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U N I V E R S I T Y O F P I T T S B U R G H |
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Volume X, Number 2 |
November
2004 |
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U N I V E R S I T Y O F P I T T S B U R G H |
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Volume X, Number 2 |
November
2004 |
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Outstanding teaching promotes engagement, critical thinkingFor this annual awards issue of the Teaching Times, faculty who have won major University teaching awards share ways they apply two concepts related to excellent teaching: Winners of the School of Arts & Sciences Bellet awards discuss ways to actively engage students in the learning process, and winners of the Chancellor’s Distinguished Teaching Award reflect on ways they teach students to think critically. Faculty members play a critical role in student learning. Paramount among indicators of engagement that directly influence the quality of students’ learning are faculty who communicate high expectations and encourage cooperation, active learning, and student-faculty contact.1 The act of engaging students as active learners is connected to an overarching goal of higher education: to foster the kinds of higher level thinking skills that students will use in other courses and beyond college. This complex thinking is often referred to as critical thinking, a disciplined process that requires conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information.2 Terms used synonymously with critical thinking include problem solving and decision making. Critical thinking takes root in the learner’s engagement with problems, when faculty encourage inquiry, discussion, and debate. At the same time, students acquire skills in complex thinking from faculty who model thought processes valued in their particular disciplines.3 Beyond the classroom, critical thinking is “a powerful resource in one’s personal and civic life. Educating good critical thinkers yields insights which are the basis of a rational and democratic society.”4 In addition to high-profile teaching awards, this issue features a comprehensive list of awards recognizing teaching excellence throughout the University in the past year. The Teaching Times staff compiles this information through the year, and updates can be e-mailed to Jo Rosol, dearment@pitt.edu. References 2. Scriven, Michael and Richard Paul, “Defining Critical
Thinking, “ (Draft Statement for the National Council for Excellence
in Critical Thinking): 3. Bean, John C. , Engaging Ideas: The Professor’s Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass, 1966. 4. Facione, Peter A., “Critical Thinking: What It Is and Why It Counts,” California Academic Press, 1998.
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A newsletter devoted to the support of teaching and learning at the University of Pittsburgh |
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