Students’ views regarding the barriers to learning critical thinking
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20525/ijrbs.v11i4.1797Keywords:
critical thinking, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Auditing Students, Qualitative Research, Focus GroupsAbstract
This paper aims to evaluate students’ feedback on the impediments to developing critical thinking in the classroom. Interpretative phenomenological analysis techniques were used to obtain data from postgraduate and undergraduate students of an Internal Auditing department in a South African university. The students identified several barriers to developing critical thinking in the classroom some of which are (1) the lecturers who are most times not knowledgeable in the field of critical thinking, (2) the students themselves who are simply not interested, (3) finally the educational system, according to the students who all argued that critical thinking is not ingrained in the country's educational institutions. According to the students, their lack of knowledge of critical thinking including the lecturers’ seeming insufficient knowledge of critical thinking calls for urgent intervention in the form of re-curriculation and training of lecturers. The findings of this research could have important implications for the auditing profession, as lecturers are often challenged to identify innovative ways to assist students in improving their critical thinking skills.
Downloads
References
Aliakbari, M. & Sadeghdaghighi, A., 2013. Teachers’ perception of the barriers to critical thinking. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 70, 1-5.
Almulla, M. (2018). Investigating teachers’ perceptions of their own practices to improve students critical thinking in secondary schools in Saudi Arabia. International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education, 6(3), 15.
Anagün, S.S. (2018). Teachers' Perceptions about the Relationship between 21st Century Skills and Managing Constructivist Learning Environments. International Journal of Instruction, 11(4), 825-840.
Andrews, R. (2015). Critical thinking and/or argumentation in higher education. In The Palgrave handbook of critical thinking in higher education. Palgrave Macmillan, New York.
Barak, M. (2017). Science teacher education in the twenty-first century: A pedagogical framework for technology-integrated social constructivism. Research in Science Education, 47(2), 283-303.
Bean, J.C., & Melzer, D. (2021). Engaging ideas: The professor's guide to integrating writing, critical thinking, and active learning in the classroom. John Wiley & Sons.
Bellaera, L., Weinstein-Jones, Y., Ilie, S., & Baker, S.T. (2021). Critical thinking in practice: The priorities and practices of instructors teaching in higher education. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 41, 100856.
Birgili, B. (2015). Creative and critical thinking skills in problem-based learning environments. Journal of Gifted Education and Creativity, 2(2), 71-80.
Brookfield, S.D. (2017). Becoming a critically reflective teacher. John Wiley & Sons.
Carson, S. (2015). Targeting critical thinking skills in a first-year undergraduate research course. Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education, 16(2), 148-156
Carter, A.G., Creedy, D.K., & Sidebotham, M. (2016). Efficacy of teaching methods used to develop critical thinking in nursing and midwifery undergraduate students: A systematic review of the literature. Nurse education today, 40, 209-218.
Cottrell, S. (2017). Critical thinking skills: Effective analysis, argument and reflection. Bloomsbury Publishing.
Cowden, C.D., & Santiago, M.F. (2016). Interdisciplinary explorations: promoting critical thinking via problem-based learning in an advanced biochemistry class. Journal of Chemical Education, 93(3), 464-469.
Dahlman, C., Mealy, S., & Wermelinger, M. (2016). Harnessing the digital economy for developing countries.
Dunne, G. (2015). Beyond critical thinking to critical being. Criticality in higher education and life. International Journal of Educational Research, 71, 86-99.
Ebadi, S., & Rahimi, M. (2018). An exploration into the impact of WebQuest-based classroom on EFL learners’ critical thinking and academic writing skills: A mixed-methods study. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 31(5-6), 617-651.
Erwiza, E., Kartiko, S., & Gimin, G. (2019). Factors affecting the concentration of learning and critical thinking on student learning achievement in economic subject. Journal of Educational Sciences, 3(2), 205-215.
Florea, N.M., & Hurjui, E. (2015). Critical thinking in elementary school children. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 180, 565-572.
Gambrill, E., & Gibbs, L. (2017). Critical thinking for helping professionals: A skills-based workbook. Oxford University Press.
Ghanizadeh, A. (2017). The interplay between reflective thinking, critical thinking, self-monitoring, and academic achievement in higher education. Higher Education, 74(1), 101-114.
Grant, J. (2018). Principles of curriculum design. Understanding medical education: Evidence, theory, and practice, 71-88.
Harris, A., & de Bruin, L.R. (2018). Training teachers for twenty-first century creative and critical thinking: Australian implications from an international study. Teaching Education, 29(3), 234-250.
Huber, C.R., & Kuncel, N.R. (2016). Does college teach critical thinking? A meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 86(2), 431-468.
Indrašien?, V., Jegelevi?ien?, V., Merfeldait?, O., Penkauskien?, D., Pivorien?, J., Railien?, A., Sadauskas, J., & Valavi?ien?, N., (2021). Linking critical thinking and knowledge management: A conceptual analysis. Sustainability, 13(3), 1476.
Kettler, T. (2014). Critical thinking skills among elementary school students: Comparing identified gifted and general education student performance. Gifted Child Quarterly, 58(2), 127-136.
Liu, L. (2017). Application of cooperative principle and politeness principle in class question-answer process. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 7(7), 563.
Love, B., Vetere, A., & Davis, P. (2020). Should interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) be used with focus groups? Navigating the bumpy road of “iterative loops,” idiographic journeys, and “phenomenological bridges”. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 19, 160.
Marin, M.A., & de la Pava, L. (2017). Conceptions of Critical Thinking from University EFL Teachers. English Language Teaching, 10(7), 78-88.
McPeck, J.E. (2016). Critical thinking and education. Routledge.
Mena Araya, A.E. (2020). Critical Thinking for Civic Life in Elementary Education: Combining Storytelling and Thinking Tools. Revista Educación, 44(2), 24-45.
Merisier, S., Larue, C., & Boyer, L. (2018). How does questioning influence nursing students' clinical reasoning in problem-based learning? A scoping review. Nurse education today, 65, 108-115.
Mutakinati, L., Anwari, I., & Kumano, Y. (2018). Analysis of Students’ Critical Thinking Skill of Middle School through STEM Education Project-Based Learning. Jurnal Pendidikan IPA Indonesia, 7(1), 54-65.
Niu, L., Behar-Horenstein, L.S., & Garvan, C.W. (2013). Do instructional interventions influence college students’ critical thinking skills? A meta-analysis. Educational research review, 9, 114-128.
Nyumba, T., Wilson, K., Derrick, C.J., & Mukherjee, N. (2018). The use of focus group discussion methodology: Insights from two decades of application in conservation. Methods in Ecology and evolution, 9(1), 20-32.
Padmanabha, P. (2018). Critical thinking: Conceptual framework. I-manager’s Journal on Educational Psychology, 11(4), 45-53.
Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2019). A guide for educators to critical thinking competency standards: Standards, principles, performance indicators, and outcomes with a critical thinking master rubric. Rowman & Littlefield.
Paul, R.W. (2018). Critical thinking and the critical person. In Thinking: The second international conference. Routledge. 373-403
Payne, S. (2017). Critical Thinking Beyond the Classroom Walls. Critical Thinking: Survey on 22 years of Teaching at Miyazaki International College= Critical Thinking: Survey on 22 years of Teaching at Miyazaki International College, 39-46.
Pu, D., Ni, J., Song, D., Zhang, W., Wang, Y., Wu, L., Wang, X., & Wang, Y. (2019). Influence of critical thinking disposition on the learning efficiency of problem-based learning in undergraduate medical students. BMC medical education, 19(1), 1-8.
Santos, K.D.S., Ribeiro, M.C., Queiroga, D.D., Silva, I. D., & Ferreira, S.M.S. (2020). The use of multiple triangulations as a validation strategy in a qualitative study. Ciencia & saude coletiva, 25, 655-664.
Sellars, M., Fakirmohammad, R., Bui, L., Fishetti, J., Niyozov, S., Reynolds, R., Thapliyal, N., Liu-Smith, Y.L., & Ali, N. (2018). Conversations on critical thinking: Can critical thinking find its way forward as the skill set and mindset of the century? Education Sciences, 8(4), 205.
Schendel, R. (2016). Adapting, not adopting: Barriers affecting teaching for critical thinking at two Rwandan universities. Comparative Education Review, 60(3), 549-570.
Schindler, L., & Burkholder Jr, G.J. (2014). Instructional design and facilitation approaches that promote critical thinking in asynchronous online discussions: A review of the literature.
Shiraev, E.B., & Levy, D.A. (2020). Cross-cultural psychology: Critical thinking and contemporary applications. Routledge.
Silber?Varod, V., Eshet?Alkalai, Y., & Geri, N. (2019). Tracing research trends of 21st?century learning skills. British Journal of Educational Technology, 50(6), 3099-3118.
Soto, C., Gutierrez de Blume, A.P., Carrasco Bernal, M.A., & Contreras Castro, M.A. (2020). The role of meta?cognitive cues on the comprehension of proficient and poor readers. Journal of Research in Reading, 43(3), 272-289.
Stupple, E.J., Maratos, F.A., Elander, J., Hunt, T.E., Cheung, K.Y., & Aubeeluck, A.V. (2017). Development of the Critical Thinking Toolkit (CriTT): A measure of student attitudes and beliefs about critical thinking. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 23, 91-100.
Suryawati, E., & Osman, K. (2017). Contextual learning: Innovative approach towards the development of students’ scientific attitude and natural science performance. Eurasia Journal of mathematics, science and technology education, 14(1), 61-76.
Tan, C. (2017). Teaching critical thinking: Cultural challenges and strategies in Singapore. British Educational Research Journal, 43(5), 988-1002.
Tiruneh, D.T., Verburgh, A., & Elen, J. (2014). Effectiveness of critical thinking instruction in higher education: A systematic review of intervention studies. Higher Education Studies, 4(1), 1-17.
Topolov?an, T., & Matijevi?, M. (2017). Critical thinking as a dimension of constructivist learning: some of the characteristics of students of lower secondary education in croatia. Center for Educational Policy Studies Journal, 7(3), 47-66.
Toshpulatova, D., & Kinjemuratova, A. (2020). Teacher Perceptions on Developing Students' Critical Thinking Skills in Academic English Module. International Journal of Psycho-Educational Sciences, 9(1), 48-60.
Ulger, K. (2018). The effect of problem-based learning on the creative thinking and critical thinking disposition of students in visual arts education. Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning, 12(1).
Wester, K.L., & Borders, L.D. (2014). Research competencies in counseling: A Delphi study. Journal of Counseling & Development, 92(4), 447-458.
Yue, M., Zhang, M., Zhang, C., & Jin, C. (2017). The effectiveness of concept mapping on development of critical thinking in nursing education: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Nurse education today, 52, 87-94.
Zarifsanaiey, N., Amini, M., & Saadat, F. (2016). A comparison of educational strategies for the acquisition of nursing student’s performance and critical thinking: simulation-based training vs. integrated training (simulation and critical thinking strategies). BMC medical education, 16(1), 1-7.
Zuboff, S. (2019). The age of surveillance capitalism: The fight for a human future at the new frontier of power: Barack Obama's books of 2019. Profile books.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Ikenna Franklin Eze, Chux Gervase Iwu, Jobo Dubihlela
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
For all articles published in IJRBS, copyright is retained by the authors. Articles are licensed under an open access Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, meaning that anyone may download and read the paper for free. In addition, the article may be reused and quoted provided that the original published version is cited. These conditions allow for maximum use and exposure of the work, while ensuring that the authors receive proper credit.
