CREATIVE AND CRITICAL THINKING

CREATIVE & CRITICAL THINKING

 By Amanda Hermes

Creative and Critical Thinking SkillsAccording to Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, creative and critical thinking skills fall under the highest level of cognitive development. To think creatively and critically, we have to use both sides of our brain and understand many aspects of basic knowledge first. Both skills are extremely important for achievement and success in the world today, and there are easy things that parents and teachers can do to build these skills in childrenAccording to Bloom`s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, creative and critical thinking skills fall under the higher level of cognitive development. To think creatively and critically, we have to use both side of our brain and understand many aspects of basic knowledge first. Both skills are extremely important for achievement and success in the world today, and there are easy things that parents and teachers can do to build these skills in children.

According to Bloom`s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, creative and critical thinking skills fall under the highest level of cognitive development. To think creatively and critically, we have to use both side of our brain and understand many aspect of basic knowledge first. Both skills are extremely important for achievement and success in the world today, and there are easy things that parents and teachers can do to build these skills in children

              What is Creative Thinking ?

In book "Teaching Strategies" written by Donald Orlich definition of creative thinking is blending different elements to form a new and unique entity. It is the process of combining parts in such a way as to constitute a pattern or structure that did not exist before. 

• Creative thinkers are able to put ideas together in new or unique ways or create new idea configurations. We often think of artists as being creative, which is certainly true, but scientists, legislators and engineers are also highly creative, because they seek to use research and data in new ways to find cures for diseases, design new cars or computers, or draw up new laws for health care.
  
  

  Example :-

  You don't have to be artistic or whimsical to be creative,just imaginative and able to think outside the box.

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  Why Creative Thinking is Important ?

• Cross Marketable Skills

Creativity will ALWAYS  be in demand, regardless of what industry you are working in. It is cross marketable and if you have developed your creative thinking skills to a point where you can draw upon it at any time, it is one of those things that will give you the edge that really differentiates yourself from other people.

• The Door That Opens Opportunity 

Creative thinking is the key that opens doors to a whole new realm of opportunities. Look at what the Internet did. The airplane. The automobile. The opportunities that resulted from these creative endeavors are countless. Everywhere you look, you see the end result of man’s creative thinking at work.

• Promotes Initiative and Optimism

Creative thinking gets you out of playing a passive role and puts you in more aggressive mode. What can i do? How can i do it? What will i need to do it? A strong sense of personal responsibility and initiative gets instilled and that in turn, really makes you feel "alive" because you feel firmly in control of your life.

What is Critical Thinking ?

• According to Orlich critical thinking or higher-level thinking, involves analysis and evaluation of observations and materials. Analysis involves taking apart complex items, such as speeches, written communications, statistics, or machines and explaining their underlying organization figuring out, how they work or what they are really saying. It is more than just understanding an object or concept, but looking below the surface to discover how different parts interact. Evaluation requires making decisions on topics and substantiating these decisions with sound reasons. 

  
  

  In order to evaluate an idea or object, we must first set up appropriate standards or values by which to make a judgment and determine how closely the idea or object meets the standards or values. In other words, we use critical thinking when we make decisions and solve problems. Good critical thinkers don't accept information at face value, but look inside it for hidden agendas, things that are left out, and underlying bias. Journalists, lawyers and educators are just some of the professions that require a lot of critical thinking.

Why Critical Thinking is Important ?

1. Explores and considers as many possibilities.

2. Able to deduce consequences from what we know.

3. Make use of information to solve problems and to seek relevant sources.