1. Why Johnny Can't Compute: Integrating Critical Thinking Into a Computer Literacy Course Dr. Diane Chaddock Joe Vitanza Southwestern Michigan College

2. Session Structure  Big picture  Dispelling the myth of the digital native  Clarify the essence of computer literacy  Clarify the essence of critical thinking  Examine why computer literacy courses are well suited to teaching critical thinking concepts  Start to examine teaching and learning strategies

3. The Digital Native  Marc Prensky coined the term “digital native” in his work Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants published in 2001.  Steve Kolowich - the myth of the digital native

4. What Exactly is “Computer Literacy”?  Computer Proficiency vs. Computer Literacy  Computer Proficiency - repetitive tasks - often based on-rote memorization  Computer Literacy - allows students to extend their knowledge by having an ability to adapt new situation and problems – critical thinking.

5. Background Information at SMC  Computer Literacy initiative – approach and challenges  What we’ve learned o External Assessment – Certiport IC 3 exams o Incoming students entering with less computer skills than expected o Exposed weaknesses in critical thinking skills

6. Background Information at SMC (cont.)  Initial corrections  Current research study o Experimental study to see if infusing critical thinking into the computer literacy course could improve computer literacy and critical thinking outcomes versus a control group

7. Critical Thinking  How important are critical thinking skills for college students?  How important is teaching critical thinking within your degree/program competencies?  How important is the development of students’ critical thinking within your courses?  How well do your instructional strategies instill critical thinking strategies within your students?

8. The facts................  89% of university faculty claimed critical thinking to be a primary objective of their instruction:  Only 19% could define critical thinking  77% had little, limited or no conception of how to reconcile content coverage with the fostering of critical thinking  Only a very small minority could clearly explain the meanings of basic terms in critical thinking

9. Defining Critical Thinking  There isn’t any one definition of critical thinking – it encompasses a collection of ideals and the associated strategies for reaching them  What are these ideals, and what are some strategies for reaching them?

10. Definition of Critical Thinking  “Critical thinking is thinking about thinking while you’re thinking in order to make that thinking better.” ~ Richard Paul

11. Defining a 21 st Century Education  By Craig D. Jerald for the Center for Public Education argues that the traditional curriculum is not enough  Schools must provide students with a broader set of “21st century skills” to thrive in a rapidly evolving, technology-saturated world.

13. Some Educational Practices that Discourage Critical Thinking  The student’s role is to be a passive recipient of knowledge.  The student’s role is to memorize and regurgitate information (they do not understand).  The teacher’s role is to “dispense” knowledge.

14. How do we foster critical thinking in classrooms?  Know your content.  Know what constitutes critical thinking.  Rethink your content as a MODE of thinking.  Design teaching as experiences based in questioning, problem solving, and thinking.

15. THE most important things…  YOU must decide what is most important in YOUR course.  Teaching for critical thinking will take more time to prepare.  Less time is available to spoon-feed facts to the students.  You must hold students accountable for their learning.  You must overtly teach the critical thinking skills.

16. Lecture-based Learning  “ The lecture format of learning is a venerable and popular approach to content delivery in higher education; however, it frequently does not encourage active learning or critical thinking on the part of students.” (Duron, Limbach, & Waugh, 2006)  The key is to use an “engaged lecture” format.

17. Active Learning  Active learning can make the course more enjoyable for both teachers and students.  For this to happen, educators must give up the belief that students cannot learn the subject at hand unless the teacher covers it.  Students really do not understand content until they actively do something with it and reflect on the meaning of what they are doing.

18. The Flipped Classroom  While there is no one model, the core idea is to flip the common instructional approach  Instruction that used to occur in class is now accessed at home, in advance of class.  Class becomes the place to work through problems, advance concepts, and engage in collaborative learning.  Instruction can be rethought to best maximize the scarcest learning resource—time.

19. Socratic Questioning − Teaching With Questions!  Socrates' (469 BC - 399 BC) most important contribution to Western thought may be his Socratic Method − which solves a problem by breaking it down into a series of questions, the answers to which gradually lead to the problem solution. "I cannot teach anybody anything, I can only make them think.“ ~ Socrates

20. Socratic Questioning − Teaching With Questions!  When you have a problem, you probably ask yourself, "what do I need to know to solve this problem?"  This is critical thinking! Your students MUST LEARN to do the same thing. Thinking Begins with a Question, not an Answer.

21. Elements of the Experimental Group  A special syllabus  A “student understanding” form  Instructors give students a thorough orientation to the course, emphasizing how it will be taught, how they will be assessed, and what they should be striving to achieve.  Instructors explain to the students, when orienting them to the class, what will happen on a typical class day (and why)

22. Elements of the Experimental Group  Explain that class time will be a time in which the students will PRACTICE thinking (within the content) using the fundamental concepts and principles of the field  Systematically question students using a Socratic approach  Design instruction so that students engage in routine practice in internalizing and applying the concepts they are learning  Use engaged lecture  Use tactics that encourage active learning  Model skilled thinking for students

23. The Foundation for Critical Thinking http://www.criticalthinking.org Questions?