ABSTRACT
The chapter began with the claim that the imperative for any learner to develop the ability to think critically was established as far back as early in the twentieth century (Dewey 1909), and has more recently become a key feature of the qualities which both universities and workplaces expect graduates to have. It was also argued that to increase the speed at which these qualities are adopted, they should be taught explicitly rather than expecting students to develop them through osmosis. The point about this, is that some students will, and some students will not, which will largely be determined by the levels of educational and cultural capital they bring with them when they enter the university. Socially inclusive educators, then, tend towards the use of the teaching strategies outlined above since they leave nothing to chance, with students having a clear understanding of the need for critical skills, and some expertise in their use. It is anticipated that with the careful, purposeful insertion of the teaching stra-
tegies discussed previously, it should be possible to assist students – from whatever social and cultural background – to acquire a set of skills which will be of great value throughout their lives as students, and beyond. Through using them, they should be in a position to: engage with (and test) ideas; be able to distinguish between different viewpoints and assess their credibility; change their views; acquire self-awareness of their standpoint and their reasons for holding it which moves beyond belief or feeling; have a level of metacognition in order that they might both understand the process of learning, and understand their own levels of learning; and, finally, they should be able to clearly articulate and present a reasoned argument.
