Final draft: Developing critical thinking

Final draft: Developing critical thinking

I first learnt about critical thinking two years ago, while taking a Spanish course in which we were introduced our maximum exponent in this area; Iztanislao Zuleta the maximum critical thinker or philosopher that this university has ever produced. I was amaze by this author, with all his ideas, especially about, philophy, education, learning and the Colombian policies with its politicians.

There is a really close connection between critical thinking and philosophy, it is probably well assumed that all philosophers throughout the thinking history has been the truly, genuine critical thinkers, and they had demonstrated that with a good theory about their life that they had to face they could changed the course of their history and all their contextual history, being the truly revolutionist that had changed their world little by little to the point  where we are at this moment, there for it’s our turn to develop this skill and try to be the modern critical thinkers or philosophers that this critical period of history  is needing now.

Critical thinking (or being a philosopher) is the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action. In its exemplary form, it is based on universal intellectual values that transcend subject matter divisions: clarity, accuracy, precision, consistency, relevance, sound evidence, good reasons, depth, breadth, and fairness. (By Michael Scriven & Richard Paul for the on Critical Thinking and Education Reform, 1987.)

According these authors, the most important aim of this skill is to be able to belief in ourselves as well of being capable to take actions in order to make things better, fear and justice for all.

Critical thinking (or being a philosopher) is self-guided, self-disciplined thinking which attempts to reason at the highest level of quality in a fair-minded way.  People who think critically consistently attempt to live rationally, reasonably, empathically. 

Everyone thinks; it is our nature to do so. But much of our thinking, left to itself, is biased, unshapely, partial, uninformed or down-right prejudiced. Yet the quality of our life and that of what we produce, make, or build depends precisely on the quality of our thought. Poor thinking is costly; both in money and in quality of life, there for, good quality thinking should bring good quality life.

 Excellence in thought, however, must be systematically cultivated; it implies effective communication and problem solving abilities and a commitment to overcome our native egocentrism and sociocentrism.

Having cleared out what means to develop critical thinking and how I started with it. I would like to make a critical reflection and share to my English VII course my currently situation as student in the didactic I, another course that I was taking in this semester.

This current critical course, Didactic I course, that I was taking, “was canceled”, it was the more reliable sample of arbitrariness, in which the school has reached in the highest academic life levels, in our school of language sciences. That is, the current administrative system of the undergraduate program in foreign languages, with its accreditation quality is in process.

In relation to its accreditation process in high quality international standards without any relationship or affiliation with the students point of view.  Moreover, they have answered to the demands made by students by “cancelling the course”, as it was the only solution or maybe as retaliation against the emergence of a deep desire to restore and change this school crises, that the school is passing at this time, students are not as they used to be, they demand to be treated as critical, analytical, being able to transform their social reality.

This fact smells pretty bad, it allows to affirm that is not criticism and analysis the guiding principles of the school of linguistics, something already known, but with this situation is absolutely proven. So what does a school that says they are critical and analytical, supporting a decision like this? This allows us then to argue that there are other principles that drive the actions of the school.

Now, who canceled this didactic I course? The faculty of the School of Language Sciences? The director of the degreed program? This is the same school that aims to move forward a certificate of quality, regardless of their  only reason; the well  being of the students, today the called didactic I course and 13 other courses with similar irregularities. How it can be understood that this course has been canceled, leaving 25 students sentenced to the postponement of his professional degree for over three more semesters?

What will come from the school? Washes hands: as has been done for many semesters against students' requests, pleasantly watching as more and more students thicken academic dropout statistics. And then say that nothing could be done against this critical situation of the school and the didactic I course. The only goal of the school should be student resurgence over political selfish and petty interests of a few.

Concluding all these ideas, I would like to rephrase, Paulo Freire, Education should raise the awareness of the students so that they become subjects, rather than objects, of the world. This is done by teaching students to think democratically and continually questioning, making critically meaning views from everything they learn and live.

There for our language school should focused  in not only at teaching languages but also teaching critical thinking skills, making out their students others philosopher with enough critical thoughts that enable them to make, a better school,  a better society, a better world.  This should be the real purpose of this our school.

By: Alexis Herrera Monsalve.