ARTICLE

FOSTERING CRITICAL THINKING IN PAKISTANI SECONDARY SCHOOL SCIENCE A TEACHERS VIEWPOINT

  1. HOME
  2. ARTICLE

58 Pages : 645-659

http://dx.doi.org/10.31703/gesr.2023(VIII-II).58      10.31703/gesr.2023(VIII-II).58      Published : Jun 2023

Fostering Critical Thinking in Pakistani Secondary School Science: A Teacher's Viewpoint

Abstract

    This qualitative narrative study explored a science teacher’s perceptions and lived experiences regarding developing critical thinking skills among secondary school students in Pakistan. An in-depth interview was conducted with a 45-year-old physics teacher with 18 years of teaching experience. The findings revealed that although the teacher recognized the importance of developing Critical Thinking (CT) skills for quality education and lifelong learning, the current teaching practices and examination system focused more on rote learning and passing exams. The teacher suggested using questioning techniques, relating concepts to daily life examples, group work, and hands-on practical activities to promote CT skills. However, large class sizes, lack of training, and pressure to produce good exam results were barriers. The study recommends revamping the exam system to assess CT skills, providing quality teacher training, and creating a supportive school environment. The findings contribute to understanding grassroots-level issues in developing CT skills in Pakistan.

    Critical Thinking, Science Education, Teaching Methods, Pakistan, Secondary School

    (1) Muhammad Jamil
    Lecturer, Department of Education, Govt College Women University, Sialkot, Punjab, Pakistan.
    (2) Aisha Mahmood
    Assistant Professor, Division of Education, University of Education, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.
    (3) Sajid Masood
    Associate Professor, Department of Education, University of Management and Technology, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.
Fulltext PDF

References

  • Abdi, A. (2014). The effect of inquiry-based learning method on students’ academic achievement in science course. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 2(1), 37–41. https://doi.org/10.13189/ujer.2014.020104
  • Abrami, P. C., Bernard, R. M., Borokhovski, E., Wade, A., Surkes, M. A., Tamim, R., & Zhang, D. (2015). The relationship between critical thinking and academic achievement in fourth grade students in Kuwait. Educational Psychology, 35(1), 47-60.
  • Barak, M., & Shakhman, L. (2008). Changing instructional practice: The impact of technology integration on students, parents, and school personnel. Computers & Education, 51(1), 269–280.
  • Brinkmann, S., & Kvale, S. (2015). Interviews: Learning the craft of qualitative research interviewing (3rd ed.). London: Sage.
  • Brinkmann, S., & Kvale, S. (2018). Doing interviews (2nd ed.). London: Sage
  • Burns, D., Howard, J., & Ospina, S. M. (2021). The SAGE handbook of participatory research and inquiry: Sage.
  • Clandinin, D. J. (2022). Engaging in narrative inquiry. UK: Routledge.
  • Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2018). Research methods in education (8th ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.
  • Corbett, E. P. J. (2007). The problem of induction: A skeptical pragmatist perspective. Personal Freedom Outreach, 28(1).
  • Cottrell, S. (2017). Critical thinking skills: Effective analysis, argument and reflection (Vol. 100). New York: Bloomsbury Publishing
  • Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2022). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. New York: Sage Publications
  • Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2016). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
  • Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2018). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (4th ed.): Sage Publications
  • Crotty, M. (1998). The foundations of social research: Meaning and perspective in the research process. New South Wales: Allen & Unwin
  • Flick, U. (2022a). Doing interview research: The essential how to guide. London: Sage.
  • Flick, U. (2022b). The sage handbook of qualitative research design. London: Sag
  • Flick, U. (2022b). The sage handbook of qualitative research design. London: Sage.
  • Friese, S. (2014). Qualitative data analysis with ATLAS. ti: Sage.
  • Geertz, C. (2008). Thick description: Toward an interpretive theory of culture. In The Cultural Geography Reader (pp. 41-51). Oxfordshire: Routledge.f https://philpapers.org/archive/GEETTD.pdf
  • Halai, A. (2013). Quality of private and public schools in Pakistan. The Lahore Journal of Economics, 18(2), 27-42
  • Jamil, M. (2022). An analysis of education policy and science teachers’ practices for developing critical thinking skills in secondary school students. (PhD PhD disserration). University of Management and Technology, Johar Town Campus
  • Jamil, M., & Muhammad, Y. (2019). Teaching Science Students to Think Critically: Understanding Secondary School Teachers’ Practices. Journal of Research and Reflections, 13(2), 256–272. https://www.ue.edu.pk/jrre/articles/Article%209.pdf
  • amil, M., Muhammad, Y., Masood, S., & Habib, Z. (2020). Critical thinking: A qualitative content analysis of education policy and secondary school science curriculum documents. Journal of Research and Reflections in Education, 14(2), 249-258. https://scholar.google.com/citations?view_op=view_citation&hl=en&user=Zfkyu9sAAAAJ&citation_for_view=Zfkyu9sAAAAJ:qjMakFHDy7sC
  • Jamil, M., Muhammad, Y., & Qureshi, N. (2021b). Secondary school science teachers’ practices for the development of critical thinking skills: An observational study. Journal of Development and Social Sciences, 2(4), 259-265. https://doi.org/10.47205/jdss.2021(2-iv)22
  • Khan, M. S. H., Hasan, M., & Clement, C. K. (2012). Barriers to the introduction of ICT into education in developing countries: The example of Bangladesh. International Journal of Instruction, 10(2), 61-80. https://www.e-iji.net/dosyalar/iji_2012_2_4.pdf
  • Kim, J.-H. (2015). Understanding narrative inquiry: The crafting and analysis of stories as research: Sage publications.
  • Kim, J.-H. (2016). Understanding narrative inquiry: The crafting and analysis of stories as research. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. Laursen, S. (2019). A
  • Laursen, S. (2019). Authentic learning: Being true to the nature of science and learning. Science Teacher, 86(7), 26-33.
  • Marshall, C., Rossman, G. B., & Blanco, G. L. (2022). Designing qualitative research. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publishing.
  • Miles, M., Huberman, M., & Saldaña, J. (2020). Qualitative data analysis: A methods sourcebook (4th ed.). New York: Sage Publications
  • Moore, T. J. (2013). Critical thinking and disciplinary thinking: A continuing debate. Higher Education Research Development, 32(3), 389-401. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2010.501328
  • NC. (2006). National curriculum for grades IX- X. Islamabad. Islamabad: Ministry of Education, Government of Pakistan.
  • NEP. (2009). The National Education Policy (NEP). Islamabad: Ministry of Education, Government of Pakistan.
  • Orlich, D., Harder, R., Callahan, R., Trevisan, M., & Brown, A. (2010). Teaching strategies: A guide to effective instruction (9th ed.). Boston: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
  • Patton, M. Q. (2015). Qualitative research & research methods (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, Inc.
  • Pervez, K., Muhammad, Y., & Waqar, Y. (2022). Higher-order thinking: An analysis of the prescribed versus tested Curricula in private secondary schools in Pakistan. Journal of Social Sciences Advancement, 3(3), 165-175. http://dx.doi.org/10.52223/JSSA22-030308-44
  • Quitadamo, I. J., & Kurtz, M. J. (2007). Learning to improve: using writing to increase critical thinking performance in general education biology. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 6(2), 140-154. https://doi.org/10.1187%2Fcbe.06-11-0203
  • Quitadamo, I. J., & Kurtz, M. J. (2007). Learning to improve: using writing to increase critical thinking performance in general education biology. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 6(2), 140-154. https://doi.org/10.1187%2Fcbe.06-11-0203
  • Schunk, D. H. (2012). Learning theories an educational perspective (6th ed.): Pearson.
  • Siddiqui, N. (2017). Quality of Education in Pakistan: Critical Policy Review. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education, 6(2), 118-125.
  • Silverman, D. (2018). Doing qualitative research. SAGE Publications Limited.
  • Stapleton, P. (2011). Critical thinking in classroom discussions of science: Teacher practices and student perceptions. Learning Environments Research, 14(2), 161–176
  • usilowati, S., Sajidan, S., & Ramli, M. (2017). The Effectiveness of Inquiry-Based Module to Empower the Students’ Critical Thinking Skills. Paper presented at the 1st Annual International Conference on Mathematics, Science, and Education (ICoMSE 2017).
  • Thanh, P. L., & Thanh, T. T. T. (2015). Constructionism, ethics and research methodology. Global Journal of Advanced Research, 2(7), 1114-1124
  • Thomas, G. (2021). How to do your case study. London: Sage Publications Limited.
  • Tsui, L. (2002). Fostering critical thinking through effective pedagogy: Evidence from four institutional case studies. The Journal of Higher Education, 73(6), 740- 763. http://dx.doi.org/10.1353/jhe.2002.0056
  • Ullah, M. Z., Ambreen, M., Ullah, H., & Shaheen, N. (2017). Situational analysis of student centered learning practices at secondary school level in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pakistan [Unpublished manuscript].
  • UNESCO. (2016). Leveraging information technology to support science education for sustainable development. In A decade of progress. France: UNESCO
  • Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Massachusetts: Harvard university press.
  • Wiles, R. (2012). What are qualitative research ethics? London: Bloomsbury Academic
  • Yang, Y.-T. C., & Chou, H.-Y. (2008). Promoting students’ learning and expression of personal perspectives through argumentation. International Journal of Educational Research, 47(5), 270–282.
  • Yin, R. K. (2018). Case study research and applications: Design and methods (6th ed.). New York: Sage Publications
  • Zohar, A., & David, A. B. (2003). Teaching and assessing meta-cognitive knowledge in the context of higher order thinking. Teaching and Learning, 24(1), 59–71.

Cite this article

APA

    APA : Jamil, M., Mahmood, A., & Masood, S. (2023). Fostering Critical Thinking in Pakistani Secondary School Science: A Teacher's Viewpoint. Global Educational Studies Review, VIII(II), 645-659. https://doi.org/10.31703/gesr.2023(VIII-II).58

CHICAGO

    CHICAGO : Jamil, Muhammad, Aisha Mahmood, and Sajid Masood. 2023. "Fostering Critical Thinking in Pakistani Secondary School Science: A Teacher's Viewpoint." Global Educational Studies Review, VIII (II): 645-659 doi: 10.31703/gesr.2023(VIII-II).58

HARVARD

    HARVARD : JAMIL, M., MAHMOOD, A. & MASOOD, S. 2023. Fostering Critical Thinking in Pakistani Secondary School Science: A Teacher's Viewpoint. Global Educational Studies Review, VIII, 645-659.

MHRA

    MHRA : Jamil, Muhammad, Aisha Mahmood, and Sajid Masood. 2023. "Fostering Critical Thinking in Pakistani Secondary School Science: A Teacher's Viewpoint." Global Educational Studies Review, VIII: 645-659

MLA

    MLA : Jamil, Muhammad, Aisha Mahmood, and Sajid Masood. "Fostering Critical Thinking in Pakistani Secondary School Science: A Teacher's Viewpoint." Global Educational Studies Review, VIII.II (2023): 645-659 Print.

OXFORD

    OXFORD : Jamil, Muhammad, Mahmood, Aisha, and Masood, Sajid (2023), "Fostering Critical Thinking in Pakistani Secondary School Science: A Teacher's Viewpoint", Global Educational Studies Review, VIII (II), 645-659

TURABIAN

    TURABIAN : Jamil, Muhammad, Aisha Mahmood, and Sajid Masood. "Fostering Critical Thinking in Pakistani Secondary School Science: A Teacher's Viewpoint." Global Educational Studies Review VIII, no. II (2023): 645-659. https://doi.org/10.31703/gesr.2023(VIII-II).58