Due to the prevalence of pseudoscience, scientific illiteracy, and fake news, scientists are increasingly concerned about pseudoscientific beliefs among individuals without advanced scientific training. We recruited 85 undergraduate participants who read 10 pseudoscientific texts in each of the following conditions: APA-style references,…

First developed to support courses in humanities research methods, bibliographical teaching collections are now experiencing renewed purpose as part of information literacy pedagogy. The items comprising these assembled collections provide a wealth of historical features, which make them ideal for innovative hands-on instruction. However, since…

SCAMPER is an acronym that stands for Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, Put to Another Use, Eliminate, and Rearrange (Eberle 1972). Each word in the acronym is related to a question stem designed to prompt creative thinking about a given topic (Flannagan and Sawyer 2015). Using these question stems requires students to systematically think…

Many colleges of education have embraced online course delivery as an expeditious means of delivering graduate programs. It behooves us to ensure that this delivery method does not compromise our ability to provide these students with necessary critical thinking competencies. This research was designed to determine the degree to which participants…

This article outlines a method used to successfully breakthrough student bias surrounding controversial issues in the classroom. The method uses a debate with randomized position assignments to encourage students to consider all sides of the topic. Student feedback is overwhelmingly positive and students appear to develop a newfound respect and…

From the beginning, Sheridan, an independent K-8 progressive school founded in Washington, D.C., in 1927, has had a fierce commitment to both equity and diversity. In keeping with Principle 7 of the "The 11 Principles of Character Framework" (Character.org, 2018), which relates to fostering students' self-motivation, Sheridan educators…

Empowerment of critical thinking skill is one of numerous goals the 21st century education intends to acquire. This study employed content analysis on a number of articles that had been published in Biology education journals across Indonesia since 2010 to 2017, with critical thinking skill as the main focus of the study. This current study has…

Linking "A Nation at Risk" (1983) with the testing fetish that followed the No Child Left Behind Act (2002), Robert Bullough explores the perceptions of the good teacher and of good schooling that dominate American public education. Arguing that while training has trumped education as the commonplace conception of teaching, the…

Extension professionals help important agricultural sectors across the country resolve challenges using science-based practices that enhance environmental and social wellbeing while supporting businesses. Nursery and greenhouse growers comprise one of the largest sectors of U.S. agriculture, and this group is challenged to conserve water without…

The heart of engineering lies in problem solving. Critical thinking and mathematical thinking are inexorably linked and indispensable in complex engineering problem solving. However, the preparedness of prospective engineers in terms of having the required skills to face future challenges in the engineering workplace is still questionable and…

Can critical analysis be carried out without the support of minimal conceptual structuring in the field in question? The results of a research survey of beginning teachers are briefly discussed. Interviews on radiocarbon dating illustrate what we call a "delayed critique", i.e. after a phase of critical passivity and concomitant…

The future of liberal education in the United States, in its current form, is fraught but full of possibility. Today's institutions are struggling to maintain viability, sustain revenue, and assert value in the face of rising costs. But we should not abandon the model of pragmatic liberal learning that has made America's colleges and universities…

Sociology curricula often house a variety of "hot button" or contentious topics (e.g., race relations, crime and deviance, personal freedoms/choice, gender). While departments may be giving more attention to ensuring that these topics are included in their curriculum, here I argue that we also need to engage students in reflection about…

Higher education institutions are increasingly looking for the adoption of new ways to improve education quality, enhance student engagement, and manage knowledge resources. Technological developments have a significant impact on education, and technology-mediated learning is steadily progressing, with blended learning being implemented in…

The jigsaw technique has been successfully used in classrooms for decades, though less in higher education. Groups are formed with each student having a precise piece of information necessary to complete the assignment. Next, expert groups of students with the same material meet to sharpen their understanding before reforming their initial group…