability (Adey et al., 2002; Seleznyov et al., 2022). My own research at the University of Queensland, which built upon 50 years of combined knowledge in cognitive acceleration, showed that continued instruction in thinking, through to the end of Year 9, has a significant impact on students’ general cognitive ability (Smith, 2021).

Broader literature on thinking instruction also suggests that positive impacts on transferable skills and academic outcomes are brought about by an explicit focus on critical thinking (for examples refer to the work of Keith Topping and Steve Trickey or Michael Shayer and Philip Adey). The evidence shows that as the quality of students’ thinking gets better, so too does their ability to use and evaluate propositional knowledge in standardised testing. As an educational priority, then, it may be that critical thinking is the essential ingredient that binds a ‘knowledge rich’ curriculum together.

Five key strategies to help students develop critical thinking skills

Working within Townsville Catholic Education’s Learning & Teaching Framework, the following strategies can be used to enhance the development of critical thinking in the classroom.

1. Encourage questioning and inquiry

A classroom environment that encourages questioning and inquiry permits students to build the critical thinking disposition of inquisitiveness. A Socratic questioning framework can be useful and it’s important to encourage students to seek answers to their own questions as well as asking them to challenge their assumptions and explore differing perspectives.

2. Teach argument mapping

Argument mapping offers students the opportunity to engage in metacognitive strategies to evaluate their thinking (Kinkead et al., 2019). Unfortunately, argument mapping is rarely used outside of higher education philosophy classes, however, digital tools are available for use in school (for example, reasons.io, which was developed as part of the University of Queensland Critical Thinking Project). Teaching students to use digital argument mapping tools helps them to see logic structures and how claims can be explored and evaluated.

3. Promote evidence-based reasoning

The importance of basing beliefs, and the validity of new knowledge, on evidence and reason, rather than on hunches or emotion, has its roots in scientific method. Asking students to back up their claims with relevant and credible evidence, promotes the critical thinking dispositions of intellectual flexibility and open-mindedness. Learning how to critically evaluate the strength and validity of information in a world which is full of ‘noise’ is essential (Kahneman et al., 2021).

4. Introduce students to logical fallacies and cognitive biases

‘Sticking to the point’ seems to be a rare characteristic of debate in today’s world; ad hominem attacks, false dichotomies, and appeals to emotion are prevalent in the media, politics, and, importantly for school-aged learners, social media posts. Teaching students to identify logical fallacies and cognitive biases in their own, and others’ arguments are a great way to resist flawed reasoning. It also promotes the critical thinking dispositions of reasonableness and fair-mindedness by allowing students to evaluate and minimise bias. The School of Thought has produced excellent resources to explicitly teach about logical fallacies and cognitive biases.

5. Use real-world examples

Using case studies of real-world examples allows students to apply their critical thinking skills in practical situations. There are so many examples of questionable decisions and poorly reasoned arguments in the real world that an entire curriculum could be built around evaluating them. Of course, that would be impractical, but asking students to evaluate a carefully chosen example, contextualised to the content knowledge being taught, can be a valuable way to practice and hone critical thinking dispositions.

There is no doubt that adept critical thinking benefits the learning process. As our learners acquire knowledge, it is important to allow them time to use that knowledge to think critically. After all, as John Dewey famously said, ‘thinking is the method of intelligent learning’.

References

Adey, P., Robertson, A., & Venville, G. (2002). Effects of a cognitive acceleration programme on year 1 pupils. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 72(1), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1348/000709902158748

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. (n.d.). Australian curriculum: Critical and creative thinking (Version 9). https://v9.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-10-curriculum/general-capabilities/critical-and-creative-thinking?element=0&sub-element=0

Dondi, M., Klier, J., Panier, F., & Schubert, J. (2021). Defining the skills citizens will need in the future world of work. McKinsey & Company, 25, 2021. https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-sector/our-insights/defining-the-skills-citizens-will-need-in-the-future-world-of-work#/

Ellerton, P. (2020). Critical Thinking in Adolescence. In The Encyclopedia of Child and Adolescent Development (eds S. Hupp and J. Jewell, PP. 1 - 10). John Wiley & Sons, Inc. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119171492.wecad370

Ellerton, P. (2022). On critical thinking and content knowledge: A critique of the assumptions of cognitive load theory. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 43, 100975. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2021.100975

Kahneman, D., Sibony, O., & Sunstein, C. R. (2021). Noise: A flaw in human judgment. Hachette UK.

Kinkead et al., (2019). Reasons: A digital argument mapping library for modern browsers. Journal of Open Source Software, 4(37), 1044. https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.01044

Normore, G. P., Leibovitch, Y. M., Brown, D. J., Pearson, S., Mazzola, C., Ellerton, P. J., & Watt, G. (2024). Investigating the impact of critical thinking instruction on writing performance: A multilevel modelling analysis of relative gain data in the Australian national assessment program. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2024.101546

Seleznyov, S., Adhami, M., Black, A., Hodgen, J., & Twiss, S. (2022). Cognitive acceleration in mathematics education: further evidence of impact. Education 3-13, 50(5), 564–576.
https://doi.org/10.1080/03004279.2021.1872678 

Smith, T. (2021). Cognitive acceleration and the science of learning: in search of the plasticity of intelligence [The University of Queensland, School of Education]. https://doi.org/10.14264/61481fd

Willingham, D. T. (2008). Critical Thinking: Why Is It So Hard to Teach? Arts Education Policy Review, 109(4), 21–32. https://doi.org/10.3200/AEPR.109.4.21-32