Teaching for the 21st Century

ITC Publications LLC believes that critical and creative thinking is the cornerstone of education in the modern age. Without the ability to think critically and creatively, students leave our schools at a distinct disadvantage. This in no way detracts from the need for a strong content acquisition emphasis, but such a content driven approach must incorporate the teaching of thinking. ITC Publications LLC is focussed on equipping teachers and schools with the ability to impart thinking skills, while maintaining a strong, well-sequenced content base.

It is through questioning at the appropriate level, and through appropriate scaffolding of tasks by incorporating a range of collaborative and co-operative strategies, that the vital 21st century skills of critical and creative thinking can be acquired. When combined with a strong knowledge base the effects on student engagement can be dramatic. Consider the example found here of the Silent Card Shuffle. What a great collaborative strategy to assist students understand the foundations of our language. The Silent Card Shuffle provides an excellent example of how to integrate a collaborative strategy with strong content acquisition.

Specific content (foundation skills), critical, creative and collaborative thinking tools can and should be taught together. ITC Publications LLC and the Innovative Teachers’ Companion can show you how.

Technology is a wonderful tool to help facilitate great thinking, but so, too, is a pen. It is the skill of the user that is the essential factor. It is here that educators and schools can use products such as the Innovative Teachers’ Companion to promote the teaching of thinking and embrace the notion of a whole-school approach to thinking. Essentially, it is the commitment of principals and teachers to create the thinking, questioning and problem-solving environment which will make the difference. When this occurs students can be confident that they are truly being prepared for the demands of the 21st Century.

Foundation Thinking in the context of the ITC Thinking Skills Framework refers to the sets of skills and knowledge that provide the student with a firm foundation in their learning of a topic. In terms of Bloom's Taxonomy of the Cognitive Domain, this refers to the Skills of remembering information, understanding information as in concepts, words, cause-effect and understanding reasons for certain things, rules, phenomena, etc. and then knowing how to apply these in similar or novel situations.

Effective teachers do this extremely well and often consciously employ different ways of learning (Visual, Kinesthetic, Aural )as well as modalities such as the Multiple Intelligences Model to ensure the success of Foundation learning. If this is not done well, then there is little chance that the critical, creative and collaborative thinking skills will be effectively employed in the classroom.

In the ITC Teachers’ Companion, we offer the following tools for Foundation Thinking

Mnemonics p 41
Rhymes/Music p 41
Acronyms p 41
KWHL p 110
3:2:1 RIQ p 142
Silent Card Shuffle p 88
Pairs and RAS Alert p 114
Concept Maps p 76
Cause-Effect Maps p 72
Metaphor p 178
Double Bubble Maps p 68
POE p 130
Human Continuum p 174

Critical Thinking in the context of ITC Thinking Skills Framework is aimed at the process of investigating, exploring and essentially analyzing a concept, proposal, product, phenomenon, idea, situation or person in order to pass some form of judgment thereon. Critical Thinking is to do with taking a stand on the areas mentioned above. This means there are two or more processes. Put simply, it is a case of first Analyzing in order to Evaluate (Bloom’s Taxonomy of the Cognitive Domain).

However, implied in all this is the fact that each evaluation must be based not only on the evidence but also upon a range of criteria by which to make any judgment. These criteria will vary from person to person and culture (national, corporate, educational, religious, etc.) to culture.

In the ITC Teachers’ Companion, we offer the following tools for Critical Thinking.

Decision Making Matrix p 92
Double Bubble Maps p 68
Elimination Draw p 80
Extent Barometer p 166
Icon Prompt p 158
KWHL p 110
PCQ p150
Extended PCQ p 150
SWOT Analysis p 146
T Charts p 100
Y Chart p 126

Creative Thinking in the context of ITC Thinking Skills Framework is aimed at the process of modifying, improving and designing new ideas, concepts, products, etc. in order to improve the human condition.

However, this is rarely done in isolation and this is where Bloom’s Taxonomy of the Cognitive Domain again makes so much sense. Consider any person who has worked and succeeded at the creative level. This is usually as a result of knowing a good deal about the topic such as in the case of Thomas Edison and light sources. Not only did he have a great deal of Foundation knowledge (Remember, Understand and Apply), but he decided to investigate these in depth (Analyze), judge that the existing light sources such as gas and oil were inefficient (Evaluate) which led him in his quest to modify, improve or totally redesign the system. Therefore, the creative process flows naturally out of the critical thinking process.

In the ITC Teachers’ Companion, we offer the following tools for Creative Thinking.

Y Chart p 126
MAS p 106
Image Associated Ideas p 64
Word Association p 84

Collaborative Thinking in the context of the ITC Thinking Skills Framework aims to use the process of employing the synergy of small and larger groups for a common learning purpose in the regular classroom. The ability to work in small and large groups has been a requirement of successful social interaction since time immemorial and it is increasingly seen as a part of social intelligence in the 21st century.

It is not the random distribution of students: instead, it is the purposeful grouping of students with clear roles, procedures and expected outcomes. These can be used at every level of Bloom’s Taxonomy of the Cognitive Domain. It is a great way for the teacher to act as a facilitator in the classroom and to offer ownership to students in their learning. Ownership leads to more motivated students and with the opportunity of peer learning, collaborative thinking tools become a useful addition to the range of tools for teachers.

In the ITC Teachers’ Companion, we offer the following tools for Collaborative Thinking.

1:4:P:C:R p 134
Jigsaw p 154
Judge-Jury p 162
Round Robin p 122
Hot Potato p 122
Human Continuum p 174
Silent Card Shuffle p 88
3:2:1:RIQ p142
Pairs and RAS Alert p 114