{"id":8966,"date":"2026-04-22T08:59:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T00:59:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/?p=8966"},"modified":"2026-04-28T11:34:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T03:34:27","slug":"critical-thinking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/critical-thinking\/","title":{"rendered":"Critical Thinking"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Critical thinking is one type of <a href=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/complex-cognitive-processes\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"8935\">Complex Cognitive Processes. <\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. Core Elements of Critical Thinking<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" id=\"p-rc_3a45b71d254a4a12-433\">According to Nickerson (1988), engaging in critical thinking requires four essential components<sup><\/sup>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Motivation<\/strong>: The drive or desire to think deeply about a subject.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Knowledge<\/strong>: Having some existing information or background about the issue being considered.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/metacognition\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"8957\"><strong>Metacognition<\/strong>:<\/a> Being aware of and monitoring your own thought processes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Component Skills<\/strong>: A specific set of skills used to process information.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-50.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-50-1024x683.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9068\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1.4992870238337748;width:503px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-50-1024x683.png 1024w, https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-50-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-50-768x512.png 768w, https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-50.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. Five Key Features of Critical Thinking<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" id=\"p-rc_3a45b71d254a4a12-438\">Critical thinking has five distinct features, each with practical classroom applications:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"1\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Analysis<\/strong>: Breaking information into smaller parts to understand how they relate to one another.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Example<\/em>: Analyzing the different causes of World War II in a History class.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Evaluation<\/strong>: Assessing the credibility, logic, and evidence behind an argument or data set.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Example<\/em>: Evaluating whether experimental data in Science actually supports a specific hypothesis.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Inference<\/strong>: Drawing logical conclusions based on the information that is currently available.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Example<\/em>: Inferring a character&#8217;s motives in an English literature assignment based on their dialogue.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Explanation<\/strong>: The ability to justify your reasoning or viewpoint clearly to others.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Example<\/em>: Explaining why honesty is the best course of action in a Moral Education case study.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Reflection (Metacognition)<\/strong>: Thinking about your own thought process and how you reached a specific decision.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Example<\/em>: Reflecting on how you reached a conclusion during a group discussion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-51.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-51-819x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9069\" style=\"aspect-ratio:0.7998116385633818;width:547px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-51-819x1024.png 819w, https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-51-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-51-768x960.png 768w, https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-51.png 1122w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 819px) 100vw, 819px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. Promoting Critical Thinking in the Classroom<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" id=\"p-rc_3a45b71d254a4a12-449\">Students are <strong><mark class=\"has-inline-color has-medium-pink-color\">unlikely <\/mark><\/strong>to engage in critical thinking spontaneously. Therefore, specific tasks are more effective than others at encouraging this process:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>High-Impact Tasks<\/strong>: Comparing two different solutions and deciding which is more effective promotes critical thinking because it requires evaluation and analysis.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Low-Impact Tasks<\/strong>: Memorizing definitions, listening to a lecture, or completing a basic multiple-choice quiz <em>do not<\/em> typically encourage critical thinking.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-35.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-35-1024x683.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8967\" srcset=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-35-1024x683.png 1024w, https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-35-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-35-768x512.png 768w, https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/743\/2026\/04\/image-35.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Critical thinking is one type of Complex Cognitive Processes. 1. Core Elements of Critical Thinking According to Nickerson (1988), engaging in critical thinking requires four essential components: 2. Five Key Features of Critical Thinking Critical thinking has five distinct features, each with practical classroom applications: 3. Promoting Critical Thinking in the Classroom Students are unlikely &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/critical-thinking\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Critical Thinking<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":851,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8966","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-educational-psychology","category-teaching"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8966","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/851"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8966"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8966\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9070,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8966\/revisions\/9070"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8966"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8966"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/hadijahjaffri\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8966"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}