Gaining Ground: Toward the Development of Critical Thinking Skills in a Social Problems Course

Centers for Teaching & Technology at Georgia Southern University. IJ-SoTL, Georgia Southern University, Henderson Library 1301, Statesboro, GA 30460. e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/ij-sotl/

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9

Critical Thinking; Social Problems; Teaching Methods; Tests; Interdisciplinary Approach; Educational Improvement; Thinking Skills; Skill Development; Course Descriptions; Undergraduate Students; Sociology; Student Centered Learning; Research Training; Instructional Innovation; Curriculum Design

1931-4744

The purpose of this article is to contribute to the scholarship of teaching and learning in sociology by examining a set of course redesign improvements made in a Social Problems course at the undergraduate level. These improvements center on increasing students' critical thinking skills by integrating research-based, innovation-driven learning and student-centered strategies into a four-part course assessment redesign. Using a primarily case study approach, we examine quantitative data in the form of an interdisciplinary pre- and post- Critical thinking Assessment Test (CAT) from students enrolled in one iteration of the redesign for this particular course. Results from this analysis highlight the potential of these pedagogical improvements to foster the development of critical thinking skills and as an example of how assessment data can be used to guide further iterations of a course.

As Provided

2024

EJ1428726