I was heartened by the pronouncement of the Minister of Education Fayval Williams in December 2022 that implementation of the education transformation recommendations are progressing.

While I was happy to read of the many plans to assist in the reformation of schools, I wondered how aspiring teachers in our teacher training institutions would be prepared to carry on the baton of transformation that will be passed on to them when the enter the formal system.

Cognitive rigour and critical thinking are now terms that are on the lips of almost every 21st-century educator. Rigour is demonstrated by the extent to which learners are challenged and engaged in exhibiting their level of thinking. Critical thinking should be a high priority outcome of higher education, more so of teacher training institutions. Critical thinking skills are crucial for independent thinking and problem solving in both the personal and professional lives of our trainee teachers. ‘The Reform of Education in Jamaica, 2021’ report highlighted that the Jamaican education system was found to be “essentially teacher-centered” with little effort made at stimulating critical thinking.

It can be reasoned that if our student teachers are expected to aid in developing the thinking skills of their learners, they themselves must be critical thinkers. It is assumed that teachers know what critical thinking is all about and how it can be promoted in their teaching practices, but this may not be true unless they have learnt it in their pre-service or in-service training. Teachers must emulate critical thinking if they expect their students to do so.

The online library of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) conducted an investigation to find out: “Does higher education teach students to think critically?” Overall, the findings were encouraging, in that they suggested that during the tenure of higher education programmes, learners improve their critical thinking skills. However, given the importance that most higher education programmes attach to promoting critical thinking skills, the learning gain is smaller than is expected. Hence, if universities and colleges truly desire to foster 21st-century skills, such as critical thinking, they need to upscale their efforts.

Increasingly, there is a loud cry that employers are having less and less confidence that graduates have acquired skills needed for the 21st-century workplace; in particular, content-independent skills such as problem solving and critical thinking.

One of the most effective ways to develop critical thinking is through our assessment practices. Are trainee teachers being consistently assessed in a manner that promotes critical thinking? Do the assessments/exam items given at the end of each module or semester validate critical thinking skills? Critical thinking requires that trainee teachers examine problems by analysing and then evaluating. This, of course, should also require aspiring teachers to provide arguments/evidence to support the evaluation. We must hold them to these standards.

Assessments at this level should designate students to extensively transfer and use what they have learnt in different real-world contexts.

They should be consistently faced with problems and scenarios in which they are required to focus on finding and developing unique yet logical solutions to given scenarios/problems – knowledge analysis rather than knowledge acquisition or even knowledge application.

They should be asked argumentative questions that require them to:

* think reasonably about the credibility and validity of ideas and theories

* critique different perspectives and points of view

* defend or refute conclusions and decisions

* provide evidence to substantiate/explain their claims/thinking

* use reasoning skills to draw conclusions from observations

Too much emphasis is still being placed on knowledge acquisition even at the tertiary level. It is also important to hold learners accountable for providing substantive evidence of critical thinking.

One would hope that the majority of questions on exam scripts or term assignments at teacher training institutions would comprise question stems such as:

• What would happen if …?

• Why is … happening?

• How could … be used to …?

• What are the implications of …?

• How is… analogous to?

• How does … affect …?

• How does … tie in with …

• Why is … important?

• How does … apply to everyday life?

• What is a logical solution to the problem of …?

As a teacher educator, I know that the challenge is to equip all teachers, and not just some, for effective teaching and learning in the 21st century. I posit that this will require rethinking of many aspects, including the kind of initial education trainee teachers obtain before they start their job; how they are inducted into service; and the continuing education and support they get.

Let us remain resolute in preparing a higher cadre of critical thinkers. The quality of teachers is a major determinant of children’s learning and well-being. Oftentimes poor teaching is not the fault of the teachers, but the result of inadequate preparation and support.

Shellon Samuels-White is acting executive director of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) – Jamaica Affiliate and teacher educator at The Mico University College. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or shellonsamuels_white@yahoo.com.