A Four-step process for critical thinking instruction
Date and Time: Saturday, 1 November 2014 - 2:00pm - 4:00pSpeaker: David Gann
David Gann will present on the materials and resources for critical thinking instruction that he has helped develop over the past four years. These include (1) Critically Minded, a fourteen-episode podcast aimed at explicit instruction of critical thinking as a language-based skill set; (2) online text reconstruction exercises (TREs) of two kinds, the first focusing on argument indicators (AIs), and the second focusing on dialectical discourse items (DDIs) commonly used to initiate various modes of communication related to negotiating shared understandings; (3) online asynchronous computer-mediated communication (CMC) in which learners put the recently learned language and metalanguage to use in real communication and collaboration in a content-based learning environment; and (4) in-class group discussion where learners use the same or similar language in face-to-face communication. He will also discuss the assessment tools that he has developed for tracking students’ progress. Attendees will gain an enhanced understanding of critical thinking instruction and a practical understanding of the resources which they are invited to use in their own classes.
