Why is Teaching Critical Thinking Important?
After looking at what constitutes critical thinking, it is then prudent to inspect why it is important to teach. These reasons include:
- Improving learning via critical thinking skills ("learning is the most important goal of schooling (Kassem, 2000)")
- Liberating the mind by creating "competent" and "independent" judges (Siegel, 1980)
- Sustaining democracy since critical thought "sustains, builds, and perpetuates the democracy (Abrami, et al., 2008)"
- Providing economic opportunities as "people with well-developed critical thinking skills are in high demand (Willingham, 2008)"
- Enabling people to keep pace with the modern, ever-changing world
