An Investigation of the Middle School Science Textbooks in Terms of Creative Thinking and Critical Thinking Skills

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate creative thinking and critical thinking skills through the tasks contained in 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade science textbooks in the 2020-2021 academic year. The research utilized document analysis as a qualitative method, and data were collected through the descriptive analysis method. In this study, themes related to creative and critical thinking skills were utilized from the '21st Century Learning and Innovation Skills Themes' developed by the researchers as the data collection tool to assess textbooks. The themes were generated based on a review of literature and verified by experts. The status of both skills in the textbooks was presented in tables for years and tasks; Science Engineering Applications and Activities. Although the number of Science Engineering Applications are lower than activities, they are more promising for these skills. The low frequency of themes emphasizing problems in both skills indicates a lack of challenging situations. The reason for the low frequency of themes in activities is that they primarily take the form of demonstration activities where students passive through auditory and visual means. As the years progress, both the number of tasks and the intensity of themes with which these tasks incorporate increases.