Cultivating a Classroom Climate for Critical Thinking: Strategies and Insights

WP_Query Object ( [query] => Array ( [page] => [name] => cultivating-a-classroom-climate-for-critical-thinking-strategies-and-insights ) [query_vars] => Array ( [page] => 0 [name] => cultivating-a-classroom-climate-for-critical-thinking-strategies-and-insights [error] => [m] => [p] => 0 [post_parent] => [subpost] => [subpost_id] => [attachment] => [attachment_id] => 0 [pagename] => [page_id] => 0 [second] => [minute] => [hour] => [day] => 0 [monthnum] => 0 [year] => 0 [w] => 0 [category_name] => [tag] => [cat] => [tag_id] => [author] => [author_name] => [feed] => [tb] => [paged] => 0 [meta_key] => [meta_value] => [preview] => [s] => [sentence] => [title] => [fields] => [menu_order] => [embed] => [category__in] => Array ( ) [category__not_in] => Array ( ) [category__and] => Array ( ) [post__in] => Array ( ) [post__not_in] => Array ( ) [post_name__in] => Array ( ) [tag__in] => Array ( ) [tag__not_in] => Array ( ) [tag__and] => Array ( ) [tag_slug__in] => Array ( ) [tag_slug__and] => Array ( ) [post_parent__in] => Array ( ) [post_parent__not_in] => Array ( ) [author__in] => Array ( ) [author__not_in] => Array ( ) [search_columns] => Array ( ) [ignore_sticky_posts] => [suppress_filters] => [cache_results] => 1 [update_post_term_cache] => 1 [update_menu_item_cache] => [lazy_load_term_meta] => 1 [update_post_meta_cache] => 1 [post_type] => [posts_per_page] => 10 [nopaging] => [comments_per_page] => 50 [no_found_rows] => [order] => DESC ) [tax_query] => [meta_query] => WP_Meta_Query Object ( [queries] => Array ( ) [relation] => [meta_table] => [meta_id_column] => [primary_table] => [primary_id_column] => [table_aliases:protected] => Array ( ) [clauses:protected] => Array ( ) [has_or_relation:protected] => ) [date_query] => [queried_object] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 1520 [post_author] => 2386 [post_date] => 2024-10-23 14:05:41 [post_date_gmt] => 2024-10-23 13:05:41 [post_content] => In the immediate wake of the unsettling reports of the riots in England this summer,  our new Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, announced that within her upcoming review of the national curriculum, there needs to be a consideration of how  “…to embed critical skills in lessons to arm our children against the disinformation, fake news and putrid conspiracy theories awash on social media”. I embarked on my journey with Cognitive Acceleration (CA) nearly 25 years ago, as the senior research officer and developer of the primary  KS2 CASE materials, ‘Let’s Think Through Science’. This deeply transformative professional experience spurred me on to focus my PhD research on how teachers use classroom talk to promote thinking in primary CASE classrooms. The current (and encouraging) renewed attention to the explicit teaching of critical thinking brought to mind what I noticed through my PhD research, when a ‘critical incident’ occurred during an episode of observed whole class talk within a primary CASE lesson. In my work, ‘critical incidents’ were those spontaneous, unsolicited, and      potentially lesson-     derailing points in a discussion when an idea/answer/teacher explanation is challenged. I discovered that cultivating a classroom climate for critical thinking relied on how a teacher chose to respond to these critical incidents, in that moment. I also learnt that this was a complex professional decision influenced by so many factors including  time,      meeting lesson objectives and adapting practice to ensure all learners access the learning. Let us step inside a primary CASE classroom to see this in action: In this lesson, the learners in their ‘thinking’ groups, have been classifying a collection of objects (pipe cleaner, battery, foil, specially prepared samples of aluminium, steel, brass and copper, 100g weight, 1 pence, 2 pence) into things that they think are magnetic and things that they think are not. They are now sharing their findings in a whole class discussion. Teacher: I would like some help to fill out our list of magnetic and non-magnetic items. Teacher: Ok. Thank you. Joshua Joshua: Penny -magnetic Teacher: Penny. Ok. So, a penny (writes down penny in the magnetic column) At one table, a learner, Ibrahim is thinking... “What? A penny?” So, as the teacher continues with the whole class discussion, there is some whispering going on in his group about this cognitive conflict. Ibrahim tries their penny again. It is not magnetic. Ibrahim interrupts the whole class discussion.  Ibrahim: The penny wasn’t magnetic. General murmur from class: It was. No, it wasn’t. The whole class discussion breaks down. There are lots of different discussions around the room in response to this. The teacher catches the researcher’s eye and smiles. Teacher: Ok. This is interesting. Ssh. OK. What penny have you got? 1p or 2p? Ibrahim: 2p Teacher: Right. Can you bring it over? (Ibrahim brings his penny up. One learner is heard saying, “The 1 penny works”. The teacher tries this in front of the class.) Teacher: Anyone else has got a 2p? Another group (Sophie’s) offer up their magnetic 2p. One learner says, “they got a shiny one.” Teacher: We have got this 2p and this 2p. There are both 2p. And this one is Sophie’s one (Teacher tries it with a magnet in front of the class). It is magnetic. And this one is Ibrahim’s (Teacher tries it with the same magnet several times-it is not magnetic). The class are genuinely puzzled. ‘What?!’ is expressed by a few. And mini discussions break out again. Teacher: OK. I want us to have a bit of think about this. This is very interesting. The 2p coins are both 2p. Do you think they both should do the same thing then? (Whole class respond in unison: “Yeah.”) So, what has happened? The Cognitive Acceleration programme supported the teachers participating in my study to establish the conditions for thinking, informed by Piagetian and Vygotskian theoretical principles for cognitive development, like many of you reading this. They understood and effectively applied the principles of concrete preparation, social construction, cognitive conflict, metacognition and bridging to enable learner engagement with a collaborative cognitive challenge. The extract of classroom dialogue above suggests that these principles were implemented in order to reach this critical point in the lesson. But what this teacher decided to do, ‘in this moment,’ was pivotal in transforming this into an opportunity for critical thinking. Ibrahim interrupted the discussion. His interjection was unsolicited and triggered a breakdown      in the whole class discussion. You might say that this de-stabilised the classroom climate for learning. Another teacher might have responded differently in order to reinstate control and meet the learning objectives within a tight time frame. The extract captures both the genuine excitement from the class and the skilful facilitation from the class teacher who goes on to use this spontaneous challenge to develop a deeper collective class understanding of magnetic materials. To think critically requires us to understand that firstly we need to engage with the available information and evidence (‘From your investigations, which objects were magnetic, and which were not?’). Then we need to evaluate all the arguments with an open mind before reaching an informed decision. Sounds straightforward, perhaps, for some. Approaching an idea with an open mind when this conflicts with your current thinking (‘Why are these coins behaving differently?’) can be challenging for adults as well as learners. Equally difficult is having the skills and confidence to challenge what is being presented as a widely accepted view (“My penny wasn’t magnetic”). Programmes like CA create opportunities for teachers to nurture a learner's appetite      to question, be open to alternative perspectives and seek deeper understanding through this process. Capitalise on CA to cultivate a classroom culture for critical thinking and in your next lesson:

• Use ground rules/ success/assessment criteria to prepare learners to engage with critical thinking. “I am looking forward to noticing how you embrace and challenge new and different ideas today.”
• Remember that developing thinking in the classroom takes time and regular practice. Be kind and patient with yourself.
• Try to carve out a tiny bit of space (breathe) so that you can be receptive to spontaneous learner responses- those critical incidents. Take a second to pause, assess the potential for critical thinking, and bravely pivot your next pedagogical step to cultivate critical thinking.

[post_title] => Cultivating a Classroom Climate for Critical Thinking: Strategies and Insights [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => cultivating-a-classroom-climate-for-critical-thinking-strategies-and-insights [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2024-10-23 14:05:41 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-10-23 13:05:41 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://letsthink.org.uk/?p=1520 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [queried_object_id] => 1520 [request] => SELECT wp_posts.* FROM wp_posts WHERE 1=1 AND wp_posts.post_name = 'cultivating-a-classroom-climate-for-critical-thinking-strategies-and-insights' AND wp_posts.post_type = 'post' ORDER BY wp_posts.post_date DESC [posts] => Array ( [0] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 1520 [post_author] => 2386 [post_date] => 2024-10-23 14:05:41 [post_date_gmt] => 2024-10-23 13:05:41 [post_content] => In the immediate wake of the unsettling reports of the riots in England this summer,  our new Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, announced that within her upcoming review of the national curriculum, there needs to be a consideration of how  “…to embed critical skills in lessons to arm our children against the disinformation, fake news and putrid conspiracy theories awash on social media”. I embarked on my journey with Cognitive Acceleration (CA) nearly 25 years ago, as the senior research officer and developer of the primary  KS2 CASE materials, ‘Let’s Think Through Science’. This deeply transformative professional experience spurred me on to focus my PhD research on how teachers use classroom talk to promote thinking in primary CASE classrooms. The current (and encouraging) renewed attention to the explicit teaching of critical thinking brought to mind what I noticed through my PhD research, when a ‘critical incident’ occurred during an episode of observed whole class talk within a primary CASE lesson. In my work, ‘critical incidents’ were those spontaneous, unsolicited, and      potentially lesson-     derailing points in a discussion when an idea/answer/teacher explanation is challenged. I discovered that cultivating a classroom climate for critical thinking relied on how a teacher chose to respond to these critical incidents, in that moment. I also learnt that this was a complex professional decision influenced by so many factors including  time,      meeting lesson objectives and adapting practice to ensure all learners access the learning. Let us step inside a primary CASE classroom to see this in action: In this lesson, the learners in their ‘thinking’ groups, have been classifying a collection of objects (pipe cleaner, battery, foil, specially prepared samples of aluminium, steel, brass and copper, 100g weight, 1 pence, 2 pence) into things that they think are magnetic and things that they think are not. They are now sharing their findings in a whole class discussion. Teacher: I would like some help to fill out our list of magnetic and non-magnetic items. Teacher: Ok. Thank you. Joshua Joshua: Penny -magnetic Teacher: Penny. Ok. So, a penny (writes down penny in the magnetic column) At one table, a learner, Ibrahim is thinking... “What? A penny?” So, as the teacher continues with the whole class discussion, there is some whispering going on in his group about this cognitive conflict. Ibrahim tries their penny again. It is not magnetic. Ibrahim interrupts the whole class discussion.  Ibrahim: The penny wasn’t magnetic. General murmur from class: It was. No, it wasn’t. The whole class discussion breaks down. There are lots of different discussions around the room in response to this. The teacher catches the researcher’s eye and smiles. Teacher: Ok. This is interesting. Ssh. OK. What penny have you got? 1p or 2p? Ibrahim: 2p Teacher: Right. Can you bring it over? (Ibrahim brings his penny up. One learner is heard saying, “The 1 penny works”. The teacher tries this in front of the class.) Teacher: Anyone else has got a 2p? Another group (Sophie’s) offer up their magnetic 2p. One learner says, “they got a shiny one.” Teacher: We have got this 2p and this 2p. There are both 2p. And this one is Sophie’s one (Teacher tries it with a magnet in front of the class). It is magnetic. And this one is Ibrahim’s (Teacher tries it with the same magnet several times-it is not magnetic). The class are genuinely puzzled. ‘What?!’ is expressed by a few. And mini discussions break out again. Teacher: OK. I want us to have a bit of think about this. This is very interesting. The 2p coins are both 2p. Do you think they both should do the same thing then? (Whole class respond in unison: “Yeah.”) So, what has happened? The Cognitive Acceleration programme supported the teachers participating in my study to establish the conditions for thinking, informed by Piagetian and Vygotskian theoretical principles for cognitive development, like many of you reading this. They understood and effectively applied the principles of concrete preparation, social construction, cognitive conflict, metacognition and bridging to enable learner engagement with a collaborative cognitive challenge. The extract of classroom dialogue above suggests that these principles were implemented in order to reach this critical point in the lesson. But what this teacher decided to do, ‘in this moment,’ was pivotal in transforming this into an opportunity for critical thinking. Ibrahim interrupted the discussion. His interjection was unsolicited and triggered a breakdown      in the whole class discussion. You might say that this de-stabilised the classroom climate for learning. Another teacher might have responded differently in order to reinstate control and meet the learning objectives within a tight time frame. The extract captures both the genuine excitement from the class and the skilful facilitation from the class teacher who goes on to use this spontaneous challenge to develop a deeper collective class understanding of magnetic materials. To think critically requires us to understand that firstly we need to engage with the available information and evidence (‘From your investigations, which objects were magnetic, and which were not?’). Then we need to evaluate all the arguments with an open mind before reaching an informed decision. Sounds straightforward, perhaps, for some. Approaching an idea with an open mind when this conflicts with your current thinking (‘Why are these coins behaving differently?’) can be challenging for adults as well as learners. Equally difficult is having the skills and confidence to challenge what is being presented as a widely accepted view (“My penny wasn’t magnetic”). Programmes like CA create opportunities for teachers to nurture a learner's appetite      to question, be open to alternative perspectives and seek deeper understanding through this process. Capitalise on CA to cultivate a classroom culture for critical thinking and in your next lesson:

• Use ground rules/ success/assessment criteria to prepare learners to engage with critical thinking. “I am looking forward to noticing how you embrace and challenge new and different ideas today.”
• Remember that developing thinking in the classroom takes time and regular practice. Be kind and patient with yourself.
• Try to carve out a tiny bit of space (breathe) so that you can be receptive to spontaneous learner responses- those critical incidents. Take a second to pause, assess the potential for critical thinking, and bravely pivot your next pedagogical step to cultivate critical thinking.

[post_title] => Cultivating a Classroom Climate for Critical Thinking: Strategies and Insights [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => cultivating-a-classroom-climate-for-critical-thinking-strategies-and-insights [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2024-10-23 14:05:41 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-10-23 13:05:41 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://letsthink.org.uk/?p=1520 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) ) [post_count] => 1 [current_post] => -1 [in_the_loop] => [post] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 1520 [post_author] => 2386 [post_date] => 2024-10-23 14:05:41 [post_date_gmt] => 2024-10-23 13:05:41 [post_content] => In the immediate wake of the unsettling reports of the riots in England this summer,  our new Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, announced that within her upcoming review of the national curriculum, there needs to be a consideration of how  “…to embed critical skills in lessons to arm our children against the disinformation, fake news and putrid conspiracy theories awash on social media”. I embarked on my journey with Cognitive Acceleration (CA) nearly 25 years ago, as the senior research officer and developer of the primary  KS2 CASE materials, ‘Let’s Think Through Science’. This deeply transformative professional experience spurred me on to focus my PhD research on how teachers use classroom talk to promote thinking in primary CASE classrooms. The current (and encouraging) renewed attention to the explicit teaching of critical thinking brought to mind what I noticed through my PhD research, when a ‘critical incident’ occurred during an episode of observed whole class talk within a primary CASE lesson. In my work, ‘critical incidents’ were those spontaneous, unsolicited, and      potentially lesson-     derailing points in a discussion when an idea/answer/teacher explanation is challenged. I discovered that cultivating a classroom climate for critical thinking relied on how a teacher chose to respond to these critical incidents, in that moment. I also learnt that this was a complex professional decision influenced by so many factors including  time,      meeting lesson objectives and adapting practice to ensure all learners access the learning. Let us step inside a primary CASE classroom to see this in action: In this lesson, the learners in their ‘thinking’ groups, have been classifying a collection of objects (pipe cleaner, battery, foil, specially prepared samples of aluminium, steel, brass and copper, 100g weight, 1 pence, 2 pence) into things that they think are magnetic and things that they think are not. They are now sharing their findings in a whole class discussion. Teacher: I would like some help to fill out our list of magnetic and non-magnetic items. Teacher: Ok. Thank you. Joshua Joshua: Penny -magnetic Teacher: Penny. Ok. So, a penny (writes down penny in the magnetic column) At one table, a learner, Ibrahim is thinking... “What? A penny?” So, as the teacher continues with the whole class discussion, there is some whispering going on in his group about this cognitive conflict. Ibrahim tries their penny again. It is not magnetic. Ibrahim interrupts the whole class discussion.  Ibrahim: The penny wasn’t magnetic. General murmur from class: It was. No, it wasn’t. The whole class discussion breaks down. There are lots of different discussions around the room in response to this. The teacher catches the researcher’s eye and smiles. Teacher: Ok. This is interesting. Ssh. OK. What penny have you got? 1p or 2p? Ibrahim: 2p Teacher: Right. Can you bring it over? (Ibrahim brings his penny up. One learner is heard saying, “The 1 penny works”. The teacher tries this in front of the class.) Teacher: Anyone else has got a 2p? Another group (Sophie’s) offer up their magnetic 2p. One learner says, “they got a shiny one.” Teacher: We have got this 2p and this 2p. There are both 2p. And this one is Sophie’s one (Teacher tries it with a magnet in front of the class). It is magnetic. And this one is Ibrahim’s (Teacher tries it with the same magnet several times-it is not magnetic). The class are genuinely puzzled. ‘What?!’ is expressed by a few. And mini discussions break out again. Teacher: OK. I want us to have a bit of think about this. This is very interesting. The 2p coins are both 2p. Do you think they both should do the same thing then? (Whole class respond in unison: “Yeah.”) So, what has happened? The Cognitive Acceleration programme supported the teachers participating in my study to establish the conditions for thinking, informed by Piagetian and Vygotskian theoretical principles for cognitive development, like many of you reading this. They understood and effectively applied the principles of concrete preparation, social construction, cognitive conflict, metacognition and bridging to enable learner engagement with a collaborative cognitive challenge. The extract of classroom dialogue above suggests that these principles were implemented in order to reach this critical point in the lesson. But what this teacher decided to do, ‘in this moment,’ was pivotal in transforming this into an opportunity for critical thinking. Ibrahim interrupted the discussion. His interjection was unsolicited and triggered a breakdown      in the whole class discussion. You might say that this de-stabilised the classroom climate for learning. Another teacher might have responded differently in order to reinstate control and meet the learning objectives within a tight time frame. The extract captures both the genuine excitement from the class and the skilful facilitation from the class teacher who goes on to use this spontaneous challenge to develop a deeper collective class understanding of magnetic materials. To think critically requires us to understand that firstly we need to engage with the available information and evidence (‘From your investigations, which objects were magnetic, and which were not?’). Then we need to evaluate all the arguments with an open mind before reaching an informed decision. Sounds straightforward, perhaps, for some. Approaching an idea with an open mind when this conflicts with your current thinking (‘Why are these coins behaving differently?’) can be challenging for adults as well as learners. Equally difficult is having the skills and confidence to challenge what is being presented as a widely accepted view (“My penny wasn’t magnetic”). Programmes like CA create opportunities for teachers to nurture a learner's appetite      to question, be open to alternative perspectives and seek deeper understanding through this process. Capitalise on CA to cultivate a classroom culture for critical thinking and in your next lesson:

• Use ground rules/ success/assessment criteria to prepare learners to engage with critical thinking. “I am looking forward to noticing how you embrace and challenge new and different ideas today.”
• Remember that developing thinking in the classroom takes time and regular practice. Be kind and patient with yourself.
• Try to carve out a tiny bit of space (breathe) so that you can be receptive to spontaneous learner responses- those critical incidents. Take a second to pause, assess the potential for critical thinking, and bravely pivot your next pedagogical step to cultivate critical thinking.

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