UNIVERSITY OF EL SALVADOR WESTERN MULTIDISCIPLINARY CAMPUS FOREIGN LANGUAGE DEPARTMENT SEMINAR I

THE METHODOLOGIES APPLIED IN CLASS BY TEACHERS OF THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE DEPARTMENT OF THE WESTERN MULTIDISCIPLINARY CAMPUS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF EL SALVADOR IN ORDER TO DEVELOP CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS IN THE DIDACTICS STUDENTS

PRESENTED BY: BEATRIZ ADRIANA GARCIA ACOSTA

INSTRUCTOR LICDA. DELURDY DE SERMEO

INDEX
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. v ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................... vii INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 1 CHAPTER I ........................................................................................................................ 4 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM .................................................................................. 4 1.1. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROBLEM ..................................................................... 5 1.2 OBJECTIVES ......................................................................................................... 15 1.2.1. General Objective ........................................................................................... 15 1.2.2. Specific Objectives ......................................................................................... 15 1.3 . JUSTIFICATION ................................................................................................. 15 1.4 . SCOPE OF THE RESEARCH ............................................................................. 17 CHAPTER II ..................................................................................................................... 19 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK .................................................................................... 19 2.1. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF METHODOLOGY ........................................... 19 2.1.1. The Beginning of Methodology ...................................................................... 19 2.2. DEFINITION OF METHODOLOGY ................................................................... 21 2.2.1. Elements of Methodology ............................................................................... 22 2.3. METHODOLOGY FOR TEACHING CRITICALLY ......................................... 23 2.3.1. Motivational Considerations ........................................................................... 25 2.3.2. Role of the Teacher ......................................................................................... 28 2.4. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF CRITICAL THINKING ................................... 30 2.4.1. Modern Critical Thinking Movement ............................................................. 30 2.5. CRITICAL THINKING DEFINITION ................................................................. 31 2.5.1. Critical Thinking Dispositions ........................................................................ 33 2.6. THE BENEFITS OF CRITICAL THINKING ...................................................... 34 2.7. TEACHING OF CRITICAL THINKING ............................................................. 35 2.7.1. Underlying Strategies: .................................................................................... 36 ii

2.7.2. Fundamental Strategies: .................................................................................. 36 2.7.3. Tactics ............................................................................................................. 38 2.7.4. Mid level Strategies ..................................................................................... 40 2.8. ASSESSMENT OF CRITICAL THINKING ........................................................ 41 CHAPTER III ................................................................................................................... 43 3.1 HYPOTHESIS ........................................................................................................ 43 3.2. OPERATIONALIZATION OF THE VARIABLES ............................................. 43 CHAPTER IV ................................................................................................................... 47 METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................................... 47 4.1. PARADIGM AND DESIGN ................................................................................. 47 4.2. SAMPLING PROCEDURE .................................................................................. 48 4.3. PRELIMINARY PHASE....................................................................................... 50 4.3.1. Approaching the Field of Study ...................................................................... 51 4.3.2. Diagnostic Study ............................................................................................. 51 4.3.3. Definition of the Problem ............................................................................... 52 4.4. PLANNING PHASE ............................................................................................. 54 4.4.1. Literature Review............................................................................................ 54 4.4.2. Operationalization of the Variables ................................................................ 56 4.4.3. Data Collection Instruments ........................................................................... 57 4.4.4. Validation of Data Collection Instruments ..................................................... 58 4.4.5. Validity and Reliability ................................................................................... 59 4.4.6. Ethical Aspects................................................................................................ 60 4.5. EXECUTION PHASE ........................................................................................... 61 4.5.1. Data Collection Procedure .............................................................................. 61 4.5.2. Data Processing ............................................................................................... 62 4.5.3. Data Interpretation and Analysis .................................................................... 62 CHAPTER V .................................................................................................................... 64 TIMETABLE .................................................................................................................... 64 CHAPTER VI ................................................................................................................... 68 iii

BUDGET 68 6.1. SUPPLIES.............................................................................................................. 68 6.2. SERVICES ............................................................................................................. 69 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................. 70 APPENDIXES .................................................................................................................. 73 OBSERVATION FORMAT PAPER APPENDIX A................................................ 73 OBSERVATION (APPENDIX B) ............................................................................... 75 QUESTIONNAIRE ADRESSED TO STUDENTS (APPENDIX C) .......................... 81 INTERVIEW ADDRESSED TO THE DIDACTICS TECHER (APPENDIX D) ...... 92 Analysis of the Interview .......................................................................................... 93 CHECKLIST (DIDACTICS III SYLLABUS 2013 COURSE) (APPENDIX E) .. 96 THE INTERNATIONAL CRITICAL THINKING READING & WRITING TEST (APPENDIX F) ............................................................................................................ 98 POINTS GUIDELINE (APPENDIX G) ........................................................................... 99 PRE TEST FOR VALIDITY OF TOOLS (APPENDIX H) ....................................... 100

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
First of all, the researcher wants to thank profoundly to the Almighty God for giving the opportunity to live in this wonderful world and to do the best with the life given in order to help, support, cooperate, collaborate and work incessantly for the community, the university, students, and the needy. The researcher also desires to thank deeply Licda. Blanca Estela Marroqun, who presently works at the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador as a teacher, for giving all the support in order to go on with this research project and for giving all the pieces of advice to enhance and enrich this project. In addition, the researcher wishes to express all the gratitude the researcher feels to Edgar Amlcar Prez Mndoza and Francisco Quintanilla, who presently teach the Didactics courses at the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador, for the support since the beginning of this research project, and for the encouragement to continue with this research project until changes can be made in order to improve the quality of teaching and learning in the university level. Also, the researcher is very thankful with the Didactics III students (2013), Didactics II (2014) for being part of this research project. Besides, the researcher wants to thank to the unconditional help that Robert H. Ennis has provided to carry out this research project. Of course, the researcher thanks for

his entire job in regards to implementing critical thinking skills for learners, thanks for all your efforts to transform the university educational standards. Finally, the researcher wants to thank Patricia Nichols Johnson for all her support since she realized what this research project intends for a no longer future. Needless to say, the researcher is really grateful with all your further suggestions. Thanks for being therefor me.

I do think, but criticallyI do involve, but reflectively I am making the world the best place for me to live, so that others can admire the beauty of my world and notice that the change must start with you being guided by the love of the Almighty God.
Beatriz A. Garca Acosta

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ABSTRACT
Critical thinking skills should be, if not the main, one of the starting points of instruction in college or major levels; however, many college teachers` lack of knowledge in regards to enhancing critical thinking skills. As a result, the purpose of this study is to identify the relationship between the methodology applied in class in order to develop critical thinking skills in the Didactics of the English Language courses of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus (WMC) of the University of El Salvador. Referring to methodology, the researcher included a brief description of the most remarkable methods that have been used through time; critical thinking skills section includes some definitions, benefits, challenges, dispositions, strategies, tactics and purposes for the application of critical thinking skills in class. This study contains the most outstanding findings when identifying the main causes of the poor development of critical thinking skills in the Didactics courses, the lack of assessment and objectives in regards to critical thinking skills. The findings may be useful in incorporating new methodologies or strategies to enhance teaching critical thinking in college levels. Besides, this study provides a description based on how and why assess critical thinking skills. Finally, this research projects provides some insights on the development of a methodological reform in order to incorporate critical thinking objectives into the Didactics` curricula at the Foreign Language Department of the WMC of the University of El Salvador.

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INTRODUCTION
Critical thinking skills involve several factors such analyzing, understanding, creating, reflecting, summarizing, paraphrasing, and so forth. Critical thinking skills have several benefits for the class and for students. When mixing methodology and critical thinking skills, teachers can have a better disposition in regards to quality learning. Through history, several experts have investigated how to incorporate critical thinking skills in the curricula. As a matter of fact, this research project has very well detailed information of some outstanding results based on the research conducted to the Didactics of the English Language course of the Western Muldisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador. Some of the results were based on the hypothesis: More than 60% of Didactics of the English Language students in the University of El Salvador at the Western Multidisciplinary Campus in the Foreign Language Department, Semester I, 2014, do not develop critical thinking skills due to the methodology used in class. In chapter one, there is a description of the main problems found when conducting the research project. This chapter provides all the analysis that was obtained through the use of different tools to triangulate the problem from the perspective of the Didactics teacher, the Didactics students, the Didactics syllabus, and from the perspective of the researchers. In chapter two, the theoretical framework describes the two main variables in this research project: methodology and the development of critical thinking skills. First, this 1

research project gives a historical background of the different methodologies through time, and a broad definition of methodology according to some experts. Then, it is presented the different methodologies that have been used in order to teach a foreign language. Lately, there is a description of the different methodologies that can help to teach critically by taking into consideration the role of the teacher in regards to including critical thinking in the curricula. Then, there is a definition and a description of the development of critical thinking skills in college education, which includes the advantages and challenges. Besides, this research project includes the benefits that have for the teacher, the students and for the class. After proving a description of the benefits of using critical thinking in the class, the researcher includes some strategies, tactics and techniques on how the use critical thinking skills in class. In chapter three, this report presents the objectives (general and specific) for this project to take place. Besides, it includes the different variables that are described through the research project. In addition, the instruments and the given time for each instrument to be carried out in this research project are stated. In chapter four, there is description based on how the tools will be used in order to gather data, which later will be analyzed in order to answer the research questions stated in this project. In addition, there is the data procedure since the preliminary phase, the planning phase and the execution phase.

In chapter five and six, the research project provides a description of the timetable and the resources used to achieve the goals. The budget gives an approximate amount of expenses that the researchers will have through the development of the project. Chapter seven provides conclusions and recommendations to the reader in order to better the system of applying critical thinking skills in the curricula in college levels.

CHAPTER I STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

According the Paulian tradition1, all human being nature is, undoubtedly, to think. However, it is not natural for humans to think well. Of course, several reasons may cause the previous statement to vary, such as the human influence by prejudice, illusion, mythology, ignorance, misconceptions, misbeliefs, and self deception. In every school, students are taught to follow instructions, steps, and the same logical pattern without making use of analysis, reasoning, understanding, synthesis, and so forth all that is involved in critical thinking skills. In contrast, even though the development of the critical thinking skills might be considered as a starting point for instruction in class, those skills tend to become the least improved by students. In most universities, students are expected that at the end of their major they have already developed high proficient critical thinking skills and self awareness. According to Kurfiss (1988), to develop critical thinking skills and self awareness in university students is important; however, one of the most difficult features of teaching critical thinking skills is to incorporate it into the basic curriculum. Unfortunately, some methodologies applied in class seem not to develop those skills in the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of

The Paulian tradition is also known as Paulian Critical Thinking due to the awarded Ph. D in Philosophy Richard W. Paul who developed several studies based on the application, and internationally recognized authority on critical thinking.

the University of El Salvador, though the role of educators is to develop or enhance critical thinking skills for the majors of Licenciatura en Idioma Ingls Opcin Enseanza and Profesorado en Idioma Ingls, which are focused on teaching second language acquisition. Besides, the development of critical thinking skills may help future educators to make decisions about life and teaching in order to better the society and the education for future citizens in this country.

1.1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PROBLEM

In order to describe the problem of the development of critical thinking skills in

the Didactics of the English Language2 courses, the researcher has found necessary to study one of the Didactics of the English Language groups, which, in this opportunity, was the Didactics III group. Besides, it has been necessary to make use of four different instruments: an observation guide (Appendixes A and B) was addressed in one of the Didactics III classes, a questionnaire (Appendix C) was conducted to the Didactics III students, an interview (Appendix D) was addressed to the Didactics III teacher and a checklist (Appendix E) was based on the syllabus used and designed for the Didactics III 2013 course in order to describe in detail: How many Didactics students develop critical thinking skills and self awareness in class?, Why do Didactics students have problems to develop critical thinking skills and self awareness in class?, and How

The subject of Didactic of the English Language is also known as Didactics.

does the methodology applied by the Didactics teacher contribute to develop critical thinking skills and self awareness in class?. First of all, in a recent observation to the Didactics III students of the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador, the researchers found out the following issues in the class 3 that may affect the development of critical thinking in the Didactics III students: a) Overpopulation in the classroom: There were around forty two students in the class, some students were in the major of Licenciatura en Idioma Ingls Opcin Enseanza and the rest of the students were in the major of Profesorado en Idioma Ingls. The high number of students can be a problematic situation as the time assigned for class could not be enough for the teacher to assess students or to develop critical thinking skills in students. b) Lack of Didactic Material: The Didactics III teacher did not incorporate any type of material in order to develop the class, even though, the topic was suitable to prepare different types of material. c) Lack of assessment in the activities: The Didactics III teacher barely

provided feedback or any type of assessment to enrich the participation of the students in the activities.

All the findings can be read in detail in the Appendix B in the Analysis of the Observation guide.

d) Overuse of theory: Though students show a good management of the topic, most of the students answered whether using the exact theory they had been taught or by rephrasing the practitioners ideas on the topic. e) Low level of difficulty in the activities: In that class, students were restating something already taught in the previous classes; the teacher could have made the level of difficulty higher by applying other techniques to ensure students understanding of the topic. f) Poor participation: Students barely participated as the topic has been already studied. There was any type of discussion in regards to the topic. g) Poor level of commitment: The poor level of commitment was apparent in class; most of students did not show any curiosity that went far beyond the topic. No one tried to apply those perspectives or ideas to real life situations, which meant few, if not any, had done a reflection based on the topic. Besides, since the activity was developed in groups, some students expected their classmates to provide the ideas. Finally, the techniques applied in class by the teacher do not seem to be enough to enhance students critical thinking. For example, through observation, the research noticed that one of the techniques the teacher used in class was brainstorming in which students were asked to give ideas about a determined topic by working in groups of four. Students had to discuss and give their opinions about the topic, but the students seemed to be on task, but, indeed, they were not involved in task. Some of them had not even

understood what they were supposed to do. Also, something really important was that there were some other students who did not work in groups as they were asked; they were allowing their teammates to do the job they were supposed to do. On the other hand, since the researchers wanted to know the point of view of the Didactics III students in regards to the development of critical thinking in class and wanted to emphasize the problem based on the topic, the researchers conducted a questionnaire4 (Appendix C) to the Didactics III students. In the questionnaire, there were some other important findings after analyzing all the answers obtained from the questionnaire: a. Lack of Knowledge of Critical Thinking: Just of one Didactics III student was closed to the real concept of critical thinking. Most of students confused the term with other theories, Blooms Taxonomy, for instance. Most of the answers were vague and unclear because most of them use their own opinion, point of view or judgment based on prior knowledge. And some others used the Didactics III teacher`s expression to define critical thinking without using their knowledge in the subject. b. Lack of knowledge on the methodology applied in class: all of the students agreed that the methodology applied by the teacher helped them to develop critical thinking skills; however, Didactics III students could not explain how the methodology helped them. Some of the answers were not specific or concise. For instance, some of the students mentioned the use of different
4

There is deep analysis based on the questionnaire attached in the Appendix C.

activities and assessment without specifying which activities they were referring to; even though few mentioned activities such as debates, panel forums, exemplifications and discussions. c. Poor knowledge in the syllabus used in class: The majority of students said that all the activities used in class foster the development of critical thinking; however, few of them could explain in which way the activities do so. But, some of them argued that the use of blogs, essays, discussions and so forth helped them to foster critical thinking skills in class. Even though some Didactics III students agreed on the matter, some of them barely explain how they foster critical thinking skills in the class. One of the Didactics III students claimed that since teachers have objectives in the syllabus, teachers should foster critical thinking skills with those objectives. The previous answer seemed to be a fallacy as not all the time, objectives in the syllabus can be accomplished in class. On the contrary, some students replied that the purpose of the activities were not to develop critical thinking but to develop communicative skills, such as fluency, accuracy, vocabulary, management of a certain topic, and so on. In another answer, another student concluded that in not all the activities students make use of critical thinking because students do not have to think in all activities. The previous answer could probably emerge from the fact that sometimes Didactics III students are exposed to different theories that they have to memorize or as the other sample explained, there is no need to analyze in all activities. 9

d. Wait time: Through the questionnaire, the researchers found out that most of the Didactics III students presented some characteristics of Reflective Learners. For instance, students required long time in order to analyze a piece of information due to different variables, such as the type of information, the necessity to taken into account others point of view, clarity of the information, relevance of the information, level of concentration in order to keep the information in mind when analyzing a piece of information, and the level of knowledge based on the information given by the teacher. Those answers had an approximate approach in the objective stated for this question because, as stated in the theoretical framework, a critical thinker desires to be well informed in a certain topic and considers relevant other points of view. e. Level of difficulty in regards to critical thinking skills: The majority of the Didactics III students considered that the level of difficulty in regards to critical thinking skills is not low in class. Unfortunately, when asking Didactics III students to explain the reasons for that answer, not all the students could explain the phenomenon. Though some Didactics III students argued that the activities developed in class are suitable, the rapport the Didactics III teacher encourages among them is high and the applicability of the activities is relevant, students considered all of them have critical thinking skills because they are able to discuss about different topics. On the contrary, other Didactics III students answered that the level of difficulty in regards to critical thinking skills is, indeed, low in class. They confirmed that this 10

phenomenon happens in class because students do not like to think. All the previous answers can reflect that some students are not aware of using of critical thinking skills in class. It can be pointed out that somehow Didactics III students argued that they all have critical thinking skills, Didactics III students do not reflect what they assured. f. Assessment of critical thinking skills in the class: In the questionnaire (Appendix C), the following question was stated: does the teacher assess your critical thinking skills in class? Explain how? The previous question had the objective to find out if Didactics III student know if they were being assessed in regards to critical thinking skills in class. The previous question was relevant because for some experts, it is quite difficult to assess critical thinking skills. Surprisingly, the majority of Didactics III students confirmed that the Didactics III teacher assessed critical thinking skills in the activities. Some of them stated that the teacher assesses critical thinking through the creation of blogs, providing feedback, asking Didactics III student their point of view on certain issues, planning specific activities for improving critical thinking skills; however, when carrying out the interview with the Didactics III teacher, the Didactics III teacher clearly stated that there is not any type of assessment in the Didactics III course. Some other Didactics III students quite differ with the previous statements as they considered that not all the time they make use of critical thinking skills; besides, they consider that it is not graded, but the Didactics III 11

teacher provides certain feedback. On the other hand, one of the Didactics III students did not know what and in which ways the Didactics III teacher can assess critical thinking. As a result, the students scarcely arrived into the real meaning of what critical thinking is. The fact that few students could be able to provide a close or near concept of critical thinking made clear the lack of management this the Didactics III group has in regards to the topic. In addition, those answers help to confirm the existence of a problem in regards to this topic. Furthermore, even though students agreed to the fact that the methodology applied in class helps to develop critical thinking skills, the Didactics III students could not explain how the methodology applied in class helps them to develop critical thinking skills; the students were not precise when answering because most of the answers were full of inconsistencies as the answers were not clear, specific, and logical. Consequently, most of the Didactics III students have a poor concept of what critical thinking implies, for students, whenever someone uses analysis, that person is using critical thinking skills which is not the way it works because critical thinking skills derives enormously from other abilities as it is stated in the chapter of theoretical framework of this research project. Subsequently, the researchers carried out an interview5 (Appendix D) to the Didactics III teacher in order to find out the point of view in regards to the application

Notice that the interview contains the analysis and the audio in the Appendix D.

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and development of critical thinking skills and self awareness in class. In the interview, the researcher found out some important findings: 1. The Didactics III teacher affirmed the Didactics III students were reflective learners. 2. The Didactics III teacher considered that ideally all the activities are suitable for students to notice all the elements that can contribute to develop their teaching style, but in some cases, like when using drama module in class, the Didactics III teacher expects their students to think whether they may use it in class or not; however, the Didactics III students do not provide a concrete reason of incorporating to their teaching style. As a result, the teacher incorporates critical reflection for students in class. 3. In addition, the Didactics III teacher concluded that the Didactics III students are in a primarily stage or initial stage of critical thinking. Unfortunately, the Didactics III students are supposed to teach at a college level, so it is relevant for Didactics III students to develop critical thinking skills at this stage of the university level; unfortunately, they are according to the Didactics III teacher into an initial level. 4. The Didactics III teacher concluded that there is no a way of assessing critical thinking in the class because some criteria can be nearly to the ideal assessment, but the assessment is just assessed in the some moments in the class, for instance, questions in a certain activity.

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5. The Didactics III teacher considers that the students continue developing critical thinking; even though, the students do not notice they are applying it. Finally, the researchers carried out a checklist (Appendix E) based on the syllabus of the Didactics III course in order to find out if the development of critical thinking in the class was stated for this course. In the checklist, the researchers noticed that the syllabus was not totally based on the application of critical thinking in the class. Actually, the syllabus was focused in the use and application of technology in class as it was stated not only in the description of the course, but also in the Didactics teacher philosophy. Besides, the syllabus stated that students will develop ICT (Informative Technology) based skills students teaching and learning through the entire course. In the syllabus, the Didactics III teacher did not show high importance to the development of critical thinking skills in class stated in the objectives of the course. None of the objectives stated the development of critical thinking skills in the course. Most of the objectives rely on the development of communicative skills, the use of effective tools for EFL teaching and learning, the integration of ICT (Informative Technology) into the students teaching and learning, the application of various techniques to teach EFL / ESL students and so forth. As a result, the following questions emerge in this research project: - How many Didactics II students develop critical thinking skills in class? - Why do Didactics II students have problems to develop critical thinking skills in class? 14

- How does the methodology applied by the Didactics II teacher contribute to develop critical thinking skills in class?

1.2 OBJECTIVES
1.2.1. General Objective - To determine the relationship between the methodology applied in class and the development of critical thinking skills in the Didactics courses in the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador, semester I 2014. 1.2.2. Specific Objectives 1. To determine how many Didactics II students develop critical thinking skills in the Didactics courses in the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador, semester I 2014. 2. To analyze the suitability of the methodology applied in class in order to develop critical thinking skills in the Didactics students in the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador, semester I 2014.

1.3 . JUSTIFICATION
This research project is very innovative for few, if not any, students have ever conducted research based on the big impact that the relationship between the methodologies applied in class and the development of critical thinking skills have in the 15

Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador, semester I 2014. Besides, since it is of a great importance the incorporation of critical thinking skills in the curricula, it is necessary to start developing or changing old fashioned techniques in class. This research project is intended to provide some suggestions and arguments in order to create, in a no longer future, a university reform in regards to educational methodologies applied in class in regards to teaching critical thinking skills in university levels. In addition, this research project focuses on the future incorporation of educational objectives on critical thinking skills in the Didactics courses in the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador, semester I 2014 because in few subjects, if not any, include objectives focused on developing those skills in university students. However, it has been necessary, at first, to determine if that phenomenon exists in one of the subjects. As a result, this report will be useful to diagnose how the methodology applied on the Didactics courses by the teacher affects students expansion of critical thinking skills. This research project has also the goal of noticing the relationship between the methodology applied in class and the students response to it in order to become a critical thinker. Another goal for this study is to ascertain if the methodologies applied in class is suitable for students to develop critical thinking skills.

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1.4 . SCOPE OF THE RESEARCH

Even though this research project can be applicable in all the subjects of the Licenciatura en Idioma Ingls Opcion Enseanza that are developed in the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador, semester I 2014, this research project will be focused primarily on the Didactics courses, as there are three Didactics: Didactics I, which is only for Licenciatura en Idioma Ingls opcin Enseanza students, Didactics II, which includes not only Licenciatura en Idioma Ingls opcin Enseanza students but also Profesorado en Idioma Ingls students, Didactics III, which has the previous majors again in the course. First, this research project will be carried out in the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador, semester II 2013, specifically with the Didactics III students since they are the most convenient population for this research project due to the nature of the subject to enhance the development of critical thinking skills. In this subject, students have the opportunity to expand their knowledge and opinions and to use their critical thinking. This research project will be carried out in the same environment so that the financial issue will not be a problem or limit to this investigation. Working in a well-known environment prevents from wasting money expresses such as transportation, food, etc. For instance, in order to describe the statement of the problem, the researcher will use tools, such as an observation, a questionnaire, a checklist, and an interview; those tools do not require great amount of money to be carried out.

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Secondly, time is an essential element in any investigation, and in this research, the time will be an allied since it is required to get reliable answers and the required results. Moreover, time will benefit the research since there will not be any inconveniences when scheduling the right time to conduct out the investigation. For that reason, the researcher is going to follow an organized schedule. On the other hand, the viability of this research seems to be positive though quite difficult due to the essence of the question that is to discover whether or not the methodology applied by the teacher is helpful to make progress in the development of critical thinking skills. Despite the difficulty of dealing with teachers methodology, there is a great disposition from the researchers to work as best as possible in order to achieve a well done investigation. On the other hand, the resources are available in all senses since the researchers are part of the process as witnesses of the matter being investigated. That is why, the percentage to obtain the expected results is high. Therefore, the scope of viability is positive for this research project.

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CHAPTER II THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Through all this time, most of English as second language teachers always try to fulfill certain requirements among their students when teaching a second language, for instance, teachers do their best to develop the four macro skills listening, speaking, reading, and writing. On the other hand, it is necessary to include in the curricula an important aspect: critical thinking skills. Critical thinking skills are not only facts of providing concepts and ideas but also making students think critically and making them aware of the process once students are being involved into it. In addition, it is necessary to know all the elements that may contain the methodology that teachers apply in class. As a result, it is important to have a clear and depth idea of both: methodology and critical thinking skills.

2.1. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF METHODOLOGY

It is of a great importance to provide a quick description of the beginning of methodology when acquiring a foreign language. To understand the different types of methodologies, it is necessary to provide an overview of how methodology was developed and enhanced through time. 2.1.1. The Beginning of Methodology From hundreds of years ago, grammarians taught foreign languages by applying the experienced they had obtained when teaching Latin and Greek in European countries. 19

In a recent study of Taralunga (2006), most of the textbooks used in the Middle Ages were mainly based on the grammars of Donatus and Priscianus. Aelius Donatus was a Roman grammarian and teacher of rhetoric who lived in the middle of the 4th century. His well known work the Ars grammatica (elements of grammar) was the standard Latin grammar during the Middle Age. Priscianus too, was a grammarian from Mauritania who taught Latin in Constantinople in the 6th century. His Commentari grammatici was a standard text and it was written in 18 books, while Aeneid, another book was a treatise on accents and a work on the declensions of nouns. He translated into Latin precepts of the Greeks that seemed suitable. He frequently cited from Virgil Cicero, Plautus and Juvenal. His teaching of grammar was written in the form of question and answer of the first twelve lines of the Aeneid. In 1199, Alexander de Villa Dei, grammarian and mathematician, versified the grammar of Priscianus. He published 2,645 verses called Doctrinale, perhaps one of the most comprehensive treatments of syntax and grammar. For centuries these 1,645 verses were the only textbook. Alexander de Villa Dei clarified and made understood the direct translation of the Hebrew Old Testament into Latin. This translation was called Vulgate, which was a Bible that made the scriptures available to Latin speaking people in Europe. During Renaissance the book printing brought about new tendencies in teaching of languages. During Henry the VIII, for instance, grammar was taught in schools; however, during his reign Roger Ascham (1515 1568) introduced a new concept in the field of teaching. When he was a Yorkshire scholar and didactic writer, he was the tutor

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of Latin and Greek of Princess Elisabeth, who was taught through translation and version. To him grammar translation was a means of strengthening mental attitude and discipline.

2.2. DEFINITION OF METHODOLOGY

As Howatt (1984) reported, The method concept in language teaching the notion of a systematic set of teaching practices based on a particular theory of language and language learning is a powerful one, and the quest for better methods was a preoccupation of teachers and applied linguists throughout the 20th century. On the other hand, some other authors prefer not to call methodology a set of teaching theory, instead, some authors prefer to assign to the concept of methodology as a set of a variety of elements. According to Taralunga (2006), there are some factors that connect the best concept when defining methodology: the amount of knowledge, skills and habits students had obtained within the process of learning the language (what to teach?), the goals, purposes, and objectives that teachers have when teaching the language (what are the aims of teaching?), and the principles, tactics and techniques that teachers apply to achieve their main goals in the class (how to teach?). Needless to say, the use of methodology in class clearly empowers and facilitates the work of teachers in the class through the use of a variety of approaches and techniques. Teaching involves a never ending analysis and meditation of all the work before the class, in the class, and after class; in addition, the experiences of other teachers and the search for ways to improve teaching. When teaching a foreign language, teachers must think about the specific qualities offered to students of a certain mother tongue, 21

which means that the methodology of teaching English has to take into account the problems posed by the English language for the students who will learn it. 2.2.1. Elements of Methodology Harmer (2001), states that some terms should be defined as they take part in the concept of methodology. Those terms cannot be far away from another since they belong to the same phenomenon of teaching. Those terms are: a. Approach: an approach is concerned with the principles and theories underlying the delivery of teaching; the beliefs on which the practice of teaching is based b. Procedure: an ordered sequence of events using during a lesson c. Technique: a specific activity undertaken for a particular purpose Richards and Rogers (2001) show rather more systemically that a teaching method embodies: a. Approach: essentially theory about the nature of language and language learning b. Design: that determines objectives, syllabus, materials, activities and teacher / learner roles c. Procedures: techniques and behaviors, involving the use of sources, the interactional patterns and teaching strategies involved in putting the method into practice

22

2.3. METHODOLOGY FOR TEACHING CRITICALLY

Valanides and Angeli (2005) investigated the effects of critical thinking instruction on college students epistemological beliefs. Students were assigned to one of three experimental groups, each group receiving a different type of instruction on critical thinking. One group (general group) was asked to watch a lecture on the five general critical thinking principles, namely, (a) Analyzing the problem, (b) Generating solutions, (c) Developing the reasoning for your solutions, (d) Deciding which the best solution is, and (e) Using criteria to evaluate your thinking. They were then paired off to develop an outline for a position paper on a given topic. The second group (infusion group) was given time to work on their outline first, then watched a lecture on critical thinking principles, and were engaged in a discussion by the researcher asking them to reflect on and evaluate their thinking for their position papers. Students were then given time to complete their outlines. The third condition (immersion group) was similar to the infusion condition, except that students were not necessarily given direct instruction on critical thinking principles, but rather, were engaged in Socratic questioning by the researcher, which challenged them to reflect on and evaluate their reasoning for their point of view on the issue. Therefore, although they did not explicitly learn the five principles, students in the immersion condition were asked relevant questions such as, Have you analyzed the problem in depth? and What are your reasons for supporting this view? Student epistemological beliefs were assessed before and after these sessions.

23

Researchers found that students in the infusion group witnessed significantly higher improvements in their epistemological beliefs, compared to the general group. The authors conclude that critical thinking instruction in combination with a process by which students are given the opportunity to reflect upon, question, and evaluate their thinking based on explicitly-stated principles can have important effects on their epistemological beliefs. It is not enough simply to teach the critical thinking principles in a decontextualized setting; the sequence of instructional tasks can have an impact, especially with college students, whose epistemological beliefs may be strongly affected by educational experiences. The ADAPT (Accent on Developing Abstract Processes of Thought) program at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, began in 1975 and was based on Piagetian principles of developing formal operational thought, or what the founding ADAPT faculty referred to as scientific reasoning (Fuller, 1998). Freshmen6 were invited to enroll in the ADAPT curriculum, which incorporated critical thinking instruction across a variety of disciplines (e.g., anthropology, economics, literature, mathematics, sociology, etc.). Faculty teaching in the ADAPT program were volunteers interested in teaching students to develop their thinking skills. In order to teach critical thinking skills in college classrooms, some faculty found that they needed to decrease the amount of content they covered some by as much as 40%; however, they also reported that seeing the measurable gains students made in critical thinking abilities outweighed the loss of content (Fuller, 1977). Specifically, one measure utilized by the ADAPT program to
6

According to the Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary (2003), freshmen refers to students in the first year of high school, college, or university.

24

assess gains in critical thinking abilities was the Watson Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal Test. Pre and post tests were compared for students enrolled in the ADAPT curriculum and two control groups. ADAPT students improved as much as one standard deviation over the control groups in critical thinking abilities (Fuller, 1977). Cutting content by this much is clearly not an option today for primary and secondary school teachers, who have very strict curricula to follow in preparation for standardized exams; however, the implications for college faculty as suggested in these findings by the ADAPT program, who have considerably more leeway in what content is covered, are interesting to consider. 2.3.1. Motivational Considerations There can be no mental development without interest. Interest is the sine qua non7 for attention and apprehension. You may endeavor to excite interest by means of birch rods, or you may coax it by the incitement of pleasurable activity. But without interest there will be no progress (Whitehead, 1967, p. 37). Whiteheads assertion is indeed central to motivation; however, the question remains: How can teachers foster interest and motivation in their students? The bestintentioned and most-prepared teachers may still find challenges in educating their students when faced with structural obstacles (e.g., 50-minute lecture sessions, which rarely allow enough time for serious engagement in a topic), or obstacles presented by the

Latin word which stands for a necessary condition without which something is not possible.

25

students themselves (e.g., negative preconceptions about a particular topic or about their education in general; Meyers, 1986). We will not necessarily go into particular strategies for motivated learning, as there is another chapter that addresses this topic (Anderman & Dawson, 2011). Instead, we will discuss here some of the motivational implications for teaching and learning critical thinking. This is certainly not meant to be an exhaustive discussion of all motivational factors that have implications for critical thinking; however, we hope to address a few areas to which those teaching critical thinking, as well as those learning to think critically, should pay attention. Whether students are intrinsically or extrinsically motivated, how interested they are in the topic or task, and whether they have a fear of failure or making mistakes will affect their willingness and ability to think critically. Sternberg (1988) points out that intrinsically motivated individuals, or those who work because they want to, or engage in a task for the sake of learning or enjoyment, are more likely to persist compared with extrinsically motivated individuals. These are the people who are motivated by external factors or rewards (e.g., grades, money, recognition); while they may perform as well as intrinsically motivated individuals, the performance and persistence often cease when the rewards stop, too. As mentioned, there may be structural obstacles like time-limited class formats, which may prevent providing enough time for thorough investigation of material; however, other student-driven obstacles must be overcome as well. Research on fostering student`s interest can be described as focusing on two types of interest: individual or 26

personal interest, or an actualized state that develops slowly but tends to be long-lasting; and situational interest, or that which is triggered by something in the environment or situation and may or may not have a lasting impact on personal interest or learning (Hidi, 1990; Hidi & Anderson, 1992; Krapp, Hidi, & Renninger, 1992). For example, students may read a passage that has interesting qualities (e.g., a surprise ending or seductive details) and therefore may be situationally interested in the task; however, this does not necessarily mean that they are personally interested in the topic or find relevance or value in it as a learning tool. Nevertheless, situational interest may be used as a hook for getting students engaged in material in order to allow for critical thinking to occur, and possibly even leading to a more internalized state of personal interest in a task or topic (Hidi & Anderson, 1992; Krapp, 2002). It is important to note that even if students have all the necessary dispositions and abilities to think critically, it is irrelevant if the student is not motivated or interested in using those skills. By incorporating critical thinking tasks into activities and topics that are interesting to children, teachers can thus ensure that those skills and abilities will indeed be used (Sternberg, 1987). Fear of failure is another consideration when discussing motivational aspects of critical thinking (Sternberg, 1988). If people are afraid they will fail, they may avoid attempting any challenging tasks for fear that they will make a mistake, or not succeed in their attempt. Although people who do not have a fear of failure may also make a mistake or not succeed, the important distinction is that those with a fear of failure perceive that mistakes represent their incompetence, whereas others view making mistakes as part of 27

the learning process and therefore, not necessarily detrimental to their sense of well-being (Sternberg, 1988). Critical thinking necessitates that students take risks by asking questions, generating ideas, and critically assessing their own thoughts and assumptions. If a student fears failure or fears making mistakes, the student may avoid the challenge of learning to think critically, and may view the critical thinking process as detrimental to his or her ego. 2.3.2. Role of the Teacher In teaching students how to think critically, teachers obviously play a vital role. They must not only have solid content knowledge in the area in which they are teaching, but they must also have a robust concept of critical thinking and of how critical thinking concepts can be integrated with teaching and learning concepts for their students benefits (Paul, 2005). As Grant (1988) pointed out, teaching students to use higher-order thinking processes requires teaching students how to manipulate information, and not just to reproduce it upon request. Students must think about something. Teaching critical thinking is, therefore, based on a teachers broad and deep understanding of subject matter and a representation of that understanding in multiple forms of work activities for students (p. 2). In other words, teachers must not only thoroughly know the content they are teaching, but must also be able to represent it in various ways for their students to be able to actively engage in the lessons.

28

Whether teachers or the education of children in general, should focus on curriculum coverage, deeper understanding, learning strategies, or preparing competent citizens and productive workers for society, is certainly not a new debate. As discussed earlier, the balance between teaching content and teaching students thinking skills is a difficult one to achieve for many teachers. Although college faculty have considerably more leeway in the amount of content covered in their courses (e.g., what span of time is covered in an Introductory History course, or which concepts/theories are taught in an Introductory Psychology course), elementary, middle, and high school teachers do not necessarily have the same freedom, thanks to state standards and high-stakes accountability tests. The teacher, then, must decide how to incorporate critical thinking instruction into content lessons in such a way as to not sacrifice significant time. Specific strategies that teachers can use to this end will be discussed later in the chapter. Once teachers have figured out what content they will teach, and how they will balance that with critical thinking instruction, another important step to consider is whether the teachers have a clear idea of what critical thinking is, and how they can teach it. Paul (2005) discussed the state of critical thinking instruction, lamenting findings from a study that revealed that many college faculties lack a substantive concept of what critical thinking is, and could only provide vague responses when asked to elaborate on what critical thinking involved. Paul (2005) concludes that if faculties lack the proper conceptual framework, they cannot be expected to effectively teach their students critical thinking skills. Lipman (1988) agrees, asserting that critical thinking in schools cannot be 29

fostered unless educators have a clear idea that critical thinking is skillful, responsible thinking that facilitates good judgment because it (1) relies upon criteria, (2) is selfcorrecting, and (3) is sensitive to context (p. 39). Lipman (1988) further argues that when teachers have a firm grasp of these concepts and can incorporate them into the classroom, the shift from learning to thinking at all levels elementary, secondary, and higher educationwill result not only in intellectual empowerment, but also in students who are able to make good judgments.

2.4. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF CRITICAL THINKING

In words of Socrates8 "Do not take what I say as if I were merely playing, for you see the subject of our discussionand on what subject should even a man of slight intelligence be more serious?namely, what kind of life should one live . . ." Undoubtedly, Socrates might be referring to the application of a method that goes farther from a systematic mind process of collecting information, memorizing, and in few years, forgetting. Socrates ardently insisted on the proper use of discussion groups to develop critical thinking skills, which is known as the Socratic Method. 2.4.1. Modern Critical Thinking Movement In a recent study Mayer and Alexander (2011) pointed out some of the most relevant researcher on critical thinking skills that have been given some additional contributions:

Socrates (C. 469 470 D.C.) was a Classical Greek Athenian Philosopher credited as one of the founders of Western Philosophy.

30

1. In 1909, John Deweys work in reflective thinking and inquiry has been generally viewed as the beginning of the modern critical thinking movement. 2. In 1941, Edward M. Glaser contributed in developing the concept of critical thinking by evaluating the importance of critical thinking skills or dispositions in examining evidence. 3. In 1962, Robert H. Ennis was a precursor of Glaser`s work and a researcher by inquiring in the decision making as part of the critical thinking process. 4. In 1989, Richard W. Paul expanded critical thinking research to include aspects of problem solving.

2.5. CRITICAL THINKING DEFINITION

According to Ennis (1987) in the beginning of his book a Taxonomy of Critical Thinking Dispositions and Abilities, there are some main characteristics that best define what critical thinking is: A critical thinker: 1. is open minded and mindful of alternatives 2. desires to be, and is, well informed 3. judges well the credibility of sources 4. identifies reasons, assumptions, and conclusions 5. asks appropriate clarifying questions 6. judges well the quality of an argument, including its reasons, assumptions, evidence, and their degree of support for the conclusion 31

7. can well develop and defend a reasonable position regarding a belief or an action, doing justice to challenges 8. formulates plausible hypotheses 9. plans and conducts experiments well 10. defines terms in a way appropriate for the context 11. draws conclusions when warranted but with caution 12. integrates all of the above aspects of critical thinking In the same context the author advises to be open minded when noticing that even though the word critical most of the time refers to a negative statement, in the book previously mention, the word critical refers a persuasive thought. On the other hand, Ennis (2013) strongly emphasizes in his website9 that critical thinking is "reasonable reflective thinking focused on deciding what to believe or do." In this definition, it can be captured the core of the way the term is ordinarily used by most people interested in promoting critical thinking. In deciding what to believe or do, one is helped by the employment of a set of critical thinking dispositions and abilities. These aspects of critical thinking can serve as a set of comprehensive goals for a critical thinking curriculum and its assessment, but are not intended to provide a syllabus for a course in critical thinking, especially if the course is taught by interactive, involving methods.

Retrieved in http://www.criticalthinking.net/ (References)

32

2.5.1. Critical Thinking Dispositions As it can be pointed out, there are some dispositions and behaviors that may enhance a critical thinker to develop certain tasks (Ennis, 2011) as the following: Ideal critical thinkers are disposed to: 1. Care that their beliefs be true10, and that their decisions be justified; that is, care to "get it right" to the extent possible; including to: a. Seek alternative hypotheses, explanations, conclusions, plans, sources, etc.; and be open to them b. Consider seriously other points of view rather than their own c. Try to be well informed d. Endorse a position to the extent that, but only to the extent that, it is justified by the information that is available e. Use their critical thinking abilities 2. Care to understand and present a position honestly and clearly, theirs as well as others' including to: a. Discover and listen to others' view and reasons
10

With respect to epistemological constructivism (the view that truth is constructed): In expressing a concern about true belief, this conception of critical thinking accepts the view that our concepts and vocabulary are constructed by us, but also that (to oversimplify somewhat) the relationships among the referents of our concepts and terms are not constructed by us. We can have true or false beliefs about these. With respect to pedagogical constructivism (the view that students learn best when they construct their own answers to problems and questions): For some (but not all) goals and types of learning, this view has empirical support, but it should not be confused with epistemological constructivism. In particular, the validity of pedagogical constructivism (to the extent that it is valid) does not imply the validity of epistemological constructivism. They are totally different ideas.

33

b. Be clear about the intended meaning of what is said, written, or otherwise communicated, seeking as much precision as the situation requires c. Determine, and maintain focus on, the conclusion or question d. Seek and offer reasons e. Take into account the total situation f. Be reflectively aware of their own basic beliefs 3. Care about every person. (This one is an auxiliary, not constitutive, disposition. Although this concern for people is not constitutive, critical thinking can be dangerous without it.) Caring critical thinkers: a. Avoid intimidating or confusing others with their critical thinking progress, taking into account others' feelings and level of understanding b. Are concerned about others' welfare

2.6. THE BENEFITS OF CRITICAL THINKING

It is relevant to mention the benefits that such skills can enhance. As Ennis (2011) states, the most fundamental reason for teaching critical thinking is that good thinking skills are essential for making appropriate decisions about what to believe and do, whether for personal decisions, vocational decisions, or civic decisions, such as voting or serving in a jury. Like other dispositions and abilities, critical thinking can be improved through education of all types at all levels. It is teachable if we work at it. 34

It is worth teaching critical thinking because the personal benefits to the students, their employers, and society more generally are high. Personal decisions, decisions within our vocational pursuits (at whatever level) and decisions we make as citizens of a democracy require critical thinking in order to be the best possible. We need the best possible in order to survive in this difficult world. Without a well-informed, critically thinking citizenry, freedom and democracy cannot endure. But even for residents of non-democratic countries (which includes those without a meaningful vote), critical thinking is needed for wise personal decisions, useful vocational decisions, and decisions about how to be part of the society, (p. 4 8).

2.7. TEACHING OF CRITICAL THINKING

According to Ennis (2013), there are around twenty - one strategies and tactics that are suggested for teaching Critical Thinking Skills. In words of Ennis (2013), the actual teaching of critical thinking is a function of many situation-specific factors: teacher style, teacher interest, teacher knowledge and understanding, class size, cultural and community backgrounds and expectations, student expectations and backgrounds, colleagues expectations, recent local events, the amount of time available to teachers after they have done all the other things they have to do, and teacher grasp of critical thinking, to name some major factors. I here suggest some general strategies and tactics gleaned from years of experience, research, and others suggestions. They are guidelines and must be adjusted to fit the actual situation, (p. 8 12). 35

As mentioned before in Ennis (2013) journal, there are three underlying strategies are Reflection, Reasons, Alternatives (RRA): 2.7.1. Underlying Strategies: There are some strategies students should follow, so as teachers, it is necessary that: 1. students become more reflective, to stop and think, instead of making snap judgments, or accepting the first idea that comes into their heads, or automatically accepting whatever is presented in the media. 2. students gently ask such questions as How do you know, "What are the reasons?" and Is that a good source of information? thus prodding them to have good Reasons for their views and to seek reasons for others' views. 3. students emphasize alertness for Alternative hypotheses, conclusions, explanations, sources of evidence, points of view, plans, etc. 2.7.2. Fundamental Strategies: The following strategies are fundamental in the teaching of critical skills. So, teachers should: 1. use a defensible conception of critical thinking with which you feel comfortable. 2. provide for many guided opportunities in varied contexts for students to practice critical thinking in application of critical thinking principles to examples, including a number of opportunities in realistic situations that they see as significant. 36

3. more specifically, where transfer is desired, teach for the transfer of critical thinking principles to everyday life and to other subjects by giving much practice with examples, some of which call for transfer. Call students attention to how the critical thinking principles and criteria apply in a transfer situation, and if feasible, arrange for students to practice transfer applications. 4. sometimes ask the question, Why?, when you agree with your students, as well as when you don't -- and when you are unsure yourself -- or are trying to find out what they mean. "Why?" is sometimes threatening, but is the most concise way to draw out the reasons. A less aggressive question is, "Would you say a little more about that?" 5. emphasize their seeing things from others' points of view and being open minded including being willing to reconsider, if other reasons and evidence arise. 6. assess what is important in critical thinking using tests or other assessment procedures that are sufficiently valid and reliable in the situation; except for special circumstances, incorporate the results in the course grade and/or any other report that matters to the students; and discreetly make sure that students are aware of this incorporation. Lastly, make sure that the assessment procedure fits the critical thinking instruction; this often requires thinking about assessment well in advance of its use. 7. students do not need to become subject-matter experts before they can start to learn to think critically in a subject. These things can proceed together, each helping the learning of the other. Students will remember best the subject matter they use (e.g., in

37

making decisions). But ultimately, of course, being well informed and familiar with the topic and the situation calling for critical thinking are essential for critical thinking. 8. in a subject-matter course, the time required for infusion of critical thinking is often justified, not only for the critical thinking learned, but also for an enhanced deeper understanding of the subject. (Consider how much you have retained of the subject matter to which you were exposed as a student in lecture courses compared with seminars calling for reflective participation.) 9. develop Infusion here refers to the embedding of critical thinking in subjectmatter instruction that ensures that the principles of, and criteria for, critical thinking are explicit, whether stated by students or the teacher. Immersion refers to the embedding in which critical thinking principles are not made explicit by anybody. Infusion in subject-matter instruction is more likely to succeed than immersion because knowing principles promotes learning, whether it be learning to think critically in the subject (in subject-specific instruction), or transferring learning to other subjects or everyday life. 2.7.3. Tactics Teachers should use the following tactics in regards of developing critical thinking skills, for instance, teacher should: 1. Sometimes ask students to address questions to which you do not know the answer, or that are controversial. The question should seem significant to them and be interesting.

38

2. Give them time to think about questions and situations. If you wait long enough, someone will offer an answer. In other words, provide wait time. 3. In a discussion, label a students statement (or thought, answer, hypothesis, position, point, objection, question, etc.) with the student's name, so that the student receives attention and assumes some responsibility. Write the statement on the board, or screen. (Do not worry that you might be wasting time doing this. It gives students a chance to think about the statement or thought.) Invite them to help formulate what you write. Encourage them to speak to each other's positions, giving reasons. Provide wait time. 4. Have them write down their positions, giving reasons to support what they think, showing awareness of opposing positions and the weaknesses of their own positions. Limit the length to a few sentences, one page, or two or three pages, etc., depending on their maturity and the time available. 5. Provide a set of criteria for judging papers, reports, letters, proposals, or sentences in which they take positions. The criteria should reflect the critical thinking principles that you have been telling them are important. 6. Have them read each other's written statements or position papers, applying these criteria and making suggestions. Then get them to revise -- and revise again, in the light of still other comments or further thought.

39

7. Have them work on issues or questions in groups, with each group reporting to the entire class, and each person showing the others what he or she has done. Students are eager to do well in the eyes of their peers (just like the rest of us). 8. Be ready to postpone an assignment, if the content of the previous assignment is not understood. Understanding, not coverage, is the goal. 2.7.4. Mid level Strategies To supplement the underlying strategies, RRA, tearchers should urge mid-level students to use the following acronyms and their associated guidelines: FRISCO and SEBKUS. FRISCO: When appraising a position, whether yours or anothers, attend at least to these elements: F for Focus: Identify or be clear about the main point, that is, the conclusion R for Reasons: Identify and evaluate the reasons I for Inference: Consider whether the reasons establish the conclusion, given the alternatives S for Situation: Pay attention to the situation C for Clarity: Make sure that the meanings are clear O for Overview: Review your entire appraisal as a unit

40

SEBKUS: When doing appraisals and planning investigations and other actions, make full use of and try to expand your Sensitivity, Experience, Background Knowledge, and Understanding of the Situation.

2.8. ASSESSMENT OF CRITICAL THINKING

In regards to assessment of critical thinking, Ennis (2013) assures: Critical thinking assessment (or testing) is a topic often unfortunately postponed until after crucial decisions have been made, (p. 14). Some reasons people have for testing students' critical thinking abilities and dispositions are: diagnosing the levels of students' critical thinking abilities and dispositions, so that teachers can decide what to teach; giving students feedback about their prowess in critical thinking, so that they can decide what to do about it; motivating students to be better critical thinkers; informing teachers about the success of their efforts to teach critical thinking to their students; doing research about critical thinking instructional techniques and materials; providing admissions information and guidance about prospective students; providing information for holding schools and others accountable for the critical thinking or their students. These last two reasons lead to what is often called "high-stakes" testing. A particular danger when the last reason is the operating reason is that the unit or person (if 41

it is only one) held accountable might well be only partly responsible, along with a number of other factors, or might be only minimally responsible.

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CHAPTER III
3.1 HYPOTHESIS
Hypothesis: More than 60% of Didactic of the English Language students of the University of El Salvador in the Western Multidisciplinary Campus in the Foreign Language Department, Semester I, 2014, do not develop critical thinking skills due to the methodology applied in class.

3.2. OPERATIONALIZATION OF THE VARIABLES

TABLE 1: Relationship between the methodology applied in class and the development of critical thinking skills General Objective Specific Objective To determine the quantity of students that develops critical thinking skills in the Didactics of the English Language course students of the University of El Hypothesis Units of observation Students of Didactics, Semester I, 2014. Variable Definition of the variable According to the Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary (2003) the concept of quantity can be referred as: Indicator Instruments Time hours

To determine the relationship between the methodology applied in class and the

More than 60% of Didactic of the English Language students of the University of El Salvador in the Western

The quantity of students that develop critical thinking skills in the Didactics class.

The quantity of Didactics students that: a. do not show characteristics of a critical thinker11 b. Obtain a score lower than 7.0 in

Observation 4 guide Questionnaire 2 The 4 International Critical Thinking Reading and Writing Test12

11 12

Ennis (1987) A taxonomy of Critical Thinking Dispositions and Abilities. The test was created by the authors: Richard Paul and Linda Elder (2006).

43

development of critical thinking skills in the Didactic of the English Language students of the University of El Salvador, Western Multidiscipli nary Campus, Foreign Language Department, Semester I, 2014.

Salvador, Western Multidisciplinary Campus, Semester I, 2014.

Multidisciplinary Campus in the Foreign Language Department, Semester I, 2014, do not develop critical thinking skills due to the methodology applied in class.

the amount The International or number of Critical Thinking something Reading and especially that Writing Test can be measured or is c. Level of fixed. recognition of the methodology and strategies applied in class. d. do not have any knowledge about critical thinking strategies in class (management of concepts, strategies, techniques and approaches). Didactic of the English Language teacher The suitability of the methodology applied in class. According to Howatts (1984) overview documents, The method concept in language teaching - the notion of a The methodology applied in class: a. helps to develop critical thinking skills and self awareness. b. provides activities that enhance critical 44 Interview guide Checklist Observation 2 2 2

To analyze the suitability of the methodology applied in class in order to develop critical thinking skills and self awareness in the Didactics course

of the University of El Salvador, Western Multidisciplinary Campus, Semester I, 2014.

systematic set of teaching practices based on a particular theory of language and language learning - is a powerful one and the quest for better methods was a preoccupation of teachers and applied linguists throughout the 20th century13. Didactics of the English Language teacher Didactics of the English Language According to the Oxford University (2010) the concept of a strategy is, a plan of action

thinking skills. c. contains relevant, reliable, and necessary information and explanation for the class. d. contains high level of analysis, logic and reasoning. e. assess students proficiency of critical thinking skills.

To provide possible strategies that can enhance the development of critical thinking skills in the
13

Howatt, A. (1984). A history of English language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 45

Didactics course of the University of El Salvador, Western Multidisciplinary Campus, Semester I, 2014.

students

designed to achieve a long-term or overall aim.14

14

Retrieved form: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/strategy?q=strategy 46

CHAPTER IV METHODOLOGY
The basis of this research project resides on the answering of the following questions: How does the methodologies used by the teacher contribute to develop critical thinking skills in class?, How many students develop critical thinking skills and in Didactics III in regards to the methodology applied in class, semester II, 2013, and Why do students have problems to develop critical thinking skills in class? The hypothesis More than 60% of Didactics students of the University of El Salvador, Western Multidisciplinary Campus, semester I, 2014, do not develop critical thinking skills due to the methodology applied in class is based on the previous questions.

4.1. PARADIGM AND DESIGN

In order to identify the quantity of students that develop critical thinking skills in the class, the researcher considered necessary to carry out a quantitative study which may be helpful to turn observable behaviors into numerical data. By carrying out a quantitative paradigm, it will help to answer one of the questions: How many students develop critical thinking skills in class? Besides, it will be useful to gather data through observation guides and questionnaires that will provide not only numerical data but also information for further analysis. In addition, in order to process all the gathered data from the questionnaires, the researcher will make use IBM SPSS Statistics Program.

47

On the other hand, since the hypothesis lies on the relationship between the methodology applied in class and the development of critical thinking skills in class, it is important to carry out an explanatory research that might help to answer the other two questions: How does the methodologies used by the teacher contribute to develop critical thinking skills in class?, and Why do students have problems to develop critical thinking skills in class? By conducting an explanatory research, the researcher will carry out a structured interview with one of the Didactics` teachers of the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador in order to gather some information based on the application of the methodology applied in class; in addition, a checklist of the syllabus used in the Didactics course of the current year will be useful to find out the goals and procedures that will be developed in class.

4.2. SAMPLING PROCEDURE

The target population for this research study will be around 43 Didactics II students of the English Language from the two majors from Licenciatura en Idioma Ingls Opcin Enseanza and Profesorado del Idioma Ingls. Since the population is too large in order to conduct the research project, it is necessary to take into account a sample of the population. As a result, it has been necessary to use the following formula: n= t x p(1-p) m

n=

size of the sample

14.7 = 15

48

p= t= m= m= e=

size of the population 43 level of confidence probability of failure 1.96 0.5

probability of success 0.5 estimated error 0.05

The formula below will be introduced in the program to get the random numbers out of 15 possible participants. Such method will guarantee that each element in the population has an equal chance of being selected and that every possible combination of the specified number of elements will have an equal chance of selection. The resulting numbers that Microsoft Excel 2013 will generate will be organized in the following table. Table 1: Random Numbers15 36 13 1 39 35 43 25 3 22 15 18 17 9 6 33 42 16 11 10 4 7 24 20 41 31 21 19 8 12 29 28 5 2 14 38 30

15

Source: Microsoft Excel 2010

49

37

34

27

23

32

26

40

These numbers will then be identified in the population and marked with a white circle. Next, based on the registered students in the Didactics II English Language course, the researchers will make a list of students from which they will choose the numbers on Table 1 and identified the students who will be part of the sample. As a result, the first 15 numbers from the Table 1 (numbers: 36, 35, 22, 9, 16, 7, 31, 12, 2, 13, 43, 15, 6, 11, 24) will be selected from the attendance lists as the sample to be taken into account is 15 Didactics II students.

4.3. PRELIMINARY PHASE

In the Preliminary Phase, some important factors are taken into account in order to present this research project, such factors are described in depth when describing and defining the problem. In the Preliminary Phase, the researcher presents a detailed explanation of the way they approached the field of study in order to conduct a diagnosis to be able to define and describe the problematic situation. Besides, a detailed description of how field of study will be approached again when beginning the research study itself is provided in this phase. Finally, the researcher takes into consideration all the possible sources that may help to develop the research project: the availability of data and subjects of study, relevant sources, and experts in the subject matter, etc.

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4.3.1. Approaching the Field of Study A high percentage of subjects in the Foreign Language Department of the University of El Salvador, Western Muldisciplinary Campus do not include critical thinking skills in the curricula. For instance, through observation, the researcher found out the poor activities that enhance the development of critical thinking skills in class. The researcher found out some reasons of the previous statement: students are mainly focused on memorizing pedagogical theories rather than analyzing such theories, students are not assessed when applying critical thinking skills in class or in some activities such as port folios, e folios, dramas, presentations, and so forth, students are not exposed to an atmosphere of analysis, reasoning, and creating new ideas. 4.3.2. Diagnostic Study In regards to identifying the causes of the scope of the problem, a close approach to the problem was performed through a non participant observation and a structured observation (Appendix A), which was designed by the researchers and revised by an expert in the field of research. The non participant observation was carried out on October 7, 2013 when the permission for observing the class was approved by the Didactic III teacher of the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador. The structured questionnaire (Appendix A) had three main sections with its correspondent sub items. The first part of the observation (Appendix A) helped to diagnose how the methodology applied in class affected students development of critical

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thinking skills. In this part, the researchers aimed to point out the use of didactic material (application of sources), variety of activities, assessment of the understanding in the topic that the teacher applied for the class to be observed. In the second part of the observation guide, the researchers intended to detect the correlation between the methodology applied in class and the response of the students to develop critical thinking skills. The researcher took into account the following items for this part: interaction of the students within the activities, understanding of the students in regards to the topic, and the level of difficulty to enhance students critical thinking skills and self - assessment. Finally, in the structured questionnaire guide, the researcher pointed out to ascertain of the suitability of the methodology in order to develop students critical thinking skills in class. To ascertain the suitability of the methodology the researcher aimed to identify the level of complexity of the methodology, the goals of the curricula to develop critical thinking skills in class, and the depth of the explanatory tools that contributed to the students comprehension, understanding and self awareness of the topic. All these data were later used to describe the problematic situation in detail. 4.3.3. Definition of the Problem The data that the researcher obtained through the non participant observation to the students of the subject: Didactic III for Licenciatura en Idioma Ingls Opcin Enseanza and Didactics II for Profesorado en Idioma Ingls, 2013 was pretty useful to establish some parameters that could determine some of the problems already defined in

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the scope and statement of the problem. For instance, among the findings that the researcher could notice was: first, the poor use didactic material in class though the topic was appealing to use a variety of visual and sensory sources. Without using realia, examples, or didactic material students would not be motivated on the target or topic structure. Second, the teacher kept the class in the same focus groups without using an interactive method of sharing opinions and ideas when managing large classes. Third, the teacher did not provide any type of assessment in the activity that required thinking critically about the suggested topic. Also, the students were not giving their own points of view in the debate instead they were paraphrasing someone elses ideas. Students seemed to have a better memory than critique because most of the students were even paraphrasing some of their teachers ideas. Besides, when approaching to the level of complexity of the methodology, the researchers pointed out the low level of critical thinking skills requirement as all the students relied on the given information without thinking further from the information itself. The poor compromise from part of the students was really apparent in the class for most of students did not show any curiosity in regards to the given topic. No reflection on the topic was shown, and the most important finding was that there was no assessment for critical thinking skills in the class.

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4.4. PLANNING PHASE

Now that the researcher has identified some of the main problems, and consequently, the researcher described all those problematic situations through a non participant observation (Appendix B) and a structured observation guide (Appendix A), the researchers started gathering all the necessary, if not vital, information in order to begin building the theoretical framework, in which two variables had emerged: the methodology and the development of critical thinking skills in class. The theoretical framework aimed to provide in detail all the relevant information that involved the two variables previously mentioned. Besides, the researchers intended to use the theoretical framework in order to analyze and clarify the variables and problematic situations that this research project contains. Finally, by using all the gathered information of the theoretical framework, the researchers operationalized the variables of the hypothesis in order to begin describing the research tools. 4.4.1. Literature Review In order to start gathering data for the theoretical framework, the researchers asked for the help of one of the experts in the field of using critical thinking skills in the classroom: Robert Ennis16 who immediately suggested to use all his complete bibliography about critical thinking skills (and a Web site of his domain: www.criticalthinking.net) in which the researchers started to collect data by following the

16

Robert Ennis who is an Emeritus Professor in the University of Illinois

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cited sources by Robert Ennis. As a result, the researchers found out ways to download the PDF books in order to avoid piracy. Even though the researchers found vast information on the topic that might help to describe the problem in scientific terms, non essential information was discarded since the beginning. Most of the bibliography used for the theoretical framework was divided into two main narrow topics, which are: methodologies and critical thinking skills. The first part of the theoretical framework contains historical overview of methodology (the beginning of methodology, the different methodologies that have been applied in class, and so on), the definition of methodology according to some experts in the subject (as well as the elements that the methodology may include), the application of methodologies for teaching English and for teaching critically, and so forth. The second part of the theoretical framework contains historical overview of the critical thinking for the reader to have a historical background on the field of study. Besides, in order to help the reader with some definitions and descriptions, the following section includes a critical thinking definition from some experts in the field, some dispositions or particular type of character that a person naturally has in regards to critical thinking skills, and then, some abilities that critical thinkers have or can develop. Later, in another section, the theoretical framework includes some benefits of critical thinking skills and self awareness, so that the researchers show the importance of including critical thinking skills in the classroom. Finally, since one of the problems detected in the non participant observation, the last part of the theoretical framework includes the assessment of critical thinking which is of vital importance to evaluate 55

through tactics, strategies and techniques. The entire theoretical framework is aimed to show why and how to include critical thinking skills in the class in words of experts in the matter. Undoubtedly, all the literature used for this research project was carefully analyzed and discussed in order to select the most reliable and relevant information that mainly focuses on the needs of the research project itself. 4.4.2. Operationalization of the Variables Since this research project is based on a quantitative study, the variables were carefully analyzed to verify that they could be measured and observed, so that all variables that were related to abstract concepts, which may include feelings, emotions, behaviors, or vague ideas, were discarded in this research project. Besides, both the independent and the dependent variables were defined based on the theoretical framework. In this case, the variables were operationalized by breaking down the indicators of each variable into small chunks or pieces of information that specified what each student or the research team was expected to do under each aspect used to measure the variables. Each of the variables was then standardized so that the concepts treated in the whole investigation could be defined and understood in the same way throughout the process. In the operationalization of the variables (Table 1: Relationship between the methodology applied in class and the development of critical thinking skills), the researchers establish three different specific objectives with their correspondent 56

dependent and independent variables and the indicators that best define each variable based on the theoretical framework. 4.4.3. Data Collection Instruments Since this research project is based on the hypothesis: More than 60% of Didactics of the English Language students of the University of El Salvador in the Western Multidisciplinary Campus in the Foreign Language Department, Semester I, 2014, do not develop critical thinking skills and self awareness due to the methodology applied in class, it is necessary to find out a tool that can help to quantify the number of students who have not developed critical thinking skills and self awareness through the Didactics courses. As a result, it has been necessary to employ the International Critical Thinking Reading and Writing Test (Appendix F), which assesses the ability of students to use reading and writing when developing critical thinking skills as tools for acquiring knowledge, in order to measure: the quantity of students who pass the test and the final score as a Didactics course. The International Thinking Reading and Writing Test was written in 2006 by the well known authors: Dr. Linda Elder17 and Dr. Richard Paul.18 The purpose of this test is to assess students ability to think in particular disciplined and skilled way. Undoubtedly, if the test is well used, the result will make possible to determine the
17

Dr. Linda Elder is an educational psychologist who has taught both psychology and critical thinking at the college level. She is the President of the Foundation for Critical Thinking and the Executive Director of the Center for Critical Thinking. She has authored and co authored a series of articles on critical thinking including a column on critical thinking for the Journal of Developmental Education. 18 Dr. Richard Paul is a major leader in the international critical thinking movement. He is Director of Research at the Center for Critical Thinking, and the Chair of the National Council for Excellence in Critical Thinking.

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extent to which students have and have not learned foundational critical thinking, reading and writing skills (Elder & Paul, 2006). This test deals with some outcomes that students can show such as reflection, monitoring, understanding, summarizing, exemplification, paraphrasing, analysis, evaluation, logic, and so forth, all that involves high order thinking skills. In the test format, there are five primary student forms in the test that link together. The test provides a well design structure as the one who applies the test can use the forms that best focus on the expected results. In addition, the test provides for each test form there are grading rubrics (Appendix G). The test grader will use a 1 10 point scoring scale. For instance, the score from 0 to 2 will be unacceptable (unskilled) if the answer is inaccurate and / or unclear. The score from 3 to 4 will be for poor (minimal skilled) if the answer, though partially accurate and minimally clear, is significantly inaccurate of misleading. The score from 5 to 6 will be mixed level (beginning skills) if the answer is clear, but not perfectly accurate, it is partially correct and partially incorrect. The score from 7 to 8 will be commendable (skilled) if the answer is well expressed, though with minor problems. It is basically correct and clear and any misunderstanding is minor. The score from 9 to 10 will be excellent (highly skilled) if the answer is accurate, insightful, clearly and precisely stated, and well exemplified (when an example is relevant) (Appendix G). 4.4.4. Validation of Data Collection Instruments The International Critical Thinking Reading and Writing Test will be presented to some research experts at the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El 58

Salvador in order to obtain their point of view and suggestions to improve it. An Expert Validation Sheet will be attached to the scale for such purpose (Appendix H). That Expert Validation Sheet will have five sections containing different items that will be graded in the following way: 1. Poor (P), 2. Needs Improvement (NI), 3. Good (G), 4. Very good (VG), and 5. Excellent (E). After elaborating the instruments taking into account the different indicators included in the operationalization of the variables of the hypothesis, the research tools will be validated by experts of the Foreign Language Department, Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador and other experts in the field of education. The researchers will provide the experts with a validation sheet (Appendix H) containing different aspects that will be taken into account when checking the instruments. Then, the researchers will take into account all the recommendations and will make all the necessary changes to improve the instruments and to make them valid and reliable. Consequently, the tools will be administered to a small sample taken from the population that will be selected by using the Table 1. Random Numbers. The final phase of the validation of instruments will consist of providing the experts with the research tools with the incorporated suggestions. Once validated, the instruments will be administered to the sample population. 4.4.5. Validity and Reliability In order to check the validity of the instruments applied in the research project, the researchers will take into account three main validity criteria: the content validity,

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the construct validity, and the criterion related validity as the tools are part of the topic for they may provide the quantities and points of analysis required to carry out the project. Besides, all the variables show an interrelationship between them as stated in the theoretical framework. In the content validity, the researchers constantly check the operationalization to keep the same road of the research project in regards to the variables, tools, and objectives by taking into account the opinion of experts in the field. To maintain the level of reliability, the researchers will apply the internal consistency when measuring the reliability by keeping the same construction of the items and checking the consistency of the different items that all the instruments will include in order to collect the data. 4.4.6. Ethical Aspects There are certain considerations that the researchers will take into account through all the process that this research project may involve: 1. The researchers will respect the right all human beings have of privacy and personal life and opinions. 2. The researchers will ask for students voluntary participation to carry out the process without forcing or pushing anyone to be part of the research process. 3. The researchers will maintain the level of confidentiality of all the data provided by all the participants or identifiable participant in total anonymity and respect. 4. The researcher will respect the different reactions that the participants may show during the process when collecting the necessary data for the research project.

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5. The researchers will always maintain the objectivity and well behavior before, during and after the research process. 6. The researcher will seek true and show honesty by never changing any aspects not only from the information obtained through participants but also from all the information that the research project contains.

4.5. EXECUTION PHASE

In this section, the execution phase contains all the data collection procedure and a complete description of the findings that this research project will obtain taking into account that this research project is based on a quantitative paradigm, in which all the data will be collected for the future tabulation and processing of the data by using IBM SPSS Statistics Program in order to make tables and graphics. 4.5.1. Data Collection Procedure After evaluating and re testing the different variables stated in the operationalization, the researchers will start collecting all the necessary data by using all the instruments already approved with high level of validity and reliability. It will be necessary to select the future sample population from the Didactics course as they fulfill all the requirements for the research project to be carried out. The researchers already created in the timetable with all the possible days to start collecting the different data required to start with the project. Before administering the test, the researcher provides a well detailed explanation of the purpose of the research project to the sample taken from the Didactics 61

course. Since the test is quite long, it is important to gather with the Didactics students sample twice a week in order to develop the test without external factors such as time, hungry, other activities that can interrupt the development of the test. After giving them a brief, but clear explanation of the research project, the researchers will provide the first test to the students. The researchers must provide clear and concise directions on how to answer the test. In order to avoid confusion because of the nature of the test, it is relevant to develop a pre test for Didactics course sample students to develop confidence when answering the main test. In the following sessions, the researchers will continue with the development of the rest of the test. 4.5.2. Data Processing In this stage, the researchers will focus only on the numerical date since the research project is based on a quantitative paradigm. The researchers find fundamental the use of IBM SPSS Statistic Program that will help to organize all the collected data obtained from the questionnaires. This program will be useful to process all the data in order to create tables and graphics of all the findings in the collected data. After obtaining all the tables and graphics, the researchers will provide a detailed explanation based on the results they obtained in the processing of data. 4.5.3. Data Interpretation and Analysis The final scores of the test will be used for processing all the numerical data and the given answer will help to provide a depth analysis of the graphics and tables. The data collected from the graphics and tables will be useful when describing the variable of the

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quantity of students that develop critical thinking skills and self awareness in the class. All the scores will be analyzed separately in order to create different graphics in order to observe the scores of the Didactics students as individuals, and as a group, which will be the final score.

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CHAPTER V TIMETABLE
MONTH Responsibles Activity WEEK. 1 2 3 4 1 WEEK. 2 3 4 1 WEEK 2 3 4 October November December

Preliminary Phase
Research team formation Research team Research team Research team

Choosing the topic

Approaching the field of study

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diagnostic study

Research team

Definition of the problem and statement of the Research problem team

Planning Phase
Gathering and Lecturing the Theoretical Framework Research team Theoretical framework Research team Research team Research team Two members of the research team Research Team

Methodology

Elaboration of the Observation guide

Observation

Elaboration of the questionnaires

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Questionnaire was conducted

Research Team Research team Research Team Research Team Research team Advisor Research Team Research team Research team

Elaboration of the Interview guide

Interview with the Didactics teacher

Elaboration of the Checklist

Analysis of the syllabus using the checklist

Revision of the research project Reorganizing all the research paper

Writing the final Report

Oral Presentation

Execution Phase

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Collection of data

Research team Research team Research team Research team Research team

Treatment of data

Analysis of data

Writing the final Report

Oral Presentation

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CHAPTER VI BUDGET
6.1. SUPPLIES
Type of supply Office supplies Name Cost per item Number of items 10 6 1 Total

Pens Pencils Printer ink (refill)

$0.20 $0.15 $ 4.00 black ink

$2.00 $0.90 $4.00

Printer paper

$ 5.00 / pkg.

1 pkg.

$5.00

Stapler

$1.00

$1.00

Folder and fastener

$0.15 (folder) $0.10 (fastener)

$1.75

CD Burning the CD The International Critical Thinking Reading and Writing Test

$0.35 $1.00 $6.00

1 1 1

$0.35 $1.00 $6.00

Total: $22.00

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6.2. SERVICES

Service

Cost

Total

Photocopies

$0.05 / page * 98 copies $12.00

$4.90

Internet

$12.00

Other expenses (food, snacks, transportation, and electricity) Breakfast for the interview

$40.00

$40.00

$6.38 / each breakfast

$12. 75

Snacks for presentation

$0.75 / per student *38 people $0.35 / per student *38 people $2.00

$28.50

Drinks for presentation

$13.30

Other things (plastic dishes, plastic cups, plastics forks / napkins / plastic bag for garbage, etc.)

$2.00

Total:

$113.45

Total budget expenses: $135.45

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REFERENCES
Elder, L. & Paul, R. (2006) The International Critical Thinking Reading and Writing Test. How to assess close reading and substance writing. The foundation for critical thinking. Press. First Edition. Ennis R.H. (2011). The Nature of Critical Thinking: An Outline of Critical Thinking Dispositions and Abilities. Emeritus Professor, University of Illinois Last Revised, May, 2011. Ennis R. H. (2013). criticalthinking.net. Retrieved in September, 2013 from http://www.criticalthinking.net/ Ennis, R. H. (1987). A Taxonomy of Critical Thinking Dispositions and Abilities. New York: W.H. Freeman. First Edition. Fuller, R. G. (1977). Multidisciplinary Piagetian based Programs for College Freshmen. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska at Lincoln Press. Fuller, R. G. (1998). ADAPT: A multidisciplinary Piagetian based program for college freshmen. Retrieved form http://digitalcommons.unl/edu/adaptessays/1. Grant, G. E. (1988). Teaching critical thinking. New York: Praeger. Harmer, J. (2001). The Practice of English Language Teaching. Longman Press. Chapter 6. Hidi, S. (1990). Interest and its contribution as a mental resource for learning. Review of Educational Research, 60, 549571. 70

Hidi, S. & Anderson, V. (1992). Situational interest and its impact on reading and expository writing. In K. A. Renninger, S. Hidi, & A. Krapp (Eds.), The role of interest in learning and development (pp. 215238). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Howatt, A. (1984). A history of English language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press. First Edition. Krapp, A. (2002). Structural and dynamic aspects of interest development: Theoretical considerations from an ontogenetic perspective. Learning and Instruction, 12, 383 409. Krapp, A., Hidi, S., & Renninger, K. A. (1992). Interest, learning and development. In K. A. Renninger, S. Hidi, & A. Krapp (Eds.), The role of interest in learning and development (pp. 326). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Kurfiss, J. G. (1988). Theory, Research, Practice, and Responsibilities, 1980. ASHE ERIC Higher Education Report N 2. Washington, D.C.: Association for the Study of Higher Education, 1988. Lipman, M. (1988). Critical thinking What can it be? Educational Leadership, 46, 38 43. Mayer, R. & Alexander, P. (2011). Handbook of Research on Learning and Instruction. Educational Psychology Handbook Series. Taylor & Francis. First Edition. Meyers, C. (1986). Teaching students to think critically. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

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Paul, R. (2005). The state of critical thinking today. New Directions for Community Colleges, 130, 2738. Richards, J. C. & Rodgers, T. S. (2001). Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching. CUP. Chapters 2, 3, 4. Sternberg, R. J. (1987). Questions and answers about the nature and teaching of thinking skills. In J. B. Baron, & R. J. Sternberg (Eds.), Teaching thinking skills: Theory and practice (pp. 251259). New York: W. H. Freeman and Co. Sternberg, R. J. (1988). The triarchic mind: A new theory of human intelligence. New York: Penguin. Taralunga, E. (2006). Concepts on the methodology of Teaching English. The Economic Journal of Takasaki City University of Economics. Vol. 48, N 3, 169 188. Valanides, N. & Angeli, C. (2005). Effects of Instruction on Changes in Epistemological Beliefs. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 30, 314 330. Whitehead, A. N. (1967). The Aims of Education. New York: Free Press. (Originally published in 1929).

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APPENDIXES
OBSERVATION FORMAT PAPER APPENDIX A

UNIVERSITY OF EL SALVADOR WESTERN MUTIDISCIPLINARY CAMPUS FOREIGN LANGUAGE DEPARTMENT RESEARCH METHODS I GROUP 1 OBSERVATION FORMAT PAPER (APPENDIX A) CLASS: DIDACTICS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE III (GROUP 1) TEACHER: EDGAR PEREZ N OF STUDENTS: 40 (approx.) TIME: 50 minutes

Hypothesis: More than 60% of Didactics III students of the University of El Salvador, Western Multidisciplinary Campus, Semester II, 2013 do not develop critical thinking skills and self awareness due to the methodology applied in class. OBJECTIVE: 1. To diagnose how the methodology applied in class affect students development of critical thinking skill and self awareness 2. To detect the correlation between the methodology applied in class and the response of the students to develop critical thinking skills and self awareness

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3. To ascertain the suitability of the methodology in order to develop students critical thinking skills and self awareness in the class. POINTS TO OBSERVE 1. To diagnose how the methodology applied in class affect students development of critical thinking skills and self awareness a. Use of didactic material (application of sources) b. Variety of activities c. Assessment of the understanding in the topic (free activities) 2. To detect the correlation between the methodology applied in class and the response of the students to develop critical thinking skills and self awareness a. Interaction of the students within the activities b. Understanding of the students in regards to the topic c. The level of difficulty to enhance students critical thinking skills and self assessment 3. To ascertain the suitability of the methodology in order to develop students critical thinking skills and self awareness in the class. a. Level of complexity of the methodology b. The goals of the curricula to develop critical thinking skills and self awareness in the class c. Depth of the explanatory tools that contribute to the students comprehension, understanding and self awareness of the topic

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OBSERVATION (APPENDIX B)
7:35, there were about 40 students from both careers Profesorado en idioma Ingls and Licenciatura en idioma Ingls opcin enseanza. The teacher started with the class by stating the last entries of the portfolio, which will be delivered next month. Then, the teacher began to talk about a movie students were going to present in groups (the teacher asked them to perform a movie by using their creativity). Unfortunately, it seemed that directions were not clear enough for students to carry out the movie project. Students did not whether they were going to dramatize the whole movie or just eye catching scenes. After some other questions were answered, the teacher provided some further information for the micro teaching. 7:45 the teacher asked students to form groups by taking three students form each side of the classroom in order to avoid students working with the same people. Even though students got distracted at some stages of the practice, students carried out the task the teacher had assigned them: to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using songs and games in the class. While the students were brainstorming ideas, the teacher kept monitoring each group. After 10 minutes of monitoring, the teacher started to select a representative from each group in order to develop the ideas previously discussed in the groups. At 8:15, the first participation of the group provided some opinions based on the advantages of games in class. Noticing that the student lacked of mobility, the showed him how to use time space when talking to an audience. Later, the second

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representative expressed the disadvantages of drawbacks in the class. When the third student passed in front of the class to share the disadvantages of games in the class, the student turned just to one side of the class, such attitude was not reinforced by the teacher, though. Later, the last student provided some advantages of using songs in the class. At 8:20, the teacher talked about the things they were missing to finish the curricula and he did not give feedback about the mistakes that the students did. Finally, he motivated them to participate and get involved in the activities.

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ANALISIS USING THE OBSERVATION GUIDE 1. To diagnose how the methodology applied in class affect students development of critical thinking skill and self awareness. a) Use of Didactic material (application of sources). b) Variety of activities c) Assessment of the understanding in the topic (free activities). Even though the topics developed in class were about the application of games, songs and draws backs, the teacher did not made use of any Didactic material to develop the topic. Probably, the teacher had given some material about the matter previously. However, it is important the use didactic material in the class for enhancing students actively participation in the class, for developing self confidence, and for enabling them to use target structure or topic. Even though the activity was focused on just giving advantages and disadvantages of games, songs and drawback in the class, the activity would be perfectly carried out by using mind mapping or Venns diagraming to present their ideas on the matter. When referring to the variety of activities that the teacher carried out, the teacher used group work for students to share their opinions based on the topic given. The activity could be carried out differently if the teacher had better asked the representatives to move from one group to another to collect as much opinions as possible about their issue.

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In regards to the assessment based on the activity, the teacher neither provided any assessment nor any feedback on what students were saying, though there was plenty of time for assessing them. 2. To detect the correlation between the methodology applied in class and the response of the students to develop critical thinking skills and self awareness. a) Interaction of the students within the activities b) Understanding of the students in regards to the topic c) The level of difficulty to enhance students critical thinking skills and self assessment When referring to the interaction, the teacher had always rapport within the students in every moment of the activities. Before starting with the activity, the teacher asked students to stand up and form groups, though students were not allowed to choose the members because they tent work with the same people, so the teacher encouraged cooperative learning by asking three people from one side to the other to from different groups. In the activity, the teacher always kept monitoring, listening, and asking them some provoking questions for them to think in different ideas about the topic given. In regards to the students understanding of the topic, it was noticed that the students managed the topic; however, they based their ideas on the theory they had by citing the exact words and without giving their opinions based on experience or reasoning. Besides, most of the students were just rephrasing what the practitioner, Moiss, had told them before starting the class with the teacher. Students were not able to provide ideas of their own by mentioning different ideas rather than the ones that were previously given. 78

The level of difficulty to enhance students critical thinking skills and self awareness was not so high because the students were previously exposed to that topic before. However, the level of difficulty could be higher if the teacher had asked them to present different points of view far from the information they already had. 3. To ascertain the suitability of the methodology in order to develop students critical thinking skills and self awareness in the class. a) Level of complexity of the methodology b) The goals of the curricula to develop critical thinking skills and self awareness in the class. c) Depth of the explanatory tools that contribute to the students comprehension, understanding and self awareness of the topic The level of complexity of the methodology applied by the teacher is lower if it is taken into account the few requirements for students to participate, in which situation students barely participated in the class as the topic seemed to be not talk provoking or interesting for them to discuss. On the other hand, it was apparent that students were just recalling information from sources that they trusted without checking the reliability of the information. A critical thinker might have refused or reject some of the arguments given by their classmates by firmly adding extra information that the student found out for himself or herself. The lack of compromise from part of the students was apparent in the class; most of students did not show any curiosity that went far beyond the topic. No one tried to applied those perspectives or ideas in real life situations, which meant that few, if not any, had reflected on those situations before. Besides, no one seemed to be interested 79

in someone elses opinion in the class, which reflect a lack of disposition in regards to the class. As the activity was carried out in groups, none of the representatives took time to reflect or to reason the different options they were given about the topic, though the topic was easy to manage. In contrast, the teacher could not foresee the situation as he did not provide any feedback.

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QUESTIONNAIRE ADRESSED TO STUDENTS (APPENDIX C)

UNIVERSITY OF EL SALVADOR WESTERN MUTIDISCIPLINARY CAMPUS FOREIGN LANGUAGE DEPARTMENT RESEARCH METHODS I GROUP 1 CLASS: DIDACTICS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE III (GROUP 1) TEACHER: EDGAR PEREZ N OF STUDENTS: Sample of 11 students (out 42 approx.) HYPOTHESIS: More than 60% of Didactics III students of the University of El Salvador, Western Multidisciplinary Campus, Semester II, 2013 do not develop critical thinking skills and self awareness due to the methodology applied in class. OBJECTIVES: - To evaluate students self awareness and understanding of critical thinking taught in class - To interpret students assimilation of the methodology applied in class to enhance critical thinking in the class

DIRECTIONS: - Please, be concise and precise, open open minded and honest when answering. 1. What is critical thinking? Explain ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 2. Do you consider that the methodology applied in class helps to develop critical thinking skills? Explain how? YES YES NO ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 3. Do all activities in the syllabus foster critical thinking skills in class? Explain how? YES NO

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________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 4. How would you consider the information provided in class? ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 5. Does it take you long to analyze a piece of information? Why? YES NO

________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 6. Do you think that the level of difficulty in regards to critical thinking skills is low in the class? YES NO

________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 7. Does the teacher assess your critical thinking skills in the activities? Explain how? YES NO

________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 8. Have you ever asked your teacher for further information or explanation about a topic? Why? YES NO ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Thanks a lot for your help!!! 82

ANALYSIS BASED ON THE ANSWERS OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE The questionnaire that was carried out to a sample of eleven Didactic III, group 1, students (six students from the Licenciatura en Idioma Ingls and five from Profesorado en Idioma Ingls) of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador contained eight different questions that included the topics based on the research project: development of critical thinking skills and self awareness, the methodology applied in class, the activities carried out in class, and the point of view of the assessment in class. The questionnaire was based on partially categorized questions (six yes / no questions and two open questions). In order to have a detailed analysis of the results on the questionnaires, the questions are analyzed one by one to underline the problem stated in this research project. Question: 1. What is critical thinking? When asking students to answer and to explain the previous question, just one sample (number 1) had an approximate accurate answer to the question; even though, this sample considered critical thinking skills a practice of high order skills, which, needless to say, was referred to Blooms Taxonomy not to the critical thinking concept stated in the theoretical framework. On the other hand, seven samples of the questionnaire (numbers 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10 and 11) answered the previous question by using their own opinion, point of view or judgment based on prior knowledge. This was simple to analyze as the samples

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previously mentioned did not use structured answers because the responses were almost incomplete ideas, ambiguous answers, repetitive information, and so forth. Most likely, the last three samples (numbers 2, 8 and 9) answered by using their Didactic III teachers expression: to think outside the box, none of the students could explain that expression, though. 2. Do you consider that the methodology applied in class helps to develop critical thinking skills? Explain how? First of all, it is important to clarify that this was the first yes / no question students had to answers in the questionnaire. Needless to say, all the samples taken for the questionnaire (eleven out of 40 Didactic III students) answered affirmatively to this question. Again, all of the students agreed when considering that the methodology applied in class helps them to develop critical thinking skills. Unfortunately, when asking students to explain how the methodology applied in class helps them to develop critical thinking skills, some students were not specific and concise when answering. For instance, some of the samples mentioned the use of different activities and assessment without specifying which activities they were referring to; even though few mentioned activities such as debates, panel forums, exemplification and discussions. Some others stated that through the use of giving their point of view they develop critical thinking skills; meanwhile, there was a sample (number 9) that could not provide any explanation on the answer.

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3. Do all activities in the syllabus foster critical thinking skills in class? Explain how? For the third yes / no question, there were three different responses when asking students if all the activities in the syllabus foster critical thinking in class, and if so, how those activities foster critical thinking skills. First, seven out eleven samples (number 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 9) answered in agreement to this question as some of them explained that through the use of blogs, Didactic III students are able to start writing in blogs and essays which make them think critically about some topics given by the teacher. Even though some Didactic III students agreed in the matter, some of them barely explain how they foster critical thinking skills in the class. For instance, a sample mentioned that there is an improvement in some skills, which were not specified by the sample. Other sample argued that since teachers have objectives in the syllabus, teachers foster critical thinking skills. The previous answer seemed to be a fallacy as not all the time objectives in the syllabus can be accomplished in a class. In addition, there was a sample (number 9) who agreed, but the Didactic III student could not explain how the activities foster critical thinking in the class. On the contrary, three samples (number 3, 6 and 10) disagreed with the statement as these Didactic III students considered that not all the activities foster critical thinking skills in the class. For instance, one of the samples stated that the main purpose of the activities were not to develop critical thinking, but to develop communicative skills such as fluency, accuracy, vocabulary, management of a certain topic, and so on. Other sample concluded that in not all the activities students make use of critical thinking because 85

students do not have to think in all of them. Such answer could probably emerge from the fact that sometimes Didactic III students are exposed to different theories that they have to memorize or as the other sample explained, there is no need to analyze in all the activities. Finally, there was a sample (number 11) who did not agree nor disagree in the previous question. 4. How would you consider the information provided in class? This was the second and last open question in the questionnaire carried out to the Didactic III students. In this question, Didactic III students had to answer how they considered the information provided in class. A high number of students considered all the information given in class as: good / excellent, appropriate, important, very useful, interesting, suitable, and necessary because the topics were related with their needs in regards to the major, the information would help them as future teachers, the topics were suitable for their level of English, and the information involved almost all the class to actively participate and to develop the four macro skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing). However, one the Didactic III students argued in the questionnaire that it was necessary to look for more information in the topic as sometimes the information is not enough. The purpose of the previous question was to find out the level of reliability Didactic III students have in regards to the information given by the Didactic III teacher. As it can be noticed, the majority of students considered the information excellent, good, very

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useful, et cetera. But few of the Didactic III students judged well the credibility of the sources provided by the teacher. 5. Does it take you long to analyze a piece of information? Why? The objective of the question above was meant to be analyzed in terms of understanding the information rather than Didactic III students the analysis using the information given by the teacher. Seven Didactic III students out of eleven (number 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 9) answered that they took some time when analyzing a piece of information due to different variables such as the type of information, the necessity to taken into account others point of view, the clarity of the information, the relevance of the information, the level of concentration in order to keep the information in mind when analyzing a piece of information, and the level of knowledge based on the information given by the teacher. Those answers had an approximate approach in the goal stated for this question because, as stated in the theoretical framework, a critical thinker desires to be well informed in a certain topic, and considers relevant other points of view. One of the Didactic III students (number 10) answered that it did not take long time to analyze a piece of information as this Didactic III students is exposed to analyzing all the time. It is important to point out that not all the time a critical thinker is analyzing as other abilities can emerge in the process of applying critical thinking as stated in the theoretical framework.

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Finally, the three other Didactic III students (samples number 2, 8 and 11) did not answer in agreement or in disagreement with the above question. In two of the questionnaires (samples 2 and 8), Didactic III students answered that it depended on the type of information and the level of English that the document might contain. On the other hand, one Didactic III student did not answer anything at all. 6. Do you think that the level of difficulty in regards to critical thinking skills is low in the class? Eight of the samples (number 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 10) from the questionnaires answered that the level of difficulty in regards to critical thinking skills is not low in the class. Unfortunately, when asking Didactic III students to explain the reasons for that answer, not all the students could explain the phenomenon. The Didactic III students (samples 2, 4, 7, 8, and 10) who could explain their response argued that the activities developed in class are suitable, the rapport the Didactic III teacher encourages among them, the applicability the activities have since of the students considered that all of them have critical thinking skills for they are able to discuss about different topics. In another way, the rest of the Didactic III students (number 1, and 5) agreed with the previous statement; even though, they could not provide any explanation on their answer. On the contrary, two other Didactic III students (number 6 and 9) answer that the level of difficulty in regards to critical thinking skills is, indeed, low in the class. They confirmed that this phenomenon happens in the class because students do not like to think. The other student agreed with the previous statement; the student did not reply with a reason, though. 88

At last, one Didactic III student (number 11) could neither answered nor explained when asking the statement of the level of difficulty in regards to critical thinking skills in the class. All the previous answers can reflect that some students are not aware in the use of critical thinking skills in the class. It can be pointed out that somehow Didactic III students argued that they all have critical thinking skills, but Didactic III students do not reflect, completely, what they assured. 7. Does the teacher assess your critical thinking skills in the activities? Explain how? In order to find out if Didactic III student know if they are being assessed in regards to critical thinking skills in the class, it was relevant to state this question because for some experts, it is quite difficult to assess critical thinking skills as stated in the theoretical framework. Surprisingly, the majority of Didactic III students (number 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11) confirmed that the Didactic III teacher do assess critical thinking skills in the activities. Some of them stated that the teacher assesses critical thinking through: Creating blogs (the use of online sites help students to express freely their opinions) Providing feedback (that enhance students perspectives of a variety of topics) Asking students point of view on certain issues Planning specific activities for improving critical thinking skills.

Some other Didactic III students quite differ with the previous statements as they considered that not all the time they make use of critical thinking skills; besides, they

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consider that it is not graded, but the Didactic III teacher provides certain feedback. On the other hand, one of the Didactic III students (number 6) did not know what and in which ways the Didactic III teacher can assess critical thinking. 8. Have you ever asked your teacher for further information or explanation about a topic? Why? More than a half of the Didactic III students (number 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9 and 10) have asked their Didactic III teacher for more information or explanation about a topic. Some of them provided reasons for asking the Didactic III teacher, for instance, they ask for further information when the topic is not clear enough, when some misunderstanding in regards to the topic might appear, when they want to go over a topic, when they lack of information, when several doubts emerge, and so forth. In opposition to the previous statement, the rest of the Didactic III students claimed that they have never asked their teacher for further information because of the following reasons: no more information was required, feedback has been enough, and explanations have been clear, and so on. However, one Didactic III student replied that sometimes further information is not required for some might be self didactic students. As a result, it is noticed that the students scarcely arrived into the real meaning of what critical thinking is, or at least, the concept managed in the theoretical framework. The fact that few students could be able to provide a close or near concept of critical thinking made clear the lack of management this the Didactic III group has in regards to

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the topic. In addition, those answers help to confirm the existence of a problem in regards to this topic. Furthermore, it was noticed that even though students answer in agreement to the fact that the methodology applied in class helps to develop critical thinking skills, the Didactic III students could not explain how the methodology applied in class helps them to develop critical thinking skills; the students were not precise when answering because most of the answers were full of inconsistencies as the answers were not clear, specific, and logical. Finally, it was noticed that most of the Didactic III students lack of the real meaning that critical thinking implies for they considered that whenever you use analysis, you are using critical thinking skills which is not the way it works because critical thinking skills derives enormously from other abilities as it is stated in the chapter of theoretical framework of this research project.

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INTERVIEW ADDRESSED TO THE DIDACTICS TECHER (APPENDIX D)

UNIVERSITIY OF EL SALVADOR WESTERN MULTIDISCIPLINARY CAMPUS FOREIGN LANGUAGE DEPARTMENT RESEARCH METHODS I GROUP 1 CLASS: DIDACTICS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE III (GROUP 1) TEACHER: EDGAR PREZ HYPOTHESIS: More than 60% of Didactics III students of the University of El Salvador, Western Multidisciplinary Campus, Semester II, 2013 do not develop critical thinking skills and self awareness due to the methodology applied in class. OBJECTIVES: - To evaluate how the teacher manages critical thinking skills in the class. - To interpret the methodology and strategies to develop critical thinking skills in the class. Questions of the interview: 1. What is critical thinking? 2. How do you include critical thinking in the class? 3. What happened if students do not reply to critical thinking questions? 4. Are all the activities suitable for developing critical thinking? 5. Do they apply real situations based on critical thinking developed in the class? 6. What do you recommend students to keep their teaching style? 7. What do you do to avoid students repetition of theory? 8. How do you measure the level of difficulty in the activities? 9. How do you assess critical thinking? 10. How do your students know that they are applying critical thinking if there is no assessment? 11. How do you make critical thinking an observable behavior in the class? 12. Which methodology do you apply for developing critical thinking in the class?

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13. What do you do when an activity does not work? 14. Do you consider your students continue developing critical thinking? Analysis of the Interview The interview was conducted by one of the researchers in charge of the research project. The interviewer made use a tape recorder in order to record all the conversation (Appendix), a wrist watch which helped to take time as the interview could not be more than half an hour and the interview guide which contained all the questions for the interview (Appendix). Moreover, the interviewee was the Didactic III teacher 19, who, presently, works as a teacher in the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador. The interview took place at 8:10 a.m. on Wednesday, October 23rd, 2013 in the Foreign Language Department of the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador. The Didactic III teacher had previously agreed to take part of the research project as the Didactic III teacher accepted to observe one of the classes and to conduct a questionnaire to the Didactic III students. The researcher pointed out to the Didactic III teacher that the purpose of the interview was to evaluate how the Didactic III teacher manages critical thinking skills in the class and to interpret the methodology and strategies to develop critical thinking skills in the class. First, the interviewee expressed the point of view in regards to the concept of critical thinking skills. Through the interview, the Didactic III teacher asserted in the insertion of critical thinking in the class by using dialogues (in which students have to
19

Msc. Edgar Amlcar Prez has a PDh. in philosophy, who recently works in the Western Multidisciplinary Campus of the University of El Salvador.

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answer how, why, what questions of the a certain phenomenon). It is important to remark that the Didactic III teacher also used dialogues in order to make students create new ideas. Besides, the Didactic III teacher realized that the Didactic III students are more reflective learners than critical thinking students, so that the Didactic III teacher provides some extra time for students to reply when being asked. The Didactic III teacher considered that ideally all the activities are suitable for students to notice all the elements that can contribute to develop their teaching style, but in some cases, like when using drama module in class, the Didactic III teacher expects their students to think whether they may use it in the class or not; however, the Didactic III students do not provide a concrete reason of incorporating to their teaching style or not. To avoid that situation, the teacher incorporates critical reflection for students in the class. In addition, the Didactic III teacher concluded that the Didactic III students are in a primarily stage or initial stage of critical thinking. The Didactic III teacher recommended to the students to develop their teaching style through adding different elements from others teachers style, more sense of humanity to teaching, more sensibility in regards to students when moving to the Teaching Practice stage in their career. Also, the Didactic III teacher tries to avoid dictation for students to keep repetition of theory in class. The Didactic III teacher pointed out in order to measure the level of difficulty in the activities it is necessary to focus in the sources students have, so that the teacher sometimes tries to form groups for students to discuss their points of view. Unfortunately, the Didactic III teacher concluded that there is no a way of assessing critical thinking in the class because some criteria can be nearly to the ideal 94

assessment, but the assessment is just assessed in the some moments in the class, for instance, questions in a certain activity. As a result, the Didactic III students make use of interaction, group work, pair work, mind maps, concept maps, paper shared, diagrams, the six thinking hats, and so forth. The Didactic III teacher applies some activities such as discussions, questioning, presentations, and paper shared, and so on in the methodology to develop critical thinking skills. Finally, the Didactic III teacher considers that the students continue developing critical thinking; even though, the students do not notice they are applying it.

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CHECKLIST (DIDACTICS III SYLLABUS 2013 COURSE) (APPENDIX E) UNIVERSITIY OF EL SALVADOR WESTERN MULTIDISCIPLINARY CAMPUS FOREIGN LANGUAGE DEPARTMENT RESEARCH METHODS I GROUP 1 CLASS: DIDACTICS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE III (GROUP 1) TEACHER: EDGAR PREZ HYPOTHESIS: More than 60% of Didactics III students of the University of El Salvador, Western Multidisciplinary Campus, Semester II, 2013 do not develop critical thinking skills and self awareness due to the methodology applied in class.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the incorporation of critical thinking skills and self awareness in the syllabus. To determine the different activities included in the syllabus that may enhance critical thinking skills in the class. To identify if the development of critical thinking skills is stipulated in the objectives of the course. To interpret the methodology and strategies to develop critical thinking skills in the class.

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CHECKLIST (SYLLABUS OF THE DIDACTIC III - 2013 COURSE) Observations Syllabus Didactic III - 2013 The syllabus - shows high importance to the YES (noticeable) LITTLE (hardly noticeable) NO (no included)

development of critical thinking skills in the class stated in the objectives of the course - focuses in the development of critical thinking skills through all the course - includes suitable activities that enhance critical thinking skills and self awareness to the students - includes assessment of critical thinking skills and self awareness to the students - provide students the criteria on how critical thinking is assessed - provide a depth explanation on how to develop critical thinking skills among students - state different strategies that help to foster critical thinking skills and self awareness - influences students to include critical thinking skills and self awareness in the teaching field

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THE INTERNATIONAL CRITICAL THINKING READING & WRITING TEST (APPENDIX F)

PURPOSE OF THE TEST: - The purpose of the test is to assess student`s abilities to think in particular disciplined and skilled ways. If used successfully, the results make it possible to determine the extend to which students have and have not learned foundational critical thinking, reading and writing skills. CRITICAL THINKING PRINCIPLE: - Educated persons are able to read texts closely and, through that process, take ownership of the most important ideas in them. They also understand the importance of reading to learning.

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POINTS GUIDELINE (APPENDIX G)

0 2 points 3 4 points

Unacceptable (unskilled). The answer is inaccurate and /or unclear. Poor (minimally skilled). The answer, though partially accurate and minimally clear, is significantly inaccurate or misleading.

5 6 points

Mixed level (beginning skills). The answer is clear but not perfectly accurate. It is partially correct and partially incorrect.

7 8 points

Excellent (highly skilled). The answer is accurate, insightful, clearly and precisely stated, and well exemplified (when an example is relevant).

9 10 points

Excellent (highly skilled). The answer is accurate, insightful, clearly and precisely stated, and well exemplified (when an example is relevant).

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PRE TEST FOR VALIDITY OF TOOLS (APPENDIX H)

1. Reactions of respondents to your Acceptable research procedures Availability of sample needed for full study Work schedules of population that may affect they availability Acceptability of questions Clarity of the language used Desire of population to participate Not acceptable Suggestions

2. The data collection tools Whether the tools provide the information you need and are reliable The time needed for administering each of the data collection tools Presentation of questions and format of questionnaire Accuracy of translation Pre categorizing of questions Coding system and coding guidelines Handling and administering the tools

Acceptable

Not acceptable

Suggestions

3. Sampling Procedures Whether the instructions to obtain the sample are used uniformly by all staff The time needed to locate the individuals to be included in the study 4.Preparation and effectiveness of research team

Acceptable

Not acceptable

Suggestions

Acceptable

Not acceptable

Suggestions

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Adequacy of staff training Output of each team member Team dynamics Reliability of tools when administered by different team members Accuracy of interpretation Appropriateness of plan for supervision

5. Procedures for data processing and analysis Use of data master sheets Effectiveness of data quality control Appropriateness of statistical procedures Ease of data interpretation

Acceptable

Not acceptable

Suggestions

6. Schedule for research activities Amount of time allowed for: - Field trips for data collection - Supervision administration analysis of data

Acceptable

Not acceptable

Suggestions

Sequence of activities

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