Image by elosa fromhttp://123rf.com

It seems many people have forgotten how to think critically these days either by choice OR even though I hate to say it – ignorance. Some even weaponized the term and use it to drive their personal point of view if someone else disagrees with it as if the ‘disagreers’ were dolts. Ironic isn’t it? Sure sounds to me like those disagreers were actually using critical thinking.  I bet that rings familiar doesn’t it?

Going back to basics – Let’s define it:

Critical thinking is that mode of thinking — about any subject, content, or problem — in which the thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking by skillfully analyzing, assessing, and reconstructing it. Critical thinking is self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored, and self-corrective thinking. -
https://en.wikipedia.org

Weak critical thinking touches every part of life although lately it has been most prevalent and obvious in the political scene. Some of you are thinking (or think you are thinking), ‘What is the big deal?’ ‘Isn’t it just opinion?’ ‘Why should I care?’

Here’s why:

• dangerous and costly errors,
• repeated mistakes,
• bad decisions,
• failed systems,
• inaction when action is needed, the giving of bad advice,
• inaccurate assumptions, the poor design of training programs,
• the poor evaluation of educational curricula,
• the lack of anticipated action…

So basically, you lose if you snooze. Moving along …

What was I thinking and why did I DECIDE to do that?

Ain’t that a loaded question!

The Basic Barriers – let’s see what the Pros say:

Egocentric Thinking

Although egocentric behaviors are less prominent in adulthood, overcoming egocentrism can be a lifelong process. Egocentric thinking is a natural tendency to view everything in relation to oneself. This type of thinking leads to the inability to sympathize with others or analyze and evaluate various perspectives. Sadly, since most egocentric people are not willing or cannot see this character flaw within themselves, this increases the difficulty in overcoming the barrier.

Groupthink

Groupthink can lead to unhealthy decision-making patterns. Like egocentric thinking, it is difficult to overcome. Breaking the cycle requires individuals to stand apart from the group and question opinions, thoughts, and popular ideas. 

Drone Mentality

If you have a Drone Mentality, this means you don’t pay attention to what is going on around you. A drone mentality can sneak up on anyone at any time. Daily routines often lead to a drone mentality and can prevent or cause a loss of critical thinking skills. This mentality is dangerous in a classroom because learners forget how to respond to new circumstances. It also causes them to shy away from challenges for the sake of ease and convenience or even fear. *This has become an unfortunate situation used in indoctrination manipulation from day 1 lasting K-12. Speaking of education here is an interesting aside:

“According to a recent study by MindEdge, a Waltham, MA-based learning company founded in 1998 by Harvard and MIT educators, many millennials lack critical thinking skills. When young adults between the ages of 19 and 30 (both current college students and recent grads) were given a test designed to test their ability to detect fake news:

• Only 24 percent were able to correctly answer eight out of nine questions
• 44 percent could not correctly answer six out of nine questions

The inability of discern false information is problematic for more than one reason:

• 55 percent of millennials rely on social media for news
• 51 percent share social media content very or fairly often
• 36 percent have accidentally shared inaccurate information

These findings by MindEdge are consistent with a Stanford University survey that found middle school, high school, and college students were unable to distinguish between a news story, an ad, and an opinion piece, and college students actually fared worse than high school students. “- Terri Williams - https://www.goodcall.com

Social Conditioning

Unwanted assumptions and stereotyping leads to social conditioning. It does this by blinding us from the realization that we are even making assumptions and stereotyping in the first place. The ability to think outside of the spectrum is a great asset because most learners do not realize they are being conditioned to think a certain way.

Biased Experiences

Personal biases can prohibit critical thinking because they prevent the thinker from being fair, inquisitive and open-minded. This kind of thinking can also prevent an individual from using experience, reasoning and common sense to make informed decisions.

Arrogance and Intolerance

True critical thinkers do not welcome arrogance and intolerance into their minds. It is nearly impossible to find the best solution to a problem with a close-minded mindset. Without critical thinking skills, individuals often react thoughtlessly and recklessly to situations. What they should do, however, is to assess and take responsibility for their choices while accepting the rewards or consequences that follow those choices. Arrogance and intolerance block creativity and this leaves no room for other suggestions for problem-solving.

The Bottom line is we can no longer afford to accept poor critical thinking. The costs are too high. Difficult problems and decisions must be addressed reflectively. We cannot accept poor judgments that can lead to irreparable damage and even cost lives  ... because that’s where we are right now.

Think about it.

Resources:

https://wabisabilearning.com

https://www.insightassessment.com