Dear Folks:
Merry Christmas: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJYZtssgSiw&feature=related
Happy Chanukah: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLqG3BqMC8E&feature=related
Happy Kwanza: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvnQQcyPojs&feature=related
Happy New Year! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3sXVxqDbFk&feature=related
See you in 2012.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Monday, December 12, 2011
The Five Traditions of Critical Thinking
Continuing with the work of Stephen Brookfield (1), he notes that there are five main traditions regarding critical thinking. These are:
1. Analytic philosophy and logic. He notes that this is the most influential tradition informing how we teach and understand critical thinking. It is a process of constructing and deconstructing arguments, and is a daily part of instruction in US schools. It translates as being able to provide reasons for the opinions, conclusions or statements that a student makes. A classic example would be to show the calculations that led to the correct answer of a math problem, not just the answer itself. Brookfield notes that it is necessary for individuals involved in this form of analysis to be conversant in language, because language can be used to mislead and deceive student. To Brookfield, this smacks of propaganda, and it is necessary for students to be able to perceive language tricks- and we see tricks all the time in our literature, particularly our political literature related to chiropractic. We need to teach our students to see such tricks when they occur, so that they will not be so easily misled.
2. Natural science. This is essentially the hypothetic-deductive model and it is this model which informs the scientific method. Here, we posit a hypothesis, and we then create an experiment to test whether or not we get the expected results our hypothesis generates. We end up either corroborating or falsifying the hypothesis; if the latter, we then generate new hypotheses. Initially, this was espoused by Francis Bacon back in the 1600’s, but in science was expanded upon by Karl Popper, who developed the principle of falsifiability. To be scientific is to be falsifiable. And as a result, in this model the critical thinker is one who is open to having his or her opinions revised as new evidence is available. This is, sadly, not always the case with students, whether in chiropractic or not. Knowledge is provisional and always subject to revision.
3. Pragmatism. Brookfield says this about pragmatism: “Pragmatism emphasizes the importance of continual experimentation to bring about better (in pragmatist terms, more beautiful) social forms.” To build a democratic society, we need to experiment and change constantly in order to make democracy work better. The model here is to experiment, learn from mistakes, and deliberately seek out new information and possibilities. The concept of pragmatism arose from early political philosophers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and John Dewey, though today it means something radically different from how it applies to critical thinking; to be pragmatic is to take advantage of situations which occur so as to benefit yourself. In education, pragmatism involves a willingness to question dogma and to always be open to revision. This is again not always the case in chiropractic education. Many voices need to be heard so that the learner can question their own assumptions in light of others’ point of view. We might apply a pragmatic approach by offering an activity based on a current situation and allowing student to offer their own approach to resolving the situation.
4. Psychoanalysis. This is the least well understood of the five approaches because it delves into psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. And it is seen in courses that put student experience as the central focus of the curriculum, so it is seen more in social work, nursing and general education (obviously, it is central to clinical psychology). It is based on the concept that each us has a core identity that wants to be realized. In higher education, this forms the basis for what is known as transformative learning, associated with Jack Mezirow. And the approach looks to see how childhood inhibitions interfere with our full development as an adult person.
5. Critical theory. This is an overtly political theory, which grew out of a Marxist approach to education, and which is tied to social justice and uncovering power inequities. It has a core set of assumptions: that western societies are unequal and have inherent discrimination (racial, economic, social), that this is seen as normal and inevitable by dissemination of the dominant ideology, and that critical theory helps to understand this so that change can occur. This may sound esoteric, but consider how chiropractic is positioned in American society compared to the dominant ideology of allopathic medicine. It looks for hegemony (such as is the case for medicine) in order to change it and to effect social action. Our students do recognize this. For example, they are cognizant that the progression of disease and how it is treated may be explained by how pharmaceutical companies and insurance companies structure health care. But they may not recognize it in other areas.
I highly recommend a read through Brookfield’s book, which is fascinating to me and I hope will be to you.
References
1. Brookfield S. Teaching for critical thinking. San Francisco, CA: John Wiley and Sons, 2012:1
1. Analytic philosophy and logic. He notes that this is the most influential tradition informing how we teach and understand critical thinking. It is a process of constructing and deconstructing arguments, and is a daily part of instruction in US schools. It translates as being able to provide reasons for the opinions, conclusions or statements that a student makes. A classic example would be to show the calculations that led to the correct answer of a math problem, not just the answer itself. Brookfield notes that it is necessary for individuals involved in this form of analysis to be conversant in language, because language can be used to mislead and deceive student. To Brookfield, this smacks of propaganda, and it is necessary for students to be able to perceive language tricks- and we see tricks all the time in our literature, particularly our political literature related to chiropractic. We need to teach our students to see such tricks when they occur, so that they will not be so easily misled.
2. Natural science. This is essentially the hypothetic-deductive model and it is this model which informs the scientific method. Here, we posit a hypothesis, and we then create an experiment to test whether or not we get the expected results our hypothesis generates. We end up either corroborating or falsifying the hypothesis; if the latter, we then generate new hypotheses. Initially, this was espoused by Francis Bacon back in the 1600’s, but in science was expanded upon by Karl Popper, who developed the principle of falsifiability. To be scientific is to be falsifiable. And as a result, in this model the critical thinker is one who is open to having his or her opinions revised as new evidence is available. This is, sadly, not always the case with students, whether in chiropractic or not. Knowledge is provisional and always subject to revision.
3. Pragmatism. Brookfield says this about pragmatism: “Pragmatism emphasizes the importance of continual experimentation to bring about better (in pragmatist terms, more beautiful) social forms.” To build a democratic society, we need to experiment and change constantly in order to make democracy work better. The model here is to experiment, learn from mistakes, and deliberately seek out new information and possibilities. The concept of pragmatism arose from early political philosophers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and John Dewey, though today it means something radically different from how it applies to critical thinking; to be pragmatic is to take advantage of situations which occur so as to benefit yourself. In education, pragmatism involves a willingness to question dogma and to always be open to revision. This is again not always the case in chiropractic education. Many voices need to be heard so that the learner can question their own assumptions in light of others’ point of view. We might apply a pragmatic approach by offering an activity based on a current situation and allowing student to offer their own approach to resolving the situation.
4. Psychoanalysis. This is the least well understood of the five approaches because it delves into psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. And it is seen in courses that put student experience as the central focus of the curriculum, so it is seen more in social work, nursing and general education (obviously, it is central to clinical psychology). It is based on the concept that each us has a core identity that wants to be realized. In higher education, this forms the basis for what is known as transformative learning, associated with Jack Mezirow. And the approach looks to see how childhood inhibitions interfere with our full development as an adult person.
5. Critical theory. This is an overtly political theory, which grew out of a Marxist approach to education, and which is tied to social justice and uncovering power inequities. It has a core set of assumptions: that western societies are unequal and have inherent discrimination (racial, economic, social), that this is seen as normal and inevitable by dissemination of the dominant ideology, and that critical theory helps to understand this so that change can occur. This may sound esoteric, but consider how chiropractic is positioned in American society compared to the dominant ideology of allopathic medicine. It looks for hegemony (such as is the case for medicine) in order to change it and to effect social action. Our students do recognize this. For example, they are cognizant that the progression of disease and how it is treated may be explained by how pharmaceutical companies and insurance companies structure health care. But they may not recognize it in other areas.
I highly recommend a read through Brookfield’s book, which is fascinating to me and I hope will be to you.
References
1. Brookfield S. Teaching for critical thinking. San Francisco, CA: John Wiley and Sons, 2012:1
Monday, December 5, 2011
Teaching for Critical Thinking
In his excellent book “Teaching for Critical Thinking,” Stephen Brookfield introduces the basic process of critical think as involving 4 components: (1) identifying the assumptions underlying our thinking as it relates to our actions, (2) checking out how much these assumptions are accurate, (3) looking at our ideas and decisions from more than a single perspective, and (4) after doing all of this, taking informed action (1). Brookfield states that “if you can’t think critically your survival is in peril because you risk living a life that- without your being aware of it- hurts you and serves the interests of those who wish you harm.” His approach to critical thinking is certainly more than we might consider to be critical thinking; in our case, we often use the term to denote an ability to critically appraise or assess a journal article in order to glean information from it to use for patient management. Or, conversely, we often think of it as the art of tearing a paper apart. We are not always cognizant of the political margins around our thinking and learning.
To Brookfield, the core process of critical thinking is in hunting assumptions. He defines an assumption as a guide to truth embedded in your mental outlook, and he offers as examples how assumptions occur in daily life: the words people use are assumed to have specific meanings, as do the gestures they use. We make assumptions about political candidates and whether or not they are telling us the truth. All day long assumptions are being made by use, and most are held because our experience tells us to hold them- we might wear a sweater based on an assumption made by reading about the weather in the morning newspaper. Assumptions can occur at far deeper levels. Many are linked to dominant ideologies. We might assume a person wearing worn clothing is poor, that the guy in a suit over there is a college administrator, that everyone we meet is heterosexual because that is assumed to be the norm, etc.
When you think critically, you begin to question the assumptions about how problems are defined. Since we are in a chiropractic college, we make assumptions about the value of chiropractic- and we make assumptions about the value of allopathic medicine. And we act as a result. Here is but one example: when we read a newspaper article lauding a recent chiropractic research finding (or if we read the actual paper on which that news release might be based), we often applaud this finding and take it without delving into its rigor. When we read a paper that casts a more negative light on chiropractic, we often look to see if we can point out all its flaws. We assume the good paper is good and the negative one is bad.
When we think critically, we hunt out our assumptions, check them out to see if they are accurate, try to view these from multiple perspectives and only then are we able to take informed action. And this may play out in education every bit as much as others areas of life.
References
1. Brookfield S. Teaching for critical thinking. San Francisco, CA: John Wiley and Sons, 2012:1
To Brookfield, the core process of critical thinking is in hunting assumptions. He defines an assumption as a guide to truth embedded in your mental outlook, and he offers as examples how assumptions occur in daily life: the words people use are assumed to have specific meanings, as do the gestures they use. We make assumptions about political candidates and whether or not they are telling us the truth. All day long assumptions are being made by use, and most are held because our experience tells us to hold them- we might wear a sweater based on an assumption made by reading about the weather in the morning newspaper. Assumptions can occur at far deeper levels. Many are linked to dominant ideologies. We might assume a person wearing worn clothing is poor, that the guy in a suit over there is a college administrator, that everyone we meet is heterosexual because that is assumed to be the norm, etc.
When you think critically, you begin to question the assumptions about how problems are defined. Since we are in a chiropractic college, we make assumptions about the value of chiropractic- and we make assumptions about the value of allopathic medicine. And we act as a result. Here is but one example: when we read a newspaper article lauding a recent chiropractic research finding (or if we read the actual paper on which that news release might be based), we often applaud this finding and take it without delving into its rigor. When we read a paper that casts a more negative light on chiropractic, we often look to see if we can point out all its flaws. We assume the good paper is good and the negative one is bad.
When we think critically, we hunt out our assumptions, check them out to see if they are accurate, try to view these from multiple perspectives and only then are we able to take informed action. And this may play out in education every bit as much as others areas of life.
References
1. Brookfield S. Teaching for critical thinking. San Francisco, CA: John Wiley and Sons, 2012:1
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