Critical thinking in E-learning environments

an article by Raafat George Saadé and Danielle Morin (Concordia University, John Molson School of Business, Montreal, Canada) and Jennifer D.E. Thomas (Pace University, Ivan Seidenberg School of CSIS, New York) published in Computers in Human Behavior Volume 28 Issue 5 (September 2012)

Abstract

One of the primary aims of higher education in today’s information technology enabled classroom is to make students more active in the learning process.

The intended outcome of this increased IT-facilitated student engagement is to foster important skills such as critical thinking used in both academia and workplace environments.

Critical thinking (CT) skills entails the ability(ies) of mental processes of discernment, analysis and evaluation to achieve a logical understanding. Critical thinking in the classroom as well as in the workplace is a central theme; however, with the dramatic increase of IT usage the mechanisms by which critical thinking is fostered and used has changed.

This article presents the work and results of critical thinking in a virtual learning environment.

We therefore present a web-based course and we assess in which parts of the course, and to what extent, critical thinking was perceived to occur. The course contained two categories of learning modules namely resources and interactive components. Critical thinking was measured subjectively using the ART scale. Results indicate the significance of “interactivity” in what students perceived to be critical-thinking-oriented versus online material as a resource.

Results and opportunities that virtual environments present to foster critical thinking are discussed.

Highlights

► We investigated critical thinking in an online learning context (higher education).
► We examined the kinds of resources and activities that fosters/require critical thinking skills.
► Online interactive learning components are perceived to foster critical thinking.
► Design factors of interactive learning environments need to be addressed in online courses.
► Designers and teachers need to integrate more interactive components into the course activities.

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