Analytical Thinking
I personally feel that analitical thinking has more to do with knowledge of the particuler subject matter, IE: Mechanical, administrative or
Mathmatical,and hands on experience rather than generl subject matter. it's extremely difficult if not impossible to apply analitical thought process to a subject that one does not understand the ground rules for the subject at hand.
Hi Raymond,
The more knowledgeable you are, the more you can better think about anything. Knowledge is key. Understanding has to be present in order for effective thoughts to come into play.
Patricia Scales
I agree that knowledge is the key and that hands-on experience is the best way to acquire this knowledge. You have to be actively involved to acquire the required knowledge. Once you are knowledgeable about a subject, it becomes easier to use analytical thinking to divide problems into parts, and then arrange steps to solve the problems.
This is true, but so is the reverse. The more you critically think about a topic, the more you can learn about it.
Hi David,
I concur! Critical thinking does involve thinking deeply as well as out of the box.
Patricia Scales
I agree with David. I find that is students are introduced to the broad concept up front and then taught the individual pieces to the concept, they will be successful at breaking that concept down to the most basic level and solving problems easier. For example, in the health courses I have taught, I introduce the disease and give a brief overview of the disease; then I go back and break down all the components to the disease process (all the pieces leading up to and thru the process). That way in the future, students can identify what a client may have with only having a few symptoms/complaints.
Hi Angela,
Giving students small pieces of information to understand the overall picture is the way to go. Some students become overwhelmed when you just skip to the big picture. Learning is truly a process.
Patricia Scales
In regards to analytical/critical thinking, it is important for students to utilize facts or data from my course lecture. I created a Jeopardy game for my class as a review method before mid-term tests, which is very well received by all. Students are quite impressed with all of the information they have retained throughout the term when presented in a creative game format.
