Why should high schools assess critical thinking as a learning outcome? …. because critical thinking is more important to human survival than reading, writing or mathematics. Critical thinking is now widely recognized as an essential educational outcome and a powerful and vital resource in one’s personal and civic life. Teaching students to think critically is a central educational goal. But unless students are capable of critical thinking, it is highly unlikely that they will benefit from instruction even when curriculum is well designed. They are at risk of failing or not graduating.
More about the importance of critical thinking in high school
Today educational programs in charter schools, home schools, private and public high schools are expected to be able to demonstrate that they are effectively improving critical thinking skills. These data assist parents and educators to know where to target educational development in order to maximize the potential of each student to achieve educational success. Increasing overall achievement can lead to increases in graduation rates.
Given the educational significance of critical thinking, educational leaders need valid and reliable measures of critical thinking to complement and guide teaching and learning. This information can:
Inform teachers about the critical thinking capabilities of their students
Assist counselors and parents in understanding each student’s needs and learning potential
Provide baseline data by which curricular innovations can be measured
Document the growth in each cohort of students’ critical thinking skills from entry to exit
Guide curriculum and course exam approaches to the cognitive abilities of the students
Benchmark your students’ critical thinking against external national norms
Set the high school apart as one that takes critical thinking seriously
By gathering objective measures of students’ critical thinking educational leaders demonstrate to external stakeholders, board members and accrediting bodies that the school is focused on measuring something that really counts not only educationally but in the workplace and in life – critical thinking.
The EDUCATE INSIGHT program provides a series of assessment instruments designed to measure critical thinking skills and mindset of K-12 students. EDUCATE INSIGHT Reasoning Skills Grades 9-12 and EDUCATE INSIGHT Thinking Mindset Grades 6-12 are calibrated to provide comprehensive data demonstrating the strength of critical thinking and problem solving in high school students.
Useful and easy to understand reports include group aggregate data, spreadsheets showing each student’s scores, and separate reports for each individual student can be generated. Colorful graphics make it easy to understand how any group of students has performed.
EDUCATE INSIGHT assessment tools are easily administered via our secure, app-based, multi-lingual interface. To best fit each client’s specific testing needs, our system is compatible with a wide range of mobile devices and computer systems. An in-app tutorial makes navigation easy.
Contact us today to learn more about how you can use the EDUCATE INSIGHT instruments to measure what matters – critical thinking.