Abstract:
Multiple research and policy documents highlight the relevance of critical thinking capabilities; for example, for democratic participation in a society (e.g., Bolhuis, 2003), coping with the demands of the twenty-first century (e.g., Paul & Binker, 1990), or contributing to the social and economic welfare of a society (e.g., Bloom & Watt, 2003). “Critical thinking refers to the use of cognitive skills or strategies that increase the probability of a desirable outcome. Critical thinking is purposeful, reasoned, and goal-directed. It is the kind of thinking involved in solving problems, formulating inferences, calculat- ing likelihoods, and making decisions” (Halpern, 1999, p. 70) To assess critical thinking (CT) a variety of methods have been established, mostly focusing on the individual: standardized test measures (Ennis, 1962; Facione, 1990), self-report scales (Galotti, Clinchy, Ainsworth, Lavin, & Mansfield, 1999), or content analysis tools (Newman, Webb, & Cochrane, 1995). What is missing from measurements on critical thinking is a group perspective capturing the benefits of shared thinking for knowledge construction and understanding (Thayer- Bacon, 2000; Wegerif et al. 2017). Also, measurement tools of critical thinking tend to be discipline specific, focusing on argument strength, critical disposition, or bias. So far, these different perspectives have not been merged into a single
