The Art of Thinking Critically

Thinking is not powered by the answers we're given, but by the questions we ask

inherent skill needed for critical thinking—asking questions. We need to be able to ask questions, sometimes very difficult ones that cause the personal evaluation of values

Questions lead us to make crucial developments in a variety of fields. They're at the heart of all human knowledge, because if we never asked questions, we would never find the answers

Evaluate Learning – Now that you’ve engaged in all of this learning, how do you know if you really learned anything or not? Can you present information comfortably on what you’ve learned? Can you converse with other peers on the subject knowledgably and accept positive and critical feedback? What have you achieved in learning this information? Can I publish a journal article in a peer-reviewed journal about my findings, is the world better for my research, or does my research further inspire additional learning? These are all questions to consider when evaluating what you’ve learned independently, and it requires objective consideration.

Engagement in the Learning Process – In this step, students need to know who they are as a learner and what kind of approach they are taking to learning this new material. Is the student learning just for the sake of knowledge? If so, you would refer to this as the deep approach, learning for the sake of the knowledge.

Setting Goals for Learning – What’s the point of all this learning and what do you want to achieve with it? It’s absolutely critical the student and guiding instructor have mapped out the direction and desired of achievements of the learning experience. Questions regarding the feasibility of the desired learning as well as feedback and other policies should all be ironed out prior to the beginning of the learning experience.

Readiness to Learn - This step is a personal assessment of where you are in the learning process. It requires the student to be honest with themselves about their shortcomings and be willing to take constructive feedback. Other indicators a student is up to the challenge of self-learning include developing autonomy, being organized, and having self-discipline.

1: Readiness to Learn - This step is a personal assessment of where you are in the learning process. It requires the student to be honest with themselves about their shortcomings and be willing to take constructive feedback.

biggest challenge we face is determining the good sources from bad ones.

you find yourself questioning why you think or perceive something and the only reason you can think of to justify that knowledge or perception is, “it’s how I was raised,” then push yourself to critically examine that part of yourself.