EDUC 506 - Teaching Thinking Skills in the Elementary Classroom (3)

This course explores the concepts, theories, and research regarding creative and critical thinking. Candidates participate in activities/experiences designed to foster understanding of creative and critical thinking skills, and methods/techniques/strategies appropriate for the development and nurturing of these skills in elementary students. “Thinking Skills” is a general term that includes a variety of cognitive thinking processes, including critical thinking and creative thinking. Critical thinking involves distinguishing valid from invalid reasoning primarily by identifying assumptions, determining their validity, seeing them from varying perspectives, and taking action based on valid reasoning. Creative thinking allows for going beyond our normal modes of thinking to generate new approaches to problem solving, to see the world from varying perspectives, and to create new/novel solutions. Offered: Summer.