by Lee Watanabe-Crockett | Critical Thinking
What exactly do we mean by self-directed learning practices? Whoever heard of learners teaching themselves? Let’s start with considering a few real-life examples. In sports, when a player plays a bad game, he or she knows what they need to work on in their own time.... 
by Lee Watanabe-Crockett | Critical Thinking
Everybody needs a hobby, so it’s said. But even if you’re busy enough as it is (and what teacher and student isn’t), you can still benefit from exploring this list of creative hobbies for building critical thinking skills. Some of them you may... 
by Lee Watanabe-Crockett | Critical Thinking
At one time or another we have all engaged in poor thinking habits. After all, nobody’s perfect and neither is anybody’s thinking. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t get better at it and start thinking more critically. It’s worth our... 
by Lee Watanabe-Crockett | Critical Thinking
What can teachers do to help enable learners who struggle in class regularly? Sometimes it can feel like an uphill battle for both the student and the teacher. After all, many of these kids are considered highly intelligent and verbally competent. So it hurts teachers... 
by Lee Watanabe-Crockett | Critical Thinking
As a teacher, making sure your learners have constructive classroom discussions is important to their development as problem-solvers and creative thinkers. Your class can become a place for lively discussions and a beneficial sharing of opinions anytime. Holding open... 
by Lee Watanabe-Crockett | Critical Thinking
How do we know when our learners are thinking critically? Critical thinking assessment can be tricky to perform because it encompasses such broad skills. However, we can begin to assess critical thinking by breaking it down into more basic components, and then... 
by Lee Watanabe-Crockett | Critical Thinking
Many great educators have said many great things about the importance of lifelong learning skills. John Dewey, however, probably said it best: “Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” Educators want their learners to succeed both... 
by Lee Watanabe-Crockett | Critical Thinking
For a long time now we’ve talked about how important critical thinking skills are for today’s learners (and for everyone) to build on. Every educator knows how crucial it is to cultivate them in our classrooms and indeed throughout our whole lives. But... 
by Lee Watanabe-Crockett | Critical Thinking
The notion of students assessing themselves is difficult for many educators to get around, but they’re warming to the idea. If our students learn to ask the right self-assessment questions and keep themselves accountable, the results in learning improvement can... 
by Lee Watanabe-Crockett | Critical Thinking
Improving critical thinking skills is a life study, and one that’s definitely worth pursuing. Thinking critically is the pinnacle of the accumulation of knowledge and experience. The question is, how can we continue improving critical thinking skills long after...