The Essence of Thought

Fishing in their stream of Consciousness

Jeremy Spielman March 30th 2011

TEXT THE MOB

Great minds discuss ideas; Average minds discuss events; Small minds discuss people.

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 - 1962) US diplomat & reformer

Why my 3 year old is better at critical thinking than I am

Attaining experiences as firsts, without preconceived notions or stereotypes.

What triggers this transformation from such an inquisitive nature of always talking about ideas, to this high degree of multitasking that often revolves around the discussion of people ?

The Art of Critical Thinking

If we all think multiple thoughts, at various depths, how do we cultivate an awareness of

these thoughts in a critical manner?

Think, perceive, and speak out of uncertainty!

McArthur's universal corrective map of the world

How do our perceptions influence our actions, our way of

thinking, and how we view the world.......? 

What exactly is critical thinking?Can there be a distinct definition if we in fact are… critically thinking?

Here are a few of the more popular thoughts about critical thinking:

“Critical thinking is the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action.”

Critical Thinking as Defined by the National Council for Excellence in Critical Thinking, 1987

“the mental process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating information to reach an answer or conclusion”Dictionary.com

Critical thinking is “active, persistent, and careful consideration of any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the grounds that support it and the further conclusions to which it tends. -John Dewey

Critical thinking...the awakening of the intellect to the study of itself. Foundation for Critical Thinking

Why is Critical Thinking Important?

• understand the logical connections between ideas

• identify, construct and evaluate arguments

• detect inconsistencies and common mistakes in reasoning

• solve problems systematically

• identify the relevance and importance of ideas

• reflect on the justification of one's own beliefs and values

A student’s stream of consciousness

The direction and flow of thought in an individuals mind at any given moment….

• We cannot control what individuals may think or how given content may be manipulated to impact understanding and learning.

• We can control the tools we use to bait and connect students to concepts through the use of essential questions and open shared pool of ideas and experieces.

Why we need to teach Critical Thinking

Much like we have the ability to walk without directly learning to walk we have the ability to think without directly learning to think.

This does not mean that we do not need to facilitate and coach thinking. There must be a process or culture created that inspires individuals to sculpt their best thoughts and problem solving skills in given topics which impact us directly or indirectly.

TEXT THE MOB

The loss of shared curiosity

• Where has the physically/mentally present discussion gone??? (civil discourse)

• How technology has impacted the way we think, communicate and access information..

Life Hacking, Youtubing, Facebooking, Blogging, Glogging, Tweeting, Streaming, Multitasking, RSS, Apps, and Tabs.

• We are so connected to the world we perceive, that we become very uncomfortable without updates, texts, emails, and calls. We have changed how we interact!

Working to calming the Stream of Conscious Thought

• Thinking too many thoughts can become weeds in the garden of developing ideas– The importance of developing a comfort with wait

time, in discussion, in the classroom and at home.

Establishing a mindful internal dialog to recognize thoughts to capture and thoughts to let pass. In essence the ability to focus.

– Google launches Think Quarterly Google dubs Think Quarterly as "a breathing space in a busy world. It is a

place to take time out and consider what is happening and why it matters."

The Establishment of a Direct Focus

• Identify a quandary, problem or target

• Create (hypothesis, theory, idea, map, blueprint, notes, sketch, visualization, goal, desire

• Seek a new and or additional prospective

• Identify multiple sources of research while not drifting into a totally different quandary, problem or target

The Pillars of Discernment

the quality of being able to grasp and comprehend

what is obscure

Aesthetic Awarenessthe ability to look with understanding at life's work and

make a personal response to them

Civil Discourse engagement in discourse (conversation) intended to

enhance understanding

Fostering and Cultivating Critical Thinking

How do we expose learners to an idea bigger than they are comfortable with, while digestible in a that promotes stimulation of personal research and post conversation…

We have a fairly sound understanding of the Zone of Proximal Development when it comes to growing readers.

However can we develop a ZPD for thought?

Fostering and Cultivating Critical Thinking

• Creating a culture of dialog in the home, the classroom, the field, the car and the web.– Don’t allow a simple answer, ask a genuine why?– Hosting classroom Seminar

• Building a personal meaning profile for each learner. – Survey (Text the Mob, Survey Monkey)– Pose concept questions (What is beauty)– Show and Tell (Gloggster)

• Knowing or learning what they know– Be up to date on what your students are plugged into – At least understand it, even if you don’t condone it!– Draw out the concept of the “drama” and relate it to

the core of what you are teaching – Have a spy, get a student to fill you in on what is

“hot” because by the time you find out what the students are “biting on” many may have swam on.

•Challenge students to speak up and share their thoughts.

•Respect their ability and cognition, remember they are often less bias based on expereinces.

Final Thoughts

The essence of thought is now even more challenging to obtain with the influx of information and technology that surrounds us and often distracts us.

What is one thing you can do to help shape time in your classroom and your home to promote discussion around ideas and concepts.

“You have to allow a certain amount of time in which you are doing nothing in order to have things occur to you, to let your mind

think.”

Mortimer Adler (1902-2001)

American Philosopher, Educator, Editor

Thank You

Contact Information

Jeremy Spielman jeremy_spielman@gmail.com

jeremy.spielman@gmail.com

(910) 259-0162

(910) 238-6960