[LINK] Let's pause before drinking the 'coding in schools' Kool-Aid

[JanW]

At 09:07 AM 6/06/2015, Tom Worthington wrote:
>But I am not sure how you teach or test "critical thinking". If you 
>can't teach it, or at least test it, then it is just more marketing hype.

Sure you can. You  present problems /cases that require judgement, analysis, consideration of alternatives actions, balance pros and cons -- all of that. The teacher demonstrates examples of applying those techniques, a range of them, documenting the steps, showing both excellent and poor examples of doing so, and asking students to discuss what is presented. Then you provide situations for them to demonstrate using the processes themselves as practice, then you do an exam that is evaluated. The scenario can be real or prepared, crisis (problem) or opportunity (developmental proposal).

If you don't provide the opportunity to examine complexity in a controlled and considered environment - i.e. teaching/learning situation - people will continue to act from their gut and 'common sense'. e-portfolios aren't enough without a framework for thinking processes, documentation, and eventually results. 

'Critical' means not accepting things at face value. 

Jan
who was working on a book at one time called Thinking Things Through.


I write books. http://janwhitaker.com/?page_id=8

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
jwhit at janwhitaker.com
Twitter: <https://twitter.com/JL_Whitaker>JL_Whitaker
Blog: www.janwhitaker.com 

Sooner or later, I hate to break it to you, you're gonna die, so how do you fill in the space between here and there? It's yours. Seize your space. 
~Margaret Atwood, writer 

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