Encouraging Critical and creative thinking in the classroom

Critical and creative thinking is essential for students to become successful learners.

This general capability has 4 main parts:

• Posing questions, gathering, organizing and processing information and ideas.
• Imagining possibilities, suggesting alternatives, seeking solutions and putting ideas into action.
• Talking about and giving reasons for their thinking and applying knowledge in new situations.
• Applying logic and reasoning, drawing conclusions and designing a course of action, and evaluating procedures and results.

During their primary and high school years, students develop critical and creative thinking as they imagine possibilities, consider alternatives, and create innovative solutions. They apply logic and reasoning to develop a course of action, and weigh up the consequences.

Examples

For example, in design and technology, grade 9 and 10 student’s analyses social, ethical and sustainability factors that have an impact on their designed solutions, including the production processes involved.

Another example is in the learning area of humanities and social sciences, where students consider social, environmental, and economic and community issues and makes plans for personal or group action. For example in geography, grade 7 students think critically and creatively to propose actions to create future water security.

In mathematics, students learn that there is more than one way to approach mathematical problems, and develop and use a range of different strategies for problem solving. Students pose questions, and organize and summaries data sets. They interpret their results and draw conclusions based on the evidence. For example, in grade 5 students may collect and analyses data about traffic around their school which might inform the local council about the need for a school crossing.

You can help your students develop critical and creative thinking by:

• Encouraging them to explore, be curious, come up with questions and investigate how things work.
• Asking them to think of different ways to solve problems.
• Providing choices of activities that involve planning and decision making.
• Asking them to describe their thinking and give reasons for it.
• Showing them it is OK to make mistakes.
• Sharing your mistakes and what you learnt from them.
• Valuing their ideas and efforts.

Humble beginnings with lofty goals, cradled in the lap of rustic and serene spaces define the launch of the Kalvi School. Way back in the early 90s, the passionate and penchant desire of the Engineer turned entrepreneur, who desired to provide a promising future to the not so fortunate children of the society is the seed that has beautifully grown into a luscious green tree of knowledge today.

Education beyond Academic knowledge and cramming of classroom notes and texts were the Vision with which the Kalvi School was born. "Kalvi" signifies a place called second home where values are affirmed, young minds are enriched and dreams take flight. Knowledge and Skills are anchored in enduring understandings to prepare students for the challenges of the century and to thrive in an increasingly connected and global world. Kalvi aims at the development of knowledge, social skills and leadership qualities of every learner that influence not only their careers and life choices but also determine the kind of citizens they grow up to be.

Kalvi Cbse Public School was established with an ennobling vision: creating the leaders of the future, by imparting holistic education.