SEMINAR 3

Critical & Creative Thinking

Individual Learning Differences
 • ..is mental process that requires
knowledge
• …involves the manipulation of mental
or cognitive skills, e.g. analyzing,
sythesizing, comparing
• …aims at solving problems, e.g.
THINKING doing an assignment
• …manifest in a overt or observable
behaviour or abilities such as being
able to compare, analyse, etc
• is reflected in certain attitudes e.g.
positive towards problematic
situations, tolerant of ambiguity
 “…Idefine thinking as a
search for meaning and
understanding that can
involve the adventurous
generation of opinions, the
attempt to arrive at logical,
reasonable judgments and
reflection on the process.”
(John Barell, 1991)
 What makes a GOOD thinker?

 Are you a good thinker? Justify....

 Uses evidence skillfully and partially

 Organizes thoughts and articulates them

concisely and coherently

 Understands the difference between

reasoning and rationalization
 Attempts to anticipate probable
consequences of alternative actions before
choosing among them.

 Has a sense of the value and cost of

information, knows how to seek the
information, and does so when it makes
sense.

 Can learn independently and at least equally

important, has abiding interest in doing so
 Listens carefully to other people’s ideas

 Understands the difference between winning

an argument and being right

 Recognizes that most real-world problem

have more than one possible solution

 Habitually questions one’s own views

 Can represent differing viewpoints without
distortion, exaggeration or caricaturization

 Recognizes the fallibility of one’s own

opinions, the probability of bias in those
opinions, and the danger of differentially
weighting evidence according to personal
preferences.
Good Thinker Poor Thinker

Welcomes problematic situations Prefers situations which are more

definite
Open to multiple possibilities Prefers limited possiblities

Uses evidence skilfully Ignores evidence

Makes judgment after considering Quick to make judgment

all possibilities
Listens to other people’s view Ignores other people’s view

Reflective impulsive

Peseveres in searching for Gives up easily and is lazy to think

information further
 How many of the
above mentioned
characteristics of a
‘good thinker’ do
you suppose you
have?

 Are you a good

thinker?
 The process of determining the authenticity,
accuracy, or value of something

 Characterized by the ability to seek reasons

and alternatives, perceive the total situation
and change one’s view based on evidence.
 Critical Thinking

Types of
Thinking

Creative
Thinking
ABILITIES/SKILLS
List of critical
• To analyse idea thinking skills by
• To evaluate information Ennis (1968)
• To make inferences, etc Module, p. 118

Attitudes/Dispositions
• Rational
• curious & open-minded
• give importance to accuracy, objectivity & desire clear
explanation
• Aware and sensitive to alternatives
 Good thinking is not something that comes
naturally (Perkins,1988)

 It requires developing tactics, strategies,

techniques and methods
 Teaching students how to think
does not require additional
materials.
 An example is exposing
students to contrasting views
about an issue.
 Make them see the issue in
different perspectives
 Develop extended thinking skills

 Clarify understandings

 Establish links between ideas

 Enhance curiosity
 Provide challenges

 Model problem solving

 Obtain feedback on teaching /

learning

 Develop revision strategies

 Brainstorm  Inquiry

 Divergent  Complex

 Focal  Open

 Quiz  Closed

 Leading questionns  Socratic

 Fosters critical thinking, evaluation and knowledge
application in students

 How? i. Allow ‘wait time’

ii. Avoid yes – no questions
iii. Avoid the questions ‘Do you
understand?’
iv. Background knowledge
v. Open and close ended questions
vi. Use questions from all levels
SOCRATIC QUESTIONING:
 Questions seeking clarification/explanation
e.g. What do you mean?Apakah maksud anda?
 Questions about the questions or issue
e.g. Why do you need to think of this issue/Mengapa anda
perlu memikirkan isu ini?
 Questions that probe assumptions
e.g. What is your assumption? /Apakah andaian anda?
 Questions that probe reasons/evidence
e.g. Why do you say like that?/ Mengapa anda kata
begitu?
 Questions that probe implications/consequnces?
e.g. What are the implications of the findings?/ Apakah
implikasi dapatan yang diperoleh?
 Questions about viewpoints/perspectives
e.g. Why do you have this opiniom? / Mengapa anda
 The process of thinking in which a person see
things from different perspectives and generate
novel and original ideas or possibilities.
 Creativity could be expressed by adapting or
modifying what is already available – creative
copycat.
 In creative thinking, there is no one right solution
to a problem, no one right answer to a question
 Some terms associated with creative thinking
❖ Lateral thinking
❖ Divergent thinking
 FLUENCY
 The novel way of
seeing or doing
things that is
characterized by 4 FLEXIBILITY
components:

ORIGINALITY ELABORATION
 Fluency – the ability to generate quantities of
ideas
 Flexibilty – the ability to create different
categories of ideas and to perceive an idea
from different points of view
 Originality – ability to generate new, different
and unique ideas that others are not likely to
generate
 Elaboration- ability to expand on an idea by
adding on details /ability to create an intricate
plan
PREPARATION Gathering information, manipulating
STAGE and trying out ideas to find one that
feels right

Temporarily leaving the problem to allow

INCUBATION the mind to work other possibilities
STAGE based on new info. esp. when facing
mental block/dead end

ILLUMINATION Suddenly gaining insight as to the

STAGE solution of the problem – the AHA
phenomenon (EUREKA!)

VERIFICATION
Checking if the solution is viable,
STAGE cost-effective, not time consuming,
etc
 Using all senses to
SENSITIVITY investigate the problem

Putting together
SYNERGY seemingly unrelated
parts/ideas/info to form
the useful whole
Making discoveries by
SERENDIPITY accident or unexpected
discoveries when diverse
info is brought together
 Ingroups, think and share what
make a creative person? What
are some of the characteristics
you can think of?
 Restless & easily bored
 Willing to try and explore
 Humorous
 Has wide general knowledge
 Good memory
 Attracted to the unusual & unique
 Spontaneous
 Not shy or afraid of others’ remarks
 Intrinsically motivated
 High aesthetic value
 INTERNAL
- Imposed by self

Barriers to Creativity

EXTERNAL
-Imposed by society,
parents, schools, etc
INTERNAL BARRIERS (Self Imposed)
 Fear of failure or making mistakes
 Scared of criticisms
 Making judgments too hastily
 Low tolerance for ambiguity
 Failure to incubate
 Negative towards new ideas

EXTERNAL BARRIERS ( Parents, School, Society

etc)
 Imagination considered a waste of time
 Questioning is considered rude
 Bound by tradition
Parents & Teachers can:
 help children accept change
 help children realise that some problems have no
easy answers
 help children realise that some problems have
more than one answer
 encourage children to express their feelings about
things
 make children feel comfortable for being different
 help children develop perseverence
Learning Traits Learning Tasks

Individual
Differences in
Learning
 LEARNING
TRAITS

Prior
Learning
Personality Knowledge
Style

Preferences for Inclination to What a person

different types behave in has acquired
of learning & certain ways, previously, e.g.
instructional e.g. high facts, concepts,
activities, e.g anxiety skills,
learning alone, learner vs low experiences
in group, etc anxiety
learner, etc
 Preferred ways in which a student
learns/ processes information
 Learning Style (LS) is different from
Cognitive Ability (CA)
LS – preference to learn in a certain
way
CA – ability to do something, e.g ability
to use language (language ability)
A student can learn more effectively
and improve his cognitive ability if what
is to be learned is presented in a way
that matches his learning style. LS and
CA are related.
 Types of learning styles: Field
 WHAT?

• Field dependents tend to see patterns as

a whole and have difficulty separating out
specific aspects of a situation or pattern.

• Field independents are more able to see

the parts that make up a large pattern.
 WHAT?

• When field dependents interact with

stimuli, they will attempt to understand
and learn information as it is presented and
without restructuring it.

• Field independents find it easier to

recognize and select the important
information from its surrounding field.
When information is presented in an
ambiguous, unstructured format, the field
independent will impose his/her own
structure on the information.
 WHAT?

FIELD DEPENDENT FIELD INDEPENDENT

• Likes to work with Relationship • Prefer to work

others to achieve to Peers independently.
a common goal.
• Likes to compete
• Likes to assist and gain
others individual
recognition.
• Is sensitive to
feelings and • Task oriented; is
opinions of inattentive to
others. social
environment when
working.
 WHAT?

FIELD DEPENDENT FIELD INDEPENDENT

•Openly expresses Personal •Rarely seeks

positive feelings Relationship physical contact
for teacher. to Teacher with teacher.

•Asks questions •Formal;

about teacher's interactions with
tastes and teacher are
personal restricted to tasks
experiences; seeks at hand.
to become like
teacher.
 WHAT?

FIELD DEPENDENT FIELD INDEPENDENT

• Seeks guidance Instructional • Likes to try new

and Relationship tasks without
demonstrations to Teacher teacher's help.
from teacher.
• Impatient to begin
• Seeks rewards new tasks; likes to
which strengthen finish first.
relationship with
teacher. • Seeks nonsocial
rewards.
• Is highly
motivated when
working
individually with
teacher.
 WHAT?

FIELD DEPENDENT FIELD INDEPENDENT

• Performance X’teristics of • Details of
objectives and Curriculum concepts are
global aspects of emphasized; parts
curriculum are have meaning of
carefully their own.
explained.
• Concepts are • Deals with math
presented in and science
humanized or concepts.
story format.
• Concepts are • Based on
related to discovery
personal interests approach.
and experiences
of students
 WHAT?

• In field dependent individuals the locus

of reference is `outside’ of themselves

• In field independent individuals the

locus of reference is within themselves
 Field Independent Field Dependent
Learner Learner
Analytical Global or Holistic

Generates structure & ideas Accept structure & ideas as

presented
Internally directed Externally directed

Individualistic & Sociable & interpersonal

Intrapersonal
Conceptually oriented Factually oriented
 Field Independent
Learner
Provide problem-solving
tasks
Adopt inductive method of
teaching
Use discovery and inquiry
teaching methods
Allow individual work
Provide minimal guidance
& directions
Read module p. 140 – 141 for more details.
Field Dependent Learner
Provide well-structured tasks
Adopt deductive method of
teaching
Use discussion method of
teaching
Encourage group/ collaborative
work
Provide clear & explicit
directions and feedback
 Kolb defines learning styles as a person’s
preferred methods of perceiving and
processing information
 4 types of Learning Styles:
❖ Divergers
❖ Assimilators
❖ Convergers
❖ Accommodators For Kolb’s Learning Style
inventory, refer to
http://www.cloudnet.com/~edr
bsass/kolblearningstyle.html
 Divergers
➢ able to gather pieces of information and
integrate them as a whole
➢ able to generate ideas
➢ are imaginative & open-minded
➢ prefer to work in groups

Implications for teaching

➢ Provide learning tasks such as gathering
information, brainstorming for ideas, open-
ended assignments, etc.
 Assimilators
➢ are interested in ideas and abstract concepts
➢ are analytical and good at quantitative tasks
➢ are good organisers of information
➢ are good at inductive reasoning
➢ are attracted to logically sound theories

Implications for teaching:

➢Provide learning tasks such as organising info,
testing theories and ideas, designing
experiments, analysing quantitative data, etc
 Convergers
➢ are good at problem solving esp. technical tasks
➢ are good at making decisions
➢ are good at deductive reasoning
➢ are able to create new ways of thinking and
doing
➢ able to apply ideas to practical situations
➢ are pragmatic and unemotional

Implications for teaching

➢ Provide learning tasks such as experimenting
with new ideas, problem solving, working with
practical applications, etc.
 Accommodators
➢ are action and result oriented
➢ are risk takers (do not like routine)
➢ like hands-on and practical learning
➢ able to adapt to new situations

Implications for teaching

➢ Provide learning tasks such as learning by
doing/experience, seeking & exploring
opportunities, etc.
 Definition
◦ A relatively enduring set of behavioral, emotional
and mental characteristics
◦ remains relatively stable over time
◦ makes each of us unique
 What is personality?
• The set of characteristics that makes
each of us unique
• A relatively enduring set of behavioral,
emotional and mental characteristics
• These characteristics are relatively
permanent – they do not vary from
day to day
• Our personality shapes the way we
act, think, and feel about events,
ideas and other people
 Nature vs. Nurture
◦ Is personality genetically encoded or learned?
 Unconscious or Conscious?
◦ Do you know why you do what you do?
 Fixed vs. Situational
◦ Is personality stable or does it change from
situation to situation?
 Traits

• Traits are expressed as types of

behaviour
• One way of describing a personality is
by naming a person’s traits
 The “Big Five” traits currently thought to be
central to describing personality (OCEAN)
◦ Openness
 Will you try new things? Do you keep an open mind? Are
you intelligent?
◦ Conscientiousness
 Are you goal directed and driven?
◦ Extroversion
 Are you outgoing?
◦ Agreeableness
 Are you a peace-maker or a trouble-maker?
◦ Neuroticism/stability
 Are you predictable? Do you enjoy routine?
• Galen, a Greek doctor, during the 2nd
Century, described 4 personality types based
on excesses of bodily fluids (or humors):
1) Blood (Sanguine) = Cheerful & optimistic
2) Black Bile (melancholic) = Depressed &
pessimistic
3) Yellow bile (choleric) = Quick tempered &
irritable
4) Phlegm (phlegmatic) = Calm & uninvolved
  Image from the Middle
Ages depicting the
personality types
associated with the
four humors.
A ◦ (A): Melancholic (Black Bile)
B moody, glum
◦ (B): Choleric (Yellow Bile)
irritable and hot tempered
◦ (C): Phlegmatic (Phlegm)
slow and droopy
◦ (D): Sanguine (Red Bile)
happy, energetic, passionate

D C
Temperaments – Hippocrates believed
that four bodily fluids affect
personality traits & behaviours...

The temperaments were:

1) sanguine (pleasure-seeking and
sociable),
2) melancholic (introverted and
thoughtful),
3)choleric (ambitious and leader-like),
4)phlegmatic (relaxed and quiet).
 Four types of personality related to learning

➢ Anxiety : High versus Low

➢ Locus of control: Internal versus External
➢ Extroversion-Introversion: Extrovert versus
Introvert
➢ Achievement motivation:
Motive to achieve success Versus Motive to avoid
failure
An emotional state that is characterized by
feelings of tension, apprehension &
nervousness

Negative effect Disrupts

learning

Positive effect Enhances interest

& excitement
 High Anxiety Learner Low Anxiety Learner

Restlessness Calmness
Perform better on simple tasks Perform better on complex tasks
Difficulty in communicating Good communication skills
Shy Adventurous
Negative self-image Positive self-image
Insecure Secure
Submissive Independent
Lack of ambitious Ambitious
Hides emotions Show emotions
Tense posture Relaxed posture
To help High Anxiety Learners, teaching should
 Use Audio Visual Aids extensively
 Use graphic organisers, overviews frequently
 Use open book evaluation techniques
 Provide positive feedback and praise
 Provide for gradual transition from one
chunk of information to another
 Break down information into smaller chunks
 Reduce the importance of test taking
 Rotter, cognitive theorist who developed the
concept of locus of control.
 People tend to have either an internal or
external locus of control.
◦ Internal Locus of Control – things that happen in
your life are a result of your own actions.
 E.g. “I made to varsity because I spent the whole off-
season training to do so!”
◦ External Locus of Control – things that happen in
your life are a result of forces beyond your control.
 E.g. “I made to varsity because my horoscope said I would
have a lucky day!”
 It refers to a person’s belief regarding the causes of
his success or failure
 A person is classified as INTERNAL if he tends to
attribute the cause of his success or failure to himself
such as effort, ability or competence.
 A person is classified as EXTERNAL if he tends to
attribute the cause of his success or failure to
external forces such as luck, chance, or difficult task
To help students with an External Locus of Control do
well :
 Instruction should be highly structured
 Teaching materials should be more visual and
graphic, less verbal
 Instruction involves movement & kinesthetic
activities
 Teachers provide praise and rewards (positive
reinforcement)
 Provide more individual attention
 Develop learning to learn skills to increase internal
locus of control
➢ Reduce structure and cueing to give them
➢ independence in solving difficult tasks on their own
 Suggest strategies to develop students
with Internal Locus of Control:
❖ Use inductive experiences- from
examples to
generalisation
❖ Students come out with their own
structure for
information
❖ Give problem solving tasks that
require analytical
thinking to interpret, apply and
solve tasks
 I hate people.

 Introvert!

Yeeeehaw!  Extrovert!
Extrovert
Sociable & friendly
Desire excitement & take
chances
Impulsive
Energetic & enthusiastic
Easily distracted
Task oriented
Influenced by public opnion
Skilled at short-term retention
Tolerant of frustration
Good at physical activities
Introvert
Quiet & aloof
Contemplative & reflective
Non-implusive & plan ahead
Prone to fatigue
Not easily distracted
Conceptually oriented
Influenced by personal values
Skilled at long-term retention
Intolerant of frustration
Prefer to read more
 Extrovert Learners:
Provide learning tasks that
➢require rapid processing of information
➢present large amounts of information that are
multi-modal & multi image
➢involve social & behavioural assessment (e.g.
assessment of group participation)
➢are group-oriented (e.g. cooperative learning)
➢provide graphic cues, mind maps, outlines,
concept maps
➢ present information in small chunks
 Introvert Learners:
Provide learning tasks that

▪ are visual, imaginable or involve spatial

manipulation
▪ require organising and structuring
information for recall
▪ involve problem solving
▪ require the evaluation of information
▪ require paraphrasing and summarising
information
 It refers to the need to accomplish
something difficult such as taking a test. It
includes the desire to excel and surpass
others.
 Two types personality traits for
ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION:
❖ Motive to achieve success
People with this trait will do his best and
focus on succeeding in their tasks
❖ Motive to avoid failure
People with this trait will avoid doing
difficult tasks due to fear of failure.
Characteristic Differences

Motive to achieve success Motive to avoid failure

Success orientation Failure orientation
Pride orientation Shame orientation
Confident Anxious
Independent Dependent on feedback &
supervision
Energetic and enthusiastic Prone to fatigue
Persistent Reluctant
Perceives failure as a lack of Perceives failure as a lack of
effort ability
Can handle long-term goals Prefer short-term goals
Ambitious Not ambitious
 Students with the Motive to Achieve Success
➢ Provide long-term tasks
➢ Provide tasks that require independent
thoughts & action
➢ Provide tasks that allow them to assume
leadership roles
➢ Encourage more independent study
➢ Provide for active experimentation
➢ Use discovery learning approach
 Students with the Motive to Avoid Failure

✓ Provide extra help

✓ Give immediate feedback
✓ Provide many opportunities for positive
feedback
✓ Help them select realistic goals
✓ Provide opportunities for them to experience
success
✓ Using tests for diagnostics rather than
comparison
✓ dealing with failures privately
✓ using a mastery learning approach
 The Information Processing Model suggests that LEARNING is
a process of accommodating new information into existing
framework (prior knowledge) that the learner has
established in his brain.

 Ausubel’s Meaningful Learning Theory suggests that

LEARNING is effective if what is to be learned is connected
to one’s prior knowledge or experience (cognitive structures)
stored in the brain, i.e. new information is subsumed under
appropriate prior knowledge

The prior knowledge that a learner has affects his learning.

Students learn differently because they differ in their prior
knowledge.
 Differences in learning tasks create differences
in learning because different learning tasks
make different cognitive demands on the
learners.
 The differences in learning tasks interact with
the personality traits of the learners to create
further differences in learning
 Differences in learning tasks are described in
terms of Bloom’s Taxonomy of Learning
Objectives and Gagne’s Taxonomy of
Learning.
 Knowledge
 Comprehension
 Application
 Analysis
 Synthesis
 Evaluation
Refer to Module
for details, p.
191-192
  Verbal information (Recall &
memorise)
 Concrete concepts (Discriminate &
Classify)
 Defined concepts( Understding &
defining)
 Rule (Relating & Applying)
 Higher order rules(problem solving
)
Refer to Module, p. 194-195.
Cognitive Strategy ( Solving &
acquiring new knowledge)
 Described differences among children
at different ages.
 Traced the learning ability according
the age group