Developing Critical Thinking Skills in Stratified College English Courses: Experiences of Teachers in a Large University in China
- 1 School of Foreign Studies, Chang’an University, Xi’an, China
- 2 School of Foreign Studies, Chang’an University, Xi’an, China
Abstract
Implementing critical thinking skills in education has long been the focus of educational reforms. Collecting data from semi-structured interviews and class observations, the current study investigated the teaching techniques (the exposure of students to authentic situation or problems, opportunity for dialogue, and mentoring) on critical thinking employed by teachers of English in stratified college English courses in the context of China. Data analysis showed that the techniques could be appropriately applied to the instruction of critical thinking skills for students with various language competences, and would help develop students’ critical thinking dispositions besides language enhancement. Such findings could shed light on the teaching techniques of critical thinking in the context of stratified college English teaching.
- Abrami, P. C., Bernard, R. M., Borokhovski, E., Waddington, D. I., Wade, C. A., & Persson, T. (2015). Strategies for Teaching Students to Think Critically: A Meta-Analysis. Review of Educational Research, 85, 275-314. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654314551063
- Lee, I. (2016). Putting Pupils at the Center of Classroom L2 Writing Assessment. The Canadian Modern Language Review, 72, 258-280. https://doi.org/10.3138/cmlr.2802
- Ma, L., & Liu, J. (2018). Progress and Trends of International Critical Thinking Studies in the Field of Linguistics. Foreign Language World, 187, 59-66. (In Chinese)
- Paul, R. W. (2004). Critical Thinking: What Every Person Needs to Survive in a Rapidly Changing World. California: Sonomata State University, Centre for Critical Thinking.
- Yang, Y. T. C., & Gamble, J. (2013). Effective and Practical Critical Thinking-Enhanced EFL Instruction. ELT Journal, 67, 398-412. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/cct038