EP 11: From "Is This on the Test?" to "Here's What I Think": 10 Ways to Make Critical Thinking Happen

In a world of instant answers, where students can summon AI-generated text faster than they can raise their hand, how do we actually teach critical thinking?

In this episode of The What & Who of EDU, we dig into 10 real-world strategies from educators across the country who've figured out how to move beyond right-or-wrong thinking. Whether it's removing the fear of failure, sneaking in some stealth logic through iClicker questions, or letting students spar with ChatGPT, these instructors are making critical thinking tangible, and totally teachable.

Brought to you by Macmillan Learning

🎓 Episode Highlights:

1. Remove the Fear of Failure: Dr. Christin Monroe (Landmark College). Use unlimited attempts and revision opportunities to promote problem-solving over perfection.

2. Unplug to Go Deeper: Dr. Margaret Holloway (Clark Atlanta University). Ditch the phones, print the readings, and make space for honest, un-Googleable thought.

3. Flip It and Think About It: Dr. Amy Goodman (Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College). Use flipped learning to focus class time on metacognition, not just content review.

4. Channel Your Inner Socrates: Dr. Erika Martinez (University of South Florida). Answer questions with questions and let students build the logic themselves.

5. Teach the Process, Not Just the Point: Dr. Charlotte de Araujo (York University). Turn your lecture into a real-time thinking lab using data and hypothesis-driven learning.

6. Give Them Problems Worth Solving: Dr. Ryan Herzog (Gonzaga University). Use messy, real-world questions to make students wrestle with how they'd figure it out.

7. Make Them Explain It Like a Kid's Listening: Dr. Mike May (Saint Louis University). Have students break down complex ideas for a fictional 9-year-old. No jargon allowed.

8. Hide Critical Thinking in Plain Sight: Dr. Jennifer Ripley Stickle (West Virginia University). Use layered clicker questions to sneak in logic-building without calling it a "thinking exercise."

9. Let AI Make the Mistakes: Jennifer Duncan (Georgia State University, Perimeter College). Use AI tools like ChatGPT as a critical thinking foil—spot hallucinations, bias, and BS.

10. Make Them Teach It Live: Dr. Derek Harmon (The Ohio State University). Have students present their learning in front of peers under pressure—because if they can teach it, they know it.

📌 Educator Bios & Resources:
Find out more about our amazing featured educators

Dr. Christin Monroe is an Assistant Professor of Chemistry at Landmark College, where she has been teaching for five years. She teaches in Principles of Chemistry, Introduction to Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, and Biochemistry, with a focus on supporting neurodivergent learners.

Dr. Margaret Holloway is an Assistant Professor of English and the Composition Coordinator in the English & Modern Languages Department at Clark Atlanta University. Her research is rooted in the rhetoric and composition discipline, and she has nine years of college-level teaching experience.

Dr. Amy Goodman is a Senior Lecturer in the Mathematics Department at Baylor University, where she has taught since 1999. In addition to teaching, she is also a course designer (for the Mathematics Department and the School of Education), OER author, teaching mentor to other faculty and graduate students, and learning analytics researcher. Her pedagogy is founded on the belief that all students - any student - can be successful at mathematics.

Dr. Erika Martinez is a Professor of Instruction at the University of South Florida, where she has been teaching economics for 14 years. She also teaches at UNC-Kenan Flagler Business School's MBA@UNC online program and Santa Barbara City College, covering courses from principles of economics to advanced microeconomic theory and many economic electives. She is the recipient of multiple teaching awards and is passionate about making economics accessible and engaging for all students.

Dr. Charlotte de Araujo is an Assistant Professor, York University with 16+ years of post-secondary undergraduate and graduate teaching experience geared towards biology and biomedical science students. She was recently recognized with a 2023 Faculty of Science Excellence in Teaching Award. Dr. Charlotte has coordinated large-scale biology/biochemistry programs at multiple Ontario based universities and is also a consultant.

Dr. Ryan Herzog is an Associate Professor of Economics, Program Coordinator, and Faculty Fellow at Gonzaga University, where he has been teaching for 16 years. His work focuses on macroeconomics, financial markets, and public policy.

Dr. Mike May is the lower division coordinator in the department of mathematics