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Promoting Critical-Analytic Thinking in Children and Adolescents at Home and in School

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Abstract

Engaging in critical-analytic thinking is essential for knowledge construction and school success. However, little is known about how best to promote such thinking in children and adolescents. Since the research base on promoting critical-analytic thinking is nascent, considering research on fostering skills that could be considered its precursors, as well as emerging research on supporting critical-analytic skills per se, is warranted. Indeed, critical-analytic thinking develops over time, and these skills are built on numerous other precursor skills including language skills and social-emotional skills. Thus, it is necessary to consider how to support precursors to these skills and how interventions could promote critical-analytic thinking as it develops in children and adolescents. This review of evidence and interventions, albeit brief, will provide support for how critical-analytic thinking can be fostered via home and school experiences for all learners. Finally, we will conclude by discussing the implications of the evidence reviewed and suggest ways to construct learning environments that nurture critical-analytic thinking in both the home and school contexts.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Education, The Pennsylvania State University, 212 CEDAR Building, University Park, PA, 16802, USA

    P. Karen Murphy

  2. Harvard University Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA

    Meredith L. Rowe

  3. University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA

    Geetha Ramani & Rebecca Silverman

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  1. P. Karen Murphy
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  2. Meredith L. Rowe
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  3. Geetha Ramani
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  4. Rebecca Silverman
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Correspondence to P. Karen Murphy.

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Murphy, P.K., Rowe, M.L., Ramani, G. et al. Promoting Critical-Analytic Thinking in Children and Adolescents at Home and in School. Educ Psychol Rev 26, 561–578 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-014-9281-3

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