Unit 8

Unit 8
TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES OF CRITICAL THINKING AND

REFLECTIVE PRACTICES
What do we need?
• A critical thinker needs

– Observation; curiosity; objectivity; analytical
skills; …???
• A Reflective Practitioner needs
– Introspection; self analysis; unbiased

approach …???
Some useful tools and techniques
• To promote critical thinking and reflective

practice here are some useful tools and
techniques
– Mind Mapping
– Portfolio Development
– Assessment Schedules
– Mentoring and Peer Support
Mind mapping
• Mind Map is a powerful graphic technique
which provides a universal key to unlock
the potential of the brain.
• It harnesses the full range of cortical skills
– word, image, number, logic, rhythm,
colour and spatial awareness – in a single,
uniquely powerful manner.
• Originated in the late 1960s by Tony
Buzan, “Mind Mapping is a graphical
technique for visualizing connections
between several ideas or pieces of
information.”
How to make mind maps?
Mind Mapping is the easiest way to put

information into your brain and to take
information out of your brain - it's a creative
and effective means of note-taking that
literally 'maps out' your thoughts. And it is so
simple.
According to Michael Michalko, a Mind Map:
• activates your whole brain
• clears your mind of mental clutter
• allows you to focus on the subject
e.g. Which factors affect student
behavior?
Home Environment Classroom Environment
Student
Behavior
Teaching
Personality traits
What are the sources of each factor?
• Socio- • Size of
economic class and
physical
Classroom
Home
personality
teaching
• Brought up • Teacher
qualification
Principles of Mind Mapping
• The brain works in different ways. Different
people think in different ways.
• There are certain “programs” loaded in your
consciousness. These programs are your
“natural thinking software”. You get them
included with your mind when you enter this
world.
• The brain works according to certain basic
principles, and you can use mind maps to
take advantage of them to improve your
creativity and memory.
Techniques to use (MIND MAPPING)
• Brain Storming: The map itself is quite similar to what
is going on in your head. It’s all one big mish-mash of
information and nothing seems to be structured.
• The Flow: This is a somewhat different type of mind
map, extremely useful when you need to see the
continuity in a system, the step-by-step plan. It’s easy
to get an overview of the chain of events that you have
to follow, the so called step by-step plan, when you use
a mind map.
• The Big Picture: This is a very interesting and
effective mind mapping technique, which also happens
to be my personal favorite. Actually, this technique is
very personal. The Big Picture is all about – to be able
to combine all the techniques for best effect.
Portfolio Development
• The portfolio is intended to encourage the individuals to
become actively involved in monitoring and reflecting on their
own development
• The contents of the portfolio reflect both academic and field
experiences that demonstrate the person’s application of
knowledge and skills.
• The portfolio allows you to demonstrate mastery of the
competencies of the program.
• It provides a more complete picture of the interests, abilities
and accomplishments in tangible evidences.
• It encourages the one’s organizational skills, self-assessment
of growth, and awareness of continuing educational needs.
• It is expected that practitioners will continue to develop their
portfolios and as they reflect on their profession and their
learning.
TYPES OF PORTFOLIOS
The Working Portfolio
• The working portfolio is a purposeful collection of
student work in progress.
• The collection is assembled based on clear
objectives and guidelines given by the teacher.
• All portfolios begin as working collections, since it is
from these collections that final selections are made
for presentation.
• The advantage of the working collection is that it
allows students to take a second look at what they
do, and to think about how they could improve future
work.
• It is a departure from the traditional practice where a
first draft of an assignment was considered as a final
The Development Portfolio
• The developmental portfolio represents a completed
selection of student work.
• It contains work that shows the student’s progress
towards mastery of set objectives for a topic, theme, or
course of work, and provides evidence of his/her
achievement over a period of time.
• This type of portfolio enhances learning through the
process of reviewing, revising, and evaluating the final
product.
• Diagnosis may be one use for these portfolios since the
feedback obtained at intervals can shape further
instruction and learning for the student.
• This type of portfolio clearly demonstrates the integration
among instruction, learning, and assessment.
The Showcase Portfolio
• The showcase portfolio shows the
student’s best work and is used to support
and document accomplishment in a
course/subject area or any learning
activity.
• This requires the student to be able to
make a selection from a range of work
(working portfolio) using specific criteria.
• These criteria may be determined by an
external examining body, by the teacher,
or may be developed by the student in
Stages of Portfolio Development
Goal Identification Identifying a vision that will guide the portfolio development.
Collecting Gathering artifacts that demonstrate the student's professional development. Some of
these artifacts will ultimately become the portfolio entries.
Selecting Reflecting and identifying artifacts that are most relevant and meaningful to the
student's purpose, beliefs and philosophy. These become the portfolio entries.
Categorizing Identifying the developing themes of the portfolio.
Connecting Making a linkage between the items selected and the goal of the portfolio. This is the
thinking -through stage that formulates the reflections.
Reflecting Making each entry relevant and meaningful by writing about why the entry is included
in the portfolio. This reflection ties the individual entry to the overall portfolio document
Sharing Presenting and discussing the portfolio to program faculty

ASSESSMENT SCHEDULES
• Assessment remains a major concern in
developing programs to enhance students’
critical thinking skills.
• Until a concept can be defined and assessed,
adequate models for teaching are difficult to
develop.
• Despite the lack of a comprehensive theory of
critical thinking, varied efforts have been
made to develop assessment tools.
• Assessment schedules for periodic review
and reflection can be useful way for
improvement
1.Commercially available standardized tests
• Instead of using teachers made test a better

approach is considered to be the application of
standardized tests
• These instruments have been carefully developed
and tested for reliability and validity, and all have
been widely used as measures for testing people’s
ability to think critically.
• These standardized, commercially available essay
test of general ability provide several advantages
over multiple choice tests or instructor-developed
essay tests, including student-generated
responses, carefully established validity and
reliability, and recognition.
Researcher or instructor designed assessments
• Researchers have provided examples and criteria for
instructors interested in developing assessment
techniques for such purposes as testing domain-specific
critical thinking, testing for transfer, evaluating a critical
thinking program, formative evaluations, or determining
grades.
• While teacher made tests can and should be used within
the classroom to assess critical thinking, their use in
educational research projects examining the
effectiveness of various methods or models to teach for
critical thinking has important limitations.
• Instruments designed for a specific experimental method
or model for critical thinking may best capture its
strengths, but the resulting variety of instruments and
assessment techniques has led to difficulties comparing
Teaching students to assess their own thinking
• Perhaps the most appropriate way to assess students’ critical
thinking abilities is to teach them to assess their own thinking.
• Paul has written extensively on teaching students to assess
their own work, and he has argued that to the extent that
students need feedback from instructors, they have not
achieved a high level of critical thinking (Foundation for
Critical Thinking, 1996).
• Angelo and Cross (1993) have also emphasized the importance
of student self-assessment techniques.
• While highly appropriated for classroom use, however, it
requires a deep understanding of critical thinking and a
tremendous commitment from both the instructor and the
students.
• Further, this method of assessment, for many obvious
reasons, does not meet the requirements of rigorous
educational research.
MENTORING AND PEER SUPPORT
• Last but not the least, mentoring is much useful in
developing critical thinking and reflective practices
• Mentoring is a relationship between two
individuals based on a mutual desire for
development towards career goals and objectives.
• In a mentoring relationship, the two individuals are
referred to as the “mentor” and the “mentee” (the
individual being mentored).
• Mentoring provides development opportunities for
both partners.
• In mentoring, there is no reporting relationship
between the mentor and the mentee (i.e., a
manager would not mentor a direct report).
Benefits of Mentoring
A mentoring relationship can provide a mentee with:
• greater clarity on life and career choices and their own career
goals
• new insight on the organizational culture different perspectives
and values
• the opportunity to develop new networks of contacts
• access to new resources
• greater career satisfaction and increased likelihood of career
• success development in areas not typically address through
training or on the job
Through the mentoring process mentors have the opportunity to
enhance their leadership skills and expand their perspectives by:
• seeing the business world through different eyes being
challenged on perceived wisdom
• increasing their awareness of issues at other levels of the
organization
• meeting new members of the organization
Types of Mentoring
Formal • Not all supervisors are comfortable also
• Structured programs frequently match being a mentor
mentors and trainee focused on specific • Possibility of conflict of interest
goals Trainee initiated
• Provides accountability based on formal • Begins with an interaction with a chosen
contracts between mentor and trainee mentor – it may develop into a mentoring
Natural relationship: build bridges
• Initiated by mentor – one person reaching
out to another
• Implicit – usually people with much in
common
Peer
• Individuals in similar positions (e. g., have
small children) providing support, empathy,
and advice
• Individuals in similar stage of career
mentoring on options and career goals
Situational
• Mentoring for a specific purpose/skill
• Generally short-term
• Common at all stages of the career
Supervisory
Phases of Mentoring
Building Rapport- Sharing

perspectives
Scaffolding for professional growth

and providing consultation
Resolving and removing support for

independent growth
Thank you
• There are many other tools and

techniques that you can easily find online.
• You can design and devise your own
methods.
Keep exploring!!!

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Unit 8

TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES OF CRITICAL THINKING AND

• A critical thinker needs

• A Reflective Practitioner needs

– Introspection; self analysis; unbiased

• To promote critical thinking and reflective

Mind Mapping is the easiest way to put

Home Environment Classroom Environment

these artifacts will ultimately become the portfolio entries.

Categorizing Identifying the developing themes of the portfolio.

thinking -through stage that formulates the reflections.

Sharing Presenting and discussing the portfolio to program faculty

• Instead of using teachers made test a better

Building Rapport- Sharing

Scaffolding for professional growth

Resolving and removing support for

• There are many other tools and

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