Course Overview
This course deepens participants’ understanding of the theory and applied use of critical thinking principles and practices in the EFL classroom, as well as their ability to learn actively and autonomously, by engaging in the following types of activities.
- Read and discuss professional information and articles to gain a deeper understanding of critical thinking and its development in language pedagogy.
- Adapt and enhance culturally and age appropriate curriculum materials to include critical thinking development and practice for a local context.
- Critically reflect on their own work and the work of others.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this course, participants should be able to:
- Explain critical thinking concepts and patterns.
- Identify relevant resources to develop and use critical thinking.
- Identify and analyze teaching techniques and materials to incorporate critical thinking in teaching and learning.
- Apply critical thinking to classroom teaching and materials development.
Course Scope and Sequence
- Week 1: Course introduction and cohort building. Concepts and frameworks for critical thinking.
- Week 2: Applying critical thinking frameworks through a case study analysis.
- Week 3: Lesson plans and instructional strategies to promote critical thinking. Revise an existing lesson plan.
- Week 4: Assessment and critical thinking. Design a critical thinking assessment.
- Week 5: Constraints on teaching critical thinking. Create an action plan.
Course Requirements
Course participants will be required to:
- Complete all reading assignments.
- Participate in weekly online discussions by posting thoughts and reflections about the readings and commenting on the posts of other course participants.
- Submit three course tasks.
- Give constructive and substantive feedback on fellow participants’ tasks.