(April 16, 2013 at 12:47 pm)apophenia Wrote:
Not to derail... er, something. But I've yet to see good evidence that "teaching critical thinking" works. I can't say that I've looked incredibly hard, but I've yet to see strong evidence for the proposition.
Could be right. But somehow we manage to pass on lots of things to the next generation. When the transmission is of something like a knack for composition or an ear for music or a steady hand for throwing pottery or the ability to analyze a claim or the evidence offered to support it .. there probably isn't any cut and dry methodology for achieving the transmission. Nonetheless it happens. I think these sorts of knowledge require modeling and a sequence of perspicuous examples and useful feedback. All these things can be taught but not by everyone and certainly not by any explicit steps. An interchange between the giver and taker is required that can't be spelled out in any syllabus.
