This dissertation explores the potential for higher education to promote the development of critical being among diverse students, including three studies that employ critical quantitative approaches. The first chapter proposes critical being as an alternative to critical thinking that better reflects the purposes of higher education for the public good. In Chapter Two, I create a survey-based instrument measuring critical being, including three factors that are theoretically grounded in the work of Barnett (1997) and Davies (2015). Chapter Three examines the relationship between specific instructional practices associated with academic challenge and four-year growth in critical being among three racial and/or ethnic groups traditionally underrepresented in higher education: Black and African American students, Asian and Pacific Islander students, and Hispanic, Latinx and Chicano students. Chapter Four focuses on college instructors, exploring the relationship of individual, academic, and organizational factors with instructors’ emphasis of critical being in the classroom and their beliefs about students’ abilities and efforts. Finally, Chapter Five returns to the necessity for higher education to center critical being in order to equip students to be well-informed agents of social change. By bringing together the results of the three studies, this chapter also considers the implications of higher education for critical being, offers self-reflection on the implementation of critical quantitative approaches, and looks forward in making recommendations for future research.

Critical Thinking has been identified in the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) as skills needed to prepare students for advanced education and the future workforce. In science education, argument-based inquiry (ABI) has been proposed as one way to improve critical thinking. The purpose of the current study was to examine the possible effects of the Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) approach, an immersion argument-based inquiry approach to learning science, on students' critical thinking skills. Guided by a question-claims-evidence structure, students who participated in SWH approach were required to negotiate meaning and construct arguments using writing as a tool throughout the scientific investigation process. Students in the control groups learned science in traditional classroom settings. Data from five data sets that included 4417 students were analyzed cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Yearly critical thinking gain scores, as measured by Form X of Cornell Critical Thinking Test, were compared for students who experienced the SWH approach versus students who experienced traditional instruction in both elementary (5th grade) and secondary schools (6th-8th grades). Analyses of yearly gain scores for data sets that represented a single year of implementation yielded statistically significant differences favoring SWH over traditional instruction in all instances and statistically significant interactions between gender and grade level in most instances. The interactions revealed that females had higher gain scores than males at lower grade levels but the reverse was true at higher grade levels. Analyses from data sets that included two years of implementation revealed higher overall gains for SWH instruction than for traditional instruction but most of those gains were achieved during the first year of implementation. Implications of these results for teaching critical thinking skills in science classrooms are discussed in detail.

This exploratory study examines the hypothesis that Socratic pedagogy is a useful tool for imparting critical thinking and moral reasoning skills to inmates. The study explores the effectiveness of a new curriculum, Introducing Socrates, which relies on Socratic pedagogy to achieve its objectives. The curriculum draws from the effective criminal justice research on cognitive education to determine its objectives, and then looks to the Platonic dialogues to find broad philosophical questions that tie into those objectives. The program also evaluates salient criticisms of Socratic pedagogy that are found in the educational and philosophical literature, and then isolates and evaluates constructs from these criticisms in the study.

A common criticism of U.S. citizens today, whether as voters or students or workers, is that they are "lazy and apathetic". It is important to explore the validity of this criticism. This thesis begins with the premise that there are two prerequisites for citizenship in a democracy: (1) that citizens be willing to participate and (2) that citizens are able to participate. The purpose of this research is to examine a particular set of perspectives regarding social conditions which consistently impact the two aforementioned prerequisites. This examination addresses social conditions that undermine a person's ability to participate meaningfully and it addresses perspectives on alternative social conditions which support personal action. Included in this set of perspectives are relevant concepts and ideas derived from Socrates, John Locke, Karl Marx, Anthony Giddens, and Michael Lerner. These prominent thinkers provide likely, but not exclusive examples of how certain themes commonly emerge regarding social conditions and their relationship to communication. Each of these sources, in different ways and to different degrees, demonstrates how social conditions commonly encourage ideology that can undermine personal action. Additionally, each theorist indicates the need for dialogue and critical thinking to penetrate these social conditions and ideologies, thus providing the keys to encouraging personal action. Once established, the potential for dialogue and critical thinking is discussed with regard to several important social arenas and systems of American culture: mass media, education, the workplace, and government. The true test of whether or not Americans are willing to participate depends upon the nature and extent of their ability to participate. As the promotion of dialogue and critical thinking is necessary to assure the second, an exploration of these capacities is necessary to begin assessing the first.

Research about retention of nursing students has focused on either specific student characteristics or on nursing students at the university level. A problem experienced by a community college nursing program in Maryland is low completion rates, which can affect the institution and the nursing profession. This qualitative case study explored faculty-related factors leading to success of students in the nursing program at this school, so the low completion rate can be addressed. The conceptual foundations for this study were Tinto's theory of student retention and Jeffreys' nursing undergraduate retention and success model. The research questions addressed how faculty-related factors affected students' success in the nursing program. The study was conducted with 9 second year nursing students and 7 nursing faculty providing information through face to face interviews at a community college in central Maryland. Data analysis was conducted using inductive processes to code, identify, and analyze the themes. The findings of this case study suggested that students can benefit from improving their critical thinking abilities. The findings of this case study also suggested that faculty affect students' critical thinking abilities when faculty are approachable, provide a nurturing environment, and are helpful to students. A professional development workshop for nursing faculty and staff was developed based on the findings from these study results. This workshop will provide guidance to faculty and staff on strategies to assist student with improving critical thinking abilities. Implications for positive social change include addressing the nursing shortage by increasing the number of qualified nursing students from this program, understanding the perspectives of nursing students, and helping to meet the needs of nursing students.

The push to generate professional nurses has raised questions about the competency level of the novice nurses that are entering the workforce. Utilization of simulation laboratories is being viewed as an option for bridging the gap for the shortage of nurses, nurse educators, and clinical sites. The theory of goal attainment was used to guide this project, which aimed to develop and validate an ER simulation scenario that mimics a clinical setting as a tool for measuring nursing skills. An additional purpose, to be accomplished after graduation, will be to implement a pilot project to determine the impact of the validated simulation scenario within the nursing skills laboratories on the quality of care provided by novice nurses to patients. The validation of the ER simulation scenario was completed by having 10 local experts review the developed ER simulation scenario. The experts then completed a 5-question Likert-type scale survey. Descriptive analysis was used to evaluate the results of the survey and validate the simulation scenario tool. Results revealed that all experts strongly agreed that the ER scenario was visually appealing and had enough subject content. Most experts strongly agreed that it was easy to read and follow. Post-graduation and with the assistance of the education organization, the second part of this proposal will occur with a pilot study implementation. The significance of this project to the nursing practice is to utilize simulation as a bridge to real life practice settings. This project may contribute to the American Nurses Association Standards of best practice which works to improve patient safety as well as quality nursing care.

Many entry-level nurses are not prepared to handle medical emergencies. Although responsible for managing the care of individuals with complex medical conditions, many of these nurses compromise the safety of patients due to a lack of experience and an inability to apply clinical judgment. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of registered nurses about their transition from entry-level to advanced beginner. Bandura's social cognitive theory, along with Colaizzi's descriptive method of data analysis, provided a basis for this phenomenological study. Research questions focused on challenges that entry-level nurses have experienced with problem-solving and complex patient care that requires advanced critical thinking and the application of clinical judgment. Criterion sampling facilitated recruitment of advanced-beginner RNs, with data collected through semistructured, one-on-one interviews. Data analysis occurred in a series of steps, including extracting and developing meanings from interview transcripts, clustering meanings into description lists, and eliminating outliers. Data analysis revealed 12 major themes aligned with behavior, clinical environment, and personal/cognitive factors. Among the findings were that nurses often felt unsupported, unable to manage conflict, unprepared, unseasoned, inefficient, and unable to lead others effectively. This study was necessary because its findings may provide insights leaders in health services can use to develop strategies to better prepare entry-level nurses to care for individuals with complex medical conditions. Among the implications for positive social change are developing a better tool for the training and advancement of entry-level nurses, consequently improving patient safety and reducing health care costs.

Although research has identified critical thinking (CT) as an objective of higher education, limited quantitative research has focused on how postsecondary instructors view using handheld devices for classroom collaboration to support CT. There are studies examining how the use of tablet technologies influence collaborative learning (CL), showing a link between CL and CT, and connecting CT to academic achievement. However, understanding how instructors perceive the intersection of these factors has not been well studied. Applying Vygotsky's social cognitive theory as a foundation of CL, using adapted questions from two questionnaires (Technology Acceptance Model and Cooperative Learning Implementation) and two frameworks, this quantitative survey study examined the relationship between tablet application and implementation of CL, and then between CL implementation and the development of CT dispositions (CTD). An email with a link to the survey was sent to a population of 1,932 instructors in a professional education technology organization. From a sample of 59, the key findings indicated instructors accepted the use and usefulness of tablets in the classroom, and used applications for completing collaborative tasks. The Pearson's product moment correlations between tablets and CL, acceptance and implementation appear to be affected by instructor's professional views and teaching practices. Perceptions about the development of CTD were positive with limitations of statistical significance. Results of this study may provide insights into using tablets in effective ways to enhance learning outcomes as one social benefit. Improving the CT of students may support developing citizens who contribute to communities and society in positive ways as lifelong learners.

In an urban high school in California, students are generally unskilled in critical writing. The problem has been associated with instructional barriers encountered by teachers. In this qualitative case study, English Language teachers provided their perceptions of such barriers and shared perspectives for solutions based in professional development. Grounded in the theories of Halpern, Saiz and Rivas, Weigle, and Harris and Graham, the conceptual framework emphasized instructional models that develop metacognition in writing, which can increase students' critical thinking. Selection criteria required participants who were English Language Arts teachers of writing critical thinking. Data from 4 participant interviews were coded, labeled, and collapsed into themes on the teachers' perceived barriers towards teaching critical thinking. Interview data were triangulated using field notes that revealed that limited teacher pedagogy, lack of student application, and an overall scarcity of school support prevented educators from teaching critical thinking in writing. The findings indicated a lack of an understanding from students, teachers, and administration of the instructional elements needed to develop successful critical thinking in writing. This study promotes positive social change by illuminating the instructional barriers by these 4 high school English Language Arts teachers. In addition, a professional development program, informed by the findings of this inquiry, will present teachers and administrators with strategies to increase critical thinking and writing. These coaching and mentoring strategies comprise a sustainable systemic program that will improve student critical thinking and writing.

A global concern exists regarding the lack of critical thinking skills in young adults and college graduates. Fortune 500 companies have reported the need for better development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills to prepare employees to be successful in the workplace. This study focused on teacher perceptions of the Socratic method (SM) in developing critical thinking skills in high school students. The purpose of this descriptive qualitative case study was to describe high school teachers' perceptions regarding the development of critical thinkers via the Socratic method. Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development was used in this qualitative study to explore perceptions of 7 teachers. The central research question and subquestions that guided this study were focused on teachers' perceptions of the SM and its effectiveness in developing critical thinking skills in high school students. Data were collected with face-to-face interviews with 7 teachers and classroom observations. Data were recorded via a systematic approach with chart and diagrams. Themes, patterns, and any identified relationships were categorized and coded to comprise data tracking. Results indicated that a lack of professional development, teacher comfort level, and student participation all played a role in low SM execution. The resulting project was designed to provide teachers with materials and learning opportunities to increase their SM skill level and stimulate teachers to use their new knowledge to increase critical thinking skills in high school students. The online professional development course evaluation provided both summative and formative assessments. The project contributes to social change by helping improve the way teachers teach and students learn the SM, which may result in improved critical thinking skills in students.