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Developing Critical and Creative Thinking Skills in Malaysian ESL Classroom
Developing Critical and Creative Thinking Skills in Malaysian ESL Classroom
Objectives/ Questions
-study the strategies practiced by teachers in implementing critical and creative thinking skills
-discuss the solutions to the constraints faced by teachers and students
-investigate the challenges in implementing critical and creative thinking skills in ESL classroom
Background of study/ Introduction
Malaysia Education Development Plan (PPPM) 2013-2025 introduces the Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) to be integrated in the school syllabus with the purpose to generate knowledgeable and critical students who are able to compete at the international arena (Hanita Hassan et al,2017).
Infusing critical and creative thinking skills is always known as a common problem which is faced by not only teachers, but the students too.
There are many challenges to develop critical and creative thinking skills especially in Malaysian ESL classroom.
Conclusion
the solutions provided will benefits all (teachers, pupils, schools)
enhance the quality of our education
teachers are more aware of their role in developing critical and creative thinking skills
Literature Review/Concepts
-critical thinking involves a few combining skills. However, Nazir et.al (2018) argued that these skills are not enough.
-This is because the process of critical thinking must has both cognitive skills and dispositions
Definition
Brookhart (2010) offers a more practical definition of HOTS by categorising them into three categories: (i) HOTS in terms of transfer, (ii) HOTS in terms of critical thinking, and (iii) HOTS in terms of problem solving.
Transfer involves meaningful learning that requires students to understand and use what they have learned (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001)
critical thinking includes questioning, reasoning, observing and describing, connecting and comparing and exploring viewpoints (Barahal, 2008)
problem solving requires thinking processes that lead to becoming self-regulated learners (Szabo & Schwartz, 2011).
Various terms like reflective thinking, integrative thinking and deep thinking have been used to denote HOTS (Wang and Wang, 2011)
The creative language learners should be able to combine responses or ideas in novel ways (Smith, Ward and Finke, 1995), and to use elaborate, intricate, and complex stimuli and thinking patterns (Feldman, 1997).
As for the critical language learners, they must be able to carefully and deliberately determine to accept, reject or suspend judgment about a claim (Moore and Parker, 1986).
Discussion
assessing critical and creative thinking skills should not be limited to answering questions in examination, instead it should be a continuous assessment (formative and summative)
introduce Buddy system or Peer Learning in learning
game-based learning should be practiced in teaching English
-teacher can use PBL (Problem-Based Learning-instructional strategy). Besides that, questioning method also can be done in groupwork activity to reduce students' stress as well as discussions and experimental analysis.
instead of providing tools and instruments, more practices and strategies should be exposed and trained to teachers
Problem statement
One the main issues is most teachers only focus to expose pupils to lower levels of thinking skills only. (involves memorisation)
Based on the preliminary Report of the Blueprint 2013-2025, most English lessons in schools do not highlight constructive thinking as most classrooms are teacher-based and focused on lower order thinking skills (Swaran Singh et al, 2018).
One of the factors is teacher's lack of awareness on how to develop pupils' critical and creative thinking skills
Malaysian pupils' proficiency level contributes to this issue as well.
Critical thinking skills are almost always assessed through a rigid way; asking and answering questions.
References
Abdul
Aziz@Ahmad
, A., Ismail, F., Ibrahim, N. M. & Abdul Samat, N. 2017. Investigating the Implementation of Higher Order Thinking Skills in Malaysian Classrooms: Insights from L2 Teaching Practices. Sains Humanika 9(4-2): 65-73.
Swaran Singh, C. K., Ambar Singh, R.K., Masa Singh, T.S., Mostafa N.A. & Tunku
Mokhtar, T.M. 2018. Developing a higher order thinking skills module for weak ESL learners. English Language Teaching. 11(7): 86-100.
Shafeei, K.N., Hassan. H., Ismail. F., & Abdul Aziz. A. 2017. Incorporating Higher Order Thinking Skill (HOTS) Questions in ESL Classroom Contexts. LSP International Journal 4(1):101-116.
Mohd Nazir Md Zabit, Zuhairah Abdul Hadi, Zuraidah Ismail & Tirzah Zubeidah Zachariah. 2018. A brief history and review of critical thinking skills: Malaysia Approach. Journal of Teaching and Education. 8(1):153–164.
Significance of study
-the teachers will particularly know the practices that can facilitate the pupils’ faster grasp on HOTS
-the solutions may serve as a guideline for teachers in implementing critical and creative thinking skills.
-the challenges will be taken into consideration so that it fits the real ESL classroom situation
Implications
may result in a more efficient way of developing critical and creative thinking skills
promote the role of teacher as a facilitator in learning
is able to introduce a new approach in producing more pupils that can think independently