This study investigated how macro—implementation occurs within the British Columbia Ministry of Education. In particular, the Social Studies Curriculum Guide. Grade One-Grade Seven (1983) and related student textbooks, teacher videotapes, evaluation reports and other implementation support materials were examined to determine how the policy "critical thinking and problem-solving skills," a key component of the curriculum, was interpreted. Interviews (N=15) with relevant Ministry coordinators, committee chairpersons and members, and authors/ editors/consultants were audiotaped and later transcribed for analysis in light of the existing macro-implementation literature. It was found that the curriculum lacked clarity, was perceived variously by different policy developers, and was interpreted in discrepant ways in implementation materials. Ministry efforts to implement "critical thinking and problem-solving skills" appear to have been thwarted by lack of initial policy clarity; inconsistent liaison within the Ministry to facilitate shared expertise, understanding, and positive rapport; as well as insufficient attention to capacity building, particularly of Ministry coordinators responsible for monitoring each phase of the policy. Capacity needs highlighted in this study included adequate working conditions for developing complex policy, knowledge of the policy and its implications, as well as understanding the process of change. Future implementation prospects, may profit from research which focusses on exemplary ministry macro-implementation plans and those factors which enhance capacity building, liaison, and policy clarity. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

The thesis serves as an evaluation of the psychometric properties of a measure of cognitive competence used with a multi-ethnic, adolescent sample. The primary goal of this study was the development of the Critical Problem Solving Skills Scale – Qualitative Extension, using Relational Data Analysis (RDA). This study builds on previous work that has been conducted to provide evidence for the reliability and validity of the RDA framework in evaluating youth development programs (Kurtines et al., 2008). Inter-coder percent agreement among the TOC and TCC coders for each of the category levels was moderate to high, with a range of .76 to .94. The Fleiss’ kappa across all category levels was from substantial agreement to almost perfect agreement, with a range of .72 to .91. The correlation between the TOC and the TCC demonstrated medium to high correlation, with a range of r(40)=.68, p

Peer tutors -- Collaborative learning methods -- Peer dialoguing skills -- Peer composition or writing skills -- Critical points of argumentation.

Linking experience and language--Interrelated curriculum--Integrating content subjects with reading--Higher level thinking skills.

Thesis (MTech (Business Information Systems))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2019 / The recent generation of students, often referred to as ‘Millennials’, are generally familiar with computer games and therefore learn mostly through virtual experiences from game playing. A high failure rate due to the lack of critical thinking (CT) skills among tertiary students still persists, despite the implementation of CT enhancing programmes and frameworks. The aim of this research was to explore the effect of gamification on the critical thinking skills of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) students. A single pre-and post-quasi-experimental research strategy with a pragmatic perspective research approach was followed. Mixed methods research with self-administered semi-structured questionnaires and interviews was employed. In total, 182 questionnaires distributed to students were analysed pre- and post-intervention, and five (5) interviews were conducted with the relevant lecturers post-intervention. The data were summarised and categorised by applying thematic analysis. All participants volunteered to be part of the study, and they were informed of the confidentiality and anonymity of the research before partaking in the study. From the inductive study results, it was found that CT is already an integral part of the subject content being taught to the students. The experimental learning environment did not result in significant domain-general CT compared to the control environment. Judgement was the only CT skills element showing a significant improvement from pre- to post-results on the respondents’ overall CT. Gamification can be an effectual instrument to enhance CT skills, as it enables the retention of knowledge through play by motivating and stimulating inquisitiveness among students.

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This dissertation uses a three-manuscript style, and the ultimate purpose was to support critical thinking teaching in K-12 education from a systematic view concerning the lack of critical thinking in the young generation. The three manuscripts included in this dissertation were entirely or partly adapted based on three published or submitted research papers. The first research paper is a literature review article with an introduction to a development framework of nine principles, which provided a new view to developing critical thinking in younger children based on conceptual understanding of critical thinking. The second research paper is a study I coauthored with J. Michael Spector, which calls for more attention to the development of human intelligence given the rapid development of artificial intelligence and proposed that developing inquiry and critical thinking is a key to develop human intelligence. The third research paper reports an investigation over middle school educators' conceptualization of critical thinking and its alignment with the established theory and research. The major purpose was to connect the established theory and research with educational practices regarding what critical thinking constitutes. The significance of this study is to reveal the issues behind the abstract understanding of critical thinking and address the insufficient critical thinking teaching phenomenon from the perspective of educational practices.

No description available.

Although the number of nursing programs has increased in Florida, the number of hospital sites available for clinical experiences have not, resulting in limited clinical time for each nursing program. To address this shortage of clinical time, local colleges are increasing the use of simulations in the curriculum. Guided by andragogy, this sequential mixed methods study was conducted to explore differences in students' perceptions of satisfaction, self-confidence, and critical thinking between two groups of students with different amounts of clinical simulation. In an associate degree nursing program, 34 nursing students completed a single survey on student perceptions of satisfaction and self-confidence, 12 students completed a critical thinking test, 37 student reflection papers were reviewed, and 4 faculty members were interviewed. Independent t tests were used in analyzing quantitative data, and content analysis was used in the analysis of qualitative data. Statistical analysis and content analysis showed no difference between the groups of students for satisfaction, self-confidence, and critical thinking. However, results should be interpreted with caution because quantitative analyses were underpowered, increasing the risk of type II error. Overall, students had positive comments about simulations in regard to satisfaction, self-confidence, and critical thinking. The results of this study will allow nursing faculty in the local setting to make better decisions with regard to using additional simulation in their programs. The results may benefit nursing students and the patients they care for in their future nursing careers in providing quality healthcare.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between critical thinking and religious schema as represented by religious orientation. Past research has included religious belief within the larger construct of paranormal belief, and demonstrated a correlation between high levels of paranormal belief and poor critical thinking skills. Studies in the psychology of religion suggested that a more complex religious measure based on religious orientation was necessary to understand these correlations. Additionally, schema theory offered a cognitive framework within which to experimentally test the cause of these correlations. This study found that primed religious schema did not account for the relationship between paranormal/religious belief and critical thinking skills. This study did find that poor critical thinking performance was predicted by higher levels of extrinsic religious orientation.