Teaching Style, Philosophical Orientation and the Transmission of Critical Thinking Skills in U.S. Public Schools

Teaching Style, Philosophical Orientation and the Transmission of Critical Thinking Skills in U.S. Public Schools

A social-relational approach to teaching critical thinking has been suggested by many as effective. Corollary to this social-relational assumption is the assumption that the nature of social interactions are linked to the nature of the cognitive products arising from them. Social interactions within the classroom are influenced by the instructoris philosophical orientation to teaching. Some orientaions may be more likely than others to develop student critical thinking skills. This study assessed which orientation to teaching was most common among a representative group of preservice teachers (N=104) and education faculty members (N=10) from two colleges of education located in southwestern U.S. universities. The majority of preservice teachers adhered to a humanistic orientation. The majority of education faculty adhered to a classical orientation. Based on these findings, implications for teacher education programs concerning means of improving the transmission of critical thinking and problem-solving skills are discussed.