Developing critical thinking in student seafarers: An exploratory study

Abstract

Short course curricula for seafarers using a traditional, teacher-focused, instructional pedagogy has resulted in students demonstrating surfacelevel achievement of learning outcomes and limited development of their critical thinking skills. This paper reports on the introduction of a student-centric pedagogy aiming to develop self-directed learning and critical thinking. The elements included introducing authentic and collaborative learning activities, constructively aligned with the content delivery and assessment. The differences between the current 'traditional' approach and a 'student-centric' approach was evaluated. This included a pre-and post-test on student assessment, and a set of semi-structured interviews with the students. A thematic analysis identified three themes including: authentic learning, constructivist learning and self-directed learning. The evaluation demonstrated that a student-centric approach promotes critical thinking and active learning in students, improving learning outcomes.

Formation of Critical Thinking of Future Teachers While Designing Quest Rooms for Didactic Purposes

“…U. Khan focus lies in examining how a person-centered approach affects the advancement of critical thinking (Khan, 2020). The author points out that with this approach teaching is required to think analytically, because appropriate thinking involves the use of facts and information.…”