Why We Need Critical Thinking In K-12
It might seem a bit radical for many people, but why not begin to teach our kids logic and rational thinking in elementary forms at an early stage? Reasoned thinking at an early level may be our way of fostering independent thought and self-reliance in order to have a society of free thinkers who are able to analyze, dissect and critique the world around them. Here is our goal: productive, intelligent and moral members of society. This vision begins with a critical thinking model implemented in our public schools.
In my upbringing, school was sort of an obedience test. How well you followed the rules and their taught methods was a measure of success. It held the standardization of problems and answers. I didn’t learn to understand but rather to simply memorize. I don’t deny the important skills and lessons taught to me during this time; I gained rudimentary and pivotal knowledge that I still use today and will forever use, but there was something that was missing: how to think for myself.
It wasn’t until I took my first philosophy course at Chaffey College with Dr. Barbara King that I really came to know what it means to think independently. Plato’s The Republic reveals the difference between gaining knowledge through being told what is true and false, and questioning. The Socratic pedagogy here is that one must come to know truth by his/herself, rather than by force. Corollary to this is the role of the teacher: s/he must know their subject very well, but must come to terms with the limits of their knowledge and perspective. It is not the educator’s job to tell them what to know, but rather a joint-effort on both the pupil and the teacher to explore the subject (Smith 1). The allegory of the cave points towards this: one must come to the light by themselves; secondly, one cannot force another to know. This is the doctrine of understanding: ‘knowledge will not come from teaching, but from questioning’ (Dillon 1).
The problem of critical thinking being taught at a later level is that we have already formulated solid beliefs and opinions that become almost impossible to change as an adult. The child’s mind is much more malleable than the adult’s. We have been taught what to think rather than how to think. Too many times I have seen people presented with compelling evidence and arguments against their opinions, only to hold onto their prior beliefs more obstinately and stronger than before. If we are taught to find truth on our own terms rather than to be fed the opinions and beliefs that the media, our parents and institutions shove in us, we can think freely.
Here are the three reasons why this pedagogy is important:
- Stunted Creativity and Innovation
If we are told what to think and not how to think, then creativity is stunted. Dogmas can stop a person from exploring and discovering different ways of thought. It was never the orthodox ways of thought that broke barriers or innovated inventions — it was outside-the-box type thinking. Picasso and Coleman mastered the former methods of painting and playing that their predecessors formulated; through reassessing these traditions, they later shaped new and groundbreaking art forms through challenging the norm: cubism and free jazz. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Susan B. Anthony did not make history accepting the way things were and had been — they thought creatively and critically about what was being taught at the time.
2. Moral and Civil Duties
Most of what we decide is ethical doesn’t come to us by critical analysis, but rather through cultural and social experience. Of course, through different cultures come different ways of living, action and judgement, but sometimes the things we believe and act upon are not always the right thing to do. Is putting people in prison for minor drug offenses ok? Is eating an overabundance of meat good for us, others and the environment? Do over-patriotic ways of thinking and fanaticism for guns promote violence towards others? Many people think challenging these old ways is heretical to U.S. traditions but perhaps — just maybe — the United States of America isn’t perfect.
Voting and being involved politically are just as important as social awareness. If we see problems with how things work, why don’t we vote? And if we do, why don’t we vote smartly? Voting is the most important part of a democracy, but we cannot expect things to change effectively if our voters only vote on whatever party they were raised on. Critical analysis will lead us to vote for policies and politicians we have deduced are reasonable.
3. Productivity and Economic Purpose
While the United States currently holds the hardest-working/longest-working employees on planet, (with the exception of Koreans), we are sadly not the most productive. With longer work days, one would imagine us working efficiently. According to data from the OECD, the U.S. ranks 3rd in productivity (Blakely 1). Germany ranked at the top for most productive employees. Sweden was notable for experimenting in less workhours per week while still maintaining the same productivity per hour, (30 hour weeks).
If we were to reassess how our work is done, we can most likely pass these countries in productivity. But how would we do that? To think critically on how things are done. Our education in K-12 is backwards on efficiency: we are spewing out people into the workforce who only know how to take orders. Instead of the unlimited perspectives you can get from different workers, you have one person commanding with his/her sole perspective. Rather, if our workforce becomes flooded with rational thinkers, we can have newer, better methods on how to accomplish tasks, rather than utilities, (people), who carry out orders unquestionably. The lesson here is to work smart, not hard.
This isn’t asking to replace a mathematics, English or science class for a critical thinking course, but rather foster a climate for critical thinking. If we can implement ways of learning these fields of study through critical analysis, we’d be able to kill two birds with one stone: teach how to think critically and learn about the subject at hand. Nonetheless, workshops and classes on thinking critically or learning basic logic will help our children grow into self-sufficient individuals.
References
- Smith, Mark. “Plato on Education”, Infed. Published May 8, 1997. Accessed April 10, 2015. http://infed.org/mobi/plato-on-education/
- Dillon, Ariel. “Education in Plato’s Republic”, Santa Clara University. Presented at the Santa Clara University Student Ethics Research Conference May 26, 2004. Accessed April 10, 2015. http://www.scu.edu/ethics/publications/submitted/dillon/education_plato_republic.html
- Blakley, Thomas-Aguilar. “Winding Down the Work Week”, The Future of Business Collaboration, (PGI). Published July 9, 2014. Accessed April 10, 2015. http://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/which-country-has-the-most-productive-workers.html
Other References:
Elder, Linda. “Professional Development Model for K-12”. The Critical Thinking Community. Accessed April 10, 2015. http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/professional-development-model-for-k-12/436
Dewey, John. Democracy and Education, Macmilan, 1916. Havard University.
