Academic Literacy

Do Entering Students Reflect Such Habits of Mind?

bullet summary:

- Students are more diligent now, and less curious.
- students lack vital skills (seeking help, communication, etc.)
- Critical thinking is a crucial skill

Reflection: I believe these are symptoms of the newly competitive nature of the American education system. As colleges become more and more difficult to gain admission to, and a higher bar is set for grades (especially with AP testing and the possibility it grants for the vaunted "4.2 GPA"), a greater emphasis is put on discipline and the objective success it supposedly brings. By making education a game to be won, we have focused the attentions of most students towards becoming better players rather than better learners.

What is meant by "Critical Thinking"?

summary:

- Critical thinking is a set of cognitive habits, which are crucial for all academic disciplines
- Critical thinking ability has declined in recent years
- a 'sound byte' mentality has taken hold. This attitude is not applicable to academic thought.

Reflections: If anything, this proves that education is not restricted to schools alone. It is an ongoing process that takes all outside factors into account in the influence and development of the thought process of any given student. The 'Sound-byte' mentality of our society effects the academic sphere because the academic sphere is much wider than we allow ourselves to believe. In these formative years, the net count of our experiences are our education, not our schooling alone. Schooling is merely a structured method to expose students to one standard set of experiences in addition to the things they experience in the 'real world'. In actuality, the 'real world' experiences will have just as much, if not more, influence on our education as the prescribed 'academic experience' does.

Therefore, if critical thought is divorced from our real-world experiences by society, it may be too much to expect a penchant for said cognitive habits to develop in the classroom alone. If critical thought is not encouraged outside of schools, it stands to reason that it will not thrive within them. The academic sphere and the social sphere are one and the same - one is not separate from the other.