Abstracts for Theses and Syntheses
Sharon B. Abraham
A multicultural moral education: A history and companion
curriculum unit
1997, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
In this curriculum project I offer current theories of moral and
multicultural education. I begin with a brief review of the themes
of moral reasoning and multicultural education as a framework. I
offer twenty lessons using resources for moral education and
multicultural education to achieve ends of more clear and precise
thinking, oral, and written expression.
subject codes .DIV.MOR
Jeanne Abrons
Accessing the Creative Process
1992, May
Directed by Patricia D. Davidson
How many times have we said that we're not creative? What do we mean
by "not creative?"
This paper looks at the creative process as an innate and ongoing
process which exists in each of us, with or without our being aware
of it. We call on this process daily without knowing that we are
participating in a creative process. We use creative processes for
avoiding engagement in the creative process. We use creative
processes for avoiding situations which might involve our perceived
noncreativity. Because we are unaware of our participation, we
assume that our creative processes do not exist. These issues are
discussed in Chapter I. Chapter II looks at how we regard our own
previous panoramas of the creative process1 our perceptions of our
own and other persons' creative processes, Einsteilung as one way by
which we look into these views beyond the time when they might be
inapplicable, and the possible use of reperception as an unbinding
of the past and a new viewing of the present for considering
creative processes in ourselves and others. As an overview of the
creative process, Chapter III is a literature search which helps us
understand why creative processes are so difficult to recognize and
describe. We learn that no two writers view creative processes in
the same way, that creative processes have many facets and exist on
numerous planes, that we cannot return to a specific point in a
creative process and describe it exactly, and that creative
processes are basically inexplicable because we lack a specific
creative process vocabulary for an explanation.
One commonality emerges if we look at creative processes from a wide
overview: creative processes are basically processes of
reperception. If we are to view ourselves as creative then we need
to look at ourselves anew, to reperceive ourselves as being creative
Having decided to view ourselves as being creative, we will be more
able to access our innate creative process and build on it to
enhance our lives.
subject codes .THR
Nancy Adams
Critical Thinking and Cedaw: Women's Rights as Human Rights
1997, June
Directed by John R. Murray
"The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for, among old
parchments, or musty records. They are written, as with a sun beam
in the whole volume of human nature, by the divinity itself; and can
never be erased or obscured by mortal power. " Alexander Hamilton,
1775
This thesis is designed as an exercise in critical thinking which
attempts to trace the little-known and vaguely understood
international effort to address women's rights as human rights.
Specifically, it is intended to introduce and actively engage the
reader in the application of critical thinking processes through an
analysis of the history and status of the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, or CEDAW.
Given the potential significance of CEDAW for the United States, it
is ironic that this human rights treaty is not commonplace in
discussions regarding women's rights.
Many associate the women's rights movement with efforts during the
1970s to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, or ERA. Some may recall
that the ERA was penned in 1921 after the Nineteenth Amendment was
ratified, or simply the efforts to secure voting rights for women.
Few, however, associate the women's movement with international
efforts to codify such rights into law through treaties such as
CEDAW.
CEDAW emerged as a product of the three World Conferences for Women
that comprised the "Decade for Women" from 1975 through 1985. In
1995, a Fourth World Conference for Women followed. Of all of the
documents produced, however, CEDAW stand alone as a legally binding
treaty which, under Article II, section 2 of the Constitution, has
the potential to become "...the supreme Law of the Land."
CEDAW serves as a contextual framework for the introducing the
processes of, and understanding the need for, critical thinking. The
central hypothesis of the studies is that critical thinking enables
the public to determine if information is accurate, reliable,
relevant and sufficient to support of refute a given option.
Correlated with the fundamental premise that a democracy requires a
well informed citizenry, is that information must be accessible and
citizen need to think critically. Upon these premises rests the hope
that the resultant standards will be applied in the adjudication of
the important social issues.
This thesis asserts that issues of substance can easily be obscured
and even discarded when selective emphasis is placed on secondary
issues. Analyses of CEDAW are made with respect to medial
presentation, US Senate proceedings, and provocative topics, which
served to prevent the public from being well-informed. The results
of these analyses reveal an astounding degree of misinformation (in
the form of omission, Bias, digression, fragmentation,
contradiction, and general confusion) that continues to obscure
CEDAW from public consideration and debate. Although, through an
in-depth critical analysis the status of this treaty may be
tragically unclear, the flaws in the treatment of human rights
issues, a well as path of correction, are exposed for public
consideration.
In sum, critical thinking processes are viewed as necessary to
protect the public's perception of the issues. Absent critical
thinking, the public may fall prey of misinformation. Through its
use, it is hoped that a higher level of humanity, understanding, and
truth will emerge within the process and as the product of the sound
and careful reasoning.
subject codes .GEN
Deborah Adkins
Critical Thinking in Reading: A Whole Language Approach
1990, December
Directed by Patricia A. Cordeiro
The importance of good instruction in reading education has long
been recognized. What constitutes good instruction and what
materials should be used have been the focus of much debate,
however, over the years. Two relatively new movements in education
have recently added fuel to that debate, namely the movements in
critical thinking and whole language.
The fundamental purpose of the thinking skills movement is the
development of higher level thinking in students. In the area of
reading this means that students should be challenged by questions
and problems in literature which cause them to go beyond a literal
understanding. They should be taught to interpret and evaluate all
types of literature.
To facilitate critical thinking, advocates for the movement suggest
that educators provide opportunities for students to problem solve
in pairs or small groups. They encourage a non-judgmental classroom
atmosphere which allows students freedom of thought. Some educators
utilize a list of relevant thinking skills and teach thinking
strategies and methods directly using these skills as a backdrop.
The whole language movement focuses on the reading of whole,
non-abridged literature and an integration of all the language arts:
reading, writing, spelling, speaking and listening. It emphasizes
reading for meaning and provides strategies which can enhance
under-standing. It also focuses on getting the individual student to
see the importance and pleasure of reading.
This thesis provides a description of the critical thinking and
whole language movements, with emphasis on how each has contributed
to reading instruction. The writer discusses the overlap between the
two movements, noting many similarities in purpose and methodology.
The writer discusses the overlap between the two movements. noting
many similarities in purpose and methodology. The conclusion is that
the movements are fundamentally compatible, and therefore educators
should use concepts and practices from both movements to form their
own foundation for reading instruction. A sample lesson is provided
in the appendix.
subject codes .WRL.ELE
Annmarie Adreani
Critical Thinking in Social Studies: A Model of Infused Lessons
for the Intermediate Grades
1990, December
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
A main goal of any Social Studies curriculum is to prepare students
for effective and responsible citizenship. What is taught and how it
is taught must go beyond the recall of facts, if educators are to
influence students political decisions and geographic choices in
life.
Although the need to develop effective thinkers has long been
recognized as a fundamental mandate of education, national
assessments continue to indicate that many students lack thinking
and problem-solving abilities. Proficiency in thinking involves
being able to execute various mental operations, knowing when to
employ these operations, and having a willingness to use them when
appropriate to do so. Students must be able to determine the
credibility of a vast amount of information conveyed to them through
a variety of sources and situations.
This thesis demonstrates how the direct instruction of specific
critical thinking skills may be infused into the Social Studies
curriculum. Five lessons about the Lowell Massachusetts textile
mills during the l800s have been developed for fifth grade students.
Each lesson specifies the lesson topic, thinking skill focus,
objectives, materials, time required, motivation, type of strategy
used, and an activity sequence delineating cognition, metacognition,
and transfer of the skill. The lessons are designed to teach
specific thinking skills: determination of the accuracy of
information, the reliability of sources, casual explanation,
prediction, and problem-solving. These skills are viewed as having
importance for improving thinking across curricula and within the
framework of daily life.
subject codes .MSE
Edwin Aguiar
Integrating critical and creative thinking into cartoon animation
for preschool children
1997, December
Directed by John Murray
Introducing critical and creative thinking to preschoolers evolved
because I found that people usually did not take this notion
seriously. Most information focused on older children and research
devoted very little effort on them. Preschoolers were a forgotten
group. I think they represent a group that could develop and benefit
from these ideas without any hesitancy. Nevertheless, how could we
develop and mold their intellectual abilities while molding their
personalities.
Early exposure to critical and creative thinking beliefs helps
perfect the notions of listening, play, paying attention and other
activities. I reflect on fetal development, sensory experiences,
vocal and verbal expressions, and any noteworthy or extraordinary
acts of accomplishments. Setting forth theoretical applications,
their objectives, and their correlations to choices, play and the
effects they have on child development set the framework on
developing critical and creative thinkers. Finding meaning, the
reasons for finding meaning, and the methods used in understanding
what words mean will be one way to guide them through a thought
process. The use of a child's personal experience will provide the
mechanism for developing these notions into cartoon animations.
This notion to integrate critical and creative thinking ideas into
cartoon animations will have early life influences. They learn to
find skills and strategies through decision making opportunities. It
helps provide a basis for early academic awareness, exposure to
alternative perspectives, encouraging experimentation while
inspiring confidence.
subject codes
Daniel Albert
Teaching Critical and Creative Thinking Skills Through Problem-Solving in High School Mathematics Classes
2016, May
Directed by Jeremy Szteiter
The goal of this project has been to develop a series of lessons that will assist high school students in acquiring skills aimed at assisting their critical thinking, creative thinking, and problem solving. This paper summarizes the process of research, development of an action plan, and follow-through on that plan. This paper also discusses insight about useful teaching strategies as well as particularly relevant skills as found in academic research and graduate level classes. The action plan details the gathering of support and an initial implementation of eleven lessons to be taught in a sophomore geometry class, with emphasis placed on the reflective practices of both students and teacher as well as the revision process of the lessons and the resulting curriculum.
subject codes.MSE.SCI
Maura Albert
Promotion of Critical and Creative Thinking Skills through the
Teaching of Poetry
1985, May
Directed by Jane R. Martin
This curriculum project has developed gradually over the past
fourteen years during which time I have been teaching in the public
elementary schools. I have always loved poetry; therefore it seemed
natural to make the reading of poetry a standard part of my
curriculum even in my first years of teaching. As the years went by
and my own increasing enjoyment in reading poetry was coupled with
and encouraged by the positive reactions of the children I taught,
it seemed only natural not only to read more poetry in the
classroom, but, also, to begin to do some exploration of some poems
in terms of asking questions about them - both factual and
speculative. I began to collect poetry books and to read poetry to
my pupils every day.
subject codes .WRL
Leor Alcalay
Learning How To Teach How to Learn English As A Second Language:
Reflections from Experience, Praxis, and Theory (Vol 1,2)
1996, December
Directed by Arthur Millman
This thesis explores the development of professional expertise in
teaching ESL. Such expertise incorporates the methodological
instructional knowledge, intercultural awareness, and multilingual
competence essential to meeting highly diversified learning needs in
US classrooms, facilitating globalization of domestic business
interests, and enabling the integration of immigrants into American
society. I encourage a view of ESL teachers as craftspersons and
intellectuals who integrate a reflective approach toward personal
experience and a comprehensive awareness of relevant intellectual
constructs into a dialectical interaction with theory and practice.
The proverb "to teach is to learn twice" suggests both the challenge
and potential dignity of learning a well-honed pedagogical craft. An
appreciation of the philosophical context of human language, an
understanding of the historical evolution of constructs about
language, teaching, and learning attained through research in
primary sources, and implementation of pedagogical precepts emerging
from classroom practice provide crucial impetus o the growth of the
ESL teacher's craft.
The author's "kaleidoscopic, Eclectic, Cognitive, Communicative, and
Architectonic" (KECCA) approach synthesizes pedagogical awareness
into a future-oriented methodology aimed at meeting the
multi-faceted needs of learners and teachers alike. In this
approach, learners' innate cognitive capacities are challenged by
information drawn from highly varied sources and presented in
various interactively communicative modes. Skills are taught
autonomously but practiced holistically, building into an interwoven
and flexible communicative competence in which learners have
long-term confidence.
subject codes .LAN
Deborah Allen
Incorporating Inventive Thinking in the Middle School Life
Science Curriculum
1994, May
Directed by Delores B. Gallo
This thesis consists of a series of inventive thinking activities
designed to be integrated into a year-long middle school life
science curriculum. The term inventive thinking is used to describe
the process needed to address an ambiguous or open-ended problem,
whereby students are required to identify and seek out the needed
givens and goals, plus the appropriate rules and operations for
solving the problems or completing the task. The inventive process
combines the analytical, evaluative skills and attitudes of critical
thinking with the generative, synthetic skills and attitudes of
creative thinking with the goal of producing a product. The product
may be a model, design, plan or physical object; it must be original
to the student; and it must solve the assigned problem.
Drawing upon the literature of critical and creative thinking,
inventive thinking, science education, and girls in science, the
thesis offers a firm theoretical framework for the inventive
thinking projects and for the necessity of embedding them into the
year-long curriculum and into the methods of teaching used on a
daily basis. Furthermore, the curriculum into which the inventive
thinking activities are integrated is included. Nine inventive
thinking projects are presented and discussed within these
frameworks. Three of them are described in detail, with teaching
strategies and evaluative processes delineated to serve as an
example upon which other teachers can build their own work.
Selected writings from students' journals, reports, and project
presentations demonstrate continual development and successful use
of critical and creative thinking skills, point out areas of content
mastery, and evidence the presence of relevant traits and attitudes
for excellent science education. An especially rewarding feature of
this inventive thinking approach, which has now been in use for
three years, has been the help it has provided for girls to regain
self-esteem, to enjoy scientific thinking, and to stay engaged in
science. Teachers are encouraged and aided in this thesis to use
inventive thinking projects as a vital part of their middle school
science curricula.
subject codes .MSE
Patricia Allen
Critical Thinking and The Community College
1997, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
During the past fifteen years, colleges have been challenged to
reform their curricula to ensure that they will graduate individuals
who can think critically. This study explores the response that
post-secondary institutions have made to this challenge and
recommends a critical thinking paradigm "more deeply rooted in the
social and moral requirements of thinking in a complex world."
(Weinstein 1995,1)
This study presents an overview of the conceptual, structural and
political
responses of the academic community to this challenge. It focuses
principally on the conceptual responses because these provide the
theoretical underpinnings for both the structural and political
responses of the critical thinking movement: the pedagogical
organization and
practices; the competing political agendas; and, the popular
understanding of the movement.
Since it is theoretically possible to train people for critical
thinking in very narrow domains and practical tasks, just as it is
for very broad domains and theoretical tasks, we therefore have to
ask ourselves what kind of critical thinking are we interested in
developing? For whom and for what? (McPeck 1994, 38)
This study examines four curricular approached to the teaching of
critical thinking, two examples of infusion and two examples of the
independent critical thinking course. It considers the recent
history of critical thinking, describes the unique critical thinking
considerations inherent in the community college, traces the
instructor's experience with an independent critical thinking
course, and outlines a prescription for further development of
critical thinking at the community college.
subject codes .TCE
Alfred Alschuler
Education and the Cognitive Development of Creativity
2000, June
Directed by Gary Spierstein
The importance of creativity in education has been increasingly
recognized. Although controversy still exists, many schools are
attempting to improve the creative capacity of their students
through the curriculum. Current efforts tend to view creativity as a
stable function which individuals acquire and possess more or less
of. This view does not adequately account for the developmental
nature of individuals. In order to design a creativity curriculum
which accounts for the cognitive development of students it is
necessary to understand what the elements of creativity are and when
they are acquired by individuals as they develop.
I have developed a conceptual framework with seven elements of
creativity which is based on many of the established creativity
theories. These elements are: initiative, symbolic representation,
symbolic play, extended exploration, perspective taking, inductive
reasoning and deductive reasoning.
When I place these seven elements of creativity within the
perspective of Piaget's theory of development, a sense of when they
emerge in an individual's development can be obtained. Initiative
emerges soon after birth during Piaget's Sensori-motor stage.
Symbolic representation, symbolic play and extended exploration all
emerge during the Piaget's Pre-operational stage. Perspective
taking, inductive reasoning and deductive reasoning emerge during
Piaget's Concrete stage of development.
In the second half of the synthesis I show how this theoretical work
can inform the design or evaluation of curriculum on the degree to
which it enhances creative development. The key features of this
application are: lessons should be age appropriate and reinforce the
skills that students are just acquiring; in order to facilitate
creative development the teaching of different subjects should take
into account the process of learning, not just the content. I
combine these in an easy to use check list. This list can be used to
design curriculum, evaluate existing curriculum or to assess student
progress in creative development.
Curriculum should be systematically evaluated to assess the degree
to which existing lessons or newly designed ones promote creative
development in an age appropriate manner. Using what is known about
creativity and cognitive development, in addition to the seven
elements presented in this paper, it is possible to create a
checklist of basic ingredients individual lessons and entire
curricula should have.
This synthesis is intended to provide educators with a
straightforward, developmentally sensitive approach to integrating
creative development into their teaching. It is my hope that the
methods suggested will prove to be useful and effective.
subject codes .THR
Mashail H AlShabeeb
Modifying and Integrating Critical Thinking Into the Traditional
Pedagogy of Saudi Girls' Elementary School
1997, June
Directed by John Murray
This study is motivated by the current national problem of poor and
inadequate teacher preparation and teaching quality in Saudi
elementary schools. This thesis focuses on Saudi girls' elementary
schools. To date, not a single scholarly effort has been made in
Saudi Arabia to study if teachers facilitate children's thinking
skills and to determine why thinking strategies and effective study
skills are not encouraged in young elementary school children. The
absence of such knowledge is rather depressing, given the
overwhelming evidence that children's experiences during the
elementary school years play a vital role in the beginning and
development of learning and thinking strategies.
It is argued in this study that in order to address the problem
resulting from a lack of critical thinking skills, Saudi Arabia must
move beyond a traditional evaluation of teachers which is based
solely on the lecture method. It is necessary for the Saudi Arabian
education system to examine more practical elements of teaching and
learning. Extensive changes in teachers preparation are necessary if
Saudi elementary schools are to establish a workable and effective
model of national teacher preparation and development.
Literature on the study of teaching students how to think
effectively and the development of useful teaching strategies has
convincingly informed us of how essential these skills are to
students' progress. The implications of such research are quite
clear.
I)the elementary school years are a crucial time for children to
develop and acquire thinking strategies,
2)the elementary classroom context is ideal for the acquisition,
development, and exercise of thinking strategies, and
3)instructional success depends, in great part, on a teacher's
interaction with students and the students' in interactions with one
another.
This study will take a two-pronged approach to addressing the needs
listed above. First, it will provide an assessment and critique of
Saudi girls' elementary lessons currently in use. Second, it will
offer a sample of modified lessons and the development of a
suggested questionnaire for the evaluation of elementary teachers.
subject codes .ELE.GEN.INT
Patricia Artis
Developing Student Participatory Skills in an Urban Middle School
1993, May
Directed by John R. Murray
This thesis contains a manual for a student government program
designed to teach students of urban middle schools to think
critically and creatively about the issues of responsibility and
caring. Most existing student government programs have been
constructed for high school students, and do not take into
consideration the special developmental stages and needs of the
middle school student.
This thesis develops a participatory model of middle school student
government in which the entire school population participates. When
authority within a school is decentralized and students empowered,
the stage is set and structure provided for critical and creative
thinking to begin.
In this thesis the most recent research on the biological,
cognitive, socio-emotional, and political developmental stages as
well as the needs of early adolescents are examined. Studies on
citizenship, responsibility and caring are also reviewed. Urban
middle school education is discussed as well as moral education,
participation, and methods for teaching/developing critical and
creative thinking and moral reasoning.
This thesis contains a working teacher's manual with procedures and
over fifty reproducible activities for those interested in setting
up an inclusive student government program. For each group - the
student council, the after-school service club, and the student body
- four lessons (introductory, implementation, maintenance, and
evaluation) are included in the manual. Step-by-step procedures and
research theory accompany each lesson.
The results of this highly successful student government program,
which was developed over a ten year period of time, are presented
through the use of student reflections and surveys of the students,
staff, and the faculty advisor.
subject codes .MSE
Joyce Atkinson
The Role of Critical and Creative Thinking in Academic Retention
Strategies for College Students
1997, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
The problem of retention of college students who are under prepared
for the academic demands of college will be addressed by looking at
the skills and needs of "high profile" or high risk students. I will
use critical and creative thinking concepts as a framework for
defining relevant skills and motivation, and I will present an
original model for developing structures for transformational
dialogue to occur as well as offer suggestions for how to measure
change through observable student actions. In this way, student
needs and skill development can be assessed more effectively and
authentic learning formats can be woven into the fabric of holistic
outreach interventions.
subject codes
Yolanda Avidano
First-Generation Students' Pathways To A Baccalaureate
2011, August
Directed by Carol Smith
The pathway to college for most low-income first-generation students can seem impracticable and impossible to achieve. This diverse population has caused much apprehension among educational administrators and practitioners about how to serve these students effectively. As an educational practitioner working with this population I am especially interested in uncovering the "state of affairs" regarding first-generation college students in general, and low income first generation students in particular, and how I might be a catalyst of positive and effective change as I serve them. My synthesis reviews published literature that reveals the "state of affairs" regarding first generation students. I address the questions of: How are first generation and low income students defined in the literature? What kinds of complexities arise in this definition? In what kinds of postsecondary institutions do they typically enroll? What are the individual characteristics of and obstacles faced by these students? In addition, my synthesis explores two contrasting models designed to promote student success in achieving their BA: (a) TRIO Student Support Services, a longstanding federal program that has made great efforts to support low income first-generation students through a variety of support services including creating learning communities within the postsecondary culture as well as providing developmental education and workshops, and (b) the Achieve the Dream initiative, a bold new national effort within community colleges, that has been established to promote a culture of evidence and to refine efforts of obtaining measurable outcomes of student success. I also consider the research on the effectiveness of these programs and their proposed practices to date in enhancing the success of low-income first generation college students. The challenge of this quest will be longstanding, and viewing its unique attributes will allow for many additional reflective interventions. As a student of Critical and Creative Thinking I have drawn on the many tools I learned. The process of defining the best practices will be an ongoing process, which is reflective of what I learned in my problem-based learning course. There is empowerment in the statement, "every problem has a solution." Geared with that knowledge, it is up to the creativity of the individual facing the problem to establish what route of possible resolutions is best suited for him or her. This is the junction at which I aim to be an agency of change, giving students the opportunity to "realize their dreams." by considering how they are currently thinking about how they might use the possible tools that they might have been given to attain their degree.
subject codes .TCE
(Full Text)
Mumtaz Badshah
The Role of Examination Reform as a Catalyst in Directing
Education Change in India
1997, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
The paper focuses on exploring the possibilities of using
examinations as a
catalyst that can give an impetus to educational change. The current
system of education in Maharashtra, India was examined and the
current needs and goals were identified. A literature review was
conducted of the research on thinking and learning done by Eliot
Eisner, Howard Gardner and Lauren Resnick amongst others.
Research in thinking and learning shows that in order to educate
students so that they can use information optimally, make informed
decisions and solve problems creatively it is extremely important
that educational systems commit to the teaching of critical and
creative thinking skills. The portfolio method was identified as
having the potential to enhance critical and creative thinking
skills from amongst several assessment techniques because it is
aligned to the principles of learning by doing and learning by
reviewing. In the light of the financial and material constraints
present in Maharashtra, India, a case was made that the schools in
Maharashtra must aspire to re-design some components of the existing
examination system.
Three strategies were suggested to re-design the essay type
questions of the examination system. First, to identify and list
thinking skills in the question, so that the students know which
thinking skills are being assessed and what each thinking skill
means. Second to extend the essay question to include a section of
reflective writing by the student. In this section the students
would describe the thinking skills used to solve the problems stated
in the question by reflecting and reviewing on their work and
progress. The third recommendation is to design questions in the
form of 'cases'. A case is a problem embedded into a real situation
where the
student engages actively with the problem by role-playing one
character in the case and solving the problem from that characters
perspective.
Re-designing the existing examination methods to include components
that require students to develop and apply thinking skills is the
first step to building thinking classrooms where one of the main
goals of education is cognitive development.
subject codes .INT
Anibal Baez
Critical Thinking Through Manipulatives: A Staff Development
Intervention for Middle Grades
1997, December
Directed by Judith Collison
This thesis proposes a curriculum development project for
mathematics education in the middle grades. I intend to provide
theory and to contribute practical applications, both intended for
future in-service staff development and teacher workshops. The
rationale explores the causes and effects of the lack of
manipulative materials in current mathematics classrooms.
This exploration results from my interest in designing, constructing
and implementing instructional aids, from my experience as staff
developer in the Amigos Bilingual Program of Cambridge, and from my
graduate studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston. My
objective is to review the history of the teaching of thinking
skills and how that history relates to the use of instructional aids
in mathematics. I will examine this topic from three different
perspectives, philosophical, psychological and pedagogical, that
have shaped school practices.
The philosophical perspective that I most use in this work is
perhaps best exemplified by Lev Vigotsky's cultural evolution theory
based on historic materialism. I use in addition, Robert H. Ennis'
approach, which proposes that teaching of critical thinking be
emphasized as learning how to think and what to know. I refer to
developmental psychology researchers like Jean Piaget and Jerome
Bruner as representatives of the constructivist trend within
cognitive
psychology. Both Piaget' s and Bruner' s work have greatly
influenced the study of learning, motivation, perception and
educational psychology. The inclusion of their ideas is important
when considering any initiative of curriculum or staff development
that attempts to improve teaching methods and materials. The
contribution of these developmentalists to my own understanding of
thinking and reasoning processes have greatly influenced my work
here.
For the section on pedagogy, my conviction of the need of various
sensory modes to represent thinking led my search to Bruner's spiral
curriculum and later Lesh' s model for the translation of
representational thoughts. From these two models we may develop an
instructional method in which the teacher moves deliberately, in
gradual steps, from concrete to symbolic modes of thinking.
Some facts, however, give us pause when considering a total
manipulative approach. The first is that the learning outcome of a
mathematics curriculum is almost totally symbolic, particularly from
the middles grades up. We want our students to be able to perform,
eventually, at an abstract level with numbers, operation signs,
parentheses and equations. Nevertheless, current findings suggest a
schism between this symbolic form of mathematics dexterity and the
desirable manipulative methods of good mathematics instruction. I
believe that manipulative aids provide for both the improvement of
teaching practices and, consequently, for better students
understanding of the covered concepts. The use of such devices as
realia, pictures and games represent a major benchmark in the
paradigm shift from transmission of knowledge practices to
student-centered practices. Indeed, this shift provides for the
various representational modes of thinking: intuitive, concrete,
pictorial and abstract. Consequently, with proper activities, these
representations will also facilitate growth toward more complex
mental modes and operations: generalizations, making connections,
problem solving and the like--the modes where critical thinking
resides.
subject codes .MSE
Maureen Baines
Critical and Creative Thinking Through Space Exploration
1996, June
Directed by Judith Collison
This thesis presents a thematic approach to the study of space
researchers. Active thinkers seek information as well as process
exploration by providing learning experiences for students as
content chosen by the teacher. This model presents the teacher as a
facilitator of the individual student's quest for knowledge. Some of
the most important goals of social studies in schools is to educate
the students to make informed decisions, to seek the information
they need to solve a problem, answer questions, to work together as
a team and to promote citizenship. Thus inquiry and meaningful
connections to real life are valued over the memorization of a
prescribed curriculum. The curricular approach profiled here teaches
fifth grade students research skills by integrating critical and
creative thinking with numerous resources including text, the
Internet and CD-ROMs.
Central to the work is the value of teaching the students how to
think rather than what to think. Research is a proactive seeking of
knowledge that is steeped in inquiry. A detailed format for writing
a research project on the intermediate elementary school level is
included. Research skills are discussed with emphasis on critical
and creative thinking.
Creative thinking converges with critical thinking as the students
experience the process of writing a report in social studies with
special attention given to the simulated shuttle flight at the
Christa McAuliffe Space Center in Framingham, Massachusetts and the
research experience. A model is included as a visual aid to help
students develop their writing
skills through divergent (creative) and convergent (critical)
thinking.
subject codes .SCI
Julie Barrett
Managing a Creative Practice
2009, December
Directed by Carol Smith
Myths and assumptions about creativity often lead us to believe that
creativity is innate. Researchers find though, that we develop
creative skills like any other ability, through opportunity,
encouragement and practice. They also believe that most people fail
to reach their creative potential, not because of lack of ability,
but lack of opportunity. In this paper, I studied how creativity
functions (specifically in terms of my own painting practice) and
how it can be applied more flexibly. Certain factors, such as access
to strong mentors, freedom to experiment, and readily available
resources, help potentially exceptional minds find the passion to
define challenges, and the confidence to pursue remarkable
achievements. Like any professional practitioners, artists learn to
identify new problems, and engineer critical solutions when standard
solutions fail. The earlier we start on this path, the further ahead
we are able to push our work. The creative cycle helps us harness
our skills and creative problem solving allows us to discover new
ways to achieve. Essentially, breakthroughs are built on baby-steps
and I took my first steps back to painting when I joined the CCT
program after more than a year of creative stagnation. Conducting
this synthesis project allowed me to conclude that the work of each
artist contributes to the overall health of the creative hive. Since
our general productivity is connected to our environment, our
community, and great numbers of active creative creatures working
among us, I invite each reader to consider what they might gain from
and contribute to our creative ecology.
subject codes .ART
(Full Text)
Joelle Barton
tales of gen x nothing: A synthesis of theory and practice
2003, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
Tales of a gen x nothing is the true story of Generation X as seen
through the eyes of thirty-one million adult children of divorce. As
children, how do they see the world after daddy packs up and leaves?
How do they cope in a society that hates children? As adults, how do
they come to terms with their lost childhoods? This book describes
the lifetime of chaos that was the result of the divorce revolution.
This book originated as a way to put to rest the misery that defined
my childhood and the anger that blemished my twentysomething years;
it was all brought to the surface through my work in the Critical
and Creative Thinking Program at the University of Massachusetts
Boston.
Mine is a synthesis in two parts:
1. tales of a gen x nothing, a creative non-fiction book-in-progress
2. A companion practitioner's narrative that analyzes my creative
process from inception to active writing, through writing blocks and
creative breakdowns, and finally to a product nearly ready for
mainstream publication. In the practitioner's narrative, I strive to
draw parallels between my experience as a member of Generation X and
the creative process involved in committing that experience to
paper. In this narrative, I show that my writing process, my
inspiration, and my motivation is distinctly different than those
described by writer's of other generations. I show that my writer's
blocks were closely related to lingering insecurities from my
typical Generation X childhood.
The voice with which I chose to write the practitioner's narrative
defies convention, a defiance that is a fundamental attribute of
Generation X. This defiance rails against what older generations
declares must be. The narrative must be written in a formal manner.
The narrative must not contain slang or "offensive language". The
narrative must present the topic in a reverent manner. The narrative
must bore the reader to death.
There is nothing boring about either section of this Synthesis
Project. It is an honest account of a young life thrown into chaos
and what it took to make sense of that chaos.
subject codes .WRL
Carol Beal
The Relationship of Empathy to Effective Speaking: Critical and
Creative Thinking in the Speech Process
1991, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
Many factors influence the success of a speaker in speaking
effectively before an audience. In teaching speech communication to
students, I have focused on factors over which the students have
some control in preparing and presenting speeches for an audience.
Particularly, I have encouraged the development of critical and
creative thinking skills and dispositions as the students focus on
engaging closely with their topics, in preparing messages for their
audiences, and in selecting styles of delivery. This study
investigates the influence of activities which elicit empathy in
helping students to think in this way. Nineteen high school
sophomores were encouraged to think critically and creatively in
preparing and presenting seven speeches of increasing challenge to
earn speech communication skills and dispositions in a nine week
term.
Empathy is defined here as an intrapersonal communication process
composed of cognitive and affective components. Student work was
measured by an empathy continuum scale created for the complex
aspects of the speech preparation process, attending to the degree
of empathy I observed in the students for their topics and their
audiences.
This study presents a qualitative analysis of the work of six
students selected on the basis of their task commitment and speech
aptitude as revealed in the first speech task. These case studies
are supported with quantitative analyses of data I collected from
the students, including student rankings for themselves and their
eighteen peers for: empathy for the topic and audience, best
speaking in the term, best delivery skills, most improvement in the
term, and task commitment.
The written and oral empathy activities facilitated the students'
engagement with their topics and audiences even when the students
lacked a positive disposition towards the speech domain. Given
satisfactory task commitment, the students who emphasized to some
degree with their topics and their audiences were positively
influenced in the growth of speech skills and dispositions.
subject codes .MOR.MSE
Elisa Beildeck
Reducing Communication Apprehension To Improve Self-Concept: An
Adaptable Public Speaking Curriculum For Secondary School
1999, December
Directed by Taylor
Both middle and high school students today are confronted with
social and biological changes, which can negatively impact on their
self-concept. Many students have, in particular, a low public
speaking self-concept causing them to avoid public speaking
circumstances or causing them to have high levels of anxiety in
speaking situations. Students need positive experiences in secondary
school, but unfortunately, many are not taught public speaking until
the college level and consequently have a high communication
apprehension level. In this paper I cite research that shows that my
public speaking course taught at the secondary level designed to
decrease communication apprehension will improve students' public
speaking self-concept. In turn encouraging students to participate
and succeed in more public speaking opportunities, leads to a better
overall self-concept.
After presenting research, which shows the causes, consequences and
treatments for communication apprehension, and illustrating the
inverse relationship between communication apprehension and
self-concept, I provide a complete public speaking curriculum for
secondary teachers. The curriculum is designed to lower
communication apprehension and improve students' public speaking
self-concept so that students at the secondary level can have power
over their public speaking fears and develop a better overall
self-image.
This adaptable public speaking curriculum lowers communication
apprehension in five ways. First, the curriculum explains how to
create a safe environment with established ground rules. Second,
once the environment encourages students to take risks this
curriculum prepares speakers to write and deliver their speeches.
Samples of monologues, famous speeches and poems are included in the
curriculum to give teachers a wide variety of speech material from
which to choose. Third, this curriculum teaches students
metacognition and ongoing self-assessment so that, students can
determine focus areas for work and measure their improvement.
Fourth, the curriculum empowers students with the ability to lower
their own communication apprehension through various activities such
as visualization, drama exercises and systematic desensitization.
Last, this effective public speaking curriculum presents several
non-intimidating evaluative measures for the teacher and students to
use at the end of the project.
This curriculum has been successfully tested in various classrooms.
Both teachers and students have reported an apparent reduction of
communication apprehension and an improved self-concept.
subject codes .MSE.COM
Marlene Bell
An Exploration of Personal Process as Manifested in Painting
1991, May
Directed by Nina Greenwald
This thesis examines the processes of personal experience and
expression which emerge in art. The author believes these processes
to be multidimensional, encompassing different elements: significant
childhood and later events, the shaping of perception, and the
evolution of form and design. Perception is discussed in relation to
these factors.
The opening chapter provides an examination of pertinent literature
in the field of creativity. The following chapters explore different
elements of creative work in comparison to the perspective of
prominent individuals who have made a contribution toward an
understanding of the creative process. Their insights provide a
scaffolding from which to understand how the creative process is
represented in personal artistic experience and expression. Where
applicable, ethnographic comparisons of perception are cited and
discussed.
The thesis also examines the development of one particular painting
of the author. This examination begins with the original image seen.
It continues to follow the image's evolution through stages of
active work to the design and execution of the painting's final
product. These examinations of thought and activity link the
painting to the original experience and exemplify the activity of
painting as visual thinking.
subject codes .CUL.THR
Kathleen Bertrand
Emergent creativity: A case study
1997, May
Directed by Delores Gallo
A recognition and analysis of the complexity involved in trying to
understand what creativity is and how the creative process works is
the essence of this paper. I chose to record as a case study the
creative process involved in developing a children's book based upon
the achievements and experiences of three Massachusetts women who
participated in the All American Girls Professional Baseball League.
The AAGPBL, as it is called, pioneered the effort of the
participation of women in organized professional baseball. There is
currently a need for books, written for young readers, with young
girl athletes as role models. The intent of this project is to
create a story that validates the athletic passion, drive,
abilities, and love of sport for all girl athletes. The All American
Girls Professional Baseball League is an example of a time gone by
when the national pastime of baseball became a true experience for
all ballplayers regardless of gender.
The evolution of the project as it happened is presented with
accompanying analysis. The influence of the critical and creative
thinking theorists, Howard E. Gruber, Teresa Amabile, Delores Gallo,
Sharon Bailin, Richard Paul, and others are evident and provide
structure to the analysis.
This work contains a theoretical framework, an introduction to Mary
Pratt, Maddy English and Dottie Green, (three women baseball players
under discussion), an overview of the proposed work of adolescent
fiction, and an in-depth presentation and discussion of one chapter
of the book.
When the project was finished I had not defined creativity but
rather chronicled an emergent experience within an evolving creative
process.
subject codes.GEN.SPO
Patricia Bertucci
Promoting a healthier life-style by bridging the 'life-times' gap
1997, May
Directed by Delores Gallo
This paper traces the evolutionary transformation of a small town
New England native, who was traditionally raised and educated. She
went from a conventional Western-medicine trained nurse, and an
adherent of Roman Catholicism, to a holistic therapy practitioner.
Spiritual healing, visualization, relaxation, hypnosis, and
past-life regression are utilized as part of the healing process, on
the self-actualized journey to wellness. The paper begins with a
selective review of related literature, offering both empirical
evidence of the mind/body connection, and proceeds with anecdotal
evidence of the medical efficacy of relaxation, visualization,
hypnosis, and past-life regression therapy. It ends with an account
of three case studies, and statements from the subjects.
subject codes.MED
Shelly Billingsley
Evaluating Different Forms of E-Learning
2003, August
Directed by Peter Taylor
"The Critical and Creative Thinking (CCT) program at the University
of Massachusetts Boston provides its students with knowledge, tools,
experience, and support so they can become constructive, reflective
agents of change in education, work, social movements, science, and
creative arts." (Critical and Creative Thinking Program 2003) I
entered the program as a teacher seeking knowledge on how to better
convey learning theories to diverse groups. I also wanted to
experience a collaborative atmosphere where I could learn from
interacting with peers on how to best promote educational change.
Finally, I had a desire to seek insight into the evolution of
different forms of learning practices.
This paper chronicles key professional events that have evoked
questions in respect to how best to create learning material for
different audiences. The nature of these events is described as I
explain the transition from teacher to corporate trainer and from
formal instructor to e-learning and technical course provider. The
framework of this paper takes a look at existing theories that one
may consider while deciding what forms of content can be
successfully provided through e-learning, includes a hypothesis
rationalizing which forms of content might be too abstract for
online instruction, and clarifies a simple study that was conducted
to begin to evaluate different forms of e-learning.
subject codes.COR.TEC
Kathleen Blanchard
1997, August
Directed by
subject codes
Varis Blaus
1997, May
Directed by
subject codes
Constance Borab
Freeing the Female Voice: Pedagogical and Methodological Changes
in One Teacher's Story
1997, May
Directed by
This paper will trace the stages and causes for my evolving pedagogy
and the resulting changes in the content and methodology in the
curriculum I teach. Being trained within the bounds of a patriarchal
framework and traditional Anglo-American canon, I came to teaching
believing that critical thinking and critical writing were the
measure of true knowledge.
The first challenge to my initial pedagogy came from the voices of
my students who were not as fully engaged in the learning process as
I or they wanted them to be. Pointing to my methodology as an
inhibitor to learning, the students' feedback called for my respect
for subjective and constructed knowledge as well as for my grounding
procedural knowledge in a context broader than the limits of the
definitions of valid knowing that exalted objectivity and the rigors
of traditional academic forms of expression.
The evolution of my methodology, pedagogy and curriculum design have
been gradual and continuous. The introduction to Carol Gilligan's In
a Different Voice provided the language and development that I
had already recognized in my students' voices over the years.
Reading this work led to a pedagogical epiphany that my working must
be about "freeing the voice" of my students. The methodological and
curriculum changes that I have made have risen from my belief that
empowering my students and "freeing the voice" are integral and
imperative to learning.
subject codes .GEN
James Bousquet
The Critical Thinking Salesperson
1991, September
Directed by
Salespeople have one of the most important assignments in any firm.
They are largely responsible for the movement of inventory and the
movement of inventory and the generation of revenues. Specialized
training should be provided for salespeople if they are to be
expected to accomplish these goals. Today, much of what is provided
in the area of training is product oriented. Very little is offered
to help the salesperson create lasting business relationships, with
the buyer, that would result in repeat sales.
What is needed is a new approach to sales training, one that focused
on the skills required to create and maintain relationships and to
truly understand the needs of the customer. Now longer is it
sufficient to provide only basic product training. The new sales
training curriculum requires critical an creative thinking skills as
an integral component of the skill set provided to the salesperson.
This thesis will outline a curriculum designed to provide integrated
sales and critical and creative thinking skills to salespeople. The
basic framework will be the sales process, broken down into seven
discrete steps. Critical and creative thinking skills will be used
to strengthen the sales skills in the student. The student will
examine major critical and creative thinking themes such as viewing
ideas from different perspectives, identifying biases and
stereotypes, problem identification and metacognition as they relate
to the seven step selling process.
The central idea of this work is that salespeople once given basic
skills training, will be more effective creating lasting
professional relationships if they constantly monitor, evaluate and
revise their approach to the selling process. This curriculum
outlines a course that will provide students with basic sales skills
and expose them to the critical and creative thinking skills
necessary to make them critically thinking salespeople.
subject codes .COR
Elizabeth Buckley
A Thinking Skills Approach to the Humanities
1993, May
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Teachers are constantly seeking ways to improve their own teaching
and thereby enhance the learning of their students. One method of
doing this is to bring critical and creative thinking to the
forefront in the curriculum. Specifically, this thesis shows how
critical and creative thinking skills can be integrated into a high
school curriculum. It focuses primarily on the teaching of Aldous
Huxley's novel, Brave New World, although the book is meant to be a
paradigm for other works. The novel is an example of one unit in a
high school humanities course that was developed in a suburban high
school in the l980s.
This study explains the role that critical and creative thinking
played in the development of a course called "Odyssey." It also
delineates how integration/infusion emerged as the preferred method
of teaching thinking skills. A brief history and overview of the
course is presented to emphasize the fact that flexibility is one of
Odyssey's chief hallmarks. Definitions for both critical and
creative thinking are established, and the work of major theorists
in both areas is considered. Those theorists reviewed in this study
in the area of critical thinking are Ennis, Beyer, Lipman, Sternberg
and Paul. The major influences presented in the field off creative
thinking are Guilford, Torrance, Barron, Parnes, Treffinger and
Feldhusen, as well as Shallcross, Gallo and Amabile.
The relationship between critical and creative thinking as
articulated by Guilford, Parnes, Swartz and Perkins is also
explored. The infusion/integration method is considered with
references to Perkins, Swartz, Costa and Paul. The importance of
metacognition is discussed along with the significance of
transference across the curriculum and into real-life situations.
The major thrust of this thesis is the ten lesson plans which take a
thinking skills approach to teaching Brave New World. Strategies and
techniques such as role-playing, journal writing and brainstorming
are delineated to illustrate the integrative mode. The final chapter
discussed some of the implications of teaching critical and creative
thinking in this manner. Examples of students' reactions are shared.
While the theoretical base of this approach is provided by the
experts, it is the affirmation of present and former students that
attests to its effectiveness
subject codes .MSE.ELE
Kathleen Bullock
Teaching Economics In United States History: One Teacher Shares
Some Lessons
2002, August
This paper addresses the value and benefits of teaching economics in
U.S. History at the high school level. Some of the challenges it
presents such as curriculum style, teacher qualifications,
assessment and accountability, pacing, and developing thinking
skills for a theory-based course are discussed. I also offer
activities with accompanying worksheets and graphic organizers that
may assist teachers in meeting these challenges. The activities
include tariffs, a run on the bank, monopolies, and recessions as an
introduction to basic economic principles that are important in
teaching U.S. History. A set of graphic organizers on The Civil War
demonstrates how economics relates and integrates with social and
political causes. My paper reflects my desire to raise intellectual
standards for myself, and gives me the opportunity to share some of
my discoveries with colleagues who desire the same.
subject codes.MSE
Margaret Burke
Building a Home for Thinking Transfer
1992, September
Directed by John R. Murray
Thinking skills development is an important educational goal if
students are expected to cope with the challenges of today's rapidly
changing world. Teachers attempt to build the foundation for
thinking by applying innovative programs that introduce and
reinforce critical and creative thinking skills. Yet, educational
practitioners and experts in the critical thinking field recognize
that even those students who demonstrate mature thinking in school
frequently fail to transfer thinking skills outside the classroom.
To maximize the possibility for transfer two approaches to thinking
skills development were chosen for this thesis. First, methods
employed in the classroom included direct instruction in thinking,
practice in thinking using multiple experiences with varied contexts
in socially interactive environments, and metacognitive instruction.
Secondly, outside the classroom, parents and teachers joined in a
mutually supportive partnership to extend thinking skills into the
home. Parents modeled good thinking and employed high level
questioning strategies in a series of project activities designed to
foster communication.
The thinking skills project involved twenty-five fourth grade
students and their families participating for one full year to
develop and transfer critical and creative thinking skills outside
the classroom. Project activities employed strategies that elicited
recall, application, analysis, and evaluation.
Conclusions were drawn from direct observation and evaluative
instruments completed by parents and students both during the
process and at the conclusion of the project. A summary of
evaluative data indicated that the intervention was effective with
the majority of students. Parents' awareness of critical and
creative thinking also increased.
The curriculum and evaluation instruments are included in the
appendix to serve as a resource for teachers and other
practitioners. Primarily designed for elementary classroom teachers,
both the content and the style of the curriculum project could
easily be adapted by other practitioners working with parents and
children.
subject codes .ELE
Mary Burke
First Graders Solving Problems
1997, September
Directed by John R. Murray
First graders become good problem solvers when given the opportunity
to practice problem solving skills. It is necessary for such
practice to take place in a risk-free environment that treats errors
as valuable learning experiences rather than something to always
avoid. This thesis integrates academic subject matter, school life
interactions, and out of school experiences into the first graders'
development of critical thinking skills and strategies necessary for
them to become good problem solvers. The thesis explains in several
different academic subject areas the implementation of critical and
creative thinking pedagogy essential for the development of a sound
foundation for first graders to work through many of their own
problems.
Portfolio assessment is used as the primary tool to evaluate the
growth in both critical and creative thinking and problem solving.
This has given the author good evidence that first graders can
become good problem solvers when they are given guided practice.
subject codes .ELE
Thomas .M Burns
A Structured Approach to Training and Development Programs for
Business and Organizational Leaders
1997, June
Directed by John Murray
This paper addresses and integrates two issues. Its first premise is
that training and development programs in most organizations are
often poorly planned or randomly implemented, a condition which
undermines much of the potential benefit these programs may offer.
Secondly, the paper argues that the development and application of
critical and creative thinking skills, traditionally applied only in
educational settings, can also serve businesses in very important
ways.
Towards the integration of these two issues, a six-stage model is
presented that can serve to coordinate the process of personnel
development in organizations. It is highlighted by the
identification and application of a range of cognitive skills. While
the model is primarily progressive, suggesting that certain learning
should precede other learning, there is also a more holistic or
systemic aspect to it, realizing that work at one level must
influence and be influenced by work on other levels. These points
are expanded upon throughout the paper
After an introductory chapter discusses the background and general
goals of the paper, each of the next six chapters discusses in
detail one of the stages from the model. Stage 1 is centered on
self-development and a greater appreciation of an individual's
thinking, learning and behavioral preferences. Stage 2 introduces
interpersonal communication issues
associated primarily with dyadic contexts. Then Stage 3 focuses on
communication issues in special circumstances, namely those related
to matters of diversity as it is understood to include perspectives
of race, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual preference, and physical
disability. Stage 4
deals with ideas associated with group process and team development.
Trainings at this Stage 4 level become pivotal and critical as a
foundation for the more complex operations common to most
organizations. In Stage 5, the contextual focus expands to include
organizational departments or divisions. And finally, Stage 6
addresses intervention programs that are concerned with entire
organizations. A summary is presented in Chapter 8 and suggestions
are made for further study and exploration.
subject codes .COR
Michelle Burpee-Robert
1997, May
Directed by
subject codes
Susan Butler
A Teller's Tale: Joining The Circle -- A Discussion of Process in
The Writing of a Novel for Young Adults
2002, December
Directed by Peter Taylor
In this thesis, I reflect on the writing of fiction for young adults
against the backdrop of autobiography. Context is provided by the
accompanying opening chapters of a novel for young adults-The
Defectives of Ulibar- and excerpts from a journal written during the
writing process. Aspects of the creative engagement-open
brainstorming, focusing, rewriting-are anchored in the specific
locations-a country road, a cabin in the woods, an indoor study-in
which the processes occur.
In the course of this endeavor, I learn that the writing of fiction,
and the reflecting on the writing of fiction, are not after all so
different. It is only be engaging in the groping, shape-discovering
process that I learn what I have to say.
I also discover that not only do my characters move from silence and
disconnection toward expression and connection, but that I too,
through the writing of fiction, am stepping out of the shadows and
joining a circle of my peers.
Lastly, I take note that with this document, I am taking my place in
yet another circle: that of sharing reflectors on creative process,
fellows in the Critical and Creative Thinking Program. Each of us
adding our tile to an ever-evolving mosaic.
subject codes .WRL
Victoria Byerly
Literacy as a Source for Critical Consciousness Thought,
Language, and Concept of Self
1988, May
Directed by Wanda Teays
This thesis is a study of the complex interrelation between thought
and language and the relevance of social and cultural influences on
a mature critical concept of self. This study represents an effort
to propose a curriculum for literacy that facilitates the
restructuring of consciousness in the adult learner. The intent is
to promote transformation of student apperception from that of
internalized reactive powerlessness to proactive self-empowerment.
It is an emancipatory theory of literacy with a corresponding
transformative pedadgogy that promotes the ability to name and
define the relationship of self and environment, and one that
engages learners to transform their world.
subject codes .THR
Terese Byrne
Verifying the Teaching of Analogies to Fourth Grade Students
1999, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
The proliferation of technology and the information it makes
available to all has forced education to realign itself to meet the
changing needs of today's students. A shift away from amassing
information, toward the development of critical thinking skills,
presents teachers with new questions. What skills are appropriate to
teach at a given age or level, and how can those skills be
developed? This project takes one of those skills, analogies, and
investigates the degree of success a teacher might expect in
teaching them to fourth grade students.
The project was designed as a data generating study. Fifty-seven
fourth grade students from a suburban Boston community participated
in the study. There were 28 students in the study group and 29
students in the control group. As there are no commercially
available tests that would measure growth in the necessary manner,
an instrument was devised for the study. The test contained four
subtests at increasing levels of proficiency: recognition,
completion, analysis, and generation of analogies. Within each
subtest five types of relationships were included: descriptive,
comparative, categorical, serial, and causal. All participants were
given a pretest and a posttest on designated dates. The study group
received 16 instructional sessions of 15-20 minutes each between the
pre- and posttests. The results were then compared.
The overall analysis showed significant gains for the study group
compared to the control group. The greatest gains were made in the
fourth subtest, generating analogies. This is particularly
encouraging since it requires the greatest facility with the
integrated reasoning process of analogical thinking. The findings of
the study support the hypothesis that it is feasible to teach
analogical skills to fourth grade students, and they suggest that
critical thinking can be successfully included in the curriculum of
elementary schools.
subject codes .LRN.ELE
Terri Caffelle
Metacognition in the Elementary Classroom: An Exploration
1992, December
Directed by Carol Smith
Metacognition is a practice which enables students to monitor their
thought processes in order to think critically. Research indicates
that when students are aware of their thinking they become better
thinkers. The purpose of this thesis is to encourage teachers to
give more attention to metacognition in the classroom.
A review of the literature on metacognition is given. Next,
classroom lessons are outlined which introduce fourth grade students
to metacognition in the context of math problem solving. Finally, an
initial assessment is given of how students' metacognitive and
problem solving abilities have changed as a results of the
curriculum.
Before the instruction began, all students were given a math problem
solving pretest. A sample of nine students of different ability
levels were given a pre-interview to assess their metacognitive
abilities. Based on the pre-interview results, I realized that
students were able to metacogitate to some degree, but that it
needed to be fine-tuned. Students also demonstrated limited success
solving the math word problems.
After five weeks of instruction and practice, I gave a
post-interview to the same nine students and the math problem
solving posttest to all of the students. I measured the students'
metacognitive growth and problem solving growth in several ways.
There was evidence of an increase in student metacognitive and
problem solving abilities in several areas, but two areas did not
show substantial differences. I feel that one limit of the study was
the five week time frame. It should have been extended.
A question surfaced: Are student gains in problem solving ability
due to metacognition instruction in the curriculum? Or are they
caused by the problem solving instruction itself? A correlation
analysis showed that improvement in metacognitive awareness was
positively correlated with improvement in math problem solving
ability.
A future study was proposed to test the causal connection by
comparing problem solving and intellectual gains in classrooms which
either use or do not use metacognitive instruction.
subject codes .ELE
Gloria Cairns
Critical Thinking in the Workplace
1997, June
Directed by
Richard Paul, a leading figure in the critical thinkng movement, and
Robert Reich, Secretary of Labor in the Clinton Administration
report that the need for applying critical thinking skills in the
workplace is essential, if America is to remain competitive in the
global economy. The degree to which employees think insightfully and
are able to resolve complex problems will determine how competitive
a business remains. In the past two decades, an unprecedented number
of American businesses have been bought out, merged with another, or
downsozeddownsized.Thisas forced
subject codes .COR
Ralph Calitri
Alternative Concepts of Geology and Time in Secondary Science
Education
1984, September
Directed by Carol Smith
This study examines students' concepts of time and geologic
processes and probes for alternative conceptions in these areas
which would be of relevance for science education.
subject codes .MSE.SCI
Meghan Callaghan
Discovering My Passion as an Ally: Gaining Awareness of the History of The Gay Rights Movement
2012, May
Directed by Jeremy Szteiter
Forty years have passed since the civil rights movements in the 1960s and 70s, and even with significant social and political strides made for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) communities, some parts of life look and feel the same. The negative effects of homophobia still reign large and can be seen in state and national policies and through the harassment and violence towards LGBT youth. As a heterosexual, I want to know the best ways I can support and advocate for LGBT rights, and I wonder if through my privileges as a straight woman, compared to being a homosexual woman, if I am better suited to dispel the terrible myths concerning LGBT lifestyles and history. Two things are certain -- that the history of the LGBT movement follows similar patterns of its brother and sister movements (African- Americans', Women's, Immigrants' Rights) and that a nasty motivation for power allows people to manipulate others into being fearful and hateful towards another group, simply because the other group threatens what they believe to be right and wrong or productive for society. Not surprisingly, one answer to all of this oppression is achieved by calling attention to the everyday lives of gay and lesbian people; allowing the supposedly unknown known. //In learning the history of the LGBT movement, I am empowered in knowing the past challenges and successes. But even before diving into the history, I had to start with myself. I had to reflect on my own biases, assumptions, and attitudes. Reflection was pivotal in opening up to a new perspective. In my development as an ally, I reflected on how a heterosexist society sets out to privilege a very limited view of sexuality and love. Through reflection, I now have a clear sense of the negative impacts of homophobia and the dangers they present to society. // Being an ally is hard. Many times I do feel people's judgment on me for why I care or advocate for an issue that does not pertain to me. But there are things to be done and individual actions that people can take in dismantling homophobia. A personal action I created was a tumblr to highlight and profile LGBT people (living and dead), allies, and organizations. The tumblr is named Just Like Me and U (You) and can be found at: http://justlikemeandu.tumblr.com/ . The goal is to raise awareness that the LGBT community has its own defined history, celebrate those who break the mold of heterosexism, as well as to educate young LGBT youth in understanding their history. All of the names of people that appear in bold throughout this paper can be found at Just Like Me and You (U) with photos and short profiles. The idea for me with my tumblr is to leave enough information to ignite some level of curiosity that would allow the viewer to want to go find out more about the person or organization.
subject codes.DIV
(Full Text)
Kristin Capezio
Changing My Perspective on Intelligence
2010, May
Directed by Carol Smith
This paper originates from a deep desire to understand how historic
values of
intelligence have led to our modern-day conceptions of intelligence.
After only
five years of teaching, I was drawn to this topic as I felt it was
connected to the service I provide my
students and the community in a position as a lead teacher, program
coordinator and teacher’s
aide. The question of the nature of intelligence and aptitude
greatly impacts the feedback we
offer students, intended for their intellectual growth and academic
development. I attempt to
distinguish myths from realities about how intelligence evolves and
is measured, by exploring
the works ranging from those of Alfred Binet and Lewis Terman, who
founded intelligence
testing, to the Instrumental Enrichment Program of Reuven Feuerstein
(FIE), among other,
more contemporary analysts and scholars such as Howard Gardner,
Daniel Goleman, and
Robert Sternberg. I address directly variations in our conceptions
of intelligence and their
influence on curriculum and teacher practice in the American
classroom.
My exposure to this topic began in the early part of my graduate
career. Through the
Critical and Creative Thinking program I have been faced with many
challenges, including
uprooting old assumptions about what intelligence really is.
Inculcated by my family and in
school, I believed the IQ test was the absolute measure of whether
an individual was smart or
not. None of my ideas acknowledged what the true plasticity of the
mind was. I had not yet
gained an understanding of the necessity for both critical thinking
and a creative outlet. My
goal in this Synthesis is to speak to fellow teachers, in elementary
school and secondary
education, to help them consider how outdated conceptions of
intelligence still shape our
impressions of what processes and knowledge are valuable in our
classrooms. In the paper I
incorporate alternatives to the mainstream teacher tools through
FIE, so teachers can develop
professionally and holistically and therein greatly enhance the
success of their students. I
propose that teachers must first acquire the skills necessary to be
able to recognize potential in
student work and encourage in them the habits of mind which will
develop thoughtful,
motivated students.
subject codes .MSE
(Full Text)
Susan Carle
Student Held Misconceptions Regarding Area and Perimeter of
Rectangles
1993, December
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Students enter the classroom with individual schemas, based on their
experiences and ideas, which influence the reception,
interpretation, and recollection of new information. Effective
teachers must understand the implications of these existing schemas.
As an experienced classroom teacher, the author finds students often
manipulate and apply new information well in class, only to forget
or alter the material a few weeks later;. When misconceptions are
woven into schemas, they interfere with reception of information.
This thesis examines specific student-held misconceptions about the
area and perimeter of rectangles and the process of their
identification and eradication.
Identification of the misconception is the first step in bringing
about change. The process of identification begins through the
analysis of a pre-test which is designed to highlight specific
erroneous ideas that the students hold. :Through this pre-test, the
author identifies five misconceptions. For ease of discussion they
have been named; Fallacy of Multiples, Increase/Decrease assumption,
Conversion Conclusion, Spatial Bias, and Equality Assumptions. Each
misconception is defined and explained and the specific pre-test
questions used for its identification are included.
There are several learning theories which can aid the teacher n
establishing a process of misconception eradication and educational
change. The author works within a framework including theoretical
components of cognitive psychology, Anderson's theory of memory, and
Ennis' definition of critical thinking and taxonomy of critical
thinking dispositions and abilities. The mathematical components of
this framework are developed utilizing metacognition, transfer, and
recent curriculum and professional development standards of the
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
This multi-faceted framework provides the foundation on which to
build lessons targeting the eradication of specific misconceptions.
Three lesson plans are presented to illustrate the practical
implementation of the theories in the classroom. Each lesson
contains four components: Motivation, Activity, Metacognition, and
Transfer;. The author concludes the thesis with more general
classroom teaching suggestions and a review of current innovative
educational approaches.
subject codes .SCI.MSE
Joseph Carlin
Critical and Creative Thinking for Nutritionists: A Training
Program
1990, December
Directed by John R. Murray
In order to improve the critical and creative thinking skills of
nutritionists and dietitians I developed two one-day training
programs. The training programs are designed to help nutritionists
develop their creative problem solving skills and to improve their
critical thinking strategies when dealing with controversial
nutrition issues and with fraudulent food practices.
The Creative Problem Solving Nutrition Training Program is built
around a series of exercises, each progressive more complex, that
help trainees develop their thinking skills. The goal is to help
trainees become more flexible and mindful of how they solve
problems. Trainees will learn the techniques of creative problem
solving such as brainstorming and list making. Trainees will also
learn to use Sternberg's seven elements of problem solving as a
conceptual model for solving problems. They will also be exposed to
left and right brain modes of thinking.
The Critical Thinking Nutrition Training Program recognizes that
even nutritionists find it difficult to come to a reasonable
assessment of fact on many food and nutrition issues, such as food
irradiation and the use of Alar as a pesticide. The exercises in
this program offer trainees practical experience in working through
a succession of progressively more difficult problems. The
objectives of this program are to help nutritionists to develop
their critical thinking skills and strategies so they can more
successfully deal with complex and controversial nutrition issues;
to help trainees develop a conceptual framework for understanding
and combating fraudulent food practices; and, to help nutritionists
develop the critical thinking skills of their patients, clients and
the public.
subject codes .MED.GOV
Franco Carnelli
Pond Secrets: Reflections for Thought and Virtue
1997, September
Directed by John Murray
Pond secrets is an original play designed to create a context for
motivating children to learn and practice critical thinking in its
strongest sense through reflective dialogue and improvisational
drama. The story's design, content, and suggested methodology are
theoretically consistent with Brain-based learning theory, which
asserts that memorable learning occurs when children can integrate
concepts, emotions, and values in a meaningful context and
environment. Using a mythical setting and features of classical
literature, Pond secrets invites children to join the animals of
Pond as they gather to examine their thinking and affirm the
meaning of friendship, citizenship, and justice. Not settling on any
one definition of critical thinking, Pond secrets reflects a
synthesis of expert descriptions that advances the following
modified definition: Critical thinking is used to make decisions,
form beliefs, solve problems, and learn new concepts. It is a
dialogical questioning process that uses reasonable and imaginative
reflection. Additionally, it is a purposive and disciplined process
that relies on
criteria, is self-correcting, and is sensitive to context. In its
strongest sense, critical thinking is fair-minded and caring.
Moreover, Pond secrets targets the following critical thinking
skills for development : making a reliable observation, evaluating a
source of information forming a reliable framework for perspectives,
and examining cause and effect relationships. The target skills are
infused and interwoven in the story to enable children to develop
skill using them individually and together as a process transferable
through subject domain.
Pond secrets models a community of inquiry that provokes integrative
learning while promoting the application of critical and creative
thinking to the moral domain of reasoning. As a framework for
deliberation and dialogue, Pond secrets develops a model of justice
that balances the principles of equal treatment and beneficence;
Pond secrets replaces beneficence with the ethic of caring as a more
accurate description of the orientation of empathic underscoring the
promotion of goodness.
Pond secrets is accompanied by a theoretical guide that discusses
the main ideas relevant to its implementation, The guide reviews
cognitive development, issues of indoctrination, the psychological
and philosophical underpinning of the justice model, and critical
and creative thinking as relevant to Pond secret's content and
methodology. Pond secrets offers the educator free imaginative reign
to design lesson plans that suit the needs of the learning
environment, provided that the criteria of critical thinking and the
justice model are adhered to in methodology that is neutral and
accordance with Brain based learning theory.
subject codes .ENV
Carsley
Bernadette Carsley
Mythology in the Middle School: A Thinking Skills Curriculum Unit
1996, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
At a time when information changes at an increasingly rapid pace, it
is incumbent upon educators to abandon the notion of covering more
and more material, and instead, to adopt an approach which focuses
on thinking skills. Helping students to think critically and
creatively is helping them to succeed not only in school, but also
in life. These are the skills and dispositions that will enable them
to confront new problems and challenges in positive ways.
If timing is everything, then it seems that the time in a child's
life when instructing for these skills becomes most crucial is
during early adolescence. Therefore the burden to develop and
implement curricula which facilitate this process falls squarely on
the middle school teacher. The dilemma becomes how to select a
substantial knowledge base and then weave
direct thinking skills instruction through it in order to produce a
palatable mix for middle school learners; It is a goal of my thesis
to help in solving this dilemma.
Presented here, alongside theory and rationale, is a curriculum unit
using a Greek mythology base, designed to teach critical thinking
skills and to foster creativity in middle school students. Mythology
is a great knowledge base from which to work because it cuts across
grades, ability levels and domains. It allows students to reason
about serious issues from a safe place. It inspires them to create
wonderful stories, art, poetry, and drama. Learning about theology
can lead to a better understanding of many academic subjects.
Learning to think, and learning about thinking, can lead to a better
understanding of one's self.
subject codes .MSE
Applied Creativity: Tools Toward Transformation: An Undergraduate Curriculum
Teryl Cartwright
2013, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
The greatest barrier to creative thinking may be the current definition. If creativity is believed to be an unconscious, undefinable process, a competitive and comparative hierarchy or even limited to specific domains, then the pursuit of creativity may be seen as an overwhelming endeavor. I believe everyone is creative, not just a few “out of the box” individuals. We are not limited to sleeping on a problem or getting into a relaxed, happy state in order to enhance creative thinking. I also believe that creative and critical thinking can be applied to teach creativity so I am offering an innovative curriculum for my new theory. Like Roger Von Oech, I believe that there is a “team” within us that personifies our four kinds of creativity. By adapting a systems thinking management model, the four kinds of creativity that I believe we can incrementally increase and use are as follows: inventor, pioneer, engineer and diplomat. We may have preferences or more fully developed one of these multiple creativities, but I believe all four are present and are equally important—these are not styles or dispositions that can be separated or ranked. It is not enough to invent ideas, we need to have the complementary skills to implement, refine and share them as well. To teach practical and self-actualized creativity beyond brainstorming, individual and collaborative activities must be utilized along with appreciative inquiry and ethical service. Through “adopting, adapting and creating” thinking tools, creativity can be accessible and fully realized in any person or situation. Because the Critical and Creativity Thinking program at UMass Boston transformed my creativity, this is my effort to thank them and do the same.
subject codes.TCE
(Full Text)
Frank Carvino
Traditional and Non-Traditional Graduate Academics; Two Models
for Consideration
2006, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
As a member of the academic community, I have encountered
expectations that I would develop a traditional Master's thesis with
very little preparatory instruction and virtually no assistance in
initial development. This synthesis project compares the models of
two distinct graduate programs using my experiences as a candidate
in both programs and the support of secondary literature. Historical
Archaeology is used as a concrete example of the traditional program
and the Critical and Creative Thinking (CCT) synthesis is used as
the alternative to hold the dominant paradigm in tension with. In
order to help to construct my CCT model, I have solicited
suggestions from the CCT community.
As a result of the comparison between traditional academia and CCT
several techniques emerge. Some techniques like; creativity,
assessment, and group-work appear to be shared across disciplines.
While other techniques like; free writing, metacognition, and
reflection are unique to CCT, but could easily be learned and
transmitted to other programs. The results however do not indicate
that one program is better than the rest rather the comparison
illustrates the need for information exchange between programs.
My goal is not to suggest that every graduate student become a
candidate in two different programs, but rather make students aware
of the variety of techniques available when approaching something as
sophisticated as writing a Masters thesis. The CCT program offers
tools and techniques remarkably different from those offered under a
more 'traditional' framework. However, CCT techniques can be
integrated into other graduate programs and can work in a variety of
professions.
subject codes .TCE
Lizzie Casanave
Empathy and Communication: Educating for Interaction
1999, June
Directed by Lawrence Blum
In traditional educational arenas, rarely does the curriculum focus
on how individuals should interact with one another. Yet in a
society where interactions are a significant part of our lives,
there should be more emphasis on this subject. By neglecting this
subject, we fractionalize society, breaking down the natural unity
of our world. However, the subject of how to interact with others
links closely with the age old moral question, how should one live?
There are often disagreements on how to answer this question and
consequently disagreements on how and if it can be taught. This
paper is the beginning of a search for how interactions can be
taught through empathy and communication. Through the critical
thinking skills that support these concepts, individuals can learn
how to interact more effectively and morally with others.
I began this study by endeavoring to obtain a greater understanding
of empathy and its nature. I reviewed the works of several
philosophers and psychologists such as Lipps, Stotland, Hoffman,
Scheler, and Noddings. Their writings led me to understand empathy
as the act of receiving another into oneself through affective and
analytical means in order to understand another's frame of reference
accurately.
This paper then discusses how empathy can be developed. Many of the
empathy development suggestions overlap with techniques involved
with improving interpersonal communications, including dialogue.
Dialogue, as described by David Bohm, is for the purpose of learning
from each other and thus creating shared meaning, which like
empathy, connects and unifies those involved. This paper also shares
several examples of already existing educational and developmental
programs that utilize the teachings of empathy and communication
skills.
Ultimately, the author feels that the skills learned through empathy
and communication are but a vehicle for determining how one should
live. Further studies may lead to an investigation on what impels us
to care for and ultimately love our fellow beings and thus come
closer to embracing the wholeness of life.
subject codes .MOR
Karen Cavanaugh Borde
A Conceptual Change Approach for Teaching Matter to Sixth Grade
Students: Integrating Activities, Experiments, Writing Responses
and Verbal Discussion into the Classroom
1999, June
Directed by Carol Smith
Many middle school curricula today need supplemental lessons to
really encourage the kind of critical thinking which promotes
conceptual change. In this paper, I discuss why such supplemental
materials are necessary, and then draw from multiple sources in
devising such materials for a unit plan on matter. Teaching this
concept to sixth grade science students is extremely challenging.
Upon entering a science classroom, they already have theories, often
misconceptions, based on their own life experiences. This paper
begins by reviewing the research which supports a conceptual change
approach to teaching as the most effective method. It also discusses
the central role of metacognition and writing in such a process.
Using these ideas as guides, I then discuss the limitations of the
current matter curriculum used in my district. Next I propose a
revised way of teaching this topic which builds on ideas developed
by other researchers such as Smith and colleagues (1994, 1997) and
Hennessey (1994). Finally, I combine them with a writing process,
proposed by Collins (1992), as an assessment tool.
The goal of the revised curriculum is to teach students how to
develop the skill of scientific inquiry. It calls for group
discussions before, during and after classroom activities. Through a
diverse set of activities, experiments, models, writing assignments
and class discussions, students design their own experiments which
they then perform in class. They pose questions, or problems, create
hypotheses, and then test those hypotheses on their own. They are
encouraged to reflect on their thoughts about how an experiment
worked, gather results and then redesign and test it again. The
paper concludes by discussing how I could evaluate the success of my
proposed curriculum. A sixth grade class would be taught about
matter through "traditional" teaching methods, another would learn
the same unit through my newly proposed curriculum. Pre and post
writing assignments in both classes would be reviewed to determine
what conceptual changes took place in students' thinking about
matter. I feel confident that the results of both would support my
curriculum as an effective method of teaching.
subject codes .SCI.MSE
Kaylea Hascall Champion
Thinking Deeply, Creating Richly:
Learner Transformation Through Narrative
2016, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
Narrative methods support transformative teaching and learning by accessing human cognitive strengths, including memory, reflection, and self-awareness. This paper explores the enduring and mindful use of narrative in education – as a method for transformative teaching and learning. A narrative is the intentional conversion of a group of events, participants, and details into a constructed reality that illustrates causes, characters, and results. Narrative development is a native human process by which we teach, learn, and remember. Narrative educational methods incorporate two key characteristics: integrative sense making, and shared connection building. Diverse disciplines – including biology, psychology, economics, literature, medicine, history, and education – have explored narrative as a foundational component of our human capacities, relationships, and achievements. Exploring the uses and misuses of narrative offers insight for teachers and learners of all ages. The paper closes with a discussion of the role this investigation is having in my personal and professional development.
subject codes.TCE.WRL
(Full Text)
Renessa Ciampa Brewer
Creative Consciousness: Becoming a Reflective Designer
2011, May
Directed by Carol Smith
As a graphic designer, I was drawn to the CCT Program in part because I desired to strengthen my thinking skills as a creative professional. Through being reflective, I aimed to "get more in touch" with my process to better understand it and see how I might improve my approaches. Scholarship on reflective practice in design education and design practice is a growing body of literature, which inspired this synthesis project. This paper looks at Schön's theories of reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action, models for reflection in the design process provided by Ellmers, Brown, and Bennett, and Reymen, and various reflective practice tools (such as journals, weblogs, and critical incident questionnaires). I then adapt and apply select elements of these models and tools, experimenting with them during the process of developing book cover design concepts for this paper. I document my reflections on both my design process and my experiences using the tools. // Observations made about my approaches to concept development included the use of language as a powerful tool, awareness of "the voice of the critic," benefits of seeking feedback and trying new creative thinking tools, and a desire to improve approaches to preliminary design research and to evaluation of design concepts. Perceived strengths and limitations of the reflection tools included the journal and the written self-assessments being the most convenient and easy to use during the design process, the checklists being more technical and less easy to use in reflecting freely, but beneficial for use in reacquainting with the design project if time has passed between design sessions; and the weblog (blog) being most useful for more refined, concise reflections, forcing the blogger to re-articulate their process in order to speak to an audience. In general, documenting reflections on the design process immediately following a design session was highly beneficial to my goal of "getting more in touch" with my process and beginning to think about the strengths and areas to improve in my approaches. // This paper concludes with considerations about transferring reflective practice from my solo practice to a collaborative work environment, building a community of creative professionals, being a designer who is also a feminist, and brief thoughts on improving design education.
subject codes.ART.RPN
(Full Text)
Sheryl Cifrino
One nurse's journey to understanding burnout
2002, August
Directed by Nina Greenwald
Burnout is the end result of a process where I, a highly motivated
nurse, engaged in my work and lost inspiration for it. Burnout is by
definition a syndrome of emotional exhaustion in people who work
intensely with others in emotionally charged situations. My
participation in the Creative Critical Thinking (CCT) program at the
University of Massachusetts Boston awakened a desire in me to search
for a deeper understanding of my own experience with burnout.
Motivation for the journey was a wish to develop my own company,
"Wellinspire," which would help nurses deal with personal wellness.
This journey of inquiry led me on an exploration of the literature
on burnout, seeking knowledge of key aspects identified, along with
possible connections to specific personality characteristics. By
reviewing the literature and employing acquired critical thinking
abilities of reflection, self assessment, analysis and
interpretation, I reached a deeper level of awareness. These CCT
abilities are coupled with the use of my intrapersonal intelligence.
subject codes.MED.FRP
Jim Clark
Assessing Thinking in Middle School Students
1997, June
Directed by Patricia Cordiero, Adjunct Professor
Steps are outlined describing how to diagnose specific thinking
skills in middle school students within a testing context for the
purpose of developing appropriate instruction and remediation. The
need for instruction in critical thinking skills is represented to
have
a twofold application. First, the market place demands critical
thinking skills. This is documented in the report by the Secretary's
Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills. Second, learning both in
school and for life also requires critical thinking skills. This is
documented in a range of research literature referenced and in a
number of educational interventions
reviewed.
An instrument has been designed to be administered to middle school
students. It begins with a narrative prompt set in circumstances
familiar to students and poses a combination of social, moral, and
practical dilemmas. A series of eight questions prompts students to
respond in essay form reflecting their skill with specific critical
thinking skills in accordance with the taxonomy. In addition, a set
of scoring rubrics is provided.
Finally, there are some reflections based on informal trials and
intuitions which focus on three areas: implications for instruction,
implications for curriculum, and an application to staff
development.
subject codes .MSE
Suzanne Clark
Building and Sustaining Connectedness to One's Musical Creativity
and Spirit
2002, August
Directed by Peter Taylor
While journeying through the Critical and Creative Thinking Program
I became more deeply aware of the choices and circumstances that
colored my engagement in the fields of musical performance and music
education. Through the modeling of and participation in reflective
practice, I began to see my experiences from new and varied
perspectives. In using self-evaluation, I gained a clearer
understanding of my own reflective processes and began to apply this
knowledge to exploring my musical engagement and creativity. It was
through a self-reflective exploration of my own creative process
that I discovered a number of experiences that had steered my course
in a particular direction. Each of these experiences, however, also
contributed to my path in that they were missing important elements
that would allow for a more integrated experience to take place.
These discoveries inspired me to explore the creative process of
other musicians and artists in order to see where all of our
experiences crossed.
To start, this paper outlines my self-assessment of my involvement
in music and the creative process. I have chosen to reveal this
first as I feel it will give the reader an understanding of how I
came to the conclusions I have about my own personal experiences and
subsequently, how they led me to explore the experiences of other
musicians. My own reflective and creative engagement taught me that
having an internal connection to the self is essential in carrying
out these activities. As I found this inner focus to be both a
necessary skill and one of the missing elements in my educational
experiences, I felt it was necessary to find out if this was indeed
an important part of the creative process and if so, how other
artists handled this internal, reflective aspect of creativity. This
examination led to the discovery of parallels between my own
creative blocks and the blocks of other artists, as well as tools we
all could use to help eliminate or prevent such blocks and become
more attuned to our creative self.
My research led me to conclude that the various elements that were
missing from my experiences were important factors in promoting
healthy musical and creative engagement. Incorporating these facets
on a personal level through self-study or a formal learning
experience will help ensure creative longevity for any artist. An
artist needs to recognize the internal aspects of their creative
process, and also learn how to navigate through the phases of their
process. In addition, artists need to recognize and remove creative
blocks in order to sustain their work and promote creative growth.
Reflective practice that supports these activities needs to be
explored and should become part of the artist's path towards
manifesting their creativity.
subject codes .ART.FRP
Cynthia Clayton
Belief is so last century
2012, December
Directed by Carol Smith
Subtitle: “Does Consciousness Survive?” Inquiring minds want to know. How status quo science is failing us, and solutions for moving the research forward.
Goal: The ‘afterlife’ is deemed unknowable. Is it? A critical thinker just might find herself questioning this premise.
Through my work in transpersonal studies and my exploration into Near Death Experiences, I began a journey into the unknown. But it was because of my work in this Critical & Creative masters program that I began to look at the information in a new way. I began to see evidence that led me to, not the impossibility of a ‘confirmation’ of consciousness survival, but to a field of science that was underfunded and unsupported by the materialist scientific community. This situation would be acceptable if that community had actually proven that consciousness does not survive death, in fact they have not proven this hypothesis to be true.
My hope in completing this work/book is to illustrate that those who are pursuing the possibility of ‘consciousness survival’ are working under the banner of ‘pseudoscience’, which was bestowed on them by the status-quo-materialistic- paradigm-believing-scientific-establishment. What other factors might be at play? Come to find out there are quite a few special interests that would rather we stay in the dark regarding our ultimate nature. Are we wet computers... our mind equal to our brain or do we in fact have a dual nature, brain and consciousness, which survives? My critical examination of the relatively scant research, if compared for instance to research completed at NASA, regarding the question of consciousness survival revealed a shocking design flaw. I became compelled to share a few creative solutions regarding a new & improved design research experiment while offering an innovative solution to an ongoing national debate.
Although I considered several critical & creative projects for my synthesis, I saw none in the end to be equal in importance of challenging people to think differently about ‘belief’ as not superior to science, along with an overview of a system that currently fails to prioritize the question of consciousness survival. My focus was to bring the reader to the conclusion that we need to pressure the powers that be to address the ‘hard problem’ of ‘inner space’, which requires equal resources and determination currently applied to our outer space exploration. My hope is that my book will provide a new and insightful perspective on the ‘afterlife’.
The Audience: The book is in essence a ‘position paper’ or ‘white paper’ written with a general audience in mind. The tone of the book is generally personal and casual. There was an attempt to make the writing pithy and current with the hopes of holding the reader’s attention. In the information age, the competition for readership is intense and those who are willing and able to entertain while they educate, think John Stewart, are those that hold, grow and influence their audience.
subject codes (TBA)
(Full Text)
Jan Coe
My Search for a Meaningful Information Literacy Course: A Drama
in Three Acts
2007, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
My synthesis project began as a personal and professional mission to
help students decipher their library assignments and learn how to do
research in general. In pursuing this goal, I learned a lot about
'information literacy' but I also learned about the reasons being
information literate is important to me: it is a gestalt of a
critical thinker. I discovered that - beyond becoming adept in the
mechanics of information retrieval - what I really wanted for my
students are the very things I value and enjoy doing myself:
learning about communities of discourse; mulling over and asking
questions about existing knowledge; relinquishing preconceived
notions about a subject; and discovering new perspectives and
interests. In the end, my project turned out to be not so much a
search for an information literacy course as it is an exposition of
one librarian's open-ended evolution into a critical thinker and
reflective practitioner.
At the start of my year-long sabbatical leave in the Critical &
Creative Thinking Graduate Program at the University of
Massachusetts Boston, I characterized my quest as an inquiry into
the most meaningful way that students could be taught information
literacy skills. This synthesis project recounts how I first
deepened my interest in the nexus between information literacy,
critical thinking, and problem-based learning through an extensive
literature review. Following this, the project takes a narrative
turn where my experiences in the CCT Program are described and
celebrated. I show that my participation in the CCT Program was the
catalyst for the changes that began to occur in my thinking about
information literacy. As my original quest took on these new
dimensions, I also became intellectually engaged in areas outside of
information literacy. Several courses I took in the Program elicited
strong interests in bioethical issues and in the capacity of
citizens to have input into debates around science and technology.
Finally, I describe my teaching experiences upon returning to work,
in which I came to the eventual recognition that there is no 'silver
bullet' information literacy course. Being able to set aside this
idea paradoxically opened a new avenue toward achieving my mission
as I was invited to form a Learning Community with a geographic
information systems (GIS) course. It appears that, from this point
forward, I am open and prepared to continue developing as a
'work-in-process'.
subject codes .TCE
(Full Text)
Roberta Cohen
Altering Habit-Bound Thinking Through a Critical Thinking Skills
Approach to Children's Literature
1980, May
Directed by Beebe Nelson
As an educator, I have encountered many students who appear
incapable of critically evaluating material. The result is that they
are unable to think issues through and arrive at a logical
conclusion. I feel students don't have the necessary critical
thinking skills (as the dictionary defines them) "to determine,
resolve, work out, etc. by reasoning; to use the mind for arriving
at conclusions, making decisions; drawing inferences."[1] The lack
of critical thinking skills is evident early in the year, and as I
teach the lessons contained in the curriculum, I realize that many
children's skills are not likely to improve. I question whether the
previous teacher has prepared the students and know that the
following September the teacher who receives these students will ask
the same question.
In trying to address this problem which I have encountered in the
classroom, I am caught in the dilemma of whether to meet the needs
of my students as I see them or to try to teach the curriculum as
prescribed by the administration. My practice, and the practice of
most teachers, has been to emphasize the latter.
subject codes .WRL
Lisa Collier
Empathy, Critical Thinking, and Creativity: Theories, Training,
and Interrelationships
1990, December
Directed by Steven Schwartz
This thesis presents a supposition, based on a review of existing
theoretical and empirical literature, that there exists a three-way
relationship between empathy, critical thinking, and creative
thinking. Initially readers are provided with an overview of some of
the literature on empathy theories, as well as on training methods
used for the promotion of empathy. Then, through an examination and
comparison of ideas put forward by empathy theorist Martin Hoffman,
critical thinking philosopher Robert Ennis, and creativity expert
Teresa Amabile, an overlap is detected with regard to the components
involved in the three above-mentioned areas of study. In addition to
this componential overlap, a stronger consanguinity is presented as
existing between some of the theorized and/or researched methods of
training for empathy, critical thinking, and creativity. These
methods include; role playing, modeling, nuturance, formal reasoning
and highlighting. The fourth chapter discussed the educational
implications in terms of the infusion of the five methods into
regular academic curriculum, and the notion that teachers can learn
to fulfill three objectives (empathy, critical thinking, and
creativity) via the use of just one of the previously-mentioned
techniques. These techniques can help those involved in education to
efficiently provide students with "real" situations in which to use
skills in empathy and critical and creative thinking, and an
opportunity for deeper engagement with and this, understanding of,
the content at hand.
subject codes .MOR.THR
Maggie Conley
Using Critical and Creative Thinking Skills to Enhance Integrity
in Business Organizations
1996, December
Directed by John Murray
In this thesis I explore some of the ways in which critical thinking
skills can be used to facilitate the development of integrity in
business organizations. The vehicle I have developed to bring these
thinking skills to organizations is a one-day intensive workshop
with a follow-up half-day evaluation session. In chapter one, I
define integrity and compare it to Stephen Carter's definition. I
also analyze five specific critical thinking skills and relate them
to two actual cases: Dow Corning and fictitiously named, First
National Bank. In the Dow Corning case, I argue that management
might have produced a less destructive outcome had they used
critical thinking skills to analyze their problems and come to a
resolution. In the second case, with First National Bank, I discuss
how the bank managers successfully used critical thinking skills to
arrive at an ethical decision.
In chapter two, I present the workshop which is designed to develop
critical thinking skills and enhance integrity. The last part of the
chapter is concerned with evaluating and reinforcing the skills
developed in the workshop. In chapter three, I integrate the
material from the first two chapters. I review Carter's definition
of integrity and examine it in light of the five critical thinking
skills, the workshop skills and the Dow Coming and First National
cases. Those who read this thesis should come away with a clear idea
of some ways in which critical thinking can facilitate the
development of integrity in business organizations.
subject codes .COR
Mark J. Connerty
Three Theories of Development: A Comparison of Dewey, Kohlberg,
and Noddings' Models of Moral Growth
1998, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
This paper will compare the moral theories developed by John Dewey,
Lawrence Kohlberg, and Nel Noddings to discern places of agreement
and areas of dispute. The paper will also examine the most
consequential ethical formulations of the three thinkers. For Dewey
it is his conception of conscientiousness. For Kohlberg it is the
idea of justice. Lastly, for Noddings it is the virtue of empathy
found in the caring response. These conceptions are the foundations
of their moral ideas. They color their thoughts on such related
topics as the objective versus subjective nature of morality, the
role of the rational and the emotional faculties in decision making,
and the elements of moral judgment. This paper will examine where
Dewey, Kohlberg, and Noddings stand on these issues and how they
compare and contrast with each other. Their theories present an
insightful glimpse into the entirety and diversity of the moral
nature that informs the human condition. For this the moral theories
of Dewey, Kohlberg, and Noddings
subject codes .THR
Ellen Connors
Waldorf education: Pedagogy in support of good thinking
1997, February
Directed by Delores Gallo
This synthesis project examines Waldorf school pedagogy and its
relation to critical and creative thinking philosophy. It identifies
the limitations of the traditional positivist perspective in
education and calls for attention to the development of empathy. I
take the work of Blythe McVicker Clinchy, Delores Gallo, Peter
McLauren, and Kerry Walters as my framework. Good thinking is used
as term meaning a true synergy of critical and creative thinking.
Waldorf pedagogy is outlines as a holistic enterprise based upon
Rudolf Steiner's theory of human development. This model described
the human as a being of willing, feeling and thinking. Education of
a student as such, fosters critical and creative thinking in the
sense of good thinking. Anecdotal evidence of the benefits of a
Waldorf education is offered in the voice of a high school junior,
along with other sources.
Waldorf education teaches for critical and creative thinking. Not
only does Waldorf pedagogy support the education of thinking
(reason) and feeling (imagination and empathy), it also educates for
responsibility and action explicitly through development of the
will.
subject codes.THR
Constance Cook
Serendipity and Persistence: A Journey Building a Rich Music-Making Culture in Public Schools
2011, August
Directed by Peter Taylor
I am a music teacher in the public schools. This synthesis project presents a Practitioner's Portfolio to convey my efforts over the last decade and more in pursuit of a rich culture of music in public schools. Readers should see someone who persists when faced with personal, pedagogical, intellectual, and institutional challenges. Moreover, that persistence is conducive of the serendipity through which opportunities open up to be an agent of change. What is also evident to me as I assembled the Portfolio was that the Kodály model of artist, scholar, and pedagogue seems to have been the underpinning for much of my journey of inquiry and practice even though my formal Kodály training began some years after this journey starts. // Part I is a narrative describing the path of events and thinking on this journey, which continues to this day. This account includes explorations into the power of opera, bones playing, jug band, and Kodály pedagogy to effect change and create unforgettable experiences in the music classroom. One has serendipity again and again, but one must be open to it and catch the bright wave, to revisit, explore and develop more experiences for teaching and learning that fit the particular culture of the time and situation. The act of persistence, the witnessing of what is unfolding and where the tendencies and interests are, encouraging and nurturing them as well as the act of letting go, can create enormous depth and richness to a culture of music for a school or community. // Part II presents some persistent or emerging undercurrents informing my theory and practice, which range from centonization to leverage, from shaping by successive approximations to differences of aesthetics among students that allows me to work more freely. // Part III presents some exhibits of my practice, which include: use of the Mexican singing story and picture book, "Senor Don Gato," to teach about opera, given that it has the same dramatic elements; the development of an opera program that was instrumental in changing the social climate of a school; the use of a singing game to build strong and cooperative community in a class new to me; and the sharing of these ideas and their potential with colleagues at Massachusetts Music Educators Association conferences, where I have presented regularly. // Part IV discusses my next steps as Scholar, Pedagogue, Artist, and, I hope, Writer. These steps range from having more singing in schools where I teach to refining a once weekly Kodály curriculum, to creating a musical presentation based on Greek mythology with my fifth graders, to establishing an effective practice of writing and documenting my inquiries more regularly and effectively. // The Appendices provide some further illustrations of my practice: The development of Kodály primers for young American students; the development of my personal artistry through Little Blue Heron, a duo that worked with children and included them in performance; and the development of a richer music educators' community through regular presentations to my colleagues and the reviving of Round Robin, the newsletter of Boston Area Kodály Educators.
subject codes.ART.ELE
(Full Text)
Pamela Joy Cooke
Changing Mathematics Learning Through Changing Teachers' Thinking
1991, May
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
In the context of the goals for reform in mathematics education, as
advocated by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, this
thesis calls for elementary level students to be actively engaged in
learning mathematics through the use of hands-on materials and
problem solving situations which involve investigation, reasoning,
and communication. These mathematical goals are discussed and then
related to the more general critical thinking skills of identifying
and formulating questions, asking and answering questions,
investigating and analyzing data, deducing and judging deductions,
inducing and judging inductions, defining terms, and interacting
with others. This thesis is based heavily on the experience of the
author, as she evolved from being a traditional elementary
mathematics teacher, novice student of critical and creative
thinking, and skeptical participant in her first Mathematics a Way
of Thinking workshop to becoming a confident and thinking
mathematics teacher, flexible and effective workshop leader, and
strong advocate for reform in mathematics education.
From these experiences, it has become clear to the author that in
order for the goals for reform to be met, there must not only be
changes in what is taught, but also in how it is taught. In order
for teachers to change the way they teach, they must re-learn
mathematics in a framework that involves them in active learning and
small group interaction with an instructor who models strategies and
behaviors for teaching thinking. In this thesis, the author shares
her experiences in trying to become this type of teacher trainer.
This thesis examines the Mathematics a Way of Thinking workshop as a
model for effective teacher training and provides sample
mathematical lessons as instruments for change. Ten teachers who
participated in the author's workshops and who are ;trying to
implement change in their own classrooms were interviewed. Dialogues
with these teachers are quoted to indicate their experiences of
change in the learning and teaching of mathematics.
subject codes .TCE
Phyllis Cooper
Critical and Creative Thinking: A Literature Approach
1987, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
"I have grown increasingly disturbed by the lack of correspondence
between what is required for critical thinking in adulthood and what
is being taught in school programs intended to develop critical
thinking. The problems of thinking in the real world do not
correspond well to with the problems of the large majority of
programs that teach critical thinking. We are preparing students to
deal with problems that are in many respects unlike those that they
will face as adults." Robert Sternberg, "Teaching Critical Thinking,
Part I: Are We Making Critical Mistakes?"
Sternberg goes on to suggest that a major difficulty is that we do
not teach children to recognize when a problem exists or to do
Problem finding. Instead, we give them the problem and then tech
them to solve it. I would add that we need to go one step further at
this point and teach children that even when they have recognized
the existence of a problem, that which initially appears to be the
problem may not be. Therefore we need to teach children the
importance e of problem definition as well as of the solution
process.
At a time when decision-making and problem solving have become
increasingly complex, when the future for our children holds so many
alternatives and so few certainties, I believe it is our mandated
responsibility as teachers to help our children develop the critical
and creative thinking skills, skills of sound reasoning and good
judgment, which are not only desirably, but are imperative in the
future of which they are required to be a responsible part.
subject codes .WRL
Patricia Cordeiro
Big Ideas for Little People: Critical Thinking and Mathematical
Concept Exploration in Elementary School
1991, May
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
An extended study of group theory was undertaken with a sixth-grade
class to explore the integration of critical thinking and concept
development in the mathematics curriculum. A supportive classroom
environment was sustained through application of Cambourne's (l988)
optimal conditions of learning and Gardner's (l9983) theory of
multiple intelligences. A belief in the power of play, elaborated by
Armstrong (l980) and Duckworth (l987), together with commitment to
Vygotsky's (l9652) distinction between ' scientific versus
spontaneous' learning enabled a student-centered, active exploration
of a "big idea."
Big ideas were defined as: (l) concepts which are generalizable and
can be explored and extended into a variety of contexts; (2) studies
which begin with the intention to develop a concept; ;and, (3)
concepts which continue to intrigue experts. Mathematical big ideas
were seen as mathematical concepts which might involve application
and computation, but in a broad context.
It was concluded that critical thinking is what goes on naturally
when learners are engaged in exploring big ideas in rich context
which require and encourage substantial thinking. It is recommended
that:
(l) critical thinking be implemented in rich contexts, exploring big
ideas;
(2) classroom practice foster optimal conditions for learning;
(3) multiple intelligences be recognized in classroom practice;
(4) concept development be promoted through both scientific and
spontaneous processes;
(5) as much as one-half of the mathematics curriculum be organized
around the exploration of big ideas; and
(6) teachers be encouraged to trust their own practical knowledge in
exploring big ideas which are also big to them.
subject codes .ELE
Bernie Cotter
Critical Thinking Skills in a Meteorology Curriculum
1992, May
Directed by John R. Murray
The focus of this thesis is the integration of critical thinking
skills into a meteorology unit of an Earth Science curriculum. The
integration of these skills and strategies with the teaching of
meteorology subject improves the learning of the subject concepts.
The curriculum consists of three meteorology units. Each unit
focuses on a different meteorological concept, and each is broken
into several different lessons. Lessons incorporate a number of
different critical thinking skills. The lessons are divided into
three parts. In the first part, students are introduced to the
concepts which are to be learned as well as the thinking skills
which are to be emphasized. Part two each lessons involves
activities which develop metacognitive skills. The third part of
each lesson provides opportunities for students to improve their
transfer of critical thinking skills and meteorological information
outside the formal classroom setting.
The meteorological concepts covered in these lessons are
observations of the atmosphere, atmospheric pressure, and
atmospheric humidity. The main critical thinking skills which are
incorporate into the curriculum are decision making accuracy of
observation, determining reliability of sources, and comparing and
contrasting information.
Even though the meteorology lessons are directed toward secondary
students in a survey Earth Science course, this curriculum could
easily be implemented in a separate meteorology course. Furthermore,
the sample lessons included here can serve as models for the
development of thinking skills lessons on other topics in Earth
Science and can enhance student learning in the entire course.
subject codes .SCI.MSE
Linda Cromwell-Clark
Critical Thinking Considerations for an Elementary Science Magnet
School
1994, December
Directed by Carol Smith
As an African- American and a veteran Boston school teacher, I feel
that there is great cause for concern about the future of urban
African-American youth. Existing instructional programs fail to meet
the needs of many of these children. The model science magnet school
developed in this thesis will provide an educational alternative for
African-American youth entering the twenty-first century. The
school's program will combine the teaching of critical and creative
thinking skills, with science education, and efficacy training to
address the academic and personal development of the total child.
Chapter l of the thesis looks at some existing programs in
elementary science education and assesses the need for more
intensive, innovative programs which will deal with the affective as
well as the cognitive growth of students. Chapter 11 explores some
of the literature concerning the complexity of Black self-concept in
White America;. It links self-esteem with academic success. Here I
give a personal commentary on the self-esteem literature as well as
examine several efficacy approaches. The chapter concludes with
reflections on the relationship between efficacy training and
critical and creative thinking. It talks about the importance of
metacognition in enabling children to take control of their own
learning.
Chapter 111 discusses the need for a science magnet-exploring the
scientific process skills as a way of developing thinking skills.
The chapter includes a review of the current status and
recommendations for teaching science in elementary schools and goes
on to examine teaching for conceptual change, elements of a
supportive learning environment, techniques for promoting critical
and creative thinking, and a framework for curriculum design.
Chapter IV gives an overview of the entire magnet school program,
delineating how I plan to combine the science focus with affective
goals. Teacher training, parent involvement, and assessment are also
discussed.
Chapter V. the last chapter, focuses on ways of bringing together
these diverse strands within the proposed curriculum and presents
some sample lesson plans which include objectives in the area of
social/emotional development, cooperative learning, and efficacy as
well as conceptual change and behavioral objectives.
subject codes .ELE
Jeff Craig
Bringing Community College Students and Employers Together:
A Guide For Employers And Career Centers in an Economic Decline
2009, May
Directed by Arthur Millman
This paper emerges from my work as Coordinator of Job Placement at
Bristol Community College over the last 19 months, in which I have
had the opportunity to try new approaches to problem-solving and
pursue professional growth as I serve students in higher education.
The recent economic crisis has left millions of Americans out of
work across most sectors. Displaced workers are flocking to
community colleges to upgrade and learn new skills with the goal of
becoming more marketable to potential employers. Enrollments have
soared, while costs have risen and budgets cut. These conditions
place an undue burden on these institutions, which are responsible
for educating and training tomorrow's workforce. This paper examines
the role of community colleges in our society in the context of how
an economic decline impacts their mission. Businesses, which depend
on community colleges to supply a steady stream of talent so they
can grow and prosper, are urged to continue on-campus recruitment
programs despite dwindling recruitment budgets. A guide presents
employers with a rationale and strategies for maintaining a strong
campus presence.
subject codes.COR.TCE
(Full Text)
Peggy Cronin
Richard Paul, Gloria Anzaluda, and Mestiza Consciousness:
Shifting the Borders of Critical Thinking
1997, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
In recent years, many theorists and practitioners in the field of
critical and creative thinking have moved beyond a discrete skills
understanding of critical and creative thinking to advocate a more
holistic approach. This approach focuses on recognizing underlying
assumptions, analyzing frames of reference, and fore grounding
personal and social biases. Yet despite this much needed move toward
contextualizing thinking and the thinker, there is little attention
given to the role that power and identity difference play in the
development and teaching of thinking.
This thesis concerns itself with the issues of power, identity, and
difference in thinking by comparing the work of critical thinking
theorist Richard Paul with that of several race-inflected lesbian
feminist theorists. I consider what happens if we try to insert a
very specific thinking subject -- Gloria Anzaldua's mestiza thinker
-- into Pauls theoretical milieu.
INFORMATION MISSING FROM ORIGINAL inhabiting a multiple
consciousness the mesliza must also deal with the issue of how she
is seen as different from the norm. This necessitates a discussion
of how difference is inflected by unequal power dynamics that have
an effect on how we envision the thinker how we
grant her authority, and how we define and validate effective
thinking. I use critiques of white feminist theory by Anzaldua,
Norma Alarcon, and Maria Lugones to illustrate how some of Paul1s
theorizing of the thinking subject parallels white feminist
theorizing which has ignored devalued women of color in neglecting
issues of multiple subjectivity, power, and
difference.
In conclusion, I argue that the critical and creative thinking field
would be served by an inclusion of lesbian/feminist of color
discourses. These discourses might serve as examples of critical and
creative thinking, as well as give us a more complete portrait of
the thinker and thinking that goes beyond the notion of the thinker
as a universal, unitary self.
subject codes .GEN.THR
Karen Crounse
Staircase To Slope: A Mathematics Learning Expedition
2005, December
Directed by Nina Greenwald
subject codes .SCI
Paul D. Culpo
Winning in Athletics
1996, September
Directed by John R. Murray
subject codes .SPO
Mary Cunningham
A Critical and Creative Thinking Curriculum Guide
1986, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
"Thinking critically implies a commitment to philosophical probing
of questions, asking us to tell right from wrong, fact from opinion,
process from product." [1] Through the study of tragedy,
Shakespeare, JULIUS CAESAR and ROMEO AND JULIET, ninth grade
students at Braintree High School will be asked to ponder and
analyze some of life's most enigmatic, elusive and eternal problems.
Why does a good man suffer? How can art communicate the most
profound of human experiences? How can one take pleasure in the
tragic experience? Literature deals with life's most inexplicable
moments and most complex ideas. Indubitably, Shakespearean tragedy
reaises questions about the nature of the human experience in a way
that is beautiful as well as thought-provoking, imaginative as well
as relavent, perplexing as well as perceptive. Indeed, sometimes
Shakespeare just recognizes the inequities of life and presents
these problems for our consideration. This genius, this immortal
bard, does not claim to have the answers but he does claim, through
his work, to know the problems. And even though the plays achieve a
sense of resolution, the questions Shakespeare unearths still remain
for our consideration.
subject codes .WRL
Linda DaCorta
An Immigration Unit: Appreciation and Tolerance
1997, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
Synthesis
subject codes .DIV
Brian Daniels
The Critical Moral Classroom: An Approach to Teaching Values
1996
Directed by Lawrence Blum
In this thesis the proper place and instruction of morals and values
in public schools is considered from an historic, and social view. A
pedagogical approach to teaching values in the classroom, which is
based in critical thinking, is offered as a resolution to the
stalemate regarding morals and values in schools that is a result of
competing cultural forces. In the historical review chapter I make a
case that America's public school teachers have always been charged
with the moral development of their students and that this charge
has been primary over much of our history. The chapter concludes
that teachers today have lost that voice or that it has in some way
been silenced.
In the next chapter I review forces outside of the classroom that
impact school policy and teacher's willingness to engage in moral
issues. Considered are cultural changes, the power of the religious
right, the courts, liberal responses, and the impact on educators of
professionalization.
The next chapter is focused on a pedagogical approach to the
challenge of teaching values in the classroom called, the
critical-moral classroom. This approach synthesizes a holistic
vision of classrooms, strong sense critical thinking skills, the
application of the 'Golden Rule" to thinking, and the prophetic
voice in education. The critical-moral classroom is suggested as
a way to restore a moral voice to teachers by thinking about morals
and virtues, as opposed to naming what is moral.
This approach frees the teacher from many of those external forces
that have silenced teachers' moral voices and offers a reflective
approach to the classroom. The critical-moral classroom offers
teachers of all disciplines a platform from which to address their
own moral development and that of their students.
I close with conclusions and observations about the concept of the
critical-moral classroom and reflections on the importance of
individual teachers considering their role as moral leaders in their
classrooms.
subject codes .MOR
Jan Daubenspeck
The Influence of Critical and Creative Thinking Skills on
Curriculum Design and Course Teaching Strategies
1997, September
Directed by ?
subject codes.THR
Neuza DeFigueredo
Using Science Misconceptions for Developing Critical Thinking in
Learners and Teachers
1994, December
Directed by Arthur B. Millman
Students' poor interest and academic achievement in science as well
as their inability to master situations in their everyday life seem
to be related to their lack of skills in critical and creative
thinking. However, teaching such skills within both primary and
secondary curricula is not mandatory. The consensus is much more
toward teaching thinking skills through content than as a separate
course. In this thesis the conflict between students' prior
conceptions about the natural world and scientific concepts is
viewed as a resource for teaching thinking skills. A review of the
literature on science misconceptions in mechanics suggests that
science misconceptions are the product of students' active
constructions as students try to make sense of the information given
to their sensory system. In addition, the knowledge acquired from
science class is not passively incorporated in students' minds. Both
points are supported by the constructivist epistemology and
cognitive psychology.
Analogical reasoning and concept mapping are two instructional
metacognitive strategies designed to deal with students'
misconceptions to bring about conceptual change in the learner. This
process involves the replacement of the learner's previous knowledge
by the scientific view through a process of awareness of one's
starting conceptions and evaluation of their consistency with
evidence. This implies possessing the ability of making shifts from
one context to another, such as from the science classroom
environment to everyday life. In this thesis both strategies are
also seen as a means to engage learners in a metacognitive process
through the organization and reflection of their beliefs, making
them explicit and available to themselves, teacher and peers using
dialogical thinking. Those strategies are very effective in
promoting the development of skills in critical and creative
thinking using multiple frames of reference. The conclusions draw
attention to the important role played by teachers within the new
constructivist perspective of learning, and to the need to integrate
school science and technology using teacher creativity to enhance
the science curriculum and promote meaningful learning. They also
provide some suggestions for future work to explore the viability of
using science misconceptions to develop critical and creative
thinking skills.
subject codes .SCI
Virginia L. De La Garza Sepulveda
Children's Story: Per-Se-Vere
2009, May
Directed by Nina Greenwald
We constantly come across problems or challenges that have no
predetermined answer or solution. Perseverance is a very important
disposition that makes us persist in the search of something we have
started. I believe that people who want to persevere not only need
to be motivated but, more importantly, they need to understand what
it takes to persevere or, in other words, know how to persevere.
Developing strategies to face and overcome confusion, obstacles, and
frustrations is needed for learning. The teaching of Intellectual
Perseverance is frequently taken for granted or not taught
appropriately. Attitudes, dispositions, and habits of mind needed to
persevere, should be explored, discussed, experienced, and
specifically taught in school and at home.
This synthesis presents a transition book called "PER-SE-VERE" for
children between 5- 8 years old. It focuses on the acquisition of
tools for developing Intellectual Perseverance. The book, included
in draft form here, is an essential toolbox designed to help
parents, teachers and children reflect on their perceptions and
beliefs about Intelligence, Learning, Success, Failure, Effort, and
the way they face challenging situations. A printed copy of the book
and an audio version are available on request.
subject codes .ELE
(full text)
Gina Dillon Podolsky
My Journey To Develop An Innovative Approach To Unplanned Pregnancy
2011, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
This paper is my personal journey in developing the non-profit Pennies for Pause that addresses the issue of unplanned pregnancy in the 18-29 populations through the use of incentives, social media, long-acting reversible contraception and the development of critical and creative thinking skills. The paper begins with an insight into my family, how my own thinking skills developed informally throughout my life, and how my personal experiences lead to the development of the 501 (c)(3) organization Pennies for Pause. It also provides insight into my casual observations that I used to create theories, which I then researched, S.C.A.M.P.E.R.E.D, and then synthesized into the framework of the organization. The most important observations I made, and therefore the pivotal force behind the development of Pennies for Pause, are, the apparent disconnect between contraception and lifestyle, the use of technology in community building, and the marketing of long-acting reversible contraception. Instead of addressing contraception as a lifestyle commitment, the current model seems to be cemented in a 1960s institutional approach to contraceptive education. In this paper you will see how I have developed a new model to address unplanned pregnancy by using the current methods of the more popular non-profit organizations and tailored them to appeal to the 18-29 populations. // My approach to unplanned pregnancy also addresses the issue of abortion by advocating for the more effective and invasive methods of long-acting reversible contraception. I also explain how my experience as an online student in a cohort group encouraged me to design a program that uses modern technology and community building along with distribution of incentives in the form of material rewards to hopefully modify behavior.
subject codes.CTY.GEN.MED
(Full Text)
Barbara DiTullio
Refining Operating Room Communication: Creating A Culture Of
Improved Teamwork For The Future Of Perioperative Nursing
2006, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
As a nurse and manager in the operating room of a metropolitan
hospital I consider myself fortunate to be in the job of my dreams.
I am proud to be in an environment that delivers the best care to a
population that is worldwide. The challenges in delivering this
level of care, however, are significant. The issue of communication
and teamwork among the various disciplines in the operating room
proves to be one of the most complex issues at hand.
The operating room environment is wrought with stress both implicit
and explicit, and presents formidable obstacles that interfere with
effective team dynamics. Operating rooms have a long standing
culture of silence and hierarchy that alienates disciplines from one
another (Edmondson, 2003; Weeks, 2004). Though each professional on
the team has spent years refining their respective skills, few have
had training that enables them to address an offending remark or
appropriately handle a disagreement in this environment. Bystander
apathy contributes in potentiating problems where individuals keep
quiet; each thinking another will address the offending issue at
hand. To make matters worse, the doors close and hours can pass
before surgery ends and the team can disperse, making it harder
still to speak up. These factors result in passivity and
indifference adversely affecting communication, teamwork and
collaboration.
The Critical and Creative Thinking Graduate Program has allowed me
to navigate a path toward realizing my mission of improving the
culture of teamwork and communication in the operating room. Using
the philosophical, critical, cognitive and creative spheres as
lenses through which to view this challenge, I was able to evaluate
and incorporate a number of communication and teambuilding
strategies that have helped me achieve solid progress in this
journey. A positive culture shift in this environment is possible
and I have taken my first steps.
Most importantly, my own self reflection has taken place during this
process and I now possess new tools that will allow me to face the
daily problems and challenges in my work and in my life with renewed
confidence. I now see a whole new world of possibility!
subject codes .MED
Margaret Doherty
Mathematical Problem Solving: Rationale and Approach for Change
1997, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
Synthesis
subject codes .SCI
Judith Donovan
Process Writing: A Comprehensive Methodology for Teaching
Thinking and Learning Science
1989, February
Directed by Carol L. Smith
Theorists in the thinking skills movement have provided educators
with definite criteria and challenges for change, but educators feel
the need to dialogue about how to relate content and process in the
curriculum. This thesis work is one teacher's attempt to integrate
content knowledge with intellective growth, based on cognitive
learning theory and some of the essential components of
critico-creative thinking.
Sufficient evidence was found to support the notion that writing
provides great potential for the development of thinking. A plan was
devised to integrate process writing into a ninth-grade science
curriculum, for the purpose of teaching thinking , with an emphasis
on problem-finding and problem-solving. Teacher preparation
included: the creation of an appropriate classroom climate, the
assessment of content goals, and the design of a unit on force and
motion, using age-appropriate contextual materials.
As the writing program evolved, students practiced journal writing,
wrote lab reports and research papers, and they benefited from the
peer-editing process. Through their reflective writing, students
practiced higher order thinking skills, they showed interest in
their intellective growth, improved study skills, and developed
scientific skills and behaviors. Enthusiasm and student-involvement
were identified.
There is evidence that process writing is a comprehensive
methodology for teaching thinking and leaning science. IT develops
general thinking skills, develops scientific inquiry and
science-specific products, and it enhances science learning.
subject codes .SCI.WRL.MSE
Robert Drake
A Children's Realm: An Experiment Using Life-Sized Manipulatives
to Expand Exploring and Learning Opportunities for Children
2001, August
Directed by Peter J. Taylor
In this synthesis I describe a "Children's Realm" in which middle
school children can safely explore and interact with a variety of
physical phenomena typically reserved for the adult world, such as
building and driving a car. A Children's Realm is an experiment. It
is an attempt to not only design, but engineer a unique environment
for middle school students to explore and learn. It is based on
providing the complex tools I feel children need to do this kind of
learning on their own. These complex tools I call Life-Sized
Manipulatives or simply LSM. I highlight the importance of LSM in a
Children's Realm and how the goals of the Children's Realm depend on
them. This paper is a work in progress that represents observations
that began when I was a child trying to learn but failing to learn.
It continues through a process of learning from failing to teach,
and collaborating with the faculty and colleagues of the Critical
and Creative Thinking Program at University of Massachusetts-Boston.
I show that my ideas are well conceived by connecting them to the
works of others before me. To do this I make connections between the
Children's Realm and Adventure Playgrounds, The works of John Dewey,
research done in peer to peer relationships, and highlight some of
the key features of problem-solving pedagogies. I make these
connections as powerfully as I can in order to convince others and
hopefully secure funding to continue collaborating with others and
further this research.
subject codes .TEC
(Full Text)
John Duff
Reorienting College Student Affairs Activities to Emphasize
Student Learning Through Experiential Approaches
2002, June
Directed by Peter J. Taylor
This paper begins with a reflective look at the Student Affairs
practice on a community college campus and proposes a shift from a
focus on student development to student learning. This shift can
occur through the use of experiential learning thoeries theories
developed from the tradition of experiential education. Experiential
education is based on the philosophy of John Dewey who espoused
active learning or learning through doing. David Kolb adapted
Dewey's ideas into an Experiential Learning Cycle that explained
student learning as the movement through four stages in a cycle.
These four stages have subsequently been described in many ways,
most simply in The Fifth Discipline, as Deciding, Doing, Reflecting,
and Connecting.
The experiential learning cycle has applications to Student Affairs
as it describes the process that students go through as they plan
student activities, participate in governance of the student body,
and publish the college newspaper. Students Affairs professionals
who are aware of the experiential learning cycle can use its
structure to emphasize student learning in the work that they do.
Adopting such an approach allows for a student-learning focus while
still providing student development opportunities for the greater
student body.
subject codes .TCE
Roger duMars
Philosophical Issues in the Practice and Pedagogy of Film
1994, December
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Pictures, or presentational symbols, are different in many ways from
words, or discursive symbols, but both are essential for
communication. This thesis explores important differences and
similarities between these two symbols systems in their relationship
to the creation of films. Literary, psychological, art historical,
and photographic traditions have historically been applied to film.
However, philosophical methodologies have not been utilized
significantly in the analysis of film for practical and pedagogical
purposes. The author's fifteen years of experience in all aspects of
non-fiction filmmaking are drawn upon to develop a philosophical
corpus of terms and concepts intended for the film practitioner,
critic, and instructor;.
Through the process of applying ideas from the writings of
philosophers, especially Susanne Langer and Nelson Goodman, to films
and filmic experience, seven interrelated, operative notions are
presented, investigated, developed, and applied to fiction and
nonfiction films. Briefly described they are: abstraction (making
symbols that are abstracted from the physical object, but still
referring to them, or creating symbols that in some way refer to
feelings and thought), transformation (developing and correlating
symbols so that they express a new logic and meaning in order to
convey ideas and feelings). depiction and description (representing,
classifying, labeling, and developing techniques of presenting
images and ideas). response (providing attention, understanding, and
expression), object symbolization(developing symbols that denote
referents and have their own purpose), association (relating images
and sounds within a frame and within a sequence of frames), and
assimilation (incorporating various sources. such as modes,
elements, devices and techniques, into film requirements).
Especially timely with the extensive -media capabilities of
computers so readily available, this thesis is intended to provide a
fresh look at the wide realm of possibilities for developing film
models, analyzing films, selecting and developing film techniques,
and understanding film structure and film processes.
subject codes .CUL
Kay Dundas
Challenging Children to Think: Using Reading to Teach Critical
and Creative Thinking
1988, September
Directed by Wanda Teays
The teaching of critical and creative thinking skills within the
context of the reading program can provide students with the tools
to think about what they have read. This sthesis uses a thinking
skills approach which will be discussed in greater detail in Chapter
One. Through direct instruction of the skills, students can identify
what skills they are usingand why it is appropriate to use it in a
particular situation. Such instruction should also include
reflection on the process of thinking. Students need to take time to
share how they figure problems out and hear about techniques that
others use. Finally, they need to see how thinking can be used in
everyday life so that they will not see it as something that is only
used in school.
subject codes .WRL.ELE
Timothy Eagan
A Social Constructivist Approach To Content-Based Foreign
Language Instruction
2000, December
Directed by Albes Balza
Most students who study a foreign language in the US cannot speak
that language -- an outcome that relates directly to the ways in
which foreign language instruction typically occurs.
This paper examines and promotes the efficacy of content-based
foreign language instruction, a social constructivist process that
calls for students to use language in meaningful contexts for
meaningful tasks. First, a framework is established for
understanding the history of trends in language instruction and how
politics and social attitudes toward language study and bilingualism
have impacted instruction. Following is a description of
contemporary theory in second language acquisition which clarifies
the important role of connecting language to meaning and thought.
This leads into a discussion about content-based instruction as an
effective approach to quality instruction. Subsequently, the paper
examines constructivist epistemology, illustrating that language
acquisition is a social constructivist process that requires
learners to construction their own meaning in collaboration with
others. Finally, the paper presents two content-based lessons,
applying to classroom practice the theoretical framework and
principles that have been defined.
subject codes .LAN
Kristen Eastman
Promoting Geometric Thinking in Grade Four
1993, May
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
The purpose of this thesis is to describe the development,
implementation, and assessment of approaches to geometric teaching
and learning which are designed to help children engage in higher
levels of mathematical thinking. Although focused on fourth grade,
the thesis is broad enough to provide classroom teachers across the
grades and supervisors of elementary mathematics with ideas and
examples to be used as points of departure for the infusion of
higher order thinking within their mathematics classrooms.
After reviewing the historical content of mathematical achievement
in the United States from the late l870's to l990, the thesis
presents relevant research findings of educators and cognitive
psychologists, as well as the recent recommendations and the
guidelines of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. Such
research describes how instruction in mathematics generally, and in
geometry specifically, can be changed to promote better mathematical
thinking among students and teachers.
A collection of geometry lessons informed by the research and
designed to encourage higher order thinking and mathematical insight
are described and analyzed. The geometry lessons are selected from a
year-long fourth grade geometry program comprised of two major
units; Pentominoes, and Plygons and Tessellations.
An authentic assessment method is employed to evaluate student
learning throughout the units. This multi dimensional approach to
assessment is designed to both document and promote geometric
thinking. This approach to assessment includes portfolios comprised
of a rich collection of student work and reflections. The portfolios
include completed assignments, journal entries, plans, designs, and
projects. Students' exhibitions are employed as part of the
assessment method. These presentations of long-term investigations
are focused on student projects as evidence of problem-solving.
Although the intervention described in this thesis, the development
and implementation of instruction, and assessment methods to promote
geometric thinking met with a fair amount of success, the following
areas are recommended for future emphasis: teaching of thinking
skills, development of materials, cooperative learning, students'
reflections, students' attitudes and approaches to learning, and
students' exhibitions of learning.
subject codes .ELE
Ellen Eberly
How Does the Teacher Know? One Teacher's Search for Authenticity
in the Classroom
1996, September
Directed by John R. Murray
The author, a master teacher of secondary language arts, shares her
reflections on how she uses CCT skills to synthesize her insights
and observations of her own learning, teaching, and investigative
experiences - past and present -- in order to make VALID choices
about what is worth knowing and teaching in a classroom preparing
students for the 21st Century.
In general, the thesis emphasizes the importance of AUTHENTICITY in
determining whether a curriculum or teacher's instructional
methodology is VALID for today's students. AUTHENTICITY is
determined by the degree of personal connectivity experienced by
both student and teacher with the subject matter taught and the
quality of the END-PRODUCTS or tasks
produced. These end-products should be displayed for, shared with,
and/or assessed by a GENERAL AUDIENCE beyond that of the teacher and
the classroom walls.
The author offers her curriculum for middle school language arts,
MSX LANGUAGE ARTS CURRICULUM OVERVIEW (Appendix III: Chapter 1,
only) as a MODEL for those interested in CCT and AUTHENTICITY, but
does not propose that it is VALID or AUTHENTIC for other educators
and student populations with different priorities.
The author also identifies and discusses the relationships she finds
between CCT and the constructs of multiple intelligences (MI), the
emotional quotient (EQ), video games, and the writing process.
Integrated curriculum learning tasks encourage student awareness and
facility using such constructs.
Ultimately, the thesis espouses that students need daily practice
using critical and creative thinking processes. Such practice leads
to proficiency in higher order thinking and independence from their
teachers and parents in identifying and solving problems and
applying what has been learned to novel situations.
subject codes .TCE
Susan Els
A Storyteller Versus Three Theorists: One Writer's Creative
Process and Current Creativity Theory
1991, May
Directed by Patricia A. Cordiero
The author -- a writer and student of creativity -- sets out to
record her creative process while writing a novel and then, match it
to prevailing creativity theory. However, in her process notes she
finds none of the typical concerns of cognitive psychology, such as
problem-finding, risk-taking, breaking set, and other heuristics.
The three theorists -- Amabile, Perkins, and Howard -- who seems
impressive to the author as a student, turn irrelevant when she
reads these through the eyes of a writer-storyteller.
From the fatty flesh of her notes and unformed recollections,
elements of the author's own personal process work their way out
like slivers from the palm of the hand. The chapter, "All Artists
Art Two-headed Calves," show how tension between opposing ways of
knowing and working moves creative work forward. Unlikely
connections generate tension and tension generates ideas. Intuition
versus reason, empathy versus objectivity, letting go versus
controlling, discovery versus planning -- these opposites press
against each other to give creative work traction.
The author finds particular value in the tension between a closed
and open focus. A storyteller must focus like a laser beam on the
voice of the story rather than on effort to be creative or original.
But, simultaneously, she must maintain a loose, passive, open
receptivity to the universe of appropriate ideas.
Much as a bicyclist veers off the road when he looks down at wheels
and gears, the writer loses her focus on the story when she looks at
processes. Although she sees much out of the corner of the eye, the
writer sees different processes than cognitive creativity theorists.
And her process notes must support rather than disrupt focus on the
story.
To offset the "cognitizing" of creativity, the author presents
"creating's other side." The chapter, "The Ground: Wizards and
Engineers," shows how the writer stands in relation to her work --
as servant, midwife, listener. The storyteller's work includes
nurturing the qualities that allow the full flowering of intuition,
inspiration, and insight.
The fruit of creativity is more than the finished story. It is the
"feel" of the process -- transformation, surprise, potential, simple
pleasure.
subject codes .THR.WRI
Petra Farias
Images of Women in Sport and Media: A Critical Look at Recurring
Themes from 1920 to the Present
1999, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
This review of women in sport literature offers an historical
summary from the 1920's through the present, focusing on the
relationship between women in sport and the media. It identifies
recurring patterns of progress and change as well as reversions and
backlashes against females, who have opted to pursue sport. This
examination focuses on sport, gender and media as social and
cultural constructs created through institutionalized hierarchy
rather than naturally occurring responses or differences.
Images of women in sport are examined as these perceptions manifest
in their reflection of and creation by mediated culture. Because
media's messages permeate our lives and have become virtually
inescapable, their impact has become increasingly powerful. Media is
no longer only a reflector of life and culture. It has become an
interpreter and transformer of information and in effect, a
manufacturer of values, ideals, and lifestyle. In the discussion of
these concepts, the paper draws upon the work of sport sociologists,
Susan Cahn, Susan Birrell, Cheryl Cole, critical thinker, George
Sage, and cultural studies scholar, bell hooks. Identifying and
deconstructing stereotypes that have plagued women in sport for
decades and continue to diminish women's achievements will counter
these idealized and mediated images. The authors included in this
review are feminism and sport scholars, Mary Jo Kane, Nancy
Theberge, Boutilier and SanGiovanni, and Zimmerman. I argue that
gender, images of women, and feminine ideals are socially created
constructs, formed in the context of power relationships between men
and women.
Looking at women in sport through a socio-cultural constructionist
lens is necessary: to achieve deeper meaning from seemingly
superficial images, to evaluate the impact media depictions have on
self and others, to see beyond the temporary, decontextualized image
allowing history and personal experience to form real context, and
to deconstruct, reinterpret, and rebuild media images and messages
so that truth and myth become more decipherable. This paper traces
the influence of sexism, homophobia, and legal mandates on the
education and progress of women athletes. These purposes are key
means to returning responsibility, control, and informed decision
making ability back to the individual, whose image has been mediated
to the point of distortion. Such a reinterpretation of
socio-culturally constructed images of women in sport is important
in establishing more truthful and human representations of women's
selves and their lives.
subject codes .GEN
Christina Fasciana (Cawthon)
Meeting the Cognitive Goals of an Educational Plan for Gifted
Second Graders
1999, December
Directed by Millman
In this synthesis I offer five sample lesson plans to show how a
teacher can take knowledge of critical and creative thinking and
teach it in a gifted inclusion classroom. Each lesson includes
cognitive strategies and techniques from A. J. Binker's thirty-five
dimensions of critical thinking or E. P. Torrance's summary of
creative abilities. The goal of presenting these lessons is to help
other gifted teachers understand cognitive strategies and how
integrate them into lessons and meet the individual needs of every
student.
In the chapters that precede the lesson plans I provide the personal
context in which I developed them. I begin by explaining my own
personal journey to becoming a teacher committed to applying
critical and creative thinking in teaching and learning as well as
in personal relationships. Studying in the Critical and Creative
Thinking Program was central in this journey. After completing the
course work for the Program I found a teaching position in Palm
Beach County, Florida. Over the last four years I have taught a
variety of primary grades in two different elementary schools. I now
teach gifted students and English speaking students of other
languages included with regular education student at the second
grade level. The County's educational plan requires me to teach
cognitive strategies to gifted students, but I teach them in some
form to all my students. I believe that students who learn to use
critical and creative thinking have a better chance of coping with
the rapidly changing world and living peacefully in the future.
subject codes .ELE
Kevin Fay
Creative Thinking in Drawing
1998, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
This Synthesis Project traces the evolution of my visual
representation experiences while in the Critical and Creative
Thinking Program. The focus is placed on a culminating drawing
experience that occurred prior to the writing of this Synthesis.
From the drawing experience and the writing process, a construct of
knowledge was built through cooperation between hands on work and
abstract theoretical frameworks of creative thinking. After
describing the role drawing played in my early life, I describe in
detail my recent drawing experiences. I mention the rediscovery of
my interest in drawing as a student in the Critical and Creative
Thinking Program. This interest propelled me to delve deeper into
the art and I enrolled in a drawing course offered through the UMass
College of Arts and Sciences. The intensive drawing environment
provided experience with the creative process and a body of work
that became the focus of this Synthesis. Following that, I relate
the evolution of my practice to two psychological constructs of
creativity. The first, offered by Teresa Amabile, is from "The
Social Psychology of Creativity: A Componential Conceptualization".
I demonstrate my work from the drawing course to be a creative
experience, in that it has embodied the three components of
creativity outlined by Amabile. Examples of domain relevant skills
and creativity relevant skills are provided along with narrative
describing the task motivation necessary for creativity.
The other psychological construct of creativity is that of Mihaly
Csikszentmihalyi's "flow", which he describes as a state of optimal
experience. First, I demonstrate flow to be closely aligned with
many of the concepts that embody the spirit of the Critical and
Creative Thinking Program. Csikszentmihalyi outlines the flow
experience as it is manifested in eight components of enjoyment. I
then reflect on my process in relation to those components to
illustrate how flow was attained.
In conclusion, I elaborate on the significance of creative thinking
and the pursuit of the creative process for the evolution of the
individual and humanity. Each of us is in a state of becoming and
that process facilitated by creative thinking can yield the best
results.
subject codes .ART
James Figler
Facilitating Creativity in Corporate Culture
1995, September
Directed by
This work was developed with the premise that a creative corporate
culture can be a competitive weapon in the world market today. It
postulates that unique corporate cultures do exist and explores
their development and characteristics from an anthropological point
of view. This work investigates tools and methods created to help
facilitate creativity in corporate cultures. Multiple examples of
creativity within corporate cultures are presented against the
background of twelve key causal factors (Drennan1 1992). These
creative episodes are all recognized by outside sources as unique
and innovative, it'd fulfill the heuristic characteristics of
creativity as defined by Amabile (1983).
This work purports that, although there is no direct correlation
between creativity and profitability, the creative corporation
intuitively has an advantage in today's marketplace.
The levels of organizational culture examined include assumptions,
beliefs and values, patterns of behavior and artifacts. These are
cross-referenced with key elements of organizational culture such as
heroes, jargon, and management practices. The results are presented
in a typology of the socially constructed concept of corporate
culture.
Multiple tools to create a context from which to study and
facilitate change in corporate culture are explored. Critical
thinking is employed to understand the frame of reference in which
each tool was created and to judge its value in facilitating change
and creativity, in an existing environment.
A number of intervention models are compared and contrasted and the
merits of each is explored. The transition planning model (Beckhard,
1987) is chosen to study the content of other available tools and
methods because it allows the opportunity to examine culture from
multiple anthropological viewpoints. It seeks to understand culture
so that action can be taken, and implies that culture can be
managed. It also allows for unlimited creativity, in the critical
ideation stage. Finally, using Beckhard's model, available tools and
methods are reviewed
for understanding corporate culture and facilitating creativity,'
and innovation within that context.
subject codes .COR
Dory Fish
Finding Meaning Through Writing: A Personal Journey Into Writing
Development Through Writing Workshops, Personal Experimentation,
and Finding The Balance to Create Ideal Writing Environments and
Communities With Elementary School Students
2003, August
Directed by Peter Taylor
Elementary education has evolved into a compartmentalized system
where each academic subject is treated as a unit and filed away
until the appropriate time to resurrect it. In a mad rush to the
finish line, basic skills such as grammar and computation are
prioritized over more all-encompassing skills such as thinking and
problem solving. We need to find ways to incorporate the basic
skills our students need with the more through provoking skills in
ways that reassign the appropriate emphasis on each part of the
whole.
My paper looks to the writing workshop method of writing instruction
to establish classroom writing communities that foster development
of the writer as an individual first and development of the products
that writer creates second. In my paper I explore why writing is so
important to a student's development. In the course of this
exploration, a new definition of writing instruction emerges and
begins to focus on the writing environment as a catalyst for good
writers, and hence good writing. My paper offers both my personal
journey into this new definition of writing and my research into
writing and learning communities. My research allowed me to tackle
questions such as why it is important to write, what it means to
publish, and what are the best ways to sustain writing development
as a writing instructor and writer.
Writing and thinking are intertwined. Good writing instruction leads
to good thinking instruction. Show me a good writer, and I'll show
you a good thinker. The ultimate measure of one's ability to succeed
lies in their ability to think most effectively. The writing
workshop's emphasis on the writer over the product takes us closer
to the ideal of educating a whole person rather than educating to
various, compartmentalized skills.
subject codes .WRL
Niles Flanders
Unexamined Consequences: Ideology, Critical Thinking, and the
Reagan Revolution
1993, May
Directed by John R. Murray
In the winter of l992-93, the United States is suffering an economic
and political paralysis which is the direct result of the policies
of the Reagan Revolution. Hugh deficits and debts have limited the
flexibility of Americans to cope with the serious problems of
today's world. How did this happen and what can we do about it? What
kind of thinking brought about the policies of the Reagan
Presidency?
The terminology and theories of Richard Paul, found in his book
Critical Thinking: What Every Person Needs to Survive in a Rapidly
Changing World, provide a vehicle for examining the thinking used in
the formulation of the Reagan policies. The first part of this
thesis develops the premise that the ideology leading to the
policies of the Reagan Revolution resulted from thinking dominated
by both uncritical and sophistic (weak sense) critical thinking. The
second part of the thesis states that it will require will,
strength, and communicative power equal to that which established
the Reagan Revolution to bring fair minded (strong sense) critical
thinking to bear on the country's current situation, in order to
mold a strong, stable economy.
Chapter l examines Paul's definitions of strong and weak sense
critical thinking, along with uncritical thinking in order to
analyze the development of President Reagan's ideology. Paul's
theories on prejudice, including both positive (for something), as
well as negative (against something), provide a frame of reference
for viewing Reagan's ideology and actions. Chapter II considers
Reagan's ideas in his own words, along with his background. Chapter
III examines Reagan's ideology, actions, and policies.
Chapter IV, "What Might Have Been," includes the thoughts of Robert
N Bellah and his associates in The Good Society and David Halberstam
in The Next Century. Their ideas help to portray what might have
been, along with a vision of the discipline needed to develop a
future American society based on strong sense critical thinking.
subject codes .MSE
Ellen Fogarty
A Learning Style Approach to Curriculum Design
1999, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
Classroom instruction improves when teachers systematically assess
and remodel lesson plans. One approach to remodeling is to use
learning styles framework to review and rework curriculum in order
to target specific learning style modalities.
This synthesis offers a literature review of learning style theory
which identifies the goals of a learning style approach to
instruction (Sternberg, 1994; Dunn, 1990); and, reviews and
addresses difficulties flicing educators wishing to incorporate
learning styles into curriculum (Curry, 1990; Snider, 1990; Horton
and Oakland, 1997). Such difficulties include the validity and
reliability of learning style research, the lack of a unified body
of knowledge concerning the conceptualization of learning style, and
the variety of learning style models available. I argue, despite
criticisms, that learning styles provide a useful, systematic basis
for remodelling lessons, and that systematic reexamination improves
teaching quality and student learning through increased
metacognitive awareness. Four different learning style models
(Myers-Briggs, KoIb, 4MAT, and the Felder-Silverman Model, (ILS))
are introduced and examined.
Following the literature review, I present a case study based on the
Felder-Silverman Model which examines the learning styles of two
groups of at-risk youth in an urban, alternative high school diploma
program. Results indicate no clearly dominant learning style for
these two populations. However, trends exist which may have
implications for educators wishing to use learning styles as a lens
through which to evaluate and redesign curriculum. The group profile
for these populations showed a majority of learners who are active,
visual, sensing and sequential learners. By modifying Richard Paul's
(1993) model for incorporating critical thinking skills into
curriculum, I suggest a method for the critical review of lessons
using learning styles. This synthesis concludes by offering an
original, eight-component planning matrix. The planning matrix
allows an educator to reflect on lessons to establish the learning
styles all ready incorporated and those needing to be addressed. At
this time, there is no quantitative means for assessing student
"pre"' versus "post" learning style intervention for this method. A
guide for teachers interested in remodelling their classes using the
ILS is included as an appendix.
subject codes .LRN.TCE
Lauren Foley
"Who is a Scientist?": Effects of an Intervention to Change
Students' Ideas about Science and Scientists
1992, May
Directed by Carol Smith
Advocates for improving science literacy have focused much attention
on the negative impressions about science and scientists held by
many Americans. The image of scientists as 'nerdy' bespectacled men
in laboratories has been related by some researchers to people's
lack of interest in pursuing science. This thesis analyzes one
component of a program aimed at changing that stereotype.
The Science-By-Mail (tm) program at the Museum of Science in Boston
was designed to give students a more inclusive image of scientists.
Central to the program was the creation of pen-pal relationships
between students in grades 4-9 with scientists who did not fit the
stereotype. The correspondence was driven by a set of hands-on
science challenges, which included a variety of experiments. The
activities introduced students to science as an engaging process of
critical thought and exploration.
To determine participants' images of scientists changed, an
empirical study was performed. Pretest and posttest questionnaires,
consisting of five questions related to student images of science
and scientists, were distributed to all participants. Responses from
all students who returned both components on the evaluation were
matched to form a test population of 217 pair, and analyzed using
series of statistical tests.
Only one of the five questions, "What does a scientist look like?"
was analyzed. This question was seen as the most likely to elicit
responses were evaluated to determine the number of exclusive
indicators, such as "all scientists wear lab coats," as well as
inclusive indicators, such as " a scientist looks like anyone."
The stereotype's existence before the intervention was confirmed.
The average number of exclusive indicators decreased significantly
from pretest to posttest, regardless of age or gender of subject,
gender of pen-pal scientist, or number of correspondences exchanged.
No single feature of the program could be isolated as necessary for
producing change, but overall the data showed a positive shift in
students' images of scientists. The results prompted questions for
further investigations into the causes and effects of the stereotype
of scientists.
subject codes .SCI.COM.CUL.TEC
Jennifer Forgues
Why are Fractions So Hard? Conquering Students Lack Of
Comprehension Of Fractions
2003, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
Fractions have multiple roles in math: as a ratio of part to whole,
as a measurement unit, and as an operator on other numbers. These
roles, which have not been taught explicitly to students, have
resulted in miscomprehension of fractions. Four seventh grade, from
Roxbury Preparatory Charter School, were assessed by the author for
their competencies in fraction understanding. This was determined
through analysis of teacher created and standardized tests as well
as personal interviews with each of the students. It was discovered
that, while these students were able to follow the rules of fraction
computation quite well, pervasive deficits were noted in their
ability to apply fractions to problem solving situations. These
deficits include: inability to choose a correct operation(s) to
solve a problem; inappropriate comparing and ordering of fractions;
and lack of understanding of the rules used in the fraction
algorithms of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
This is ascribed to the incomplete understanding of the roles a
fraction can play and how fractions interact with other numbers in
various contexts.
This synthesis presents a comprehensive set of standards and
objectives the author has developed as a result of assessing
students' difficulties with fractions. Standards were developed to
address student miscomprehension, based on student data, analysis of
literature, state frameworks, and goals set forth in the prior
year's fraction unit. These standards will be taught through
experiential learning, algorithmic understanding, application of
fractions in word problems, and explanation of process and
reasoning. Teaching colleagues of the author contributed to the
creation of this plan by providing feedback on interview questions
used with the four students and the standards developed through this
synthesis. A result of this project is that other math teachers in
the author's school will be trained in the teaching of fractions to
counteract student misconceptions. Teachers will also support
fraction understanding in their own curricula, and future math
curricula will integrate the basics of fraction understanding into
the sixth grade math curriculum.
subject codes .SCI
Ivy Frances
The View Finder: Discovering My Artist Path Through Photography
2004, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
This is a personal narrative of how I applied Critical and Creative
Thinking skills to photography and, in the process, found my
artistic self. As a young girl, I was an emerging artist under the
tutelage of creative parents. I took photographs of my family and of
the beautiful landscape where we lived. Tragedy struck my child's
world twice; first, when my father died, and a second time when
developers destroyed the natural areas where I played. These events
shut down my inner awareness, stunted my growth as a risk taker and
the artist in me went dormant.
The Critical and Creative Thinking program has opened up a new
universe through a progression of learning about my personality
traits, thinking dispositions, and multiple intelligences. I learned
that I was a convergent and divergent thinker, a problem-solver and
that I was extremely capable of transferring information from one
domain to another. My metacognition, now activated, monitored my
thought process and helped me initiate critical and creative
thinking.
I applied the CCT techniques and thinking process to photographing
the land and people of Scituate. I followed a process-cycle of
creating a vision, conducting research, applying the research, and
reflecting on the results in comparison with the vision. I became
more consciously self-aware so that I better understood my actions.
My self was reflected and revealed in my photographs. My
photographic project was now less about Scituate, and more about my
sense of self. My creative self, along with my skills as a critical
thinker was re-emerging.
I have learned that, at any given time, I may be in my interpersonal
self, empathizing and collaborating, or in my naturalist self,
observing, studying, and integrating. I may be behind the camera
conceptualizing, altering perspectives and images. Or maybe I am
just being introspective, reflecting and dreaming. After all, ". . .
creative persons are characterized not so much by single traits, as
by their ability to operate through the entire spectrum of
personality dimensions" (Csikszentmihalyi 1999, 331).
I am a photographer, and an artist, this personal narrative is about
my journey of self discovery through the application of Critical and
Creative Thinking.
subject codes.RPN.ART
(Full Text)
Mary Frangie
My CCT Guidebook: Keeping The Critical and Creative Thinking
Momentum Alive
2004, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
Have you ever struggled through something, feeling like a fish out
of water for most of it, just to find out in the end that being a
part of it was the best decision you ever made? This is how I
describe my CCT experience. Through this practitioner's narrative, I
journey through my childhood struggles with cluttered thinking to my
adult pursuit to "think better". Finding validation for my
intelligence improved my confidence levels and my overall quality of
life. Much of my internal feeling of validation came through
understanding my thinking styles from multiple intelligence
theories. Through this understanding I have been able to shift away
from seeing what is wrong with my thinking to making the most with
what is right about my thinking. My strongest aptitude areas are
interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligence while my weakest areas
are in logical/mathematical and verbal/linguistic intelligence. This
new awareness changed the way I value myself and also gives me a new
appreciation for the thinking and communication styles of others.
The second part of this hybrid synthesis project is a sourcebook
containing critical and creative thinking tools - My CCT Guidebook.
The handbook is my endeavor to retain and use some of the tools and
knowledge I have been exposed to through CCT and to support my
thinking after I have left the program. My CCT Guidebook is a
collection of information - concepts, thinking tools, graphic
organizers and strategies - that impacted me or helped transform my
thinking. It is meant to be a reminder of information and processes
I have already learned and will assist in keeping the critical and
creative spirit alive within me.
subject codes.TCE
Kelly Freeman
Inviting Critical and Creative Thinking into the Classroom
1999, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
In the field of education, there is much discussion around the
subtleties of teaching critical and creative thinking. Surrounding
the controversy are questions such as, are certain skills are
subordinate to others, and can best practices be fully described.
Amidst this continuing discussion, most students are not being
taught the necessary, fundamental skills that will allow them to
become good thinkers; nor is curriculum being aligned to explicitly
and systematically include thinking skills. In the interim however,
teachers can become aware of what is involved in critical and
creative thinking and the dispositions, skills, strategies and
environment that foster good thinking. Armed with this knowledge and
understanding, teachers can mindfully and skillfully implement
critical and creative thinking as part of the regular, mandated
curriculum.
My concern with this issue, along with my belief that critical and
creative thinking are crucial to reaching one's full potential,
impelled me to review various conceptions of critical and creative
thinking by leading practitioners in the fields of education,
philosophy and psychology. The writers include Paul, Ennis, Davis,
Tishman, Starko and Marzano among others. From the literature I
present a characterization of critical and creative thinking, a
succinct description of the necessary dispositions for thinking in
this manner, along with the skills involved. I also propose a number
of strategies for instruction geared toward the development of
critical and creative thinking. Based on the literature review, I
have distilled eight pervasively significant principles that
teachers can employ to invite and implement critical and creative
thinking in their classrooms regardless of grade level, subject area
or the particular frameworks that dictate teaching. The principles,
presented in the form of a practical handbook as my original
contribution, are intended to provide teachers with knowledge and
understanding of critical and creative thinking and the essential
elements that sustain and propel such thinking.
subject codes .TCE
Chiara Frenquellucci
Teaching Foreign Languages in Context: Intermediate Italian and
Critical Thinking
1993, May
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Declining student interest in the study of foreign languages in U.S.
universities has prompted calls for reform. This thesis proposes to
enhance the teaching of intermediate Italian through the integration
of critical thinking skills and innovative techniques of language
instruction. Implementing such a program requires shifts in both
content and teaching methods. Language (both native and foreign) is
not a set of detached components, but rather a tool for
communication of perceptions and ideas through meaningful exchanges.
The learning of a language should fulfill its promise of proficiency
and be a congenial opportunity for success in learning.
Exploiting the natural connection between language and thought is
beneficial for two reason: first, it aids the acquisition of the
target language, as well as improving "verbal" skills in the
students' own language; secondly, it enriches the students'
intellectual repertoire in both related and unrelated fields.
Thinking skills are universal and can be applied to a variety of
situations, including personal growth outside of academic
development.
This thesis presents a background in critical thinking philosophies
and classification of thinking skills, and in second language
acquisition theories in order to create an alternative intermediate
Italian curriculum. The immediate purpose of such a curriculum is to
enhance students' linguistic and thinking proficiency through
self-expression and communication with others. The long-term goal is
to present language within its larger context to make it
transferable to real-world situations.
Five sample lessons are developed in this thesis, each centered on
particular critical thinking skill,. Students are involved in
defining applying and transferring the skills to many contexts. Each
lesson draws from different critical thinking theories and
pedagogical models, encourages students to experiment with language,
and helps them to express meaning in its most complex forms.
Examples of written and oral exercises and evaluation criteria to
assess student progress and overall lesson effectiveness have also
been included. Even though intermediate Italian instruction is the
main focus of this thesis, the ideas presented are applicable to the
teaching of any intermediate level foreign language course.
subject codes .LAN.TCE
David Frias
Fighting Traffic Congestion in Metropolitan Phoenix by Making
Public Transportation a Success
2007, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
The past two years in the Critical and Creative Thinking Graduate
Program have been a time of learning and life changing experiences.
I found the confidence to make a career change and gained the
knowledge and tools necessary to study the complex problem of
traffic congestion and attempt to solve it by utilizing public
transportation. My plan to move to Phoenix, Arizona in 2009
motivated me not only to learn about the area and its attempts to
fight urban sprawl and traffic congestion, but also to attempt to
find solutions to these problems. I utilized creative thinking and
critical thinking skills to understand the complexity of the
problem, analyze the problem, and make suggestions that could help
solve the problem.
This synthesis project explores the rise of urban sprawl due to
federal, state, and local policies regarding urban planning, and how
urban sprawl led to a decline of public transportation usage and an
increase in automobile dependence which in turn spawned traffic
congestion. Traffic congestion problems have led to a loss of
economic productivity, increased pollution, increased dependence on
foreign oil, and the rise of health issues across America. By
studying the current solutions being attempted across the United
States and in Phoenix, I was able to understand what is working,
what isn't, and why. Utilizing my critical thinking skills and
creativity, I make suggestions on how Metropolitan Phoenix can
reduce traffic congestion by promoting public transportation and
making it a success. These suggestions attempt to make public
transportation a success in the area by using smart growth in urban
planning, improving the existing transit system and ensuring future
success, as well as instituting fee structures that will discourage
citizens from utilizing the automobile as often as they do. The
solutions I propose would involve the cooperation of federal, state,
local officials as well as private business, and ultimately, the
individual citizen. Undertaking this synthesis project not only
educated me on the issues at hand, but I hope the product will
educate the reader on the complexity of the problem and motivate
them to become involved in trying to solve it.
subject codes .SOC
(Full Text)
Audrey Friedman
Personality and Problem Solving: An Exploration Using a
Computerized, Ill-Defined Problem
1991, May
Directed by ?
subject codes .THR
Bertha Lucia Fries Martinez
The Globally Responsible Leader
2008, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
In recent years there has been a dramatic expansion of what I call
Global Responsibility (GR)-a new dynamic force for change in
business, government, and other organizations. GR integrates into
one inclusive model the emergent ("fragmented") models generally
known as: Business Ethics, Corporate Citizenship, Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR), Eco-Efficiency, Ethics and Development,
Sustainable Development, The Best Company to Work For, and others.
This unprecedented change, rather than spearheaded internally by
management, is pioneered externally by the stakeholders of
organizations-including consumers, investors, media, activists and
concerned citizens. They are progressively putting more pressure on
organizational leaders to change both how companies make their
profits and what they do with them. There is an unprecedented need
for leaders who are profoundly aware, grounded on strong values, and
extremely innovative and effective in creating sustainable
development and promoting the common good in today's world.
The purpose of my synthesis is to suggest a general framework and a
process for designing, implementing, and assessing initiatives for
developing key attributes of globally responsible leaders of every
type of organizations. An extensive literature has emerged
suggesting a variety of leadership models. A common thread in this
literature is the tendency to identify, develop and enhance a
leader's attributes, or those personal and intrinsic qualities that
make an effective leader. These leadership attributes are about:
what the leader IS (character, personal qualities, values, motives);
what the leader KNOWS (knowledge and skills); and what the leader
DOES (style, competencies, behaviors).
As existing models do not, in my view, fully satisfy the
requirements of the globally responsible leader that I envision, I
suggest a responsible leadership model. It is built on Ulrich et
al's model and my personal observations and professional experiences
in management consulting. My framework emphasizes a set of core
attributes that I believe the GR leader must have. These relate to:
four Domains of Reflection (Space, Time, Ethics, Global Responsible
Citizenship), and four Domains of Action (Defining the strategic
direction, Mobilizing the individual commitment, Building individual
and organizational capacity, and Modeling the new leader). I suggest
also a general strategy for the development of the attributes of the
GR leader. It is composed of two main processes: a customized
face-to-face learning process and a massive online social networking
process.
In my epilogue I draw a parallel between the artistic process and
the thesis writing process, and reflect upon my emotions and
experience of "walking" through the writing of the Globally
Responsible Leader.
subject codes.COR.FRP
(Full Text)
Cynthia Fusco
The Reference Connection: Teaching Thinking Skills Within the
Library Reference Interview
1991, May
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Library research is a thinking process composed of discrete,
identifiable critical and creative thinking skills. These skills may
be taught in school libraries as part of the reference interview, a
conversation that occurs between librarians and student researchers.
In order for this to take place, it is first necessary to understand
the political importance of the definitional problems associated
with the instructional role of the school librarian, to identify the
steps in the research process and their related thinking skills, and
to acknowledge the cognitive and affective aspects of the research
process.
School librarians who wish to include teachings part of their dues
often face a problem of role definition. Simply stated, they must
convince the teachers and administrators of their school systems
that this is a valid role by lobbying for their cause and
demonstrating the effectiveness of their teaching expertise. One
solution to these political and pedagogical problems is the
deliberate construction of a library reference interview integrated
with discrete critical and creative thinking skills. The success of
this interview depends upon the librarian's own clear understanding
of the steps in the research process and the identification of
appropriate thinking skills. It also relies heavily upon the
librarian's assessment of the student's abilities, interests, and
attitudes used to determine the course of the interview and to
identify the thinking skills required by the research project that
the student wishes to undertake.
This thesis concludes with the presentation of model dialogues.
These examples are composites draws from actual experience and are
designed to illustrate the practical application of critical and
creative thinking theory to library research.
subject codes .ELE
Peter Galeno
A Portfolio Model for Teaching Writing and Thinking
1996, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
The college composition course is increasingly viewed as a pivotal
course in fostering in students the skills they will need for
meaningful participation in the discourse of the academy. This
course is often the students' initiation into an academic
environment that emphasizes the
significance of the written word. Because of the nature of teaching
the abstract and elusive subject of writing, the course presents
significant challenges for many composition instructors.
This thesis focuses on the development of a student writing
portfolio that provides a powerful means of addressing these issues.
The work required to complete the portfolio fosters the students'
transition from their original diction to the discourse that meets
the standards of their academic community. The portfolio process
does so by developing the critical thinking dispositions and
abilities needed to succeed in the academic environment. Through the
work required to complete the portfolio, students develop the
dispositions of self-awareness, intrinsic motivation, and the
openness to reflect on their writing process and product. The
portfolio process shifts the locus of instruction from the teacher
to the students and is a concrete means for students to understand
the evolution of their thoughts as they make the rhetorical choices
that shape their written discourse.
The first chapter of this thesis establishes the general context
within which this portfolio model was implemented. This is followed
by an analysis of recent cognitive theories of writing as related to
writing. Through a discussion of the works of Richard Paul and
Robert Ennis, the third chapter of this thesis presents the critical
thinking framework that informs the curriculum. The fourth chapter
describes the portfolio model and discusses the type of in-class
instruction required to prepare students to complete the portfolio.
The final chapter discusses the impact of the portfolio on students,
faculty, and the institution. The portfolio proved to be a powerful
tool in creating many benefits to students, faculty, and the
institution. Most significantly, the portfolio was important in
bringing about a cultural change, one that recognizes the importance
of developing student writing through an interdisciplinary
approach to establish writing across the curriculum.
subject codes .WRL
Rebecca Garnett
Family Resemblance: A Study of Linguistic Conformity Within
Family Systems
1991, December
Directed by John R. Murray
This thesis reports the results of an empirical study designed to
test two hypotheses from the early psychiatric work of C. G. Jung:
first, the existence of a "family disposition" toward the word
association test (WAT), and second, the theory that there is
interference between the "thinking" and the "feeling" functions in
an individual's cognitive processing. The experiment involved 52
normal subjects from 15 families, ranging in age from 12 to 65.
Subjects were tested using an association instrument adapted from
the WAT developed by Jung (Jung, l973). Response commonalty was
examined along several dimensions: identical verbal response,
identical category response, and identical reaction type. Subjects
were found to have 20% verbal commonalty and 34-38% categorical
commonalty within family units. Comparison of relatives responses to
those of non-related individuals using a Spearman rank order
correlation test on classified responses, yielded an average
correlation figure of .29 for related and .25 for unrelated pairs of
individuals; this difference seemed too small to support the
hypothesis, but no formal test of significance was performed. Sample
size proved to small to test the significant of response pattern
redundancy within families. In the second part of the experiment, 38
subjects completed he deductive logic section of the Ross Test of
Higher Cognitive Processes, and their error rate was compared with
their rate of predicative responses on the WAT. A Pearson Product
Moment Correlation was .57, indicating a moderately strong
correlation between preference for predication, a characteristic of
the "feeling" function, and difficulty with deductive logic, a
process of ;the "thinking" function. A theoretical chapter traces
the evolution of Jung's cognitive theories from his early word
association experiments (Jung, l973) to the development of his
functional system of psychological typology (June, l97l). 37 tables,
l2 figures.
subject codes .LAN.THR
Ann Gazzard
The Role of Precollege Philosophy in Education
1984, January
Directed by Robert Swartz
subject codes .MOR
Maryann Gilbert-Lovell
The Foundations of Morality
1993, May
Directed by John R. Murray
Beginning in preschool, moral education should provide children with
a foundation for making good and reasonable decisions as well as the
motivation to act with integrity. In a complex and changing world,
figuring out what is good or what is the 'right' thing to do is
often difficult, and decisions often require highly developed
critical and creative thinking skills and deep motivation. A moral
person arrives at decisions concerning what to do, how to live, and
what to believe through reflective and reasonable thinking. Critical
and creative thinking skills and dispositions enable a moral person
to arrive at a clear conception of the world and his or her place in
it. Realizing that something must be done and figuring out what to
do is only half the battle; it is often just as difficult to do what
we know is right. Thus, integrity is essential to the moral
character. The demands that the world will someday place on children
will challenge the ideals and sense of responsibility that are
central to their integrity.
Relationships in early childhood form the basis of personal
standards. This basis is then augmented and modified throughout
life. A young child's preschool provides a unique setting where the
child interacts with many different people. Early childhood
educators have a great deal of influence over the environment in
which these interactions take place. Consequently, teachers can
influence the foundation the child construes from his or her
experience. Any teacher who purports to teach the whole child has an
obligation to consider and enhance the moral education which is
already going on in her classroom. In order to' set appropriate
goals for moral education, the teacher needs to consider the
fundamental questions 'What is morality?', 'How does the development
of critical and creative thinking skills and dispositions affect
moral development? and what motivates morality?'
This thesis attempts to answer these questions with a synthesis of
diverse views and findings from leading experts and researchers
concerned with the moral life of children and concludes with a few
recommendations for preschool teachers who would like to translate
the findings into practice.
subject codes .MOR
Alan Goldman
Addressing the Inadequacies of Information Available on the
Internet: The Prospect for a Technical Solution
1999, June
Directed by Arthur Millman
In the past ten years the Internet has been the carrier and
transmitter of vast amounts of information. Most of it has never
been subjected to peer review or even casual review and has
therefore been the source of misinformation. Additionally, there is
need for more researchers to utilize critical thinking techniques of
evaluating the credibility of sources. This paper chronicles my
critical and creative thinking processes and results regarding these
three areas of the information problems that are prevalent on the
Internet.
The first area is the problem of bad, biased or incorrect
information including hoaxes and scams. I used critical thinking
techniques to analyze these areas to provide a basis to define a
problem to be solved.
The second area of concern is the critical thinking process that
should be used to evaluate the reliability of resources and the
credibility of information. This process can help prevent the
Internet user from being a victim of bad or biased information.
The third area deals with similar problems of information that were
solved both inside and outside the Internet that could provide bases
for solutions. Here, I used critical thinking in regard to other
possible outcomes. I discuss what other industries such as consumer
product review companies and academia have done to deal with similar
problems. I take a look at Underwriters Laboratories and others who
devised systems that verified the quality of product as well as
research methods that assure quality of information.
I developed a conceptual framework for a software-based solution
that can help I assure that high quality information is presented on
the Internet. I used a process of divergent and convergent thinking
to arrive at a best solution. The solution allows for those who use
the Internet data to leave information with or without leaving
evaluation comments that describe the quality and usefulness of what
was presented. The results of this user feedback are not only
available to others who search for this information, but it can be
presented in a prioritized form from most reviewed to least reviewed
thus saving researchers time and effort while assuring a better
quality of information.
subject codes .SCI
Auta Goncalves
1997, September
Directed by
subject codes
Bernice Gordon
Explicit Integration of Critical Thinking into Content Area
Instruction
1991, September
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Educators have acknowledged the need for the development of critical
thinking skills in students. While most students are able to
complete basic curriculum, requirements, teachers have found that
many of them are unable to transfer skills to other content areas or
beyond the academic environment. Consequently, the last decade has
witnessed the rise of carefully planned programs designed to instill
strong critical thinking skills in students. Many of these programs
are narrow in their focus, while others use a more comprehensive and
practical approach, namely integrating critical thinking skills into
content area instruction. The Curriculum Development Project
presented in his thesis endorses the latter approach and is written
for middle and high school age students.
The supporting foundation for this thesis is based primarily on
Costa's Theory of Metacognition, Sternberg's Triarchic Theory of
Intelligence and Perkins' Thinking Frames. The thesis centers around
three model lessons which contain the elements essential to a
successfully critical thinking program. Explicit statements of skill
and content area objectives are established and a thinking motivator
introduces each lesson. A metacognitive component of planning,
monitoring and evaluating progress is designed to enable students to
assume responsibility and accountability for their progress.
The teaching process is clearly described in the model lessons.
Emphasis is placed on attitudes and dispositions which the teacher
must demonstrate in order to create a non-judgmental atmosphere in
which critical thinking is fostered.
Various methodologies such as group work, collaborative learning and
class discussions are described, as are the evaluative methods used
to assess student learning. The critical element of transfer of
skills to other contexts and life situations is emphasized.
Appendices which follow the lessons offer cohesive definitions of
the relevant terminology.
This thesis acknowledges that teachers must re-evaluate their roles
in the classroom, so that they shift the emphasis from being
lecturers to facilitators or mediators, using their knowledge and
expertise as resource people who model the kind of thinking behavior
that they desire from students. In so doing they enable students to
become independent, reflective thinkers, with a sense of empowerment
over their present and future lives.
subject codes .MSE
Abigail Grainda
At The Heart of It All: A Self-Esteem Curriculum For Students
With Learning Disabilities
2004, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
Students with learning disabilities will inevitably face numerous
challenges in their educational experience. Many of these challenges
will be academic in nature but there is a greater challenge that is
at the heart of it all- the development of self-esteem. The
development of self-esteem is at the heart of all other challenges
and experiences. It includes the feeling of security, accurate
self-hood and self-knowledge, developing strong affiliations with
others, having mission, and recognizing personal competence. These
five components are the foundation elements of self-esteem and are
essential in the learning process within school environment. These
elements are explored in detail in this synthesis.
Using critical and creative thinking tools as a conduit for
self-esteem development, I have developed five original and creative
lessons to be used with first and second grade elementary students.
Each lesson incorporates aspects of critical and creative thinking,
such as metacognition, learning climate, cooperative learning, and
free writing, with sequential activities addressing one of the five
foundation elements of self-esteem. The lessons are written for
elementary educators and are engaging, easy to implement, and
flexible. These lessons include original ideas and materials, as
well as extensions for further use and literature recommendations.
As I am a special education teacher, I have a professional interest
in this topic. My teaching experiences allowed me to infuse this
research with reality. Having personally struggled with self-esteem,
I have a personal interest as well. The Critical and Creative
Thinking program helped me regain clarity in my purpose as an
educator, and encouraged me to explore my creative abilities. In
doing this, I have produced five well constructed lessons, with
numerous activities. I am eager to bring this curriculum fully into
my own classroom and to continue my work as an influential and
reflective practitioner.
subject codes.SPE
Chris Gralton
Team Leadership Approaches for Corporate Project Managers
2002, August
Directed by Steve Schwartz
The study of Critical and Creative Thinking (C&CT) methods
introduced me to a number of new approaches and tools that have
vital and practical applications for today's corporate team leaders.
The primary purpose of my paper and the Genuity Inc. case example,
is to demonstrate how these C&CT approaches and tools can be
used by corporate team leaders to motivate, direct and lead their
teams.
Towards this end I have organized my paper into two major sections.
1) In the first, I lay the groundwork by defining the challenges
facing today's project managers and the cross-functional teams they
lead. 2) In the second section, I introduce and discuss C&CT
concepts for analyzing and defining thinking styles of team members,
and how this knowledge can be used by project managers for more
effective leadership.
The concepts covered will help team leaders address the wide range
of challenges they face today. These concepts include the conceptual
blocks to better problem solving, including common barriers to
creative thinking, cultural blocks, emotional blocks, perceptual
blocks, and intellectual blocks, as described by James Adams in
Conceptual Blockbusting, a Guide to Better Ideas. (1974)
subject codes.COR
Lillian Greeley
Philosophical Spacing (PS): It's Function and Composition in the
Philosophical Dialectics of Matthew Lipman's Philosophical Novels
for Children
1989, May
Directed by John Murray
Philosophical Spacing (PS), a phenomenon found in the philosophic
dialectic, is defined as a space or break from the formal work of
the philosophical dialectic, and is suspected to be a necessary
interval which permits higher order cognitive processing to take
place so that the analytical work of the dialectic can develop. An
example of modern philosophical dialectics, the philosophical novels
for children by Matthew Lipman, was analyzed to study the structural
and contextual nature of PS in order to complement a study in
progress of the philosophical dialectics of the Earliest Socratic
Dialogues. Using a structural analysis of 21 randomly chosen
philosophical dialectic, PS was found to occur with consistent
regularity in a majority of the segment structures of these
philosophical dialectics. Using a contextual analysis of 147
randomly chosen PSs to study its qualitative composition, PS was
found to be comprised of positive and negative synergetic
combinations of elements, of which 7 were identified. An interrater
reliability test, scored with Cohen's Kappa statistic, confirms the
study's reliability. It was found that a sample of contemporary
dialectics, the philosophical dialectics in the philosophical novels
for children by Matthew Lipman, confirms the existence and use of PS
in the philosophical dialectic.
subject codes .THR
Cynthia Greenwood
Using Hands-On Manipulatives to Teach Problem Solving
1996, September
Directed by John R. Murray
As educators we share a link with the classic story of the
"Velveteen Rabbit", as we also seek what is real. In education
"real" is what holds meaning for the students and connects their
world to the world of the classroom. As teachers we continually ask
for the students' active
participation, involvement and commitment to the learning task, but
too often we teach only from the textbook. Classroom tasks that do
go beyond textbook mastery may spark the students' interest, but
sometimes appear to have no link to the reality of the students'
world. Cognitive research reminds educators of the importance of
making learning connections as a means of preventing knowledge from
becoming inert.
This thesis proposes a model that attempts to offer students a
curriculum that's 'real' for the students. The model emphasizes the
critical and creative thinking skills used in problem solving, while
it draws on the strengths of two programs, problem based learning
and LEGO Dacta bricks. The problem based learning model stresses the
problem finding component of
the problem solving process. and the LEGO Dacta emphasizes the
solution finding and solution testing phase. Problem based learning
begins with offering the students an ill-structured,
researchable problem to solve. The students' goals are to determine
what information would be needed to define and ultimately generate a
solution. Since the problem finding phase in problem based learning
offers many, varied approaches to the problem, the students may
define the problem in a way that is unique to their point of view.
This differs from the traditional problem solving approach, in which
the students are given a well-defined problem. By allowing the
students to determine the problem to be explored, they are able to
assume ownership of the problem. LEGO Dacta bricks are one of basic
building toys of children. Introducing building blocks into the
problem solving process combines the world of problem solving with
the students' world of play. The students are more eager
participants in the process, as they can formulate a concrete model
to test and evaluate their solutions.
The goals of this curriculum are three-fold: 1) to have the students
become more involved in the learning task; 2) to teach the students
the steps classroom to their world; 3) to give the students an
environment that will foster self-directed learning.
subject codes .TCE
Dianne Gregory
Writing Toward Understanding
1988, September
Directed by
Writing can be a way to learn. If a writer focuses attention
intently on a designated subject, she will learn what she knows
about that subject. If she writes about that subject, new
connections can form between related bits of information drawn from
the writer's mind as she works toward a particular writing goal. The
purposeful activity of transferring ideas from the mind to the page
can lead a writer to a keener understanding of those ideas through
their formulation into language. The unskilled writer, as well as
the professional, has an array of strategies available to cultivate
the germ of an original idea into a clear representation on the
page.
Is it possible to break down the seemingly simpe process of
transferring thoughts to the page into distinguishable, discrete
components? If discrete components can be formulated, can we then
act within these components to guide students to improve
understanding through their writing? These are the key questions
addressed in this thesis.
subject codes .TCE
Joanne Grenier
The Journey
1996, December
Directed by
Reflecting on my growth as a teacher, a critical thinker, a student,
a parent, and a spouse, I have compiled here a record of my efforts
to improve my classroom, school, and district by implementing
knowledge and strategies gained in the Critical and Creative
Thinking Program. In the reflective process, I also became aware of
how my involvement in the Critical and Creative Thinking Program
impacted me. It is not a journey a person can make without
encountering change in oneself and one's perspectives. This journey
traces the many opportunities I pursued to infuse the principles of
the Critical and Creative Thinking Program into our district as we
established a new vision, set new standards and evolved through a
paradigm shift.
subject codes.THR
Karen Guillette
1997, September
Directed by
subject codes
Jeanne Hammond
Facilitating a Learning Work Environment Through Teamwork
Strategies: One Nurse Manager's Journey
2003, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
Teamwork is the process that occurs when team members work together
to achieve mutually agreed upon goals and are mutually accountable
for the results. In search of strategies to promote teamwork in
nursing, I embarked on a journey of professional development to
develop the skills necessary to become an effective facilitator of
teamwork. My exploration included review of current literature and
participation in experiential workshops in addition to a number of
CCT courses. I examined the current literature on shared vision
through focused conversations, building of a new work relationship
model, the dialogue process, role modeling and mentoring. I
chronicled my reflective experiences and insight from participating
in the workshops as part of my quest to create a positive work
environment through teamwork. The guiding principles and values I
have adopted as a foundation for effective teamwork are incorporated
in a series of mini-workshop sessions developed for presentation to
work groups in order to foster a positive learning work environment.
(Full Text)
subject codes.FRP.MED
Kristen Hanks
Creating a Life of Art: a Personal Journey Towards Creative
Freedom
2004, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
This paper is a journey through my life as a Creator, from early
childhood to the present. As I have moved through the process of
writing my creative history, I have been able, for the first time,
to take an introspective, reflective look at who I am as a person
and an artist/creator. Using skills introduced to me in the Critical
And Creative Thinking Program, it has been possible for me to
undertake the task of confronting my past, my present and my future.
My journey towards creative freedom begins in early childhood as I
struggle with being a creative person in a world that only seems to
value certain forms of expression. From there I move on to high
school and college, astonishingly creative yet confusing times. I
begin questioning my future and wonder why I cannot conceive of
defining a career for myself. When you feel creative and are
passionate about all kinds of Art, what do you DO? Struggling with
this question and internalizing negative messages about artists and
creators seems to define this period in my life. Taking a look back
I am able to see for the first time some of the blocks to my own
creativity and its progression.
After college I eagerly venture into the "real world" and all my
deepest fears about being a creative person begin to surface. Will I
ever "make it" or actually find a career in a creative field? Maybe
I need to see what else is out in there in the way of a "real" job.
The moment I head down this path, I abandon my creative passions of
writing poetry and connecting with my inner artist. For a time, this
vital part of who I am falls by the wayside and I am not sure what
steps to take to reclaim it - I know that I need help. By some
providence I find the CCT graduate program and I begin another
amazing journey: the reclaiming of my creative self.
Utilizing skills introduced to me in my CCT courses, I am able to
begin excavating my past, present and future as a person who desires
to be an artist and a creative person for life. Free-writing,
strategic personal planning, and risk-taking are some of the tools
that aid in my creative re-birth. Through the meta-cognitive process
of critical and creative thinking, I am able to envision my life in
a way that I never have before. I delve into my past to unlock
blocks to my creativity, I recognize first-hand the importance of
community in my life, and I allow myself to voice hidden dreams and
to see them as possibilities. Finally I am able to reach a point
where I can say, with conviction: I AM AN ARTIST and whatever I end
up doing in my life, creating will be central and vital to whatever
I choose.
subject codes.RPN.ART
(Full Text)
Peg Harbert
Introducing Problem Solving through Literature at the Elementary
Level
1989, September
Directed by Schwartz
There has been much publicity the past few years, regarding
students' lack of basic skills, their inability to think clearly,
and their poor use of problem solving strategies. To focus on this
need, the following program has been designed to help elementary
teachers introduce problem solving in an organized manner adding
very little, if any extra material to the curriculum.; The program
aims to help students solve problems, critically, creatively, and
systematically.
Problem solving was chosen as the target area since the skills and
strategies used are closely related to those used in reading
comprehension, answering questions logically, and general good
thinking. The basic approach stems from E. Paul Torrance's, "Future
Problem Solving Process", (Torrance, l972); however, it has been
modified to incorporate eight stages, thus making problem solving
easier for teachers to introduce to elementary students. In order
for such a program to succeed, it was assumed the following criteria
would have to be met:
l) Students would have a definite starting point.
2) The problem could fit into the curriculum with a minimum amount
of modification.
3) Problems would move from the concrete to the abstract, from the
well-defined to the complex.
In order for teachers to utilize this thesis easily, the format and
lesson plans are included, as is a description of a two day workshop
used to introduced the program to the instructors. The rationale
behind the program, a selected review of current literature in its
area and a presentation of the general strategies used for effective
problem solving are presented. The first lesson in each stage
reveals how the program can be integrated into the present
curriculum without adding substantial new material. The second
lesson for each stage reveals how the program can be adapted to
teach problem solving within the realm of a specific teaching unit.
Both lessons contain the same goals. objectives, and strategies:
therefore, with the completion of either set of lessons, instructors
should feel comfortable teaching in this manner and students should
be on their way to becoming independent problem solvers.
subject codes .ELE
Carol D. Hardick
2012, December
Directed by Carol Smith
Life is a Journey
My converging areas of interest are the mind, critical thinking, and creative writing, which I synthesized as a sequential examination of the layers of the cognitive process of my creative writing. For my synthesis, I was interested in the creativity that results in good writing and I wanted to reflect on my own creativity, the styles and sources of it, and the cognitive processes that support it. The synthesis has three sections: the first section serves as an introduction to my ideas about creativity and the process of writing. The middle section is a collection of my stories, which I grouped together under the title “Heaven and Earth.” The third section is my after-thought, which reflects on the creativity and the process I used to write the stories. These seven short stories express my personal outlook on life and death, heaven and earth.
subject codes .WRL
(Full Text)
Michelle Hardy
Training Teaching Assistants In Theory And Methods: The Next
Professors Of Biology
2006, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
The purpose of this synthesis is twofold: to review the traditional
teaching methods used
to teach biology to undergraduates and compare them to the
constructivist methods found
in the literature. As the name implies, constructivism is an
approach to teaching and
learning based on the assumption that knowledge is the result of
mental construction.
After providing evidence that constructivist teaching methods are
well suited to learning
biology, this synthesis will discuss instructor training and
classroom practices. Teaching
assistants (TAs) are likely to be effective initiators of
constructivist strategies since they
commonly have the most contact with biology students. These methods
are easily
introduced into the laboratory where few resources are needed to
implement the tenets of
constructivism: problem-based learning, project based learning, peer
instruction, and
self-evaluation. The laboratory is currently used for the purpose of
teaching students to
use equipment and techniques that validate the discoveries of
others. Since the laboratory
environment is physically more conducive to active, student-centered
learning and the
TAs are the primary instructors found there, the conclusion is that
TAs should be trained
to use the primary aspects of constructivism before they teach in
the laboratory. Teaching
tools and lessons proven to help biology students are presented
before concluding with
some personal insights experienced while writing this paper.
subject codes .SCI
Alice Harrigan
1999, June
Directed by
subject codes
Anne Harrington
Teaching Critical and Creative Thinking Skills as Part of the
Technical Communications Curriculum
1989, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
I incorporated critical thinking instruction in the writing
curriculum by using three writing projects: journal writing, a
policy paper on AIDS, and an assignment to evaluate grammar
checkers. In their journal writing students both generated and
evaluated ideas. In the AIDS project, they reinforced these
convergent and divergent thinking skills within the context of a
real-world issue. For the software project, students practiced
thinking skills in an arena that was more technical and objective,
but in which they were evaluating fundamental writing criteria.
These diverse assignments, based on a philosophically compatible
approach to the teaching of writing, helped students develop
critical and creative thinking skills along with content knowledge
and effective written expression.
subject codes .TCE.WRL.MED
Maho Hatano
Recovery and Discovery to Become a Balanced Thinker-And Beyond
2007, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
Finding creativity was my good fortune. I changed, developed
thinking skills, and became a balanced being through my time in the
Critical and Creative Thinking (CCT) Program. Now I know what to
listen to and what not to listen to. I know how to nurture and heal
myself. CCT is not just a graduate program. It is a self-help
advisor or personal development coordinator, so to speak, so
students find what they really want to do in their lives and be
ready to do what they want to do after they leave CCT. In CCT, I
overcame my creativity blocks, acknowledged grief, asked what I
really want to do in my life, and found new interests. I confronted
a self who had been very critical yet seeking harmony. I solved my
struggles by seeking positives within myself by listening to my
creative voices. I just needed to "believe" that my works were not
as bad as I had thought. This synthesis is a written record of my
learning chain: creativity, death and dying, healing methods,
harmony maintenance, and a believing exercise. This sequence of my
discovering more about myself is a process of recovery from my
negative experiences in the past. And more importantly, this
sequence of my learning chain will keep adding up by learning and
experiencing even as I leave CCT. CCT has given me a method of how
to keep moving forward and enrich my life more and more. Creativity
is a ticket to enter a happier life.
subject codes .RPN
Bill Hayes
Critical Thinking through Literature: A Dialogue Teaching Model
1990, September
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson / Wanda Teays
Many traditional approaches to teaching literature depend on
lecturing and asking pointed or leading questions which require
correct answers. Through such lessons have their value, they do not
engage students in earnest and thoughtful discussions of literature.
Such methods may be useful for reviewing material, but they are not
sufficient to foster critical thinking.
The Dialogue Teaching Model evolves in eight phases. It allows
students to respond to literature at their own level of
understanding by giving students the opportunity to interpret
readings on their own. Using a dialogue approach, the teacher has
students make judgments or decision about their reading which they
must explain and defend during a class discussion. The discussion
allows students to test the soundness of their decisions by
comparing their arguments to those of others. In a later phase of
the lesson, students reflect on the strengths and weaknesses of
their interpretations. The teacher facilitates the learning process
by guiding the discussion and by helping students examine their own
thinking. After the dialogue has been completed students may
maintain or revise their initial decisions, depending on how well
they were able to defend their positions.
Evaluation is an ongoing process in the Dialogue Teaching Model,
since the teacher observes and assesses students during the dialogue
and reflection phases of the lesson. Students also demonstrate their
knowledge and improve their skills through writing and/or speaking
assignments at the end of the lesson. Evaluation is viewed as part
of the learning process and is not limited to a testing procedure.
The Dialogue Teaching Model gives students the opportunity to become
more active learners. By considering a number of different
viewpoints, students can develop a deeper understanding of both
literature and critical thinking . Students are not told what to
think: they decide for themselves through discourse and reflection.
In the process of teaching literature and critical thinking, the
Dialogue Teaching Model encourages effective speech, attentive
listening, improved writing skills, and autonomy of thought.
subject codes .WRL
Lisa Hayes
Critical Thinking In Elementary Science Instruction Using
Portfolios And Cooperative Learning
1994, May
Directed by Arthur B. Millman
Elementary science education often does not reflect the processes
used n professional science. Students are instructed in a
recipe-oriented way to follow predetermine procedures in order to
come to predetermined results. The embedding of critical thinking
skills instruction into science curriculum makes it possible for
science instruction to more closely resemble professional science.
This curriculum development thesis utilizes critical thinking skills
and instructional strategies as a basis for embedding critical
thinking skills instruction into a series of lessons on the topic of
sound. Each lesson includes objectives for science content and
thinking skills, a motivational activity, use of portfolios for
metacognition, and an activity to promote the transfer of the
targeted thinking skills. Students work in cooperative learning
groups to which they belong during the entire lesson series.
A trial implementation of the lessons was conducted in a suburban,
heterogeneous, self-contained, third grade classroom. It became
clear that this method of teaching requires more student and teacher
input and greater effort than traditional methods. The role of the
teacher shifts from director to facilitator, and the students become
much more involved in the direction their learning takes. Based on
constant observation, the teacher must design activities and ask
questions which motivate students to continually reshape and modify
their thinking.
Students demonstrated an improved ability to accept science as a
work in progress, developed questioning skills, and learned to
transfer knowledge to new situations. They also began to recognize
discrepancies between past and present thinking. Yet some students
held on to misconceptions and showed resistance to change in light
of opposing evidence. One example of these misconceptions is the
belief that sound always passes through transparent objects. This
thesis not only provides sample lessons for other teachers, but also
serves as a stepping stone for further investigation of students'
misconceptions about sound.
subject codes .WRL.ELE
Gretchen Heath
Individual Transitions Between Organizational Cultures
2007, May
Directed by Arthur B. Millman
When transitioning between organizational cultures, an individual
can learn to identify and relate to the new culture by using
organizational culture theories, understanding his or her own rate
of adoption (the rate at which members of a social system adopt new
ideas), and identifying with the behaviors of the employees of the
new organization. By identifying the culture and behaviors of the
new organization, an individual will know which behaviors are
accepted within the new culture and which are not. A successful
transition requires the letting go of the old, in collaboration with
the accepting of the new. When a person is transitioning, he or she
needs to cope with the grieving of his or her loss (of the past
culture and environment) and the accepting of the new culture
simultaneously. A person may realize different phases during his or
her transition and can use these identified phases as guidelines to
bring him or her through the transition. When the culture is finally
adopted by the individual and the values and behaviors become shared
with other employees of the organization and its culture, the person
has successfully made the transition.
subject codes .COR
(Full Text)
Judith Helmund
Children's Aesthetic Perception: A Developmental Study of
Judgements and Attitudes Concerning the Drawings and Paintings of
Children
1987, May
Directed by Claire Dolomb
Though children's aesthetic sensitivity has been explored quite
extensively in recent years, studies of this subject have been
confined to children's response to adult art. In this study two sets
of stimulus materials were devised, which enabled the examiner to
elicit children's responses to their own artistic productions, as
well as those of other children of similar age. The subjects in this
first study were kindergarten children, 5-6 years old, who were
interviewed individually about their own artistic productions and
the media they employed in creating them.
The second study extended the age range to include students from
kindergarten through second grade, ages 5-8, and employed a set of
stimulus materials representing the art work of children 5-9 years
of age. Subjects were interviewed individually by the examiner and
questions were devised to elicit response to a variety of aesthetic
considerations.
Students in both groups showed evidence of aesthetic sensitivity in
their preferences, in critical comments and in their awareness of
the developmental nature of art. Children in the first study, which
employed both production and perception tasks, displayed greater
enthusiasm as well as greater sensitivity to aesthetic elements.
Both studies identified a strong cognitive-developmental component
in aesthetic responding, evident not only in children's changing
views and responses, but in their awareness of skills and abilities.
Children gave evidence of reflection, interest, and a dialogue
between production and perception. The studies confirm the presence
of, and the developmental nature of aesthetic awareness in young
children.
subject codes .CUL
Bayse Hendrix
Critical Thinking Dispositions: The Need for a Balanced
Curriculum in Collegiate Critical Thinking Courses
1999, June
Directed by Arthur Millman
The aim of this synthesis is to argue that students cannot become
effective thinkers simply by being taught the analytical skills of
critical reading, writing, and thinking. Without learning the
necessary dispositions of critical thinking students will not
develop into well-rounded, effective thinkers. The study is focused
on an already existing course at Mass Bay Community College. The
present curriculum is based on the fundamental skills of determining
the soundness and validity of an argument. Assisting and encouraging
the obtainment of critical thinking dispositions will inspire
students to become more aware of the role their listening and
communicating skills and behaviors have on their ability to think
effectively. As Kirby and Goodpaster assert, "We have become what we
have thought about and who we will become is limited by how and what
we think"(5).
Dispositions are "inclinations and habits of mind that benefit
productive thinking"(Tishman, Perkins, and Jay 1995, 37). Being
open-minded, deferring judgment, listening to multiple perspectives,
and having intellectual humility and intellectual curiosity are a
few thinking dispositions that are presented in the discussion as
well as in the proposed curriculum. Ennis, Paul, Tishman et al, all
support the incorporation of thinking dispositions into critical
thinking course curriculums.
The curriculum presented in this synthesis is designed to engage
students in thoughtful exploratory activities to help foster and
cultivate dispositions required for effective thinking. The lesson
plans are created with the intention of reinforcing students'
tendencies to transfer knowledge, utilize metacognitive strategies,
and practice applying thinking dispositions in various scenarios and
exercises. The curriculum utilizes critical thinking dispositions
and incorporates the enhancement of listening, communicating, and
behavioral skills. Each lesson includes a description of
dispositions to be explored; an activity to encourage the fostering
of those dispositions; goals and objectives; and attention to mental
management and transfer of skills. The objective of incorporating
nineteen dispositions into a pre-existing critical thinking
curriculum is to help freshman college students become reasonable,
reflective, and focused thinkers and decision-makers.
subject codes .TCE
Joe Herosy
Musical Composition: A Personal Journey of Discovery Through
Critical and Creative Thinking
2003, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
This project consists of the creation of a musical composition, a
recording of that composition (on a CD attached to the inside
cover), and this paper which describes this creative work and views
it through the lens of critical and creative thinking skills learned
at University of Massachusetts, Boston. The motivation for the
project is to improve my ability to create music by analyzing my
strengths and weaknesses as a composer.
The musical piece entitled, "Wedding in Chicago" was created with
out any pre- conceived plan for how to compose. After the piece was
designed, I wrote about the critical and creative thinking processes
that were used in the creation. As a result of this sequence, the
techniques and the modes of thought used to create the work brought
to light my true abilities as a creator. This sequence also allowed
me to realize weaknesses in my creative abilities which in turn will
help me create compositions. Since the analysis of the composition
process was completed before the literature review, the literature
is therefore used to validate my work and to suggest further
improvements. Through this process I demonstrate the relevance of
thinking skills learned in the Critical and Creative Thinking
Program.
A reoccurring theme that presents itself as a result of this work is
that both critical and creative though are required in the
completion of my composition and recording. The literature review,
coupled with analysis of my own work suggests that I need to shift
rapidly between the two modes of thought. This interplay of critical
and creative thinking is interestingly analogous to the use of
contrasting musical elements that characterize the creation of my
composition.
subject codes.ART
Alyssa Hinkell
Social Action Teaching: Engaging Middle School Students in
Knowing And Doing in the Social Studies Classroom
2009, May
Directed by Nina Greenwald
For the past three years I have had countless opportunities to
engage in rich thinking around teaching and learning. As a member of
the Critical and Creative Thinking Program (CCT) at the University
of Massachusetts, Boston I have been able to reflect on these
experiences in the context of my own teaching, applying what I have
learned to enrich my own craft. Over the past eight months I have
devoted this thinking to a teaching method I call Social Action
Teaching. This method has helped to engage and motivate my seventh
grade students and I believe, if applied elsewhere, can have a
similar impact on other students.
This Synthesis describes the four elements of Social Action
Teaching: Classroom Core, Community Connectedness, Civic Awareness,
and Global Responsibility. The foundational core of the classroom
and the three branches of Social Action Teaching reflect each of the
communities that students should be able to effectively navigate.
This work describes a two-part process by which this navigation can
occur. First, students need to possess the knowledge set associated
with each community, whether it be the local, national, or global
community. Second, teachers must provide opportunities for students
to act upon this knowledge as they develop skills necessary for the
21st century.
Any reader of this Synthesis should feel free to use the specific
method described in this work or simply use their own thinking to
design another, equally engaging, motivating, and empowering method.
My intention with this work is not to convert the disbeliever into a
fanatic who will then walk around wearing a sandwich board that
displays the many successes of Social Action Teaching. Rather, the
wider purpose of this work is to provide a fresh lens with which we
can each view our teaching, identify problem areas, implement a new
creative method, and critically reflect on its impact on our
students.
subject codes .MSE.SOC
(full text)
Pamela Imperato
The Thinking Business
1990, September
Directed by John R. Murray
Technological advances, integration of world economics, and shifts
in America's economic base from a goods-producing to a service-based
economy are among the factors which will contribute to dramatic
alterations in business practices in the coming decade. While the
success of private enterprise will no doubt continue to be measured
by profit margin, the means to insure this success is changing. No
longer is it sufficient to believe that the integration of
technological innovations in the workplace or adjustments in
business strategies to improve competiveness will insure success in
the market place.
A critical step in promoting competitiveness must be taken in the
area where products are manufactured, services rendered, and
strategic decisions made - the workplace. It will be here, on the
shop floor, at the repair bench, in the board room where America's
competitive edge must be the sharpest. American industry will need
to increase its sensitivity to international marketplace needs by
adopting a global perspective in the conceptualization, production,
and marketing of products and services.
Business must adapt quickly to changes in consumer needs, seizing
opportunities to develop and market new products and services. The
ability to take on these challenges does not rest solely in the
organization of a business or in the potential of a new technology,
but also on the abilities of workers to bring forth these changes.
It will be a business which empowers workers to become thoughtful,
reflective contributors to the workplace which will survive and
flourish.
Employee training programs can no longer focus on discrete,
immediately applicable, and often non-transferable skills which
foster a reliance on a cycle of worker training and retraining.
Instead, a new approach to training must emerge, one which
acknowledge the human component as a critical element in devising
successful responses to changing economic and technological demands.
Since the creation of a single strategy for training is
inappropriate, the author presents four recommendations to serve as
a framework from which to approach the design of workplace training
programs for the development of a thinking business.
subject codes .COR
Setsuko Inoue
Euthanasia: Understanding Ethical Issues Through Role-Play
1999, June
Directed by Arthur Millman
Having transformed traditional ethics, people have empowered
themselves and put ethics under their control. An individual's value
has become the center of all decision making. where has ethics gone?
Why has ethics been fossilized? when an individual desperately needs
a litmus test to check his stance, why cannot he re-visit ethics and
apply its insights to solving his problems? I wish to believe that
there might be a legacy of conventional ethics in the form of
universal rules, regardless of time, culture, and context, to be
passed on to the next generation. Has God given us life, death, and
choice of life? Has God also given us the ability to understand
another person's pain? If so, we need to be conscientious about what
is an appropriate way to resolve problems along with
multi-disciplinary approaches in the postmodern world.
How much has ethics tried to adapt current science/technology? Has
ethics offered us any appropriate way of dealing with what's right
and/or wrong or with alternatives, whenever we are in the midst of
complicated problems? when did we begin to omit ethics in our
decision making process? Ethics seems not to be the sole value, but
it has to compete with other contemporary values.
The presently burning issue called euthanasia is everyone's
business, one we all have to face. I wonder if death is part of
God's purpose for lives or a divine appointment. The conundrum
intertwined with euthanasia relates to how to reach a satisfactory
end of life backed up by ethics. Critical and Creative Thinking
could help us go through the crux of the issue and mold an
individual's ethical decision, while maintaining a balance with
social justice.
My goal in this synthesis paper is two fold: to provide a
theoretical description of euthanasia and to prepare English
teaching materials for Japanese college students on reading
comprehension, by garnering the latest news/research from leading
newspapers, periodicals, and the internet, and role play to help
exchange views, to share empathy and I hope to create a climate of
mutual trust among participants by the time role-play reaches its
debriefing session.
subject codes .MED.MOR
Kit Irwin
Fiction Writing and the Unconscious: A Memoir
2007, May
Directed by Carol Smith
In this paper, the expert knowledge of cognitive psychologists,
writers, neuroscientists, writing teachers, social psychologists,
Weight Watchers, marketing professors, historians, and a tennis pro,
along with my experience as a published fiction writer, have been
combined and synthesized into a collection of nuggets that give
scientifically based ways to improve one's writing and one's writing
process. Particular attention has been paid to the way that the
unconscious affects writing and its effects on readers.
Cognitive psychologists Dijksterhuis and Nordgren's theory of
unconscious thought (UTT) recommends using unconscious thought for
complex decisions and conscious thought for simple decisions
(Dijksterhuis & Nordgren, 2006). Neuroscientist Arne Dietrich's
hypothesis of transient hypofrontality suggests that what are seen
as higher level of consciousness, such as meditation and runner's
high, may actually be reduced level of consciousness, and that
Csikszentmihalyi's concept of flow may occur when the unconscious's
automatic processes are in control (Dietrich, 2007). Cognitive
psychologist Kihlstrom's cognitive unconscious suggests that the
unconscious plays a role in our thinking, learning, perception, and
memory (Kihlstrom, 1987). Cognitive psychologist Wilson (2002)
suggests that your concept of who you are is based on your
observations of your behavior, and that if you change your behavior,
you can change who you think you are. Boice (1994), a writer and
psychologist, suggests that the methods that work best for writing
are the usually ones that are counterintuitive, such as stopping
writing in the middle of a sentence can make it easier to start
writing the next day. Writer Goldberg and psychologists Brewin and
Lennard suggest that the mode of writing - handwriting or typing -
can affect the emotional content of your writing (Goldberg, 1986;
Brewin and Lennard, 1999). This knowledge and more has been
synthesized into nuggets.
Zafris, Painter, other writers and writing teachers, suggest that a
literary short story contains more than one story: an outer story
that is plot driven and an inner story that is the emotional core of
the story. I hypothesize that the outer story is written for the
conscious mind and the inner story is read by the unconscious, and
that near the end of the story, the inner and outer stories combine
to produce an ending the feels surprising to the conscious mind and
inevitable to the unconscious.
subject codes .WRL
Craig Jackson
Cross-Cultural Teaching and Learning: Teaching Environmental
Education in Costa Rica
1997, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
Teachers often face large cultural gaps between them and their
students. They also often find (especially in science education)
that students have not learned what supposedly has been taught them.
To counter this lack of learning, some educators argue students must
construct their own learning if that learning is to be meaningful.
Furthermore, students must address their own prior alternative
conceptions. If they do not, these alternative conceptions may be
retained, even in the face of instruction to the contrary.
Freire and others have addressed the gap between teachers and
students. They have emphasized the need for educators to make
learning meaningful by validating students' prior understanding,
relating their teaching to the students' experiences, and empowering
their students. The teacher is left questioning how can she achieve
these goals: (1) What should her role be? (2) What dispositions
should she adopt? and (3) What critical and creative thinking
abilities should she employ?
Citing Richard Paul, Teresa Amabile, Paolo Freire, and Strike and
Posner, among others, this thesis addresses these questions by
examining literature on critical and creative thinking, liberatory
education, and conceptual change, and relating these to my
experiences as a Peace Corps volunteer in Costa Rica. It presents my
preparation and development of a program of studies in environmental
education as a case study for cross cultural teaching and learning.
I explain how I addressed my three goals: to (I) teach environmental
principles to my students (2) share teaching strategies and
techniques with other teachers and (3) empower my students to
realize they can and should make their own decisions with respect to
their environment, but should also approach issues from a multi
logical perspective. I show how the teacher can help her students
construct their own learning by relating lessons to the students'
experiences and building upon them. I indicate ways in which prior
alternative conceptions can be confronted and multilogical
perspectives encouraged. Finally, I emphasize the teacher should
examine and understand both her students' background(s) and her own,
and may, at various times, have to play five different roles: (I)
facilitator (2) guide (3) mode] (4) learner and (5) sharer.
subject codes .ENV
Christine Jacques
Philosophical Teaching as a Means for Raising Critical and Moral
Consciousness
1996, September
Directed by Judith Collison
Traditionally, high school English classes have been "tracked",
according to ability level. This thesis addresses the problem of
teaching an English course to a heterogeneous group of students with
diverse academic backgrounds and a range of abilities. It shows how
a philosophy-based approach to teaching, as compared with the
traditional/didactic approach, provided a means for every ability
level of student to participate in the thinking/learning process.
"Philosophical teaching" is a method of teaching and a way of
learning that promotes
critical thinking, self-expression, and reasoning through
self-reflection, while developing critical and moral consciousness
at the same time. It is a method of inquiry that relies on the use
of Socratic questioning, small group discussions, and empathic modes
of learning as its primary teaching tools. Given the circumstances
of this night school English class, both teacher and students found
that philosophical teaching proved to be a viable way to help
adolescents learn the required content and to think critically and
morally.
subject codes .MOR
Marnie Jain
Tension and Critical Thinking in Art
2009, December
Directed by Arthur Millman
This paper is a discussion about the existence, purpose, and use of
tension in works of art. It does not take the form of standard
papers, but is written as an interview where I am both the
interviewer and interviewee. As the interviewee I am an artist and
researcher of this topic. As the interviewer, I challenge myself to
support my assertions with examples, and I try and catch myself in
contradictions, and ask for clarifications.
Similar to conversations we have in the classrooms of the Critical
and Creative Thinking Graduate Program, the discussion in this paper
does not cease at some final agreement or truth, but carries forward
in the quiet of our minds after walking away. This is the heart of
the matter, how art affects us, how it works with or against the
perceptions that we hold, and how it may open us to different and
critical thinking.
subject codes .ART
Michael Johns
Mutual Mondays, PTSD and Dialogue Process with Veterans of Armed Conflict: Becoming a facilitator, and healing along with participants
2011, August
Directed by Peter Taylor
After nearly five years working with youth offenders, addressing the trauma and stress of their lives in gangs and prison I was ready for my current job as a municipal Director of Veterans Services. These positions have given me the opportunity to start addressing posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD] that has plagued me for over 20 years, since I flew in the US Navy. Mutual Mondays is a forum I created which brings together veterans using the Dialogue Process to empathically, intellectually, and communally address the effects of participation in armed conflict. Mutual Mondays has been a productive vehicle for veterans connecting with community, moving out of isolation, and starting to recognize, as well as act on opportunities to improve overall health. Based on my personal experience as a veteran and involvement with Mutual Mondays, I believe that the complexity of issues facing the invisibly wounded and the resistance to seek therapy underscore the need for alternative methods of helping them. // In this synthesis paper I set the scene with some vignettes, describe how PTSD as a personal and wider social problem led to the idea of mutual support that is central to the Dialogue Process and its implementation in Mutual Mondays. I relate parallel explorations of alternative theories and practices, including my own recent Cognitive Behavioral Therapy treatment as a veteran. With a view to ongoing development, I introduce some working themes, including CANVAS, PEACE, USA, ECDT and disciplined writing and research structures, as well as the challenges of evaluating Mutual Mondays and its potential for use with other populations. To close I revisit the opening scenes. // In retrospect I see that the impetus for this project was the desire to learn if a dedicated person or group of people can start a community grassroots effort to serve populations in need that can be replicated easily to other communities if the concept is validated through experience. Going forward, I am interested to know if the wave of momentum will attract care-givers and those in need; and if it is possible to get those served to be in a position to be the care-givers, in a perpetual model of mutual support, positively influencing those giving and receiving.
subject codes.COM
(Full Text)
Kevin Johnson
Web-Based Transitioning for Students with Disabilities:
Learning from Existing Limitations to Design a Process that Leaves
No Child Behind
2006, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
Students with disabilities face numerous obstacles. This is
especially true while in the process of postsecondary transitioning,
moving from secondary (K-12) to Post-secondary schooling (College,
University or Community College). The transitioning process poses
obstacles to all students however students with disabilities
confront additional obstacles unique to having a disability. Federal
law mandates public secondary schools design transition plans, a
written plan detailing students' transition from secondary to
postsecondary school. Secondary schools must also create
opportunities for students to develop both academic and life skills
critical to successfully take the postsecondary leap and remain
successful at the postsecondary level. The need for effective and
efficient transition planning has become critical for these students
in an era of revised public higher education admissions standards
and more stringent K-12 learning standards. This climate has placed
increasing demands on the educators responsible for facilitating the
transitioning process; rendering the development and writing of
transition plans outdated, incomplete and ineffective. This problem
with transition plans has led me to consider an alternative approach
the subject of this synthesis.
To help facilitate a solution I have designed a proposal that
remains in progress for the development of a web-based application
that I call, The Transition Portal with the following objectives:
- Organize the transition planning process allowing schools to
monitor those students of highest risk.
- Provide educators the means to actively write transition plans
that represent the goals and interests of the student over an
extended period of time.
- Give transition plans the ability to travel with the student
throughout their educational careers allowing critical information
to be transferred and revised by educators that work with a
particular student from middle school on through to post-secondary
institutions.
Such a process will allow for the process to develop along with the
student's own development. The flexibility associated with web-based
application creates a platform that will assist in the coordination
of services with external agencies. Many external agencies currently
assist schools in the distribution of critical services ensuring
that those students most in need and most at risk receive critical
support during an important phase in their lives. The overall goal
of this project is to help improve student and teacher productivity
and empowerment. The proposal for the implementation of The
Transition Portal is intended for use with students who might
otherwise be left to fall through the cracks.
subject codes .TCE
Patricia Kate Johnson
Teaching Government: The Child as a Power Base
1980, May
Directed by
subject codes .GOV
Judith L. Kahalas
Death and Dying: A High School Curriculum
1982
Directed by
subject codes .MSE
Brian Keegan
Developing the Critical Literacy Web
1997, May
Directed by ?
The rapid advancement of communications technology in the past
decade has given rise to widespread speculation about how
educational and informational matter might best be presented. As
Neil Postman points out, the "imperial age of typography" is over.
The linear presentation of ideas in simple text form has given way
to other methods, from hypertext presentation to complex
audio-visual orchestrations.
In trying to create a project that embodies the spirit of Critical
and Creative Thinking (CCT), I have taken advantage of advancing
technology to present information concerning CCT in an interactive
format that allows the learner to explore the subject in both its
academic and everyday manifestations. I have designed a World Wide
Web site, called the Critical Literacy Web, that introduces site
visitors to the academic origins and content of CCT, and invites
visitors to explore CCT as it can be applied in their lives. The
site also links to various selected resources elsewhere on the web
that are relevant to CCT.
subject codes.TEC.WRL
Jane Kenefick
The Use of Dialogue in Education: Research, Implementation and
Personal/Professional Evaluation
2004, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
As I reflect back on my learning through the Program in Critical and
Creative Thinking (CCT), The Dialogue Process course (CCT 616) has
been the pivotal experience for my current research and future
career direction. Research and observations I have made in my work
show that dialogue practice in elementary classrooms leads to
overall learning through community building in the classroom, and to
more effective student thinking and meta-cognitive strategies.
Although I believe in the importance of dialogue in education, I
have struggled with implementing it into my own teaching. The
struggle itself has stimulated a deeper examination of the obstacles
as I see them. It has also required personal and professional
reflection on my process through CCT, and communicating my ideal
vision of dialogue in the larger scheme of my work and life.
My synthesis highlights my learning experiences through the CCT
program and the influences it had on my career. It discusses some of
the critical points of my experiences in connection to my specific
interest in Dialogue. Without this reflection on past learning, my
current reflection would be impossible. Naming those skills and
ideals that I have drawn from my coursework, has enabled me to
reconnect with my passion for education itself, as well as the value
the dialogue process holds for learning and teaching. By asking
myself the question of why I am finding implementation of dialogue
so difficult, I've been able to answer this and other questions
relating to the question of where I am headed with my professional
life and why.
subject codes.COM
(Full Text)
Marie Kenerson
Stepping Stones for Living Creativity: A Holistic Approach to
Critical and Creative Thinking
1997, May
Directed by ?
This paper synthesizes the current thinking of Peter Senge, Margaret
Wheatley and Robert Fritz, and presents the development of personal
mastery in a relational context as a way to facilitate an individual
and collective shift in consciousness to a more creative
orientation. I contend that it is the natural desire, and indeed the
responsibility, of each of us to create what we want in our lives
rather than to be bound by the status quo or past patterns of
acceptable behavior. When we do, we make possible a new collective
future based on a critical viewing of our current reality.
Fundamental to this new frame of reference are the development of
connection-making and meaning-making capabilities. This paper offers
various tools, methodologies and experimental exercises to build
these capacities for action, based on the recent work of Richard
Paul in Critical Thinking, George Prince in Creative Thinking,
Matthew Lipman in Caring Thinking and Robert Cooper in Emotional
Intelligence. Group process practices are based on tenets that are
the foundation of Dialogue as proposed by physicist David Bohm,
spiritual teacher J. Krishnamurti, and Alcoholics Anonymous.
As a practice laboratory I agreed to design and facilitate a
workshop of eight two-hour sessions for ten to twelve people using
these methodologies to enhance life skills and supplement the
recovery process defined by the Alcoholics Anonymous Twelve Step
Program. Participants were a group of men living in a half-way
house, The Answer House, for a four month period during which they
practiced strengthening their new-found sobriety and prepared to
enter the "real world." By providing these tools as "Stepping Stones
for Living Creatively" at this particular time, I sought to build
skills that would allow these people to observe with clarity, expand
perceptions of what is possible, and increase capacity to learn and
interact effectively. My thesis was that with practice, these skills
could become embedded in a way of life that enabled participants to
experience and observe themselves in relation to themselves, to
others and to the whole (group) in a way that continually opened
options and possibilities and made room for creativity to take
place.
Participants at the end of the program reported they experienced an
expanded sense of self and increased confidence. Managers of the
Answer House confirmed this, saying individuals displayed openness,
appropriate vulnerability and resilience in daily interactions.
subject codes.FRP
Kimberley Kent
Development of Critical Thinking through Art Production
1996, May
Directed by Delores Gallo
Most discussion and application of the skills of critical thinking
involves verbal or written language. The symbol systems of
mathematics and science are included, but the symbol systems of art
are often not included. When critical thinking is included in an art
curriculum, the critical thinking is seen as being developed through
verbal or written assessments such as
art history, art criticism or aesthetics, rather than through the
art production. The act of creating art is frequently left out of
the discussion. This omission causes the loss of an important
opportunity to teach critical thinking skills. It also leads to the
devaluation of the
role of art in education.
This thesis details ways in which creative and critical thinking are
required to meet the National Visual Arts Standards. It also
discusses Arts Propel and Discipline-Based Art Education, two
current models of art education that teach critical and creative
thinking.
The central concern of this thesis is the documentation of the
critical thinking involved in the production of art. The thesis
presents a case study of students in a studio-based, introductory
art class at an urban Catholic high school. Student journals are
analyzed for the development of critical thinking through the
students' art work. These skills are
identified in the writings of experts in the field, such as Richard
Paul, Robert Ennis and Lauren Resnick. This thesis also addresses
some of the connections between critical and creative thinking,
referring to work by Delores Gallo and Theresa Amabile.
The specific critical thinking skills documented through the
journals include self-regulation of the thinking process, setting
goals, recognizing the achievement of those goals, and increased
clarity, specificity and complexity of analysis and evaluation.
subject codes .CUL
Lori Kent
Critical Thinking and the Critical Viewing of Art
1992, December
Directed by Delores B. Gallo
A command of critical thinking can enhance aesthetic encounter by
giving the individual a better reflective understanding of the
process of viewing and the content of art. Art is important. It
gives pleasure, aids in human development, defines a part of
culture, and helps humans to make sense out of the world. Yet,
despite art's positive role, few viewers consciously work to improve
their capabilities and critical reflective judgment about art.
Critical thinking skills can be taught through the content of art
just as the aesthetic viewing process can be enhanced through
critical thinking skills. Art educators remain, for the most part,
unaware of the advances being made in the teaching for thinking in
education.
An interdisciplinary overview of the disciplines of art, critical
thinking, interpretative traditions, and the aesthetic viewing
process is the foundation of knowledge for the critical viewer. The
critical viewer uses critical thinking to enhance the process of
apprehension and the content of the art experience.
Theory presented in this work is used in the conceptualization of a
model for critical viewing. The theory, which acknowledges affect
and cognition as complementary ways of knowing, is sequential but
non-hierarchical. The five steps in the model are: Sustained
Viewing, Analysis, Informed Viewing, Synthesis, and Reflection.
The viewing process is developed through teaching for thinking
strategies. Self-guided museum explorations teach individual
thinking skills and guide the reader through an aesthetic viewing
process similar to that of expert viewers. The readers is encouraged
to be metacognitive about the process and the content of the
aesthetic encounter.
the critical viewer gains more than an enhanced ability to view art.
The skills and abilities of critical viewing may be transferred to
other content and contents, hence enriching the critical viewer's
life as a whole.
subject codes .CUL
Eileen Kestenbaum
The Computer As A Tool: The Metaphor In Educational Settings
1999, December
Directed by Millman
This paper seeks to engage its principal audience, classroom
teachers, and its broader audience, educational professionals, in an
examination of the learning theories and practices that underlie the
values and assumptions inherent in computer use. The paper considers
the effects of using computers in education, effects that often come
into play before the user (student and/or teacher) has even touched
the computer. I take as a particular point of entry the phrase "the
computer is a tool" whose meaning is rarely considered or discussed.
I suggest drawing attention to this phrase from three different
perspectives (1) the implications of thinking about tools as
metaphors; (2) the effects on thinking or cognition of using
computers as tools; and (3) the implications of using computer
metaphors to think about thinking. This discussion draws upon the
work of Michael Polanyi, Israel Scheffler, Malcolm McCullough, and
Richard Boyd. Combining these perspectives, the closing chapter
presents issues and open-ended questions that I hope other educators
will join me in thinking about.
Over the last ten years, observations, conversations, and misguided
uses have suggested to me that there is an "uncritical" and
"unthinking" use of technology for technology's sake. Because of
this underlying current, I considered it essential to my development
as a professional technology specialist, and in my role as
support-person for encounters between students, teachers, and
computers, that I personally develop a conceptual basis for making
judgments about educational computer use and offer it to other
educators who share my concerns. I encourage students and teachers
to move beyond the metaphor to a more detailed understanding of what
is happening: cognitively, instructionally, emotionally, and
perhaps, even spiritually. When one chooses to use a computer as a
pedagogic tool, the concept of "tool" does not do justice to the
human transformation-education-which takes place.
subject codes .THR.TEC
Deborah G. King
1997, May
Directed by
subject codes
John King
Writing Essays on Advertisements to Teach Critical and Creative
Thinking
1991, May
Directed by Joseph W. Check
The synthesis of critical and creative thinking presented in this
curriculum is a highly contextualized answer to a very broad
question: how can students develop responsible and effective
thinking through writing when the subject matter is complex and
involves values? Advertisements are complex and value-laden-they
provide rich material for the development of thinking. Three aspects
of advertisement that pose specific challenges to thinking are
discussed: their presentation of appearance as reality, their use of
symbols, and their ability to transfer values onto products.
Students learn specific thinking strategies that help them
understand and respond to these aspects of advertisements. The
thinking strategies are integrated into writing exercises that
follow a process-oriented approach to essay writing. In the
exercises, students pose questions, respond to the writing of their
peers and engage in a variety of different conceptual interactions
with an advertisement. They integrate their responses into an
effective point of view, revise and edit their writing with
attention to intended audience. Students develop a scoring rubric,
provide a comprehensive self-evaluation, and conference with the
teacher at the end of the curriculum. Students publish their essays
in a class anthology. Their essays are the culmination of their
efforts: the product that demonstrates the development of their
thoughts. The lessons are designed for high school English students
in a way that gives the students responsibility for their own work.
Each lessons contains thinking skills objectives, detailed
descriptions of activities, journal writing assignments, follow-up
activities, and writing samples. The curriculum is preceded by an in
depth review of current curricula and specific work of chosed
theorists from the fields of thinking, writing, and advertising.
subject codes .WRL.MSE
Katherine Kittredge
A Critical Thinking Unit on Electricity and Magnetism to
Encourage Females and Minorities
1992, September
Directed by John R. Murray
This thesis examines possible reasons for female and minority
student avoidance of high school physics, and then discusses an
electricity and magnetism curriculum designed to help all students,
but especially girls and minorities, succeed in such subjects. The
sixteen lessons in the curriculum encourage all students by
providing hands-on experiences and guidance which leads the students
to develop their critical and creative thinking and problem solving
skills as they draw conclusions about their investigations and then
apply their conclusions to new situations and problems.
Some factors which discourage female and minority students from
taking courses in mathematics and science are low self-confidence,
negative social conditioning and low expectations, negative views of
math and science, and poorly designed instructional materials and
pedagogy. These factors my discourage those students who do enroll
in such courses from applying themselves and may cause some to drop
out.
In order to teach students successfully, a conscious effort is made
to structure the electricity and magnetism lessons so that the
students have active and meaningful classroom experience which
engage them in critical and creative thinking. The students are
taught to reflect upon their thinking and to share thinking
strategies and problem solving strategies with other students. The
hands-on activities foster self-confidence and allow students to
internalize the new knowledge. Because problem solving, discovering,
and hypothesizing all demand that students admit ignorance and/or
risk answers which may be incorrect, it is important to help them
develop self-confidence so that they become willing to risk being
wrong and to persevere through frustration. Therefore, the classroom
environment is structured so that it will support and encourage all
students and provide them with real world applications.
subject codes .GEN.SCI.MSE
Sabine Koopmann
Empowerment through Creativity: A Workshop for Women
1991, December
Directed by
This thesis addresses the problems women face when attempting to
become and be recognized as creative persons. In a patriarchal
culture the dominant social image of a woman conflicts with the
image of a creative person. The model that knowledge is always
constructed within a frame of reference, which has been developed as
part of the critical thinking movement, is used to explain the
discrepancies between a patriarchal and a feminist approach to
identifying creative work. Claiming that there is a need for the
empowerment of women by accessing their creativity and helping them
employ it, the author designs a four day workshop for that purpose.
The examination of traditional theories of the nature and origin of
creativity shows that they have not adequately considered female
experience or contributions. The exploration of the psychological
and social obstacles to women's creativity reveals three major types
of problems with: (1) women's development of the self, (2) common
female life experiences, and (3) patriarchal standards for the
evaluation of creative work. A feminist definition of creativity as
self-actualization is derived. Furthermore, the author suggests
feminist standards for evaluation: diversity and equality,
accessibility and non-hierarchy, mending the Cartesian split and
interconnectedness with the immediate and larger community.
Employing these standards and the definition of creativity as
self-actualization, the time frame, group of participants,
environment, and creativity-enhancing techniques for the workshop
are explained, and the workshop is described in detail session by
session.
Finally, the author addresses the issues of recommended behaviors
and attitudes for instructors of such a workshop and of appropriate
tools for the evaluation of the success of the workshop. The
intention of this educational intervention is to make a small
contribution to empowering women and to changing the dominant social
views of creativity.
subject codes .GEN.CTY
Jane LaChance
Illness Stories: From Recognizing The Significance In Care To
Planning My Own Storied Practice
2007, December
Directed by Arthur Millman
In this paper, stories of illness are identified as belonging to a
specific genre of story that represents an ill personâs
interpretation of experience and hence the meaning(s) of illness.
The ill person is recognized as member of a family embedded in a
social setting with cultural mores that contribute to experience and
meanings. The meaning of illness is significant because it affects
the care of illness. This paper focuses on chronic illness, an
illness without cure that is managed over a lifetime and is
characterized by remission and exacerbation of symptoms. Our current
bio-medical health care system reframes the illness to disease,
reduces it to pathology and misses the meaning for patients.
Conflict and noncompliance result. What I am calling a storied
approach complements current care and management of chronic illness
by improving patient care, and the management of illness and by
encouraging collaborative care. We organize experience and make
sense of things by telling our stories. Jerome Bruner characterizes
narrative knowing based on storytelling as a way to construct
reality and understand human behavior. The conception of illness
story is based on the work of Arthur Kleinman, who has studied
chronic illness meaning(s), and describes a supporting framework
that includes symptom meaning, cultural input and personal/social
meaning and explanatory models. Stories change over time and
circumstance; the meaning of illness experience changes. Two
research studies are presented to identify factors that influence
change from loss to mastery. The story of my nursing practice in
case management has significantly changed over time with new skills,
knowledge and experience acquired in the Critical and Creative
Thinking Program. I briefly describe my progress at the beginning of
each chapter. I propose a reorientation of my nursing practice as
well as next steps to take in my journey. Two illness stories are
included in the appendix: Donnaâs story and Lisaâs story
provide examples of illness stories encountered during my graduate
study.
subject codes .MED
(Full Text)
Caroline LaCroix
Critical Thinking and Problem Solving in Mathematics
1991, December
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Alternative courses in mathematics for low-ability students which
provide success in the use of critical thinking activities and
problem solving strategies are needed. To this end, the author wrote
a course called Critical Thinking and Problem Solving for the Boston
Public Schools, designed to emphasize real-life application, a
multi-sensual approach and problem solving strategies.
The goals of this course were to provide successful leaning
situations in which students critically examined information for
problem solving. In so doing, the students reinforced and expanded
their ability to do mathematics.
This thesis attempts to demonstrate how critical thinking and
problem solving can be infused with meaningful mathematics
application. Critical thinking serves as a vehicle for students to
connect information within mathematics and to apply it to other
subject areas.
A selection of problem solving strategies generates a variety of
heuristics. Choosing appropriate strategies is important for
students to achieve understanding and success within their
individual leaning styles.
Three unit lessons from the course on Critical Thinking and Problem
Solving are discussed in this thesis. These are Comparison and
Contrast, Classification, and Finding Reasons and Uncovering
Assumptions, skills chosen for their familiarity and widespread use.
Each unit begins with a real-life application of a critical thinking
skill, followed by applications to language, number theory, and
geometry.
The author reflects on the development of the course and on its
implementation during the first year. Students' reactions and
suggestions for future course content are also included. By
understanding how to apply critical thinking skills and how to
infuse them into mathematics, students can evaluate their reasoning
more effectively and approach mathematics more successfully.
subject codes .SCI.MSE
John Landis
Metacognition And Critical Viewing Curricula: A Symbiosis
??
Directed by
The exercise of one's metacognitive skills--skills involving
awareness and control of one's own thought processes--is the central
means by which one exercises his autonomy and embarks on a life of
continual learning. The nurturing of each student's metacognitive
skills is warranted as a central objective of education. However,
while metacognition is an intuitively
satisfying concept, it remains unclear. The problems inherent in the
conceptualization of metacognition as a psychological construct will
be addressed; a teleological definition will be presented as more
appropriate and useful.
A summary of the literature on cognitive psychology, with emphasis
on the cognitive-behavioral perspective, will yield evidence which
will be used to derive basic suggestions for ways in which educators
can foster metacognition to facilitate transfer of thinking skills
to new contexts. It will be shown that these efforts complement and
mutually reinforce each other. Educational implications of this
symbiosis will be explored.
In identifying ways in which educators can exploit this symbiosis in
order to maximize students' development of thinking skills, it will
be shown that critical viewing instruction presents a context that
is uniquely effective in this regard. Suggestions for fostering
metacognitive skills and facilitating transfer of thinking skills
using critical viewing instruction will be presented. Also, three
commercially available critical viewing curriculum packages, which
target mostly middle and high school students, will be assessed with
regard to their utility in this endeavor.
subject codes .THR
Bernadette LaVoie
Critical Thinking and Client Centered Nursing Care
1992, September
Directed by
Critical and creative thinking skills are necessary for the new
graduate and experienced nurses alike, if they are to respond to the
rapidly changing health care system and deliver professional nursing
care. Knowledge, generally speaking, is a resource not a constraint,
but it becomes a constraint if it is not in the acceptable form.
Consequently, knowledge alone is insufficient if the nurse clinician
is unable to select the relevant information and defend its
integration into client care. Skillful and perceptive nursing
practice includes the ability to set and revise priorities for
client care, manage actual and potential risks to individuals, and
develop, evaluate and revise individualized plans of care.
The focus in this thesis is on the application of critical and
creative thinking (CCT) skills in nursing practice. There is a
particular focus on activities and processes related to nursing
care. Emphasis is placed on the use of knowledge in the acquisition
and development of skills, and on problem solving. There is
discussion of the ways in which nursing practice may be captured in
writing. The relationship of CCT to nursing management is discussed
and examples are offered. The CCT skills and strategies which are
helpful in introducing the theory of modeling and role modeling to a
nursing unit are presented. This theory focuses on the clients'
needs and a model of their world as a base for nursing intervention.
Nurses exercise CCT skills when being conscious of the need to
imaginatively put themselves in the place of the other in order to
genuinely understand the client. This technique relates to stage six
of Kohlberg's moral stages of reasoning "...that of any rational
individual recognizing the nature of morality or the fact that
persons are ends in themselves and must be treated as such..."
(1976, 35). Critical thinking then, should not only help to make
those in the nursing profession better thinkers, but also better
human beings.
subject codes .MED
Ann Leary
The Implementation of Conflict Management Training Into The Post Anesthesia Care Setting for Staff Nurses During Yearly Competency Day
2011, May
Directed by Carol Smith
I am a Nurse in Charge of the Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and believe conflict can be managed better by using critical and creative thinking skills. Conflicts in the healthcare workplace are common and can take on a variety of forms: nurse to physician, nurse to nurse, and nurse to patient/family. Both my research and experience suggests that nurses commonly avoid conflict, rather than engaging in collaborative problem solving about conflict, which would often lead to better solutions. The Critical and Creative Thinking Program has given me the confidence and provided the skills to continue my work using multiple approaches including collaboration in conflict management in the healthcare setting. Some of the tools I have learned from the Critical and Creative Thinking Program that are critical to the better management of conflict are: active listening, knowing yourself, and taking time to consider all options available when making decisions. The program has changed the way in which I approach conflict by actively listening to what the person is trying to say and really trying to grasp an understand about their point of view. Gathering all the information is crucial before making a decision because they may provide additional information and new ideas that I can implement in my decision making. // There is currently no training in conflict management for staff nurses, only for nursing management. However, it is needed at the staff nurse level as well as leadership level. Consequently, the goal of my synthesis is to design a conflict management workshop for my staff nurses. This workshop will be taught during the Annual Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) Competency Day, held on various days throughout the year. I will teach this workshop to small groups which consist of five to seven staff nurses who are familiar to me. During the workshop I will help my staff nurses become more aware of their typical conflict resolution style by introducing them to the five Thomas Kilmann Styles of Conflict Resolution, which are: competing, compromising, avoiding, accommodating, and collaborating-and asking them to reflect on the style they most use. They will then be given a chance to reflect on strengths and limits of different ways of responding in three case scenarios: nurse to physician conflict, nurse to nurse conflict, and nurse to patient/family conflict based on the use of the Thomas Kilmann styles. At the end of the workshop there will be a final reflection about the workshop. This will involve the staff having time to do some private writing and a group check in. // Once the workshop is complete, I will continue to investigate how the staff is managing their own conflicts as well as provide opportunities for them to share their stories and insights about managing particular conflicts. This information will be helpful to bring back to the Leadership Team and will also help me understand the ways that the workshop are to be extended or revised in the future for the staff nurses.
subject codes.MED
(Full Text)
Kathleen Leavitt
Identifying Methods Nurse Managers Can Implement To Foster A
Supportive Environment For Staff Where Disruptive Behavior Exists
2007, December
Directed by Arthur Millman
We can all imagine the ideal work environment, where you are
respected, empowered, and provided with the resources to perform to
the best of your ability everyday. Your skills would be acknowledged
and the challenging work that is accomplished each day would be
appreciated by peers, team members, and managers. However, in my
work environment, an operating room, a phenomenon called
ãdisruptive behaviorä often interrupts the ability of
achieving this desired state. Initially I was focused on this
behavior being displayed by physicians but was awakened to the fact
that they are not the only offenders and that many caregivers also
behave in this manner. Obviously this behavior in a healthcare
setting can have a negative impact on the patients who come to the
institution seeking healing and compassion.
Realizing that this disturbing behavior will continue to exist,
despite efforts within the operating room and the institution as a
whole, this paper addresses what I can do in my role as a nurse
manager. The first step was to undertake a literature review to
understand ways I can support my staff that are subjected to and at
times engage in the unproductive conduct. The literature review
revealed tools that support employees in many situations, not
exclusively in an operating room environment. The eleven tools I
present in this paper are taken from many different areas such as
business applications, healthcare articles, spiritual beliefs, and
basic behavioral principles. They include: emotional intelligence,
engagement, positive reinforcement, energizing, motivating
employees, constructive conversations, Buddhist principles- The
Human Factor, storytelling, ãNew Agreementsä tenets, a
respectful, civilized, work environment, and building respect and
establishing trust. The tools may be used alone or may be grouped
together for a greater impact. Some may be more effective when
utilized on an individual while others would have a greater
influence when applied in a group setting.
Employees who feel a sense of satisfaction, fulfillment and value
are more likely to remain in their current position and be more
efficient, productive and involved. My goal as a manager is to
support staff and utilize the discussed tools for the purpose of
empowering staff to expect that appropriate behavior is exhibited at
all times and work towards creating a healthier workplace. The
journey I have undertaken in CCT has provided me with new tools and
has added another dimension to the way I approach and think through
problems that continuously arise in my professional life. The
various methods and phases that I have learned to utilize for
problem-solving purposes has aided in my ability towards the pursuit
of creating a more supportive and healthier workplace.
subject codes .MED
(Full Text)
Beck Hing Lee
Leadership Of A New Generation To Forge Peace, Progress And
Prosperity For All
2006, August
Directed by Peter Taylor
Good leadership is important for the success of organizations but
good leadership to forge peace, progress and prosperity for all is
vital in bringing about lasting world peace and harmony. Yet, there
is the task as to how such leadership can be trained and developed
especially for the young, whose minds may have the pliability to be
successfully developed in this respect through proper leadership
training. I have in this paper created a framework for leadership
training and development comprising of six dimensions that I deem
necessary for the cultivation of such leadership. These six
dimensions of leadership development are essential in my opinion, in
that by mastering each and every one of them, a person would at
least come closer and closer to achieving the broad umbrella of the
leadership ability to forge peace, progress and prosperity for all.
This framework model can be used as a guide for leadership pedagogy
or it can be applied to personal leadership development. I have also
come to recognize that there are five different stages through which
such leadership development would go through. Even though there can
be overlaps in the stages and their sequence may not be fixed, they
are important aspects to consider in the planning and execution of
the above leadership training endeavor. It is my hope that by
zeroing in on each of the six dimensions, young aspiring leaders
would mature through the stages to become noble leaders who will
protect our global future and guide the world toward the peace and
harmony that we are so devoid of.
subject codes .SOC
Sherry Lemire
The Impact and Implications of the New Technologies: Educational
Imperatives for a New World of Work
1998, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
Using Jeremy Rifkin's The End of Work and Robert Reich's The work of
Nations as primary sources, this paper examines the implications of
a paradigm shift to a near-workerless world, especially as they
relate to education. The paper consists of three chapters: the first
chapter gives an historical overview of the Industrial Revolution,
which provides a context for discussing the implications of the work
of Rifkin and Reich; the third chapter reviews the major
implications presented by Rifkin and Reich; the third chapter
reviews the major implications as they relate to education.
Recommendations for developing a disposition for critical and
creative thinking as well as a description of a sub-set of pertinent
critical and creative thinking skills is given in chapter three.
subject codes .TEC
Donna Letteriello
Documenting the Undocumented in Italo-American Female Creativity
1998, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
This synthesis project documents specific, penitential domestic
tasks of ritual celebration of the feast of St. Joseph as practiced
by the Amari family. While still practiced in Sicily, this ritual is
rare in America. It has three phases: the making of bread dough
sculptures, the creation of a home alter, and the preparation of a
meal of foods eaten solely on this day. Only women participate in
these events, therefore, I offer this documentation as a record of
undocumented Italian-American female creativity.
Through this synthesis and several photo essays I have set out to
record these domestic acts of cultural meaning-making and preserving
them as family and social traditions and acts of female creativity.
Chapter 1 explains the evolution of my synthesis project and the
reasons why I chose this topic. I also describe the 3 main
components contained in my synthesis project, several narrative
essays in chapters 2 and 3, traces the beginnings of the celebration
feast of St. Joseph and its annual place of tradition in the Amari's
family. An appendix of several photo essays documents the
explanations of domestic and ritual tasks contained in chapters 4,
5, 6, and 7. And lastly, a theoretical reflective essay in chapter
8, describes my own creative process which I relate to theoretical
readings on the creative process model, by social psychologist
Teresa Amabile.
subject codes .CUL.GEN
Marie Levey-Pabst
Navigating the Complexities in Teaching: Exploring the Thinking
Processes that Trigger and Sustain Teacher Development
2010, May
Directed by Carol Smith
As a student in the Critical and Creative Thinking Program I have
learned about ways of
thinking that have greatly impacted how I teach my high school
students as well as how I think
about my own teaching. Over the past year I have sought out teachers
to interview to help me
expand my understanding about how teachers make thoughtful decisions
given the complex
realities they face. Through analyzing these teachers' reflections
on their thoughts and experiences
I have discovered ways of opening my own thinking as well as
patterns in productive teacher
thinking that could help many other teachers grow and improve.
This paper explores how teachers think about their experiences
through the lens of adaptive
expertise and problem solving. It describes how these teachers think
through three complex, and
related, areas of teaching: instructional choices, trying new ideas
and taking classroom risks. The
narratives from these teachers provide the reader with examples of
both questions these teachers
used to think through their choices, as well as real classroom
examples of the mistakes and
successes teachers had as a result of these choices. These teachers'
descriptions of their work are
not meant to provide a model of how to run a classroom, but instead
to provide several models of
how educators have navigated the complexities of teaching.
subject codes .MSE
(Full Text)
Lale Lewis
Infusing Thinking Skills into Media Literacy Education: An
Education's Practical Workbook
1997, May
Directed by Delores Gallo
subject codes .CUL
John Lewis
Learning, Teaching and Brain Research: Insights From Current
Research That May Affirm Teaching and Learning Strategies
2004, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
This paper identifies recent psychological and brain research that
may help the teacher to develop new teaching techniques or better
understand teaching techniques shown to be effective in the
classroom. Much of the available research requires a significant
background in cognitive psychology (which most educators possess)
and biology of the human brain (which most educators do not
possess). This work translates this research into a form
understandable by educators and learners alike, which corresponds to
my post-graduation plans to continue learning about psychological
and brain research and translating for educators the parts relevant
to teaching and learning.
The specific aspects of research I cover include the following: how
the brain constructs neural networks, the effects of emotion on
brain development and memory, and how learning tasks can change the
neural networks in response to stimuli. The major lessons for
educators are that there is no magic bullet to be found-at least not
yet-but that specific forms of instruction demonstrate measurable
improvements in cognitive abilities, and that research in cognitive
psychology combined with brain imaging technologies allows us to see
how learning and instruction alter the brain during the learning
process.
subject codes.SCI
(Full Text)
Mona Liblanc
A Thinking Woman's Definition of Meaningful Work
1998, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
The Critical and Creative Thinking Graduate Program is a "community
of inquiry" (Lipman 1991, 3) that fosters opportunities for
"transformative events" (Bepko and Krestan 1993, 196) which have
been catalysts for my epistemological evolution. I entered the
Program seeking insight into the causes or reasons for my
dissatisfaction with my professional work choices. My participation
in this Program provided the structure necessary to identify the
characteristics of meaningful work and the vital role it plays in my
self-actualization process. By providing learning opportunities
which trigger "transformative events" (Bepko and Kre stan 1993,
196), the Program has changed the way I see and value my thinking
skills and their use in the workplace.
This paper chronicles three key events that triggered transformative
insights and new ways of seeing myself and my work. It describes the
process by which the Program integrates Matthew Lipman's (1991)
reflective model of education; fostering opportunities for
transforming events to occur. The transformative nature of these
events is described and the shifts in my meaning making processes
are analyzed using the epistemological framework developed by Mary
Field Belenky and her colleagues (1986). By helping me to discover
and acknowledge my skill (and the ever-present desire for further
development) as a "higher-order" thinker (Lipman 1991, 3), my
experiences in this Program exposed my need for and helped to
clarify my definition of personally meaningful work. It is with such
clarity that I have secured a new position that demands professional
integrity, rewards creative collaboration, and allows me to
facilitate others' learning to improve their work lives.
subject codes .GEN
Michael Lihon
Promoting Rapid, Sustainable Operational Change in Business
Organizations
2009, May
Directed by Nina Greenwald
The dual purpose of this position paper is to communicate both the
kinds of thinking needed to make rapid operational changes in
business organizations and the kinds of thinking needed to sustain
these while further changes are being incorporated. Promoting
sustainable change in business operations is a process of adaptation
characterized by strategic steps taken by an organization to stay
competitive in the global business environment. Specifically, this
paper focuses on industries that involve complex manufacturing or
production operations that need improvement. It is directed to
managers, supervisors and technicians who wish to incorporate
efficient sustainable change in production. It is proposed that
standard approaches such as Quality Improvement Methodologies (QIM)
are enhanced through learning to use critical and creative thinking
dispositions (habits of mind) and strategies for achieving rapid,
sustainable operational change in business organizations. QIM can
yield far better results when the training is implemented through
phases of learning with thinking dispositions and strategies. This
will result in an organization's ability to adapt quickly to changes
necessary for remaining competitive in global markets.
subject codes .COR
(full text)
Kyle Lindholm
Doodles to Drawings: The Creative Process of Drawing &
Thinking for Cartooning
2004, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
Doodles to Drawings: The Creative Process of Drawing & Thinking
for Cartooning invites the reader into the cartoonist's mind at
work. The author guides the audience through his cartooning process
by presenting work from his sketchbook which includes illustrations,
sketches, various notes, and final drawings. Diagrams graphically
organize the key thinking strategies of the drawings as they
progresses. From these illustrations the author extrapolates seven
recurring patterns which characterize his own process include:
Mental Work, Take-in Information, Free Flowing, Sudden, & Rapid
Appearance of Ideas, Sketching as Many Ideas as Possible, Creating
Multiple Versions, A Messy Process, and the Need to Think
Critically.
These seven characteristics are paralleled by writer Graham Wallas's
(1926) four stage model of creativity. The four stages, preparation,
incubation, illumination, and verification, become the lens through
which the authors creative process is described in terms of fluency,
flexibility, elaboration, originality, and risk taking. The author
also reflects on critical thinking dispositions such as Costa's
sixteen Habits of Mind. These habits of mind include Persisting,
Managing Impulsivity, Understanding & Empathy, Thinking
Flexibility, Metacognition, Striving for Accuracy & Precision,
Questioning & Posing Problems, Applying Past Knowledge to New
Situations, Thinking and Communicating with Clarity, Gathering Data
through All Senses, Creating Imagining & Innovating, Respond
with Wonderment & Awe, Taking Responsible Risks, Finding Humor,
Thinking Interdependently, and Learning Continuously. Coupled with
Betty Edwards's view of drawing as a combination of seeing as an
artist and visualizing the author constructs a model of cartooning
as a combined process of critical and creative thinking and drawing.
subject codes.ART
Karen Litzinger
Creative Problem Solving with Tangrams
1992, September
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
With the world changing so rapidly, students need to by educated
differently than in the past. Among the changes indicated by
numerous research studies and national commissions is the
realization that students need to increase their problem solving
skills in mathematics.
At the root of the current challenges in mathematics education are
the issues of how children learn. Cognitive theories suggest that
children learn best by building upon their initial experiences and
becoming actively involved in constructing their own knowledge. One
way to accommodate students' natural tendencies to learn through
experience is to provide learning activities to enhance problem
solving skills in geometry.
Geometry is a field of mathematics that helps students relate
mathematics in a meaningful way to the real world. There are many
geometric manipulative materials, among them tangrams, an ancient
Chinese puzzle, which lends itself to exploration of spatial
reasoning, spatial relationships, and geometric problem solving.
For the purposed of this thesis, tangrams were employed in three
third grade classrooms. Activities were designed to involve students
in a gradual learning process where exploration, cooperative group
work, journal writing, homework assignments, and problem solving all
served to build significant experiences for the students and
teachers alike. Critical and creative thinking skills were taught as
students solved and created puzzles of increasing difficulty and
related them to various aspects of mathematical thinking including
geometrical interpretations of arithmetical computations, fractional
relationships, symmetry and other properties of shapes.
Chapters I and II of this thesis present the rationale for this
project based on current theories and findings in mathematics
education and critical and creative thinking. Chapter III describes
the activities in detail, provides teaching commentary on the
lessons, and suggests improvements on all aspects of the
implementation for teachers who may wish to embark on a similar
project. Chapter IV presents and analyzes comments taken from the
students' journals and the feed-back questionnaire given to the two
other teachers. The consensus was that tangrams enabled these third
graders to become more active and confident thinkers, creators,
solution finders, and problem solvers.
subject codes .ELE
Jane Lueders
Integrating Thinking, Whole Language and Drama
1992, September
Directed by Patricia A. Cordeiro
This thesis presents a framework aims at providing learning
experiences to develop effective independent thinkers. Effective
independent thinkers are not only able to accumulate knowledge but
can use and apply that knowledge in a variety of situations and
contexts. The framework is based at the intersection of three
perspectives on learning: critical and creative thinking, whole
language and drama.
Creative thinking works with critical thinking by using fluency,
flexibility, originality, elaboration and heuristic processes to
open up options to be evaluated in order to make a decision to do or
believe something. Whole language involves building a structure and
climate that promote literacy and the authentic use of language.
This is accomplished by teaching students to work cooperatively,
encouraging them to take risks, helping them see ideas and concepts
in context, and helping them see ideas and concepts in context, and
helping them develop responsibility for their learning. Drama
provides an opportunity for students to become immersed in a
learning experience through the techniques of role play, mantle of
the expert, and simulation.
Through the combination of these perspectives on learning, students
learn to use the processes of problem solving, inquiry and
reflection. Problem solving involves defining a problem, deciding on
possible solutions and choosing the best solution. Inquiry is
questioning in order to look differently at what is known or in
order to find out more. Reflection allows for the development of
metacognition, thereby helping students become aware of and in
control of their own thinking processes.
A sample curriculum for intermediate elementary grades lasting
approximately three weeks to three months is contained in the
Appendix of the thesis. This curriculum takes the form of a
simulation in which students assume the roles of marine biologists.
They work in teams to study the marine life around the
hypothetically newly-risen continent of Atlantis. The curriculum
stresses the integrated use of both content and skills as they are
used in real life.
Descriptions and definitions of the learning perspectives and
processes are also included. The commonalties between critical and
creative thinking, whole language and drama are discussed in both a
theoretical manner and as they apply to the sample curriculum.
subject codes .CUL.ELE
Halima Madden
Shadows: An example of conceptual change
1997, May
Directed by Delores Gallo
This paper looks at a child's conception of shadows at two different
times, one year apart. During the period and even during the
interviews, there was evidence of the unfolding of a conceptual
change.
Questions were asked to find out what the child knew about the
shadows. Initially, responses indicated that the child believed
shadows exist continuously, and had object and life-like qualities
that pertain to the self and the senses. These beliefs were used to
show that shadows do not exist continuously, and are not material
objects that can be felt and can be seen but then disappear. This is
a difficult paradox for the child to understand. The child had some
ideas of how shadows were created by the interaction of light and
objects. However, specific beliefs and causal explanations about how
shadows reflect the absence of lights (and object block the path of
light) were not yet clearly developed. In places the child could not
give a full explanation of these paradoxes - saying "it is funny and
weird."
I argue that the use of analogical comparison and generative
questioning can encourage the development of new beliefs. Asking a
critical thinking question - Can you hold a shadow? can encourage
the child to maintain own beliefs whilst searching for new solutions
to change initial beliefs.
subject codes.ELE
Jonathon Mahoney
Communicative Competence and Communicative Ethics
1996, June
Directed by Arthur B. Millman
My primary goal in this thesis is to show that Jurgen Habermas's
formal pragmatics and communicative ethics offer an important
contribution to theoretical issues concerning rationality,
communication and moral theory.
Formal pragmatics involves an inquiry into the conditions for the
possibility of mutual understanding. Since language is the primary
medium through which two or more persons achieve mutual
understanding, formal pragmatics is a theory about communication.
According to Habermas, the success of mutual understanding
presupposes that all participants in communicative practices
recognize the rational features of speech. A communicatively
competent speaker is one who at least tacitly recognizes that every
utterance capable of contributing to mutual understanding rests on
the presupposition that reasons can be offered to defend or
criticize the utterance.
Communicative ethics involves an attempt to construe traditional
formalistic/deontological moral theory within a communicative
framework. This, in turn, is premised on the claim that
interpersonal relations are central to moral deliberation and
dispute resolution and that communication is central to
interpersonal relations. The goal of a theory of communicative
ethics is to provide a procedure according to which participants
involved in the public discussion of norms can evaluate proposed
moral claims in a fair and impartial manner.
I argue that formal pragmatics offers a plausible account of the
competences of every speaker capable of participating in successful
communication. My task in examining Habernas's theory of
communication, moreover, is to show that communicative reason is
built into all instances of successful communication, From this clam
I go onto show that the idea of communicative reason can be used as
the foundation for a moral theory. My task in examining
communicative ethics is to demonstrate its adequacy as a moral
theory, an adequacy highlighted by the communicative ethical
interpretation of a procedure for adjudicating moral norms.
The greatest challenge to Habermas's work is posed by postmodern
critics who reject the universalism that undergirds the concept of
communicative reason. Universalism is the view that non-arbitrary
principles for rationally assessing competing claims, principles
that are valid in all contexts. I briefly examine some of the
standard social and political objection to universalism (e,g. that
it mistakenly conflates particularity with universality) in an
attempt to show that at the very least the debate on universalism as
not yet ended.
subject codes .COM.MOR
Patricia Manley
Empathic Role Taking in Social Studies: A Fifth Grade Curriculum
Based on Critical and Creative Thinking
1992, May
Directed by Delores Gallo
This thesis evolved from a unit of work created by the author to
engage and enhance the critical and creative thinking of her fifth
grade students. It is composed of a series of activities; however,
special emphasis is placed on a role playing activity in which
students took on personas of children of the l770s, focusing on the
events of the Boston Massacre. The author contends that empathic
response was a factor in the mastery and application of particular
critical and creative thinking skills introduced at this grade
level. The author further contends that the development of empathy
in individuals is crucial for the continuance of a productive and
humane society and that his development can, and should be, a vital
part of the educational setting.
Theories of those prominent in the fields of critical and creative
thinking, empathy, and classroom drama are considered, and
connections regarding the implementation of these fields in the
classroom are discussed. It is suggested that critical and creative
thinking in l0 and ll year old children can be enhanced through role
taking strategies.
The implementation of an original social studies curriculum composed
of six activities to foster critical and creative thinking is
described. These activities include schema development, promotion of
cognitive organization, content reading, assignment of general and
specific personas, role playing, and evaluation. The author
summarizes what went well, what could be improved, and what could be
done differently in each of the activities
Furthermore, a quantitative analysis of students' participation in
the role taking activity is presented. Factors which influence
students' success in the role taking are considered, as well as
factors which may have hindered success. Competencies and
dispositions of critical and creative thinking and empathy exhibited
by the students in the role playing activity are reviewed.
Reflections on the role taking activity and its potential as a
learning strategy are put forward.
Appendices include transcriptions from the role playing active of
the students in role, transcriptions of the children's reflection on
the role playing activity, and a list of materials used in the
curriculum unit. It is this author's hope that others who work with
children will benefit from this thesis by paying particular
attention to the role that empathy can play in the development of
critical and creative thinking skills.
subject codes .ELE
Matt Masiero
A Critical and Creative Thinking Guide to Achieving Success in
Coaching
1998, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
In thus Synthesis Project, I have examined key critical and creative
thinking skills that I believe to be crucial and beneficial when
trying to achieve success in coaching.
I have explained my conceptual framework when coaching basketball
and my understanding of success. Three personal as well as
professional influences are referred to as contributing to my
coaching. Finally, I have submitted a brief overview of what you
could expect to extract from this Synthesis Project.
I have given a clear and concise definition of critical thinking
from expert Robert Ennis. I have also thoroughly examined the
fourteen dispositions and the different abilities as stated by
Ennis.
I have thoroughly described four of the six aspects of critical
thinking: Language of Thinking, Thinking Dispositions, Transfer and
Mental Management, as examined by Shari Tishman, David Perkins and
Eileen Jay. I have given the reader an understanding of what
vocabulary can be implemented to evoke critical thinking as well as
being a model, explaining, encouraging interaction and providing
feedback. I have explained what the five thinking dispositions of a
good thinker are. Finally I examined how mental management or
metacognition, can be beneficial in becoming a good critical
thinker.
I have thoroughly examined creative thinking as defined by expert
Teresa Amabile and have elaborated on her three components of
creative thinking; domain-relevant skills, creativity-relevant
skills and task motivation. I have also described Maslow's fifteen
characteristics of a self-actualized person and the twelve
personality traits of a creative person as examined by Gary Davis.
I have examined a few of the qualifications such as education,
professional and physical that can contribute to a successful
coaching, In doing so I have demonstrated the correlation that
exists between a successful coach and being a good critical and
creative thinker.
Next, I have demonstrated what motivation is and its extrinsic
and/or intrinsic contribution to the success in coaching. The reader
will extract that psychological aspects such as goal setting, which
includes: 1) identifying goals, 2) setting obtainable and realistic
goals and 3) evaluating your goals can have a major impact on
achieving success in coaching.
I have explained the impact Coach John Wooden and his Pyramid of
Success has made on my coaching practice, along with my experiences
since being enrolled in The Critical and Creative Thinking Program,
which have led to my personal development and creation of the 27
Small Practice Details (Habits) That Make A Big Difference.
I have thoroughly described for the reader the critical and creative
thinking skills I have implemented in my coaching practice and that
have helped me achieve success. I advise the reader to build a
successful program by developing a general Philosophy, both a
Defensive and Offensive Philosophy, Administrative Responsibilities,
Hoop Scoops: Keeping Current and 3 Point: The Old Fashioned Way.
Finally, I have posed three critical and creative thinking questions
to engage the reader in metacognition about their coaching practice.
subject codes .SPO
Carla Theresa Mattioli
Awakening Creative Behavior: Contributions from the Rudolf
Steiner Method
1984, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
In my efforts to understand the fundamental elements of Rudolf
Steiner's (Waldorf) Educational Philosophy for the purposes of
writing this thesis, I realized early on that the process of
attaining such understanding would necessarily require much more
than reading and comprehension on an abstract, intellectual level.
In order that I might experience the principles of Waldorf Education
in motion, as they were designed to be experimented, I would need to
immerse myself into the experience of the arts and self-study with
my mind, physical body and emotions, as well as to read and study
the works of those how understand Waldorf Education. My role as
researcher, then, required that I become a participant-observer, in
order that I might explain Waldorf Education through my own personal
involvement and experience.
My research exploration included visitations at a number of Waldorf
Schools in the New England area, to observe first, sixth, eighth and
high school classes. Subjects ranged from Geometry and Music to
Bookbinding, Weaving, American Studies and Woodcarving. I was able
to conduct informal interviews of Waldorf students, parents and
teachers during my travels.
In addition to visiting schools, I participated in quite a number of
workshops and seminars designed for Waldorf...
subject codes .THR
Anne McDonough
Children's Safety Zone and Gateways to Life-long Learning
1994, May
Directed by Lynn Dhority
The major purpose of this thesis is to examine the relationship
between a psychologically safe environment, which the author has
termed Children's Safety Zone, and positive learning structures.
Together they can of a practical new model for decentralized
teaching. Educators create the conditions in which learning
discoveries can be made; therefore, an exploration into children's
motivations, achievements, learning abilities, intelligences, and
values can affect how to effectively approach their learning
discoveries.
It is the assumption of this thesis that education needs to produce
learners who have encountered and acquired a sense of responsibility
and control of their own learning. Motivating students to listen to
their own ways of learning involves teacher receptivity and a shift
of the center of attention to the child. The author's belief is that
this type of learning can be a wonder-filled, life long process,
particularly when stressful input is decreased in the learning
process.
Learning that is meaningful and child-based provides experiences
that are not saddled with negative, stressful encounters that only
end up sabotaging a child's cognitive operations. Creative
visualization and the use of imagery can also be used to reduce the
barriers of stress and anxiety.
Teaching of thematic units, with emphasis on processes, offers
another possible means for making natural connections in the brain
that facilitate discovery and learning. Teachers can further tie
into the brain's natural pattern making potential by linking subject
areas to one another, as well as by teaching across grade levels.
The author's own personal learning discoveries are perceived as new
models for the role of educators as facilitator of learning.
Finally, the relationship of learning to thought transformation is
explored through the Dialogue Process, a unique approach to
life-long learning. The author suggests that these elements can be
woven together successfully, creating a new fabric made of community
of learners at all ages.
hayes
subject codes .ELE
Candace McDuffie
Our Mouths on Paper: A Critical Look at the Educational Value, Social Importance, and Self- Exploration Stemming from Slam Poetry
2011, August
Directed by Carol Smith
Upon entering the Critical and Creative Thinking Program, I was unsure of my strengths as an educator. I have always been interested in working with younger children, and found a career in education quite rewarding. Still, merging my personal interests with my professional ones seemed like a task that was not important for my growth as a teacher. Soon into my endeavors as a CCT student, I realized that intertwining both worlds is what keeps me motivated as a teacher and my students interested as learners. // This synthesis allows me to explore the arena of Slam poetry beyond a superficial level— to really understand what it means to align my writing with the works of others that are so introspective and provocative. As the CCT program has highlighted various times in each course that I have taken over the years, reflection is the key to growth. Therefore, reflecting about past courses and the curriculum/activities that were developed during them as well as on my own activities as a slam poet helps to pinpoint the direction I would like to take in activities I plan for my students in the future. This paper also compares and contrasts Beat Poetry and Slam Poetry, since both have inspired me as a writer and have characteristics that can be used in curricular activities for preschool children. I also decipher my own thought processes by analyzing my own writing, and ultimately concoct creative writing endeavors for my students. These will hopefully foster an environment that promotes individuality and appreciation of different human experiences.
subject codes.WRL
(Full Text)
Mary McGurn
Student's stress: It's Real and Manageable
2011, May
Directed by Carol Smith
I have been a dental hygiene professor at a Community College from the last seven years as well as a 2001 alumna from the same dental hygiene program. The dental hygiene curriculum is demanding, and it can be overwhelming to manage the heavy work load. My goal as a teacher is to help the dental hygiene students find their own way to reduce their stressful thoughts and behaviors as a result of the overwhelming amount of work while learning. There are different levels of stress that the dental hygiene college students must learn to manage in order to think critically and creatively and make better decisions. I began thinking about my synthesis with the materials that I have gathered throughout my educational journey in the Critical and Creative Thinking Program as well as my students' experiences and my past experiences as a dental hygiene student. The initial goal was to try to reduce students' stress through humor, which evolved into researching more about how our body functions and malfunctions under stress. While researching the negative effects of stress, I discovered more interesting material about how one can reframe thinking patterns and become self aware of our own emotional intelligence to reduce our own stress or eliminate it completely. I thought about how much of this information was applicable and interesting ways students can benefit if they knew how, when, where and why they should utilize these tools to reduce the stress that may hinder their thinking. So, I decided to create an extensive 6-part stress reduction workshop for the students that may support and guide the students to effectively manage their anxiety in order to think clearly. It is significant for students to know when to use their resources to think rationally even when in the face of stressful events. The initial step in the development, implementation and dissemination of stress reduction techniques has been a work in progress. The toolkit consists of teaching students about the psychological and physiological effects of stress, the negative behaviors associated with chronic stress, the positive effects of utilizing stress reduction strategies and problem-solving techniques to ultimately improve overall health and enhance the students' learning outcomes. The toolkit consists of the strategies that combine physical and mental aspects: humor, exercise (including yoga and meditation), positive thinking, clear goal setting, attention to nutrition, and sleeping behaviors to reduce or eliminate stress. Timely interventions, observations and ongoing analysis will be included in my future steps.
subject codes.TCE
Lucille (Lucy) McKain
Analysis of McCarthy Learning Styles and Integration of Critical
and Creative Thinking
1993, September
Directed by John R. Murray
Bernice McCarthy has devised an instructional and organizational
model that has been used in the United States since l979. The model
addresses an experiential cycle of learning that takes one from
personal meaning to creativity. The use of this model helps people
to understand and respect others, to communicate, and to think at
higher levels.
The thesis offers the McCarthy model as a foundation for structuring
learning experiences. It begins with a literature review which
discusses the theoretical origins of McCarthy's model. In evaluating
this model for its inherent critical and creative thinking skills,
however, the author finds several areas that could be improved.
These areas are designing activities which intentionally teach
specific thinking skills along with subject content and providing
more opportunities for student metacognition along with
identification of the thinking skills and processes. The author
further recommends that the use of free/open ended exploration in
the start of any activity or exercise, would improve self directed
learning along with critical and creative thinking skills and
organizational skills. This may lead to greater student interest and
learning.
Attention to these ideas is found in the author's restructuring of a
McCarthy sample lesson. The author also fashions general guidelines
for the further integration of thinking skill practices concerning
individual styles of learning. Further application is provided for
the reader in the author's development of one critical and creative
thinking skills lesson that is imbedded in learning about chicken
feathers. Lessons activities incorporate cooperative learning
strategies that foster group decision making skills.
The fundamental requirements of our democratic society provide an
effective rationale for focusing on thinking. Democracy, rests on
informed, thoughtful creative citizens. Teaching for thinking and
creativity is essential and must include all learning styles.
Teaching to this end can result with skilled thinkers, who are able
to cope better with personal and societal problems, and furthermore,
live as innovative lifelong learners who remain open to new
experiences and ideas throughout life.
subject codes .ELE
Margaret McPartland
Critical and creative thinking in a beginning adult literacy
classroom
1997, December
Directed by
subject codes .TCE.WRL
Robert B. Mendelsohn
20 Questions Toward Better Thinking: A Look at Internet Based
Learning
1997, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
Synthesis
subject codes .TEC
Diana Metsisto
Cooperative Learning on Mathematical Problem Solving: Reflections
by a Traditional Teacher and Her Students
1990, December
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
As our society becomes more technologically complex, the educational
system preparing our students to become citizens of this society
must adapt to met changing demands. Mathematical literacy of the
21st century will require a different model of mathematics education
than that which served in the past.
This thesis argues for a model of mathematics education which
includes as key components: problem solving, question posing,
cooperative learning, concrete manipulatives, and teaching for
thinking. This new model sets forth guidelines for a facilitative
approach to the teaching of mathematics as opposed to the more
traditional, authoritative model. This facilitative model is based
on the constructivist view of learning and is presented in contrast
to one based on the behaviorist view.
Ultimately, it is in the mathematics classroom that any changes in
the mathematics educational system must be played out. The author
discusses her implementation of a series of lessons with seventh
graders, which incorporated the key components of the facilitative
model listed above. The focus is on the changes required of the
teacher and the difficulties encountered by a traditional teacher
attempting to move toward a more facilitative classroom.
Issues of sharing classroom control, of student-teacher interaction,
of curriculum design, of lesson planning, and of functioning within
the framework of a traditional school are delineated and reflected
upon. Recognition of the intrinsic difficulty of the change required
is key to the development of a view of the teacher as a reflective
learner. The teacher in the classroom must recognize the ongoing
process of growth and change required to remain an effective
facilitator of learning and must continually search for unique ways
to support that growth in both self and others.
subject codes .SCI.ELE
Cynthia Mignini
Geometry in action: A curriculum unit utilizing dynamic geometry
software to enhance students' comprehension
2001, May
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
The paper identifies two critical obstacles to student success in a
traditional geometry classroom and examines the role dynamic
geometry software can play in overcoming these obstacles. The two
concerns are that students complete geometry classes with minimal
understanding due to low teacher and parental expectations and that
students lack visualization skills. Student investigations in a
dynamic geometry environment address both of these issues in that
they raise expectations and provide a visualization aide.
Additionally, dynamic geometry software produces precise,
manipulable sketches that represent a continuum of related geometric
figures on which students can base conjectures.
The focus of the project is a curriculum unit that was implemented
in a high school geometry elective, Geometry in Action. A total of
seven students were enrolled in the semester long elective that
focused on student investigations in a dynamic geometry environment.
The curriculum unit investigated the medians, altitudes,
perpendicular bisectors, and angle bisectors of a triangle and the
points of concurrency. The unit also emphasized critical thinking
skills to maximize student comprehension. The integrated thinking
skills included predicting results of manipulations, identifying
characteristics, making decisions, forming and justifying
conjectures, and seeing relationships.
The discussion of each of the nine lessons in the unit contains the
conceptual emphasis of the lesson, the key thinking processes
incorporated in the lesson, a detailed description of the lesson,
and a wrap-up activity. Actual student work and feedback are
included within the paper. Also included are the author's
reflections on the execution of the lessons and suggestions for
improvement and adaptations in future implementations.
subject codes .SCI.MSE
MaryAnne Miller
Helping Adolescents to Address the Moral Dimensions of Sexuality
1991, December
Directed by
This thesis presents a rationale for an adolescent sex education
which better attends to moral issues and it proposes practical
suggestions for classroom strategies to promote moral thinking. The
central argument of this thesis is that helping adolescents to
become better moral thinkers will also help them to make more
responsible and informed decisions about sex.
This thesis focuses on five major areas of sex education. The
analysis of current practices in adolescent sex education places
particular emphasis on AIDS/HIV education to research what is being
done by school systems in Boston and in Massachusetts to encourage
classroom examination of sexual attitudes and behavior. The
examination of adolescents' impressions about the purpose of sex
education identifies a strong desire for assistance with
understanding the moral dimensions of sexuality. The review of
prevalent thinking related to moral education and moral development
discusses values clarification and Kohlberg's theory of moral
development to identify compatible strategies for adolescent sex
education. The presentation of instructional prototypes designed to
promote moral inquiry, discussion, and decision making illustrates
ways for sex education to help teenagers examine the moral
dimensions of sexuality. The discussion of expanded responsibilities
associated with employing moral thinking in adolescent sex education
enumerates necessary classroom, institutional, and community
linkages.
This thesis also develops four distinctive notions about promoting
moral thinking. First, it calls for instruction which addresses
teenagers' concerns about sexuality-specific and general moral
issues. Second, in contrast to Kohlberg's view, it argues that moral
thinking involves more than just reasoning. To encourage
well-rounded moral thinking, instruction should also concentrate on
encouraging feeling, valuing, judging, and decision making. Third,
this thesis investigates two structural modifications to Kohlberg's
classroom approach. It abandons the abstract distillation of moral
problems and contrived choices typical of Kohlberg's dilemma model
in favor of employing open-ended moral problems which place greater
emphasis on circumstances and events encountered by teenagers.
Finally, this thesis examines the issues of indoctrination and
neutrality. It proposes implementation of guided neutrality, a
strategy coined by the author, to offer students guidance within a
principled exploration of moral issues.
subject codes .MOR.CTY.MED
Donna Morrison
Reflections on a Creative Process: A Glimpse of CCT and Me
2013, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
This paper reflects on insights gained through the Critical and Creative Thinking Program at University of Massachusetts, Boston, and the synergy created as insights were assimilated into the thinking, writing and redesigning of the playwriting process during the writing the play, The Blind Date Café. Through the exploration of my perspective on playwriting I have been able to tease out selective aspects of the process and examine them, not as intuitive functions that defy explanation, but as a reflection of complex cognitive activity. Research is cited that bears on the industriousness of the human brain to cope with context and ambiguity; and the creative use of these functions to present open ended approaches to awareness. This is a holistic treatment involving slices of life events, career functions, and personal aspirations interacting with a broad and frame-bending curriculum where the acts of creating, revising, problem solving, and peer relationships speak to the evolution of my creative process.
subject codes.ART.RPN
(Full Text)
Victoria Morse
Merging Instruction in Thinking and Writing
1990, December
Directed by Steven H. Schwartz
Two largely independent bodies of literature exist on both teaching
to promote students' critical and creative thinking abilities and
teaching to promote the shift between novice and more expert
writing. The author looks closely at both bodies of literature and
merges common principles to create an extended curriculum unit
designed to teach simultaneously toward expert thinking and expert
writing. The unit contains such diverse activities as: l) an
acrostic puzzle 2) reading articles on themes related to Hamlet;3)
the use of dialectical notebooks;3) an explicit investigation into
the nature of problem solving; 4) using emphatic role-playing to
bring the play to life on video; and 5) use of writing "think
sheets" to help concretize the expert writing process and give
students practice in using it.
With the active collaboration of an experiences instructor, the
curriculum unit was implemented in a 12th grade advanced placement
English Literature class and evaluated in terms of its effect on:
l)students' problem-solving orientation; 2)student attitude toward
both learning and writing; 3)the quality of student writing;
4)students' metacognitive understanding of both problem solving and
writing; and 5)the quality of student-teacher interaction.
Analysis took the form of case-studies of five students chosen to
represent five basic types of change in writing ability that
occurred in the class as a whole. Interviews with the instructors
contributed significantly to the analysis as well. Findings were
that with the exception of one of the case study students, all
students made significant, and often dramatic improvement in their
writing, above and beyond what the teacher would have expected from
the same caliber of student in years past.
While some unit activities were more effective than others, it did
appear that students worked better when they understood the
principles involved and were given more freedom to be in charge of
their own thinking and writing. Likewise, the process of informing,
instituting, and closely examining an intervention had a very
beneficial effect on the teacher and his interactions with students.
Such a process of implementation holds considerable potential for
changing the nature of traditional teacher/researcher partnership.
subject codes .WRL.MSE
Chris Morton
Creative Problem Solving: Nine Model Lessons on the Rainforest
1992, May
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
The need for imparting critical and creative thinking skills to
students has never been greater. No longer can students be expected
to absorb passively each aspect of their education without the means
of understanding more fully the nature and content of the learning
experience.
The amount of information currently available for teaching purposes
alone is truly staggering. Just as the instructor must choose the
most appropriate material for a curriculum, so too must the student
decide what will be the moist useful to study from this endeavor.
Teachers need to become developers of critical and creative thinking
skills, and advocates of interdependence, teamwork, and
interdisciplinary thinking. They should also see themselves as
managers of learning experiences to help students accomplish these
goals. Such managing of students' learning should result in the
individual student deriving some proficiency at creative problem
solving.
The selection of the tropical rainforest as the focus for this
critical and creative thinking curriculum offered sixth grade
students a timely and relevant topic which they were able to
investigate with enthusiasm. With each succeeding lesson, students
gained greater confidence in taking responsibility for their own
learning. This confidence was reflected in class discussions and
group projects.
Fundamental to this curriculum was the use of well established
strategies for teaching creative problem solving. These included the
use of knowledge webs, visualizations, simulations, guided imagery,
role playing and analogies.
Key to the success of this program was the decision to have students
work primarily in groups rather than individually. This strategy
promoted greater productivity, bolstered student confidence, and
improved class discussions. This unit serves as an example of how
critical and creative thinking programs, when offered to young
students, can serve as a valuable foundation for their overall
academic success.
subject codes .ELE
Ryan P. Mott
A Social Constructivist Approach To Teaching High School
Philosophy
2001, May
Directed by Arthur Millman
Genuine democracy implies a responsibility for that democracy to
educate its participants to be able to think to the best of their
ability about complex, controversial issues and concepts. Teaching
philosophy to public high school students (who are already or are
about to become participants in this democracy) in an approach
consistent with social constructivist pedagogy is one compelling way
that this issue can be approached. Such a methodology would place an
emphasis on dialogue, inquiry, and community, as well as on
real-world, contextual learning.
The social constructivist approach, grounded in the psychological
work of Lev Vygotsky (1999), views knowledge as something that is
constructed by the learner through the process of
reconceptualization. As the learner is exposed to new information,
it either confirms or conflicts with previously held conceptions.
The goal of the educator is to provide opportunities for this type
of knowledge construction.
This can be accomplished by focusing on dialogue in the classroom.
Dialogue encourages the social interaction or "discourse" that is
necessary for this process. However, dialogue in this case is taken
to be a particular type of inquiry as detailed by Matthew Lipman
(1991). Dialogue, according to Lipman, consists of a "community of
inquiry" where the participants are engaged in trying to gain a
greater understanding about something problematical. Aside from this
conception of community as the "community of inquiry," community
also plays another prominent role.
In order to provide the relevance necessary for student engagement,
social constructivist theory emphasizes the utilization of
contextual, "real-world" problems. The students' community becomes
the context in which they learn and engage with philosophical
problems. Connection to the students' community and therefore to
themselves provides the relevance necessary for engagement. However,
proper attention must also be given to both the traditional problems
of philosophy as well as the discipline's textual history.
A social constructivist approach to teaching high school philosophy
must emphasize the use of dialogue (as a type of inquiry) in the
classroom as well as contextually relevant problems. Community, in
terms of both the "community of inquiry" and also the greater
community of which the learner is a part, must act as the foundation
for classroom dialogue and learning. Community, therefore, provides
the context by which students learn as well as the mode in which
they learn.
Also provided is a classroom example that demonstrates how to
transform these theories into practice. In this exercise issues
surrounding human cloning are utilized in order to introduce issues
of identity.
subject codes.LRN.MSE
Melissa Moynihan
Developing My Knowledge and Experiential Understanding Towards a
Creative Contribution to Work & Family / Life Balance
2004, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
Work and family / life balance, which I define as the need to strike
a balance between work on one side and family and the rest of one's
life on the other, is an area that is important to me personally and
very relevant in today's society. The typical American household
consists of families where most of the adult members are employed
outside of the home. Though I began my project with a narrow focus
that concentrated on family friendly practices in the workplace, my
research led me to a broader understanding of people's life
experiences. Workplace design and the way our culture conducts
business must become more progressive and adaptive to the realities
that shape our daily lives and our families.
While researching the experts' opinions on workplace culture, I also
emphasized the importance of real life people and their real life
stories of hope and struggle. I intermeshed the research and
findings of organized efforts with the powerful nature of the
people's voice. Turning my focus to the stories provided by
societies workforce resulted in an unforeseen, yet very therapeutic
effect on my evolving project. Initially, I facilitated a focus
group of parents that I brought together to brainstorm creative
solutions to life's challenges. Soon thereafter, I was determined to
incorporate the empathetic dialogue of those individuals into all of
my future work. I went on to design a group facilitation process,
with the goal of creating a University of Massachusetts Boston pilot
program, promoting family and life-friendly practices. Lastly, I
implemented a story-collecting Work & Family/Life Balance
website. This website served as the basis for creating a
constituency-building Book of Hope, full of the diverse stories
originally submitted to the website.
In the end, the strength of my synthesis project is the collective
sharing and collaborative nature that has been compiled together and
is now available to support anyone who may need it. The underlying
message, reiterated over and over again, in story after story, is
that all of us share this common desire to improve upon the way we
mesh our work lives with the rest of our lives. Fortunately, we can
all learn from each other in the hopes of improving the quality of
our lives.
subject codes.COR
Jeneen Mucci
Mentoring Towards Resilient Thought
2009, December
Directed by Nina Greenwald
The focus of my Synthesis Project is the development of a Curriculum
Guide that outlines the importance of building relationships with
young people that are meaningful, supported, structured and
collaborative. In developing this guide, I felt it was essential to
create a framework that will support my work within youth
development, for young people ages 9-19, in order to scaffold
learning and foster opportunities for resilient thought. In addition
to supporting these learning opportunities, I also felt it was
important to develop a foundation from which the staff that I
supervise and work with, understand the importance of their role and
the impact relationship-building can have on these young people.
This guide promotes the development of youth serving professionals
as reflective practitioners and mentors in order to build a
structured and supportive experience for both the mentor and the
young people (mentees), that is intentional and reflects the
experience, needs and interests of those within the relationship.
In the field of Positive Youth Development, youth-serving
professionals acknowledge that the most important relationship in
the life of a young person, outside of the family unit, is a
positive and supportive non-parental adult who assumes the role of a
mentor. The role of a mentor, in the natural setting of an
after-school or out-of-schooltime program, not only helps to foster
opportunities that build life and career skills, but also provides
the kind of support that young people need towards developing
resilient thought. Fostering opportunities that allow young people
to develop both a resilient core and an optimistic outlook are
essential when promoting the development of perseverance that can
guide these young people to persist in the face of adversity,
hardship and/or change. This guide also identifies important ways to
support and enhance my own work in fostering opportunities to
encourage resiliency-building within youth development. It is also
essential in developing opportunities that enrich out-of-schooltime
quality programming and staff growth through the development of a
framework that encourages and scaffolds thinking and learning to
promote the development of dispositions from a strengths-based
approach.
This project highlights the importance of the mentor/mentee
relationship, the process and the developmental tools that can be
utilized and modified. It also identifies ways of transferring
dispositions that promote perseverance in other areas of their lives
towards a holistic approach to fostering resilient thought. Within
out-of-schooltime Programs and through a Positive Youth Development
philosophy, mentoring and encouraging young people towards the
development of resilient thought, is a process that can allow for
authentic learning and living in order for young people to persevere
in an ever-changing world.
subject codes.CTY.FRP
(full text)
Badshah Mumtaz
The role of examination freform as a catalyst in directing
educational change in India
1997, June
Directed by
subject codes .CUL.LRN
Marlene (Marla) Murray
Metacognitive Strategies for Vocabulary and Concept Learning: A
Framework Using Content Area Textbooks
1992, September
Directed by Patricia Cordeiro
The goal of metacognitive approach to teaching vocabulary is to
enable the learner to acquire, retain and expand word knowledge
effectively and continuously throughout a lifetime. Strategies are
developed for decontextualization and relational structuring of
words and knowledge about words. Executive controls are developed
for the purpose of managing, retaining and recalling word knowledge.
Metacognitive strategies and critical thinking processes are
defined, demonstrated and practiced in a highly interactive
classroom. Chapter l provides an overview of the problem, a
statement of the objectives, a synopsis of the research conducted
and highlights the major findings. Chapter II examines the process
of learning words. Emphasis is placed upon the role of prior
knowledge in independent word learning, use of metacognitive
components by "experts" and the role of individuals' schema for
organizing, storing and accessing word knowledge.
Chapter III highlights the significant research in the fields of
teaching methods, cognitive theories and critical thinking applied
to the discipline of vocabulary acquisition. Chapter IV describes in
more detail the research base which most influenced this author.
Sternberg's development of external cues for learning words in
context and a group of researchers who advocate an independent work
learning approach were most influential. Chapter V establishes the
rationale, criteria, and features of the curriculum framework. It
present examples of concept-based teaching which is overlaid and
integrated into more conventional practices. The objective is a
smooth transition into concept-based teaching and learning.
Chapter VI presents a model of representative classroom exercises
based on a twelfth grade economics text which illustrate the
curriculum framework. Chapter VII discusses the need for further
research into the development of pragmatic teaching strategies which
relate to how people best learn words. Scientific studies of
possible breakthrough teaching techniques, together with the
potential for further development and possible testing of the model
are described in the concluding section of this thesis.
subject codes .MSE
Tamami Nakashima
A Plan For A Community Education Center In Japan
2003, August
Directed by Peter Taylor
This synthesis sketches the process of my evolution in finding
wholeness within myself and in connection to others-as an
individual, member of society, and practitioner in the context of
planning a community education center in Japan. The writing
describes my journey towards creating my own niche through
recognizing the misfit between my style and my surrounding
environment, believing in what was seen by others as a shortcoming
as originality, absorbing information from a variety of environments
and reflecting on it, understanding my trans-cultural history in
Japan and the United States, receiving consistent support from and
communicating with people who are accepting, learning from a
model-the Cambridge Center for Adult Education-that resembled my
vision, thinking outside the box, and estimating the forthcoming
obstacles . It reveals how I have synthesized the above to let
something new emerge. The writing is comprised of five major
chapters; my background, my reasons for wanting to found a community
education center, what I learned from my internship experience, my
thinking into the future about what kind of an institution I want to
create, and finally, the challenges I might face and my need for
personal growth. This project should be a useful reference not only
for someone who is interested in a similar venture, but anyone who
seeks to start something for the good of oneself and all by
utilizing one's originality.
subject codes .CTY.TCE
Katherine Nauman-Borton
Thinking And Learning Through Creative Movement In The Classroom
1996, December
Directed by John Murray
In the past decade, the American school system has come under
scrutiny. American children are scoring lower than children from
other countries on standardized tests. What can be done to ensure
that American students are able to compete in the technological
world of today?
Many educators believe that in order for children to fulfill their
potential, they must be given more than information and knowledge.
They must be taught how to think, how to use the knowledge they
learn in school. Researchers such as Robert H. Ennis, 1987, 1993)
and Matthew Lipman, 1995) believe thinking must be advanced in the
schools. It must be practiced. Teachers must challenge their
students and provide them with opportunities to make decisions,
solve problems and be creative.
Other researchers such as Harvard University's Howard Gardner
believe students will learn better if all of their "intelligences"
are nurtured. This theory advances the belief
that there is more to intelligence than an inborn general
intelligence factor. The Multiple Intelligence (MI) theory believes
"that human cognitive competence is better described in terms of a
set of abilities, talents, or mental skills, which we call
'intelligences" (Gardner, 1993 p. 15). The seven identified are the
musical, bodily-kinesthetic, logical-mathematical, linguistic,
spatial, interpersonal and intrapersonal. Gardner and his colleagues
hold that students will benefit from instruction incorporating more
than the verbal and logical intelligences.
This thesis examines the aforementioned trends of teaching thinking
skills and utilizing a multiple intelligence approach in the
classroom. It then presents creative movement as a classroom
activity which stimulates "intelligences" often overlooked in the
classroom while also promoting critical and creative thinking skills
in children. It has been shown in studies that movement can
stimulate a child's interest in school (Fowler, 1994). Creative
movement stimulates decision making, problem solving and
communication skills as well as the creative affinity needed to
produce excellent thinkers.
All of this research culminates in the development of a workshop for
elementary school teachers. The workshop is designed to introduce
teachers to creative movement so they have the knowledge and
confidence to utilize creative movement as an educational tool
within their own classrooms.
subject codes .ELE
Elizabeth H. Naylor
Original Curriculum for Encouraging Meaningful Community Service
in High School Students
2008, December
Directed by Arthur Millman
In this paper I have explored the importance of community service
experiences and ultimately created a guide for implementing a high
quality and meaningful community service program at the high school
level. This paper begins with an initial discussion of my personal
experiences in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, when I
discovered firsthand the importance of personal reflection and
sharing. I have defined community as a group of people with common
place and common interest. Community service is an action within the
community that betters the community in some way. The reader will
find examples of communities coming together to make a change and
examples of individuals reflecting on personal experiences. These
examples highlight the importance of community service and
reflection as well as showing the reader how to be involved and how
to reflect.
I have written this paper for educational administrators, teachers,
and community members to be used as a stepping stone for the
creation and implementation of a high school community service
program. Typical programs today require a certain number of hours
completed by each student before graduation but do not specify the
type of community service or even afford the students the
opportunity to present to others what they have done. The program
that I have laid out encourages the sharing of experiences as a way
to both appreciate the student efforts as well as give each student
a chance to inspire others.
Within the body of the paper the reader will find a Teacher Handbook
as well as a Student Guidebook. These two books are intended as a
guideline for proper implementation of a thoughtful community
service program. The Teacher Handbook supplies the reader with tips
and instructions for helping students in a yearlong community
service program. This handbook includes a schedule of monthly
meetings with a basic outline for the implementation of each of the
meetings. The Student Handbook is written to enhance the learning of
each participating student. The handbook includes phone numbers for
local community service organizations as well as space for each
student to take notes when connecting with community service
opportunities. Each of the books has been written generically for
the purpose of this paper but can easily be modified to more closely
fit a particular school or community.
Community service is an important part of my life. Each experience
introduces me to new people and ideas and each experience has
challenged me to do better in my life. In each community service
project that I have been a part of I have certainly taken away more
than I have given. It is my intent that the paper I have written
will encourage and inspire the reader to partake in community
service opportunities and to reflect and share about those
experiences.
subject codes.MSE.SOC
(full text)
Barbara D. Nelson
Restructuring for Mathematical Power: Techniques for Teaching
Thinking in Algebra
1992, December
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Recent critiques of mathematics education have resulted in proposals
to restructure learning and teaching for mathematical power. The new
vision pictures the classroom as a community of learners where
mathematics come alive as a useful tool in our technological
society. however, many high school mathematics teachers are
struggling to understand and implement the fundamental instructional
change inherent in the vision. Written from the perspective of a
high school teacher for experienced high school mathematics
teachers, this thesis attempts to bridge vision and practice.
To clarify the vision, current literature on reform in mathematics
education is synthesized into a framework of eight instructional
targets. Four of the targets focus on student behavior indicative of
mathematical power: deep understanding of concepts and schemas,
mathematical thinking, communication about mathematics and a
positive disposition toward mathematics. The other four targets
focus on the instructional setting: student-centered tasks, a
variety of work formats, mathematical tools and assessment
alternatives. Suggestions for each target help teachers generate
ideas for implementation.
The framework is based on seven learning principles synthesized from
current research: l) knowledge is constructed: 2) all students can
grapple with complex ideas; 3) conceptual learning is effective; 4)
prior knowledge influences learning; 5) learning is a social act; 6)
change in cognitive structure is a goal of teaching and 7) students
must be actively engaged to learn.
To implement the vision, the recommended strategy for experienced
teachers is to expand their repertoire of instructional methods by
focusing on teaching thinking. Guidelines for a model of thinking,
levels of curriculum planning and relevant issues in cognitive
education are incorporated into a lesson plan model.
As tactical examples of the implementation strategy, three
techniques designed to develop ;the thinking processes of
classifying, pattern finding and concept formation are modeled using
Algebra I content. The presentation of the techniques is structured
to emphasize general instructional decisions made by the teacher in
order to enhance transfer to particular classrooms.
Two underlying convictions are: experienced teachers attempting
reform must focus on the process of instruction; and successful
reform depends on teacher reflection leading to ownership of the
vision.
subject codes .SCI
Barbara B. Nelson
Teacher as Researcher: A Two-Tiered Model
1992, December
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
This thesis focuses on an investigation I undertook to enhance my
effectiveness to teach mathematics, a subject to which I was
assigned, but for which I had not been formally trained. It
describes my attempt to construct knowledge through the clinical
interview method as to how middle school students construct
knowledge about integers and think about the knowledge they are
constructing. On one level, I was attempting to learn how students
come to understand the concept of integers; on a level, I was
creating an understanding of how a teacher can construct knowledge
about the construction of knowledge. This two-tiered model cast me
in the roles of teacher, learner and researcher; and my students in
the roles of learner and teacher.
Six sixth-grade students, interviewed in groups of two each, for
four or five sessions, used a model where yellow chips represent
positive integers, and blue chips represent negative integers. The
investigation was concerned with how children construct knowledge
about adding and subtracting integers, what they grasp easily or
find difficult, what prior knowledge or misconceptions they bring,
what connections they make to real-world applications, how they
think about their thinking, how they create problems to solve, and
how well they teach fourth graders.
The study allowed me to concentrate on aspects of teaching
mathematics emphasized by the Standards (l989) of the National
Council of Teachers of Mathematics: using manipulative models,
problem solving, communicating, connecting and reasoning. Three
non-traditional techniques were used for evaluating children's
understanding: reverse processing, metacognition, and the child as
teacher.
As background, this thesis reviews relevant literature on
Constructivisn, meaning of knowledge, critical and creative
thinking, the teacher's role, clinical interviewing, and
representational models. Analyses of videotaped teacher/student
scripts and other components of the interviewing process provided
glimpses into the minds of children who learn in different ways
(including interesting misconceptions held). Implications of this
two-tiered model reinforce my belief that knowledge is not something
passive to be given, but active to be created and re-created by both
teacher and student on a day-to-day basis in the classroom.
subject codes .MSE
Rita Nethersole (Poussaint)
Multiculturalism as a Mechanism For Improving Thinking
1999, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
subject codes .CUL
Nickerson
Critical & Creative Thinking in Collaboration, Innovation and
Learning
1997, December
Directed by
Table of contents: Purpose / Other influences 1992 - 1997 /
Significant learnings during this period / What pulls me now / CCT
Contributions toward collaboration, innovation and learning
(Synthesis / Critical Thinking / Creative Thinking / Psychology /
Organizational Development / Theory of Dispute Resolution /
Practicum) / Wow Criteria: An evaluation of the courses / Wishes /
The next chapter: Creativity, Activism & Transformation /
Addendum (Courses taken, their purpose and instructors / Papers
Presented / The Prosperity Collaborative: overview and courses)
subject codes.FRP
Robert Norris
Discovering and Adapting Creative Style With Cognitive Methods
2004, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
Creativity is different for every person who utilizes it. Due to the
unique nature of everyone's creativity, there exists no predominant
method for developing creativity. The challenge, then, is in both
determining aspects of a person's creative style as well as learning
how to adapt one's methods to this individual style.
This thesis details my own struggle through this problem using my
creative writing efforts as a point of comparison. In the text, I
describe how Julia Cameron's book The Artist's Way began my creative
efforts but could not finish them because her methods were not
specific enough to my creativity. I use various critical and
creative thinking tools such as free writing, supportive listening,
and critical analysis to derive aspects of my creative style. Then I
make the next step by creating methods that responded to these
aspects. I labeled these creative writing methods the Outline
method, the Character-Only method, the Nonfictional Fiction method,
and finally the Two-Stage method. The Two-Stage method was almost
entirely founded on the ideas that Peter Elbow discusses in his book
Writing With Power . Using these methods, I arrive at a foundational
structure for creativity that is both specific to my individual
needs and comprehensive enough from which to base further activity.
It is my hope that readers of this thesis will be able to glean
aspects of my creative journey for their own creative paths. The
narrative is centered on my creative journey, but I hope that the
reader will gain enough understanding of the creative person's mind
so that their efforts can become more focused and fluid.
subject codes.WRL
(Full Text)
Kevin O'Brien
Coaching for Thinking and Life Skills
1994, May
Directed by
"The more technology we introduce into society, the more people will
want to be with other people," concludes John Naisbitt (1982) in
emphasizing the need for human touch. On a recent talk show,
Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, author of "Living with Death and Dying"
(1981), related that she had earned many honorary degrees for her
work with the terminally ill. She wondered why she had been so
rewarded, saying, "All I've done is listen to the dying and hear
what they say." A mother writes to the Boston Globe's Confidential
Chat column (1983) asking for help in identifying ways to lover her
baby more. "Can you tell me some little ways of loving my baby?"
These three quotes overwhelmingly support the idea that now, as in
the past, humans beings need social understanding, the capacity to
give an empathetic response, and skills in solving social problems
that are new to them. These needs taken together may be described as
the need for a creative social response.
In everyday social activities, professional circumstances, (e.g.
counselors, teachers, doctors), and industrial relations, (e.g.,
managers, laborers, union officials), there is a clear need for
imaginative and effective social...
subject codes .THR
Tracy O'Brien
Curriculum Unit: Developing Morals and Critical and Creative
Thinking Skills through the Novel: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
1998, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
Moral education is needed in the public schools for many reasons.
Violent crimes and dishonesty are rampant throughout the younger
generation. David Purpel (1989), a major educator in the field of
moral education, believes that we are in a cultural, political, and
moral cr1818 and hence an educational crisis. He states that it is
imperative that we confront the nature of this crisis. Purpel's
major assertion is the critical importance of educators' broad
responsibility for the state of the culture as it relates to their
specific responsibility for the quality of the "educational program"
(1989, 2).
Teaching moral education, using critical and creative thinking
through literature, is a very interesting and efficient teaching
practice. Many highly respected educators have written that critical
and creative thinking should be taught in schools and they also
recommend teaching moral reasoning through literature. This paper
reviews the work of David Purpel, Ronald Galbraith and Thomas Jones,
Thomas Lickona, Raymond Nickerson, Linda Lamme, Robert Ennis,
Delores Gallo, Richard Paul, Shari Tishman, T. Tardiff and Theresa
Amabile. Using these authors for my rationale, I have created an
interdisciplinary curriculum unit that teaches moral education and
critical and creative skills using the novel, Number The Stars by
Lois Lowry (1989). In this paper, I will review literature about
teaching moral education. I will offer a unit on the book, Number
The Stars by Lois Lowry, in which I use the practices recommended by
authors reviewed. I will also discuss the use of open-ended
questions to practice and assess the concepts taught.
This paper concludes with a unit of several lessons designed to be
taught in a fourth grade classroom, but it can be altered to meet
the needs of any particular group of students. It is my hope that an
educator can follow the format that the six lessons are developed in
and continue this format to create the rest of the lessons for the
novel. This unit will provide an example as teachers try to
integrate these techniques and ideas into other novels and
curriculum.
subject codes .MOR
Constance O'Brien
In Search of an Operational Definition of Social Creativity
??
Directed by ??
Having argued for the existence of social creativity as observed in
daily life, I will proceed in chapters two through four with a
selective review of the psychological literature on social
cognition, empathy, and social intelligence to determine whether any
of these concepts can adequately account for the behavior cited. I
will proceed to identify the connections between these concepts and
creativity. Examining the concepts, their relationships to each
other, and the degree to which any of these concepts alone can
account for imaginative social problem solving will demonstrate the
need for a new...
subject codes .THR
Vilma O'Connor
Flying with Imagination: Co-Pilot of Critical and Creative
Thinking
1997, December
Directed by John Murray
This thesis consists of a series of classroom activities and
exercises for second grade students. The series is organized around
a central theme of space exploration. All normal curriculum subjects
such as mathematics, spelling, etc. are woven into the space
exploration theme and can be put together by the teacher in any
sequence.
Deeply imbedded in each of these enrichment tasks, there are
Critical and Creative Thinking skills, strategies and techniques
that will assist the students to resolve a problem, to make a
decision or to conceptualize. These operations assist in creative,
as well as critical thinking repeatedly.
The activities are organized around the theory that many experts
believe that creative thinking and problem solving are very similar
because the process of creativity is the process of excellent
thinking.
Critical skills go hand in hand with creative ones; creativity is
not just a matter of being different from other people, it is a
matter of having a different idea that works as well or better than
previous ideas. (Scriven, Beyer, 1987, p.36)
Creativity involves an imaginative element - something more than
skill, which involves freedom from constraint, independent thinking
and personality development. The activities and pedagogy are
designed to increase pupils' confidence in themselves and in their
ideas to reinforce their ability to do their own thinking thus
strengthening their sense of personal power and becoming more
capable of handling challenges.
The utilization of space stimulates curiosity and imagination, which
should motivate and inspire students to have the love and the desire
to constantly learn which is my primary goal. Their imagination will
be a springboard to Critical and Creative Thinking which will expand
their perspectives and assist them in employing various strategies
as they acquire the knowledge and awareness of their thoughts about
TG throughout their lives. Each student will have a portfolio that
each will review with the teacher periodically to learn
self-assessment strategies that empower their self-confidence and
future learning and growth.
subject codes .ELE
William Oakes
Inventure
1988, September
Directed by
Carefully, I added the lines of the rigging and moved my pencil
slowly from the crow's nest to the side railing. It was starting to
look like something real, a three-masted sailing ship. As I began
adding the detail on the carved bowsprit, I must not have been aware
that that my fourth grade teacher had asked me a question about the
explorer Magellan. This was history period and we were learning
about the early explorers who had come to this continent. I expect
that as I started to think about these seafarers I began to
visualize what the ships looked like. Since I always carried drawing
paper around, I was prepared to drift into my own mental world. My
drawing skill had developed quickly through the first three grades,
as was apparent by the advanced level of perspective with which I
had drawn my ship. From this particular unusual point of view, one
could see the design of the whole structure. I was the only one in
my class who could define an object correctly from many angles. It
felt good to be a little special. I had been totally absorbed in
bringing this image to life, oblivious to the rest of the class
staring at me or to the teacher standing over me. Suddenly startled,
I looked up into her angry face. Before I could proudly reveal my
masterpiece, her lightning hand reached out and grabbed my ship. I
was so attached to the drawing that it felt like me she had crumpled
up and thrown toward the trashcan. I remember most vividly the pain
I felt as she shouted, "And don't waste paper like this in my class
again." I laid my head on my folded arms, unable to hold back tears.
For the rest of the period all I could hear was "waste paper like
this."
subject codes .THR
Constance OBrien
In Search of an Operational Definition of Social Creativity
??
Directed by
Having argued for the existence of social creativity as observed in
daily life, I will proceed in chapters two through four with a
selective review of the psychological literature on social
cognition, empathy, and social intelligence to determine whether any
of these concepts can adequately account for the behavior cited. I
will proceed to identify the connections between these concepts and
creativity. Examining the concepts, their relationships to each
other, and the degree to which any of these concepts alone can
account for imaginative social problem solving will demonstrate the
need for a new unified concept and for an integrated or
multidirectional theory of social creativity.
Addressing the problem of measuring social creativity, I will
conclude the paper with some suggestions for classroom appropriate
activities that might facilitate the study of this concept, in a
natural setting. These classroom activities may be useful as an
explanatory device for the concept of social creativity.
subject codes.THR
Benjamin Okafor
Personal Experience and Professional Development Through Critical
and Creative Thinking
2004, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
This synthesis describes my journey as a student in the Critical and
Creative Thinking (CCT) Program and shows the impact the program has
had on my life. I was able to fashion a future career for myself
with the help of the courses I took along that journey.
Finding the CCT Program in 1993 showed me a way to get beyond my bad
undergraduate educational experience. My experience in the first two
courses, Critical Thinking and Creative Thinking, was exhilarating.
I was able to apply that experience and knowledge in dealing with
the serious misfortunes of my family in Nigeria and building a
family in Boston. The experiences when I rejoined CCT, which I
describe course by course, have helped me to become a better thinker
and a creative individual. I was able retrieve my long lost zeal for
political activism and take the bold step of becoming an
anti-corruption activist, beginning with a website dedicated to
fighting corruption in Nigeria.
subject codes.RPN
Noreen McGinness Olson
Developing a Creative Thinking Course for Community College Student
2013, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
This project describes the development of an online Creative Thinking course designed
specifically for community college students. This interdisciplinary college course will be one component of an entrepreneurial certificate program aimed at business students, but will be open to all students seeking to improve their creative thinking abilities. While developing the course the author engaged in the process described in Cameron’s The Artists Way as a structured reflective practice.
In this writing, selected theories of creativity are described in their connection to course content and approach. The course was informed by traditional western ideas on creativity as well as an eastern holistic view. Western theories of creativity draw from the works of Gardner, Csikszentmihalyi, and Sternberg, while Eastern concepts of creativity are addressed through the Taoist notion of ching or quiescence. In addition, the course has been informed by the emerging field of Positive Psychology due to the observed effects of positive attitudes on increasing creativity in individuals and Positive Psychology’s compatibility with eastern viewpoints. Approaches to pedagogy were influenced by the particular needs of community college students. The unique learning needs of community college students include a desire for connection to practical applications, as well as high levels of interaction and personal meaning. The course was also designed to address critical viewpoints on the limiting nature of our educational system on creativity as described by Robinson in Out of Our Minds.
Major assignments and learning activities are described in detail including the Sci-Fi SCAMPER—an adaptation of the well-known SCAMPER activity, and the Problem of Personal Interest Project—a long term project in the domain of the student’s choosing, identifying a problem, and developing and testing a solution. The course outline and syllabus are also provided.
The first decade of the 21st century has presented us with complex problems at both local and global levels. The economic crisis and social changes emerging from the clash of cultures in an increasingly shrinking world has created the requirement for all Americans to work smarter and innovate in order to remain competitive and find new ways to create positive interactions. It is for these reasons that creative thinking has become a crucial tool for everyone in our society.
subject codes .TCE
(Full Text)
Eileen Page
Exploring Graphokinesics Critically and Creatively
1993, December
Directed by John Murray
For centuries, the significance of one's handwriting, as a skill and
as a projection of one's personality has evoked curiosity,
enthusiasm, skepticism, anger, wonder, support and criticism. These
reactions have, in turn, led to a long and complicated history of
events. Over the years, many informal observations have been
recorded, and many favorable and unfavorable mindsets have evolved.
Research projects, trying to prove or disprove these mindsets, have
been ongoing.
Being a teacher for twenty years and a graphoanalyst for eight years
has provided me with the opportunity to observe and experience first
hand the numerous facets of handwriting both as an art form and a
science. This thesis is a culmination of those observations and
experiences combined with the knowledge acquired as a student in the
Critical and Creative Thinking Program.
Because of the myths, biases and strong controversies which surround
the field of handwriting, it seems important to address some of
these issues. This thesis explores handwriting as an art form, and
as a diagnostic tool, which when combined become a form of nonverbal
communication, or "graphokinesics." The main objective is to provide
information about the field of handwriting which will help the
reader become knowledgeable in an appreciative of the complexities
of handwriting.
The evolution of people's ability to communicate graphically is an
amazing one, and one which has also had many controversies and many
transitions. The thesis traces the history of handwriting, as an art
form and as a "soft" science, from its origin to its present day
status. It reviews some of the literature, both pro and con,
connected with each aspect of handwriting. It also discusses some of
the uses of handwriting analysis and the training needed to practice
adequately.
Also included in this thesis is an empirical study. It was created
in order to explore possible connections between drawing and
handwriting. Even though the results of the study were inconclusive,
many valuable ideas emerged for redesigning a future study. Since
drawings are so prevalently used by many counseling agencies, and
handwriting can be viewed as a finely tuned form of drawing, finding
a connection between these two areas no doubt will result in
bringing new respect to the field of handwriting analysis. The
thesis ends with a plan for a research project to help accomplish
this goal.
subject codes .THR
Alison Palmucci
Born-Again Artist: Lessons, Prophets, and Visions on Developing an Identity as an Artist
2012, May
Directed by Jeremy Szteiter
Being an artist involves the creation and maintenance of an artistic identity. Because there are no specific prerequisites for becoming an artist, like academic degrees or professional licenses, anyone can call him- or herself an artist. Working as an artist differs from working in more typical careers. This paper seeks to examine the ways artists build and maintain artistic identities, and the various actions or modes of thinking needed in order to do so. The author reflects on her own life as an artist, which includes considering how she lost sight of her artistic self, and the steps she is taking to rebuild her identity as a practicing artist. Reflection, research, and self-confrontation all guide her in acknowledging struggles and taking action for future success.
subject codes.ART
(Full Text)
Ashok Panikkar
The Writing of a Novel
1997, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
subject codes .WRL
Malcolm Patterson
1985
Directed by
subject codes
Melaine Patterson (Hall)
Critical and Creative Thinking in the Newsroom: A High School
Curriculum Reinforcing Reading and Writing in a Non-Traditional
Learning Environment
1990, May
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Emerging from diversified educational and employment experiences in
the mid-80's, the writer became sensitized to the problems of
functional literacy. Being able to communicate clearly constitutes
and individual's expressing oneself in the most precise manner
possible. Without this, many interactions are regarded as trivial
because, more often than not, they are misinterpreted or
misunderstood.
The writer had the opportunity in l984 to introduce basic reading
and writing concepts to a group of urban youths in the Boston Youth
Programs during a seven week summer workshop. The success of that
workshop led to a communication. internship that nurtured the ideas
for a curriculum to help combat illiteracy. This curriculum
expresses the importance of the teaching process and the development
of critical and creative thinking skills. In this thesis the writer
proposes that students do not learn if they are not creatively
stimulated and that students do learn from effective teachers. This
curriculum is an attempt to provide the environment and the
stimulation to help students read and write to their fullest
potential.
General thinking activities and daily lesson plans have been
designed to challenge individual students to think more
realistically about their everyday existence, while reinforcing
their basic reading and writing skills. The learning process takes
place in a simulated newsroom.
Critical and creative thinking offers an avenue (not previously well
explored) for a curriculum strongly supporting essential reading and
writing skills. Through lesson plans on generating ideas, clarifying
ideas, assessing the validity of ideas, decision making, and problem
solving, students will be guided to experience a new dimension to
the basic tools for building a solid foundation for literacy
training in their educational experiences. Learning to read and
analyze a newspaper is shown to be a form of education, which can
become, as Martin Luther King says, a "passport to decent economic
positions."
subject codes .MSE.WRL.MED.CUL
Joyce Pearson
School/community cooperation: Action-involved learning
1986, May
Directed by Robert Swartz
Since education/learning occurs before and after formal schooling,
schools have no monopoly on it. In fact, education happens as people
live and change and wherever there is intelligent action. Schools
can benefit from wider intelligent action and can increase young
people's learning through co-operation with the changing world.
Such changing speaks to action-involved learning and encourages a
concept of a dynamic, interactive world. It contrasts to the
Alexandrian and Platonic/Aristotelian concepts of a static, closed
universe, where ideas are unchanged and fixed and where an external
(authoritarian) authority pre-determines knowledge. The latter
system puts the cart before the horse, by decreeing learning through
order regardless of interest. An interactive, more democratic system
engages one's interests first, letting progress proceed by student
initiative.
The contrast between a prior/traditional education and
action-involved community education is great.
ACTION INVOLVED LEARNING
All life is education
Education requires participation
Public school should be primarily concerned with passing on the
cultural community living and the improvement of the social order.
A PRIORI/TRADITIONAL LEARNING
Education is gained only in formal institutions of learning
Education is adequately gained through studying about life
School systems should be primarily concerned with the improvement of
heritage
subject codes .CTY
Isabelle Ping-I Mao
Essays on Monkey: A Classic Chinese Novel
1997, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
Monkey is one of the masterpieces in the genre of the classic
Chinese novel. It has been immensely popular with the general
reading public of China since the sixteenth century. Abridged and
translated into English in 1943 by Arthur Waley, it has made its way
onto the college campuses in the United States, and has been well
appreciated. There is a recent complete and unabridged translation
by Anthony Yu, with the title Journey to the West.
In this thesis, I offer a series of critical essays on Monkey.
The first essay locates the work in the genre. It traces its
heritage in style and content to the story-telling tradition of
China and contrasts Monkey to the most distinguished pieces
in the genre. The next four essays focus on the individual
characters of importance in the work. The sixth essay offers my
interpretation of the view of Wu Ch'eng-en, its author, on what
truth is and how a person may achieve his own truth. The final essay
offers a reflection speculating on Wu's processes and their
connection to concepts in the literature on critical and creative
thinking. It ends with a metacognitive description of my own
processes in writing these essays.
subject codes .WRL
Robert Poirier
A Diversity Curriculum for Gay and Lesbian Teens in Middle School
1996, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
Homosexuality is currently becoming a political issue in education.
A central question is whether or not we as educators should provide
information regarding sexual orientation in a classroom setting. If
a school system decides to provide such information, at what grade
level is it deemed appropriate?
This thesis focuses on the need for, and development of a diversity
curriculum for middle school students which includes information on
sexual orientation. It begins with an examination of the lack of
safety and justice for homosexual students in school, and anti-gay
violence as it relates to adolescents. The issue of the rights of
gay and lesbian youth will be addressed from both the moral and
legal perspectives. The moral perspective will present the work of
moral educator Nel Noddings and her contribution of the ethic of
care This ethic of care supports the legal perspective offered. The
Commonwealth of Massachusetts has set forth a series of
recommendations, as well as a law, to protect gay and lesbian
students in a public school setting. To achieve the recommended
changes, individuals need significant creative and critical thinking
skills and dispositions. Through the works of author Gary Davis,
psychologists C.R. Rogers, Abraham Maslow, and Teresa Amabile, and
educator Delores Gallo, a conception of creative thinking is
explored.
Creative development leads to the enhancement of open-mindedness,
tolerance for ambiguity, and flexibility, which foster empathy. The
critical thinking perspective examines the works of educator Barry
Byer, and philosophers Robert Ennis and Richard Paul. Special
attention is given to the importance of dialogue in the education of
all children.
Finally, this thesis provides eight lessons to incorporate into a
middle school curriculum. These lessons address the issues of
identity formation, perception and stereotyping, ethical decision
making, and the cultural contributions of marginalized groups in our
society, with a focus on homosexuals. The purpose of the lessons is
to reduce prejudice, increase tolerance and informed judgments,
thereby addressing the needs of gay and lesbian teens in our
society, by providing positive role models and fostering
constructive dialogue.
subject codes .DIV
William Porter
A Critical and Creative Approach to enhancing Student Writing
1992, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
Teachers are always looking for ways to enhance their students'
writing abilities. The approach of this thesis is to expose students
directly to current theory on process writing while also discussing
a piece of metafiction, a novel which acknowledges its awareness of
its own status as fiction. Process writing theory is infused with a
unit on Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five in order to connect
theory and practice in writing. This immersion in the theory,
creative practice and critical evaluation of writing is designed to
expand students' awareness of their innate language-making
abilities.
A Curriculum was implemented kin a l2th grade, heterogeneously
grouped English class. Four types of writing were employed: 1) two
essays of the student's own process were written, one before the
unit and the other after the unit; 2) a freewriting journal on
student reading throughout the unit was kept; 3) a daily summary of
in-class activities was written; and 4) a creative reaction to the
unit was developed. Three students were followed after exposure to
the unit, and their writing was evaluated in order to see the impact
of this immersion. Evidence of their metacognition, creative
development and motivation was then observed. The results of the
project were positive; the essays in particular showed a clear
improvement in metacognition and motivation.
The implications beyond this curriculum are important. Students who
view themselves as writers and who share the variety of roles of the
writer find the freedom to discover themselves more fully. When
writing is seen as a process in which all learners are involved,
attitudes clearly change. The teacher who shares power within the
classroom and allows students more ownership over their ideas has a
better opportunity to influence student attitudes about
making-meaning. The direct knowledge of writing theory proved
beneficial in the practice of writing.
subject codes .WRL
Lyonel Prime
Remapping Critical Thinking Theory: A Critique of Richard Paul's
Model of Critical Thinking
1998, May
Directed by Delores Gallo
This project is a critical examination of Richard Paul's theoretical
conceptualization of critical thinking. In his relentless criticism
of the didactic approach characterizing current academic
instruction, Paul develops a model of critical thinking that he
refers to as critical thinking in the strong sense. The model posits
dialogue as the methodological strategy that helps overcome
egocentric and socio-centric thinking and thereby facilitates the
achievement of ethically rational development. By egocentric and
socio-centric thinking, Paul means the thinking that is bound,
respectively by one point of view and social context. The model in
question is intended not only to displace didactic instruction but
also to transcend the overemphasis on logic that characterizes
current critical thinking theorizing.
While Paul's work points to a promising theoretical horizon, it
betrays the very educational ideal that it sets out to pursue. Not
only is it the exemplification of the didactic approach that it is
intended to displace, but it is also carried out in a conceptual
framework that reinforces the modernist view of effective thinking
as the rigorous application of rational standards in the
determination of the truthfulness of issues. By giving preeminence
to logic and rational standards in the thinking process, Paul's view
legitimizes a style of inquiry that is conducive to definitive
closure. It is fundamentally reductionist: it tends to privilege
exclusion over integration, object over relationship.
This paper presents an alternative view of critical thinking the
theoretical underpinning of which includes a conception of knowledge
as immanent. Its primary concern is the achievement of understanding
or the production of meaning through persistent explorations of
relational structures as opposed to discrete objects. It therefore
dismisses any quest for a secure foundation of knowing as illusory.
This work is presenting as its starting point the conventional model
of educational practice. It provides a brief description of the
didactic approach against which Paul levels his criticism. Then, it
moves to offer Paul's actual criticism, his view of critical
thinking and a critique of his model. Finally, the paper presents a
reconfiguration of the theoretical landscape of critical thinking.
It formulates and justifies a non-objectivist conception of critical
thinking.
subject codes .THR
Victoria Prizzia
Productive Aging and the Creative Flow
1998, May
Directed by Delores Gallo
This two-part synthesis originally designed consists of an article
on aging and a reflective essay on my creative process. Directed to
the popular press, contesting prevalent age-related stereotypes,
this original project is based on extensive research including 25
in-depth interviews with individuals 62-95 years of age. Through the
reflective essay, I trace the evolution of my work from conception
to its conclusion. I identify significant ideas, feelings, events,
and patterns from my journal entries and offer a conceptual
understanding of my work by relating it to two psychological
constructs of creativity. The first is the evolving systems
approach, offered by Gruber and Wallace, Yale personality theorists
who used the case method in their study Creative People at Work; the
second developed by Teresa Amabile, a social psychologist currently
at Harvard University, is a componential model of creativity useful
in its identification of both domain-relevant and
creativity-relevant skills to the process of originality, fulfilled
through task motivation.
subject codes .LRN.THR.DIV
Matthew Puma
Pomp In Circumstances: Paradox, Oppositions, Metaphors and
Philosophy in The Context of Adult Basic Education
2004, December
Directed by Nina Greenwald
The ability to think fluidly with a variety of oppositional forms is
essential to both critical and creative thinking. Loaded oppositions
such as science vs. humanities, reason vs. emotion, male vs. female
and good vs. evil become hindrances to thought when they are held
too rigidly as dichotomies. Learning to work with the rich flow of
oppositions involves patient exploration and an openness to the
emergence of paradoxical truths rooted in the opposition. However,
paradoxical thinking is not the only method for flexing fixed
oppositions; there are many other types of "moves" that one can make
when thinking creatively with oppositional forms. The theoretical
goal of this project is to develop a rich framework for supporting
creative oppositional thinking.
The practical goal of this project is to channel the energy derived
from the development of the theoretical framework toward enhancing
the educational process resulting in applications ready to deploy in
the real world. Thus, the project seeks to integrate methods for
paradoxical and oppositional thinking, rich metaphors for personal
development and themes from academic philosophy into the context of
adult basic education. The focal outcomes of the project are a set
of educational practices and a guide to help teachers employ these
practices in their work.
subject codes .TCE
Beverly Quilty-Dunn
In Defense of Tall Poppies: A Middle School Approach to Higher
Order Thinking
1996, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
There is a quiet crisis in gifted education today as a result of
both conflicting social values and the failure of our schools to
exert leadership on behalf of its most intellectually talented
students.
This paper presents an analysis of this quiet crisis as a political
issue, one which derives from social conflicts deeply rooted in our
American Culture. Following that it describes one town's attempt to
overcome the crisis by giving its students curricula based on
critical and creative thinking skills, also often referred to in
literature as higher order thinking skills. The paper includes an
overview of contemporary theory and research on using higher order
thinking skills and a multiple intelligences approach to curriculum
differentiation, as well as a description of and rationale for the
proposed educational intervention.
An organization framework is included in the form of a sequential
action plan which is designed to work within the structure of the
existing middle school while providing continuity of service to
identified students It includes teaching strategies, assessment
techniques and summaries of nine Curriculum units, as well as
samples of student responses and possible resources from the pilot
program 'mm-unit.
Following a review of current literature on the need for
differentiation, various approaches to differentiation are
presented, including an emphasis on higher order critical and
creative thinking skills and various methods appropriate for middle
schools use.
The sequential and simultaneous approach of this authentic and on
going intervention is a key feature of this paper. A case study
approach of my efforts to affect change for this special needs
population at both the state and local levels is included, along
with suggested mini-units which infuse various appropriate higher
order thinking skills and appeal to multiple intelligences. A set of
recommended teaching strategies with specific samples from
"Philosophy Alive," a pilot curriculum unit designed to provide a
genuine challenge for high-ability students, is also included.
This paper concludes by presenting a summary of the current progress
and future direction of the field of gifted education in the State
of Massachusetts today.
subject codes .MSE
John Quirk
Meaning Through Metaphor: Visual Dialogue And The Picturing Of
Abstraction
2008, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
This synthesis builds on the connections between language and
cognition, and the parallel sub-domains of linguistic metaphor and
visual knowledge representation, to argue that traditional dialogue
processes might aptly be employed to help collaborative learners
examine complex abstractions. The starting premise, that habitual
language-embedded metaphor may be used as a window into the
understanding of abstractions, such as tolerance, education,
justice, and integrity derives from the important work of Lakoff and
Johnson in developing their Embodiment Theory of Metaphor. Further
parallels for what is thought of in cognition as the spread of
activation are considered in tandem with theories about the spread
of connection-making in creative thinking. A look at the works of
Isaacs and Bohm, both pioneers in theories of dialogue process,
leads directly to the proposal that dialogue, with slight
modification, could provide an effective atmosphere for capitalizing
on the linguistic metaphor-visual knowledge relationship. Pulling
together all of these connections, the paper proposes the principles
of what the author calls visual dialogue. Visual dialogue is a
collaborative framework within which learning participants might
focus on the details of the metaphoric thinking embedded in their
language, "seeing," as a result the abstract knowledge represented
by their mental imagery. Within the atmosphere of a visual dialogue,
it is argued, deeper and more subtle understandings of abstractions
may be revealed collaboratively, or perhaps even re-constituted into
new meanings. Understanding or meaning built in this way may then be
used to approach more practical problems systematically, though such
systems are not described in this paper. The paper concludes by
considering a number of issues raised by the notion of thinking
about, or visualizing, complex social abstractions via the process
of visual dialogue. Among these are: the philosophic implications of
examining implicit ambiguity metaphorically; the practical use of
dialogue processes that are often thought of as open-ended; the
application of visual dialogue to different age groups; the
potential for the use of other media (music, sculpture, etc.) in
examining abstraction; and thoughts on the use of creativity in
visual dialogue for promoting potential problem solving strategies
or approaches..
subject codes.LAN.THR
(Full Text)
Laura Rancatore
A Commitment For Change
2003, August
Directed by Peter Taylor
I matriculated in the Critical and Creative Thinking Program as a
Catholic school teacher looking to satisfy state Department of
Education requirements of an M.A. for teachers with additional hopes
of securing a better paying job in a public school. An underlying
tension also nagging at my career thoughts was that I wasn't really
certain I wanted to teach for the rest of my life, and the CCT
Program seemed to offer an open window for seeking alternative
opportunities if I so desired. The academic structure I pursued
resulted in a much more personal focus creating a necessary
foundation on which to build any solid future endeavors whether
personal or professional.
This paper is a workshop representing a series of writing and
thinking activities that help the participant(s) identify and
discover enlightening information about themselves. These new
insights can be reflected upon over and over as useful reminders to
pay attention to what makes us view and participate in life with a
healthy perspective. Beginning with uncovering one's hidden
diversity (Drumm) by exploring transformative moments, possessions
(UMass Writing Program), and things that shape us, a participant can
discover a common thread in important life experiences that reveals
strong characteristics within themselves. Additionally, by using
Elynne Austin Sharpe's Write b y Color process, one can further
discover the many diverse traits we have within us that require
constant nurturing and attention. Appreciative Inquiry (Hammond) is
a third means by which we can strengthen our purpose by learning to
value our current purpose and life situation. Finally, I adapted
these writing and thinking tools to a workshop format with the
intention of inspiring single mothers to strive for a positive
living experience and avoid some of the pitfalls I have encountered
and discovered as avoidable by going through this process.
subject codes .FRP
Jane Rando
Addressing gender equity through artistic process
1999, June
Directed by ?
On our society, girls and women face unique physical and psychic
dangers. There is insufficient support for respectful surfacing and
articulation of voice, neither are there sufficient tools with which
to combat the socio-environmental phenomena of "hitting the wall"
and "going underground." (Gilligan 1983). While the creative process
is full of risk taking and challenge for all, it presents additional
problems for girls and women.
This thesis identifies and explores the ideas and factors that
influence female voicing, with a focus on artistic process as a
voicing too. The reader is offered a selective review of the
literature on gender equity issues in education and literature on
critical and creative thinking in the theatre arts. Drawn upon are
the works of Elizabeth DeBold, Peg Orenstein, Mary Pipher, Judith
Logan, Richard Paul, Dr. Delores Gallo, Karen Warren, Suzanne
Langer, Uta Hagen, and Viola Spolin among others.
Also presented is an original performance piece, "Rosa Mystica."
Following the performance piece is an analysis of its evolution in
relation to described conceptual models, including a scene which
models the performance of a writing/theatre studio group. The
central focus of the piece is on the mother/daughter relationship.
The text of the play offers perspective on issues of gender equity
in relation to creative performance.
The paper concludes with a brief look at Irondale, an effective,
existing arts in education program based on values I share. And
finally, I offer a model of the essential frame of the
writing/theatre studios, an integrated arts in education program for
fostering artistic process, which offers a forum for developing
critical and creative thinking skills, writing skills, a sense of
best performance and a sense of vitality and community for all
participants.
subject codes.ART.GEN
Charly Rauscher
Next Steps in the Journey Toward Self-Fulfillment
2005, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
This work addresses the need for organizational change in the
workplace. Too often businesses and companies ignore the advantages
of critical and creative thinking. This project first explores some
of my thinking patterns relative to designing a synthesis project.
What are my interests and what effect do these have in determining a
direction for this synthesis paper? Next, I discuss the concepts and
ideas surrounding critical and creative thinking from both an
individual and organization point of view. Theories and ideas are
presented from key critical and creative thinking researchers. My
introspection of what I deem to be important aspects of critical and
creative thinking are also provided.
To help promote understanding of critical and creative thinking, I
developed four workshops. Each of these workshops demonstrates
specific key elements of both critical and creative thinking along
with common pitfalls that occur in our thinking processes. For
example, the first workshop pertains to critical thinking concepts
and principles and the pitfalls of point of view and frame of
reference. In this particular workshop individuals are given an
exercise to complete. Then small groups are formed to share their
individual results followed by an interactive discussion on critical
thinking characteristics. Next, working with the group we try to
identify the key elements of critical thinking. After this
discussion I present a table that represents these elements of
critical thinking. Next, the group and I explore obstacles that get
in our way, that prevent us from being good critical thinkers. Then
the group and I look at ways to help nurture the critical thinking
process. As this particular workshop unfolds and critical thinking
principles develop, there is time devoted to emphasizing the
progression from individual thinking to team thinking. This
progression demonstrates that individuals have different points of
view and frames of reference. We approach analysis and evaluation
from different perspectives. Mastering critical thinking takes time,
awareness, and discipline. The remaining three workshops follow a
similar format of using an exercise to help explain CCT principles
and of directly involving individuals interactively in order to
promote self-discovery.
The conclusion of this synthesis provides a look at other
considerations a practitioner may need to address relative to
conducting workshops. Lastly, my personal thoughts about the CCT
program are discussed along with my next steps in the journey.
subject codes.COR
Jean Rene
Rationale and Provisional Lesson Plans For Learning High School
Science Through Discovering Dialectically and Creatively
2007, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
A host of studies on students' understanding of science has revealed
that persistent topic-specific misconceptions loom over wide groups
of learners. However, in the literature, scant consideration is
given to high school students' over-arching misconceptions. Those
are erroneous conceptions about the nature of science that tend to
be resistant even after traditional instruction. Those large-scale
misconceptions lay at the frontier of philosophical standpoints and
are likely to inhibit students' ability to construct conceptions
aligned with accepted scientific views. This synthesis contends that
educators can better address high school students' large scale
misconceptions at the conjunction of interconnected scientific
notions and philosophical praxis anchored in Socrates' dialectics
and dialectical materialism.
From Socrates' approach, I borrow and apply adaptively the critical
probing and pondering tool that I termed strategic questioning and
reflexive thinking. Those categories inform the design of open-ended
questions aiming at eliciting learners' reasoning on natural
phenomena. From dialectical materialism, I inherit a philosophy of
continually developing and interacting processes punctuated by
sudden leaps in nature. This dialectical outlook calls for the
exploration of interconnections between contradictory elements of
any systems, as one inquires about its wholeness, including its
orderly structural patterns and its unforeseen disorderly chaotic
behavior. Both dialectical approaches coalesce with pertinent
theories of creativity to form an alternative pedagogical framework
that I coin "Learning high school science through discovering
dialectically and creatively, (L=D2C)".
The pedagogical model aims at helping high school learners discover
scientific notions through authentic experiments undertaken on the
basis of critical and creative thinking, and to challenge students'
overarching misconceptions through strategic questioning in the
context of epistemological discussions. A methodology and a set of
lesson plans integrating physics, biology and chemistry are
elaborated to assess the L=D2C effectiveness in the context of a
high school science class and to further help in its eventual
refinement.
subject codes.SCI
(Full Text)
Andres Reyes
Incorporating Service-Learning Into The Esl Curriculum: What
Aspiring Practitioners Need to Know
2009, May
Directed by Arthur Millman
As an ESL teacher at a community college, my constant goal is to
synergize teaching approaches and strategies so that in addition to
maximizing students' language learning, their critical thinking
skills, cultural competence, and reflectivity - as members of an
increasingly growing multicultural society - are heightened. Most
recently, I have been pursuing service-learning as a philosophy,
pedagogy, and practice that can help students connect their
classroom learning to concrete, exciting, and challenging learning
situations beyond the classroom.
This paper is an attempt to highlight service-learning as a powerful
tool that can make a difference in students' lives as they take on
important challenges and issues in their communities.
Service-learning's power as a philosophy, pedagogy, and practice is
examined, and its connections to current education trends,
practices, and concepts are considered. Finally, practical ways of
utilizing service-learning are presented, with the hope of inspiring
other teachers (ESL or otherwise) to "test drive" service-learning
with their students and communities.
subject codes.TCE
Barbara Reynolds
Dear Bob: Letters to a first year math teacher
1997, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
For the past ten years, I have been a mathematics teacher in urban
alternative education high school programs. I chose to teach in
alternative settings because they tend to attract what I call the
"forgotten" students. These are the high school students who are low
skilled and often viewed by teachers as discipline problems.
Frequently, either they are pushed through the system to get rid of
them, or they end up dropping out to rid themselves of the system
(Lefkowitz, 1987). For some students, alternative programs may be
their last resort to receiving an education.
Over the years, it has become apparent to me that a key ingredient
to successful learning for these students (actually, for all
students) is their teacher's will to learn. When I first started
teaching, I viewed the classroom environment. Slowly, I began to
realize that while it is important for the students to learn as much
as they can from me, it is absolutely crucial for me to learn as
much as I can from them; to be a good teacher I need to be a good
learner (Meier, 1995).
A common tenet held my many educators is that teachers need to be
passionate about learning. Passionate teachers have deep interests
in some contextual aspects of learning; they are constantly making
connections; they are forever noting what is around them to enrich
the learning process (Perrone, 1991; Meier 1995). In general, they
communicate a devotion to learning that is exceptional (Fried,
1995). This project is a narrative about my passion, about the
insights, discoveries, and strategies that have resulted.
subject codes .MSE.SCI
Lorna Riach
Stumbling into Change and Overcoming My Creative Fears in The Process: My CCT Experience Identifying and Overcoming Uncertainty and Fear in My Creativity
2012, May
Directed by Jeremy Szteiter
Though I originally enrolled in CCT as a means to prevent me from working too much, I ended up discovering I actually needed to do much more work –toward my creative development, instead of my professional development. While my "head-on" approach had proven effective and successful in my professional development when faced with challenges, it turned out that the same approach would be ineffective toward my attempts at personal change. Fears quickly emerged in my creativity that required my consideration - before I could enjoy any level of success. This synthesis considers the development and manifestation of my fears in creativity, and shares my experience, actions, and reflection in overcoming these fears in my personal creativity. Through the trial of seven actions focused on overcoming fear, I share how my thinking changed – which resulted in me finding comfort in creativity, and not discomfort with uncertainty.
subject codes.WRL.RPN
(Full Text)
Susan Ripley-Young
A Teachers Guide to Improving Students Creative Thinking in
Mathematics
1995, May
Directed by Judith Collison
As a teacher, one's approach to mathematics instruction greatly
influences students' learning. To help children develop positive
"mathematical self-esteem", become competent in mathematics, and
deal with the importance of mathematics in today's world, I propose
infusing more creativity into the teaching and learning of the
subject.
The key factor in this approach is self-actualization, or achieving
one's potential. It is the fundamental part of Abraham Maslow and
Carl Rogers' theories, and makes creativity accessible to everyone.
Just as all people have the potential to be creative, everybody has
the ability to succeed in mathematics. Neither is restricted to a
selected group of particularly talented people. Through
self-actualization, anyone can enhance her creativity, and by
increasing one's creativity, a person can improve her "mathematical
self-esteem".
Educators need to take a creative approach to their mathematics
teaching, making use of all their abilities, taking risks,
experimenting, and trying new things. Mathematics must be presented
as a multi-faceted subject with components and applications for
everyone. Teachers need to foster students' discovery of their own
mathematical abilities in the context of a safe classroom atmosphere
that encouraged risk taking. Pupils should be taught mathematics
through their different intelligences to help them realize the
various ways of knowing and understanding the subject. Using such
instructional methods can assist all students in finding success in
mathematics.
The examples in this curriculum development project illustrate such
an approach for teachers and include a unit in division, an
integrated activity based on a children's story, and an annotated
list of children's books containing mathematical concepts. Teachers
and students who make use of their creative abilities in mathematics
may also see benefits in other areas. Once pupils develop their
creative thinking in mathematics and become more confident, they
should be encouraged to transfer those skills and attitudes to other
contexts. Similarly, teachers should apply the creative methods used
in mathematics instruction to the other subjects they teach. Thus,
the positive results of such an approach extend beyond the
mathematical classroom for both teacher and student.
subject codes .SCI
Maureen Roach
Some Implications of Educational Cognitive Style as it Relates to
Critical Thinking Skills
1980, May
Directed by Steven Schwartz
The literature relevant to cognitive styles contains many
psychological theories specifically dealing with how humans encode
knowledge. Because this study was designed to relate cognition to
critical thinking skills in young children, only a few psychological
theories will be discussed at length. The work of Witkin in "Field
Dependence" (1949) and Harvey in "Cognitive Complexity" (1961) are
most closely associated with and contained information on critical
thinking skills in young children.
Interest in cognitive psychology and cognitive style, and its
possible application to education has recently intensified. Many
studies emphasize the structure rather than the content of thought
and refer to the way in which individuals conceptually organize
their environments.
subject codes .LRN
Jane Robbins
Restructuring MBA Programs for Leadership Development: Critical
and Creative Thinking as a Strategic Framework
1992, December
Directed by John R. Murray
Recent studies commissioned by the American Assembly of Collegiate
Schools of Business and the Graduate Management Admission Council
report a disturbing lack of fit between the managerial needs of
today's corporate environment and the skills and perspectives of
Master in Business Administration (MBA) degree recipients. Both
reports articulate objectives for future MBA graduates and call for
evaluation of MBA programs, particularly of faculty and curriculums.
A comparison of the objectives for MBA graduates with a broad survey
of leadership skill and attributes. A further comparison of
leadership research and the desired MBA profile with taxonomies of
critical and creative thinking skills and attributes suggests l)
that effective leaders are critical and creative thinkers, and 2)
that the field of Critical and Creative Thinking therefore offers an
unusually appropriate framework for restructuring MBA programs. A
working definition of critical and creative thinking is provided,
and a model reflects the relationship between GMAC goals,
leadership, and critical and creative thinking, and frames the
concept of leadership, and critical and creative thinking, and
frames the concept, of leadership, in developmental terms.
Theoretical support for the argument the Critical and Creative
Thinking offers a potentially valuable pedagogical framework for
leadership development is drawn from the field of moral education,
with emphasis on moral atmosphere, just communities, and multiple
perspective taking: and from the field of cognitive psychology, with
emphasis on conceptual change and the role of hierarchical knowledge
structures and concept mapping in unstructured problem solving.
These lines of support are responsive to the finding that leaders
are characterized by high levels of moral and cognitive development,
which interact to foster personal and interpersonal skills and
habits of mind.
Implications and suggestions are provided for reform of the MBA
curriculum; teaching methods and materials (including the case
method): student recruitment; and faculty development and
qualifications (including implications for PhD programs, staff
structure, and tenure policy). Possibilities for future research,
and a proposal for a Certificate of Advanced Study in Managerial
Leadership, are briefly discussed.
subject codes .COR
Arthur Roberts
Research: An Evolutionary Methodology For A Complex Process
2014, May
Directed by Jeremy Szteiter
subject codes .THR
Jennifer Robicheau
Training Leaders in Higher Education: A Design for a Professional
Development Workshop in the Area of Student Affairs
1999, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
It appears as though a change has occurred in terms of the way
society views leadership. The qualities and skill-sets once thought
to be integral to the practice, and the responsibilities assigned to
those occupying such positions, have both experienced a
transformation over time. These changes, in combination with the
fact that many of the individuals working in higher education are
not adequately prepared for the leadership roles they hold, provide
evidence that new leadership theories/models need to be established
in response.
In this paper, I first seek support for my claims by way of a
literature review. I draw from theorists and researchers from many
different professional disciplines, such as; educational,
psychological, corporate, political and militaristic. Upon obtaining
their endorsement of my initial assertions, I proceed to devise my
own skill-set model for what now has been deemed essential to
successful leading in higher education This model then serves as a
preface to my leadership training workshop design.
The workshop rationale stems from the selected writings of Peter
Senge Director of "The Learning organization Center" at The Sloan
school of Management (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Ken
Blanchard, international consultant on leadership, customer service
and employee empowerment, and Robert Cooper, executive consultant to
3M and Arthur Andersen. All three of these individuals are
considered to be experts on "leading" and frequently conduct
seminars on the topic.
Both because my own professional interests lie within this arena.
and for the purpose of supplying specificity to thc process. the
workshop itself is then applied to d case study example from the
department of Student Affairs (SA). The three-day seminar is
outlined in detail. It consists of both short motivational speeches
and lengthier group activities and discussions.
In concluding the project, suggestions for further study on the
topic are offered.
subject codes .TCE
Jo-Anne Rogers
Student's Mathematical Thinking and Curriculum Change
1997, December
Directed by ?
The Practitioner's Narrative: Student's Mathematical Thinking and
Curriculum Change traces my work with students over a two year
period. This work articulates not only the students' change in
disposition toward mathematics but my own transformation in thinking
about curriculum development and the role of the teacher.
This work had altered my understanding of curriculum development. I
used to view curriculum development as a linear process. I now see
it as a more complex, spiral, "messy" undertaking. This work
documents student growth anecdotally, offering supportive evidence
from student pre and post self assessment surveys, and with the
subtest data provided in the MEAP Tests, 1996.
The practitioner's narrative includes a final reflective
conversation about a shift in my perception of the classroom teacher
from the consumer of research generated outside the classroom to the
teacher in a new role: teacher-as-researcher within and beyond the
classroom.
In this conversation, the growth of students' mathematical thinking
over time was discussed and evidence to support the growth was
presented from the process folio.
subject codes.SCI
Bridget Rosatone
Creative Conflict Resolution: Teaching Children Critical and
Creative Thinking Skills and Dispositions
1998, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
It is amazing how quickly a simple misunderstanding or disagreement
can turn in to an unresolvable fight. American high schools are
often plagued by violence and are searching for a means to curb
incidents. I believe it is important to start with the youngest of
students. Elementary students should be provided with the skills
necessary to creatively problem solve, through negotiation,
solutions which are non-violent. These "skills" can then assist them
in any conflictual situation, which they face in the future.
The aim of this original curriculum is to teach forth and fifth
grade students the skills necessary to think critically and
creatively when dealing with a conflictual situation. These skills
will allow the students to negotiate fair solutions that are unique
and satisfying to everyone involved. The focus of this unit is the
cultivation of conflict resolution skills through the development of
the underlying skills of critical and creative thinking and problem
solving. The lessons facilitate the development of the needed
attitudes and dispositions of open-mindedness, flexibility,
tolerance for ambiguity and empathy, along with the specific skills
of active listening, problem sensitivity, predicting consequences
and evaluation of options.
subject codes .MOR
Rossen Roussev
Cognitive Problems, Metacognition, and Philosophy of Language
1997, December
Directed by Arthur Millman
In this paper I argue that many of the cognitive problems (such as
"low self-esteem," "permanent anxiety," "bad learning strategies,"
"student-teacher conflict of values," or "motivational deficit")
that interfere with problem solving are rooted in individuals'
philosophically naive views of how their own intelligence works and
can be overcome through development of an adequate philosophical
competence. Accordingly, I attempt a delineation of the scientific
prescription for overcoming these problems, metacognition, in terms
of concepts of contemporary' philosophy' of language.
Four scientific concepts were examined, including M. V. Covington's
concept of strategic thinking, J. Lochhead's concept of the role of
verbalization in thinking, R. Paul's concept of conceptualization
and elements of thought, and M. Lipman's concept of the role of
philosophy, in children's early cognitive development, which all
consider overcoming of cognitive problems. Four philosophical
concepts were examined, including L. Wittgenstein's early concept of
the correct use of language, his later concept of language games, J.
Searle's concept of speech acts, and R. Rorty's concept of the
speech acts, and R. Rorty's concept of the political answer to
philosophical questions. which all consider overcoming of
traditional philosophical problems. In the scientific views,
cognitive problems are explained by individuals' inadequate personal
epistemology and overcome through the mind's activity,
metacognition, which involves knowledge of how one's intelligence
works, or a concept of cognition and a utilization of this knowledge
in any new problematic situation. Similarly, in the philosophical
views, philosophical problems are generally explained by "misuse of
the logic of language" and overcome by mediation of what I called
the philosophical methodology of dissolution, which I interpreted as
involving both an appropriate concept of cognition and a permanent
utilization of this concept. Thus, the delineation of the concept of
metacognition in philosophical terms becomes possible, given that
cognitive problems qualify better for the competence of philosophy
than for the expertise of science. By means of J. Habermas' concept
of "philosophy as a mediating interpreter" I conceptualized both
philosophical and cognitive problems as problems of mediation which
come into being in the exchange of expertise on two presupposed
levels of discourse and activity, respectively, expert culture and
everyday communication.
Since the problems of mediation are conceived of as remaining out of
the scope of the expert fields but in the scope of philosophy as an
non-expert field, the latter was used to provide with its competence
the problem solving practices which deal with such problems on the
level of everyday communication. Then, I illustrate an overcoming of
cognitive problems by mediation of the philosophical methodology of
dissolution which I examine and represent in the form of the
scientific concept of metacognition as a sequence of explanation and
application of a philosophical concept of cognition which in this
case is a compositional philosophical concept of language.
subject codes .LAN
Jane Rowe
Provincetown Framework for Infused Thinking
1998, June
Directed by
The purpose of this thesis is to propose an organized framework of
critical and creative thinking skills and strategies within a
problem-solving format to facilitate the infusion of instruction of
such skills and strategies within the regular academic curriculum.
This curriculum development proposal is the product if my deeply
held conviction that there had to be "a better way to teach social
studies" than the traditional method of presenting a broad but
shallow overview of a topic from a single point of view and then
testing for recall. During this quest, I was formally introduced to
critical and creative thinking through coursework, and here found
the key to making social studies instruction interesting and
relevant to students. I therefore redefined the problem to encompass
the issues related to organizing critical and creative thinking
skills, strategies, and processes into a manageable curriculum.
In this thesis, I will establish a need for such an organizing
framework, and I will demonstrate that the approach proposed here
has merit to accomplish the task at hand. While such a framework has
generic applications, the discussion here will focus on its use in a
unique social studies curriculum which was developed around this
framework and which has been successfully implemented at the...
subject codes .ELE
Michael Eve Rozas
The Impact of Creative Thinking Skills on Classroom Behavior
1980, May
Directed by
The creative thinker has most recently been the topic of many books
and studies by educators and psychologists worldwide. A vast
literature exists attempting to define and describe creativity.
Although numerous definitions exist, Guilford's conception of
creativity has wide acceptance. According to his model, "To be
creative . . . means to think in divergent modes, to come up with
numerous novel or unique meanings, new or original thoughts, to
depart or diverge from usual or conventional ideas".
It is this conception of the process that forms the theoretical
framework for this study. To use creativity in real-life
problem-solving situations, however, also requires well-developed
skills of analysis, inference and judgment. These may be viewed as
the final phase of the creative process, the phase of elaborating a
plan, or they may be viewed as discreet critical thinking processes.
For this study, those skills are seen as the final phase of the
creative process, and they are therefore, also a focus of this
study. Since most of the literature on the skills of analysis,
inference and judgment...
subject codes .TCE
Joel Rubin
Critical and Creative Thinking in School Age Child Care Projects
and Play
1988, May
Directed by John Murray
subject codes .CTY
Robert Rubovits
A Critical and Creative Thinking Bible Curriculum
1997, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
It is really not surprising that studying the Hebrew Bible can
engender critical and creative thinking. For centuries, Jews have
considered the text to be divine in origin, having meaning and
importance not just for Jews 3,000 years ago, but for each
subsequent generation. What may be clear, however, in one era may be
obscure to those in another. Each generation pored over the text,
bringing all their critical reasoning powers onto it, analyzing each
word, measuring each phrase, coaxing from the text insight into the
issues in their lives. However, like a miffed lover who is not
placated solely by reasoned arguments, the Hebrew Bible does not
yield all of its secrets to critical inquiry. Much of its wealth can
only be derived through creative thinking, and centuries of rabbinic
minds have utilized these abilities to search its depths. To a great
degree, these have become what we recognize today as midrashim; the
process (and product) of delving into the text to gain a deeper
understanding.
Critical and creative thinking have always been used to clarify and
derive meaning from the Hebrew Bible. Jewish education, however, has
often overlooked the explicit instruction of these thinking skills.
The Jewish day school, which is already teaching a dual curriculum
of Jewish and general subjects is hard pressed to find the time to
add hours even something as important as thinking skills. What I
have done in this thesis is demonstrate that Bible creative thinking
literature and then I examine two methods of teaching these
abilities and dispositions. This is followed by a curriculum unit
and sample lessons which have the students learn the Hebrew Bible
using the same skills that rabbis and other Jews have used for
millennia. In this way, I hope the students will learn a deep
understanding of and appreciation for their heritage, and through it
the habits of mind so essential to possess in today's ever-changing
world.
subject codes .MOR.CUL
Michael Ruf
New representations of Afro-Americans in films: an analysis of
'Do the right thing' and 'Eve's Bayou' following the framework of
Stuart Hall
2002, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
Motion pictures are a crucial source for what each of us know about
various cultures. But a culture is not always represented
accurately. The history of film is full of distorted and
depreciative images of minorities. In my paper, I concentrate on the
depiction of African-Americans in U.S. cinema. As many authors have
shown, such representations of Blacks have been contemptuous since
the early ages of motion pictures. A so-called 'new black cinema' of
the 1980s and 1990s was welcomed as finally breaking with these
patterns of representation. In this paper, I analyze two films of
the new black cinema in order to see if they really depict the
African-American situation in a significantly new and different way.
These two films are "Do the Right Thing" by Spike Lee (1989) and
"Eve's Bayou" by Kasi Lemmons (1997). These movies were selected
because they represent two different categories of African-American
cinema: the first is a 'black militant film' and the second is a
'black film of experience.' For the purpose of my analysis, I have
selected the theoretical framework 'representation' by Stuart Hall
(1997).
I structured the paper in six parts. First, I explain why motion
pictures strongly influence what we know about social and ethnic
groups in society, how African-Americans have been represented in
past decades and what their attempts at resistance have been.
Second, I explain why, since the 1980s, independent black film - new
black cinema - seem to be providing promising forms of
representation. Further, I discuss how these movies can be
classified by applying categories from black theatre. Third, I
introduce the two films to be analyzed. That is, I summarize their
content and give evidence why each is a member of one of the genres
described previously. Fourth, I lay out in detail Hall's theoretical
framework. An important question to be addressed in this section is
how representation constructs 'difference.' In the fifth section, I
analyze "Do the Right Thing" and "Eve's Bayou" by applying Hall's
theoretical framework. Finally, I compare and contrast, summarize,
and discuss the results of my analysis of both movies.
(Powerpoint summary, Full
Text)
subject codes .CUL
Joseph Ruffino
Holistic Perception in Literature
1993, September
Directed by John R. Murray
This thesis considers the importance of learning how to read more
holistically a novel written in a foreign language. The author draws
upon research and his own teaching experience to construct the
learning process which is outlined and discussed in the thesis.
The processes are categorized into three activities that are
dependent upon one another. The first set of activities, the author
refers to is paedonomics, the second is cultural priming; and the
third, collective creativity. Each of these major activities is
considered an integral part of holistic perception, defined as a
means of using all the senses to respond to and experience
phenomena.
Paedonomics is a term coined by the author to refer to a wide range
of activities that are explored and discussed. The author uses these
activities to help students get into a playful relaxed, and
meaningful mode for learning. Paedonomics includes such activities
as guided imagery, visualization, progressive relaxation,
aromatherapy, uses of music, and mindmapping. These activities are
not done in vacuo but are done in conjunction with cultural priming
and collective creativity.
Cultural priming is an activity in which students are presented with
brief representative creative works from the sixteenth century.
Through collective dialogue, they perceive the quintessence of that
historical period and through induction find similarities and
differences between those times and the contemporary scene.
The collective creativity phase of the process allows the students,
through collective dialogue, to create an original work based on
their holistic perception of a novel and its times. In their
creative efforts, the groups translate the novel's characters and
setting to their own modern period. This permits them to perceive in
even sharper focus their own times as well as their individual and
collective commonalties and differences. This applies not only to
historical people and times but also to their own contemporary
society.
In this thesis, the author demonstrates how the three-part process
of holistic perception is applied to exploring the sixteenth century
Spanish novel, Lazarillo de Tormes. Through paedonomics and cultural
priming, students experience the sixteenth century Spanish novel.
Lazarillo de Tormes. Through paedonomics and cultural priming,
students experience the sixteenth century. Through collective
dialogue, they infer that the sixteenth century has many elements in
common with the contemporary one. For this reason, it serves as a
springboard for students to individually and collectively respond to
and experience their own times. It also serves as a vehicle for them
to perceive an historical period with more empathy and less
historical stereotyping. Students begin to perceive on various
levels their own role and importance in the chain of life starting
in pre-historic times.
subject codes .MSE
Kristen Rushworth
Narrative Inquiry: Conversations That Reinforce My Commitment To
Inquiry Based Learning
2003, August
Directed by Peter Taylor
The Critical and Creative Thinking Graduate Program has challenged
me to think critically about my teaching methodology. Teaching
science effectively became a focus of mine and I changed my teaching
methodology to an inquiry-based model.
This change required research on the inquiry approach. During this
process it was realized that putting theory into practice is often a
difficult task. This led me to seek out experts on inquiry-based
learning.
Listening to the experts' stories about what led them to become
exponents of inquiry gave me great insight that will help me with
becoming an exponent as well. The stories share what exactly brought
about the change into inquiry-based learning and the refinement they
had to make with their teaching methodologies. Details about their
daily teaching practices provide great advice that will guide me in
my future plan for refining the way that I create and manage an
inquiry-based classroom.
Advice on how to engage children covers a wide range of educational
practices. One expert who was interviewed, Paul Jablon, highlights
the need for children to manipulate materials on a daily basis. He
believes that children learn science better if they figure out
theories and scientific phenomena by themselves first, then connect
their findings with the greater scientific community. There also
needs to be some sort of real world connection with learning science
so children can see that they are being productive now, rather than
having students feel like they are preparing to be productive later
on in life.
Barbara Waters shares management strategies in her interview where a
teacher should provide a scientific demonstration, provide students
the opportunity to discuss what they have seen and come up with an
essential question about the demonstration. This will allow for
students to feel that they have ownership over what they explore
scientifically.
The third interview explores problem-based learning and the
importance of creating a classroom climate that is conducive to
inquiry. Nina Greenwald lends her expertise on how to create such a
climate, and how to make questions key to the learning process.
The paper wraps up with my experience with inquiry-based learning
and provides a detailed account of what changes I plan to make in my
classroom to make it rich in inquiry.
Teaching is a profession with enormous responsibility. Knowledge of
this causes me to be a reflective practitioner. The Critical and
Creative Thinking Program has inspired me to promote educational
change. This paper has clarified the change that I will make in my
classroom and the strategies presented in the paper will help to
facilitate the change.
subject codes .SCI
Kevin Russo
Applying Critical and Creative Thinking Sports Psychology and
Motivation
1996, December
Directed by John Murray
Most research has contended that athletic performance can be
directly influenced by the type of psychological and motivational
approach used. However, it is evident that many coaches do not truly
understand the meaning of motivation or its influence on
performance. Throughout this thesis, we will take an in-depth view
of what sports psychology and motivation both mean, as well as
factors that may influence them in a productive manner.
Applying critical and creative thinking concepts to sports
psychology and motivation seems to assist in providing a better
understanding not only as to what they actually are, but also as to
how the integration process leads to a more positive approach to
educating, evaluating and understanding athletic behavior. The end
result, of course, is a heightened level of performance on the part
of the individual as a result of the manifestation process.
This thesis takes a close look first at critical and creative
thinking before focusing on sports psychology and motivation. As
will be displayed, there does exist an overlap of concepts,
strategies, and components of the two areas which further supports
the benefits of applying CCT to sports psychology and motivation.
Once the two areas of study have been reviewed, the thesis will look
to integrate them in such a way to encourage ongoing positive
interaction and communication (oral and written) between coaches and
athletes. The instrument that is developed provides an opportunity
for coaches to evaluate motivation and self-confidence levels in
athletes, as athletes are asked to also evaluate themselves. It
allows coaches to become familiar with the true meaning of
motivation, and it insures that coaches are able to recognize and
address unproductive motivational behavior.
In summary, this thesis will support the need to use CCT to best
understand sports psychology and motivation. The instrument provides
an example of how this can be done, with the end result not only
being a more positive athlete and atmosphere but also improved
athletic performance.
subject codes .SPO
Evelyn Ryan
Teaching Thinking Skills in the Content Area: A workshop for
Secondary School Teachers
1994, December
Directed by Judith Collison
This thesis presents a curriculum for a workshop on teaching
thinking skills in the content area designed for secondary school
teachers. In-service time for the workshop is twenty hours. The
first fifteen hours are scheduled for one week in the summer. Two
follow-up sessions, each two and a half hours in length, are
scheduled during the school year.
The purpose of this curriculum is to establish a foundation for
skillful thinking-purposeful thought that is aware not only of its
objective but of its own processes. In order to accomplish this
purpose the workshop has two goals. The first goal is to teach the
method of direct instruction in teaching thinking skills developed
by Barry K. Beyer. The second goal is to model active learning
strategies that support skillful thinking in the secondary school
classroom.
The method of direct instruction features the following procedure
for teaching thinking skills in the content area:
Determine what you want your students to be able to do better.
Note places where this activity occurs in a particular course
Identify the key thinking skill involved in the activity.
Describe that thinking skill.
Plan a sequence of skill teaching lessons
Write the lessons using appropriate skill teachingstrategies
Determine your assessment strategy and write the necessary
evaluation instructions.
Teach the thinking skill
Repeat this process for one or two other thinking skills that are
critical to learning your subject matter. Active learning strategies
that support skillful thinking include the following:
Creating a classroom atmosphere that fosters positive attitudes
about thinking and its teaching.
sing several cooperative learning activities to teach the workshop's
content.
Guiding instruction in metacognition.
Leading discussions using techniques that facilitate skillful
thinking.
Assessing the learning in the workshop with a final project that
requires the participants to synthesize and apply their knowledge.
This workshop thus provides a practical way for teachers to begin
the complex but rewarding task of teaching thinking in their
classrooms.
subject codes .MSE
Cynthia Sanders
Critical and Creative Thinking in Transracial Adoption
1999, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
The standard profile of the American family has undergone a dramatic
change within the last few decades, with an increase in single
parent households, teen parents, inter-religious and inter-ethnic
relationships, and the emergence of same-sex parents. Included in
this vast array of familial definitions is the multiracial family.
Often these families arise through interracial marriage; however,
they are steadily escalating through interracial adoptions.
Transracial adoptions, the focus of this paper, have increased for
various reasons. One is that the number of children available for
adoption exceeds the same-race people who are waiting to adopt.
Another reason is the option to adopt infants from overseas. For
whatever reason(s), transracial adoptions have been scrutinized.
They not only alter the visual image of the American family, but
they accentuate one of society's major blemishes: racism. As a
result, opposing fronts have gathered, for or against transracial
adoption.
This paper begins with an historical overview of the controversy
surrounding transracial adoption. It offers an analysis of the
conceptual debate and the responses of an important professional
organization, the National Association of Black Social Workers.
Following a selective review of relevant empirical studies, the
paper explains the usefulness of critical and creative thinking
techniques to develop coping strategies among family members and
describes a series of workshops addressing this goal.
subject codes .DIV.CUL
Sheryl Savage
From Humor In The Workplace To Humor As A Means Of Healing From
Loss
2007, December
Directed by Nina Greenwald
The role of humor in promoting a climate of creativity in
organizations has been the focus of this synthesis. Developing a
program to add humor to an organizationâs culture can open up
and encourage peopleâs creativity. In this environment of
creativity, effective problem solving can occur and thus lead to
needed positive change. This paper explores lay and scholarly
research findings on the role of humor in the workplace. There
exists both anecdotal and empirical evidence to support the theory
of humorâs ability to be a tool for creative problem solving
and stress reduction, as well as humorâs positive effect in
the workplace in dealing with management and leadership issues. To
obtain a perspective that was not included in the research
undertaken for this work, I also interviewed two very different
leaders who successfully use humor every day in their organizations.
This information corroborates research findings cited in this paper.
However, as referenced in the prologue and then fully explained in
chapter four, due to a tragedy in my life, I took a new direction
for my study of humor, turning primarily to humor as a means of
coping with loss. This synthesis now represents the beginning of a
new direction for my life. Using skills acquired in the Critical and
Creative Thinking Program I will use the power of gentle humor to
develop a support group and workshops for families dealing with
tragic loss in their lives. My eagerness to continue my work on this
subject, especially meeting firsthand with groundbreakers and
current practitioners in the field, does not preclude the desire to
return to my original work on humor in the workplace at some time as
well.
subject codes .COR
(Full Text)
Patricia Scannell
Looking forward looking back: A retrospective of writing
1997, December
Directed by ?
In this paper, the author traces her development as a writer from
her childhood to the present, with particular emphasis on the years
1984 and 1996. She draws from the work of writing and creativity
theorists including Elbow, Murray, Hampl, David, Cameron, Wallace,
and Fox. Included in the text and its appendix are some of the
author's personal narratives and poems which relate to the major
milestones in her development. Related journal entries and early
drafts of these works are also included. From her study of the
creative process in general and the writing process in particular,
the author concludes that, for her, writing has been and will
continue to be a valuable life long activity. She has found it to be
a powerful means to self knowledge and discovery. It has helped her
to respond with resilience to times of pain and pleasure. It is an
activity which she looks forward to continuing for the rest of her
life.
subject codes.WRL
Marie Schleiff
Changing Practices in the Assessment of Writing a Discipline
Redefining Itself
1996, June
Directed by John R. Murray
This thesis concerns how changes in the assessment of writing mirror
the historical changes in the purposes and methodologies in
education. We have witnessed a dramatic shift from the viewing and
testing of writing as a series of sub-skills, with emphasis on
error-avoidance and correctness of form, to viewing both the process
of writing and its assessment as a means of discovery, reflection,
and learning. New practices in the evaluation of writing reflect
knowledge of how writing occurs and how it is taught. Results of a
survey conducted over two years show high school students' responses
to traditional and new assessment methods. The important role
writing may play in aiding students to better understand and learn
school related materials is explored. The use of portfolios in
writing classes can provide students with experiences they can carry
outside of the English classroom. Creating a portfolio and portfolio
assessment in the writing classroom are ways to nurture creative and
critical thinking. Through the use of portfolios in the writing
classroom, teaching, learning, and assessing can work together as a
recursive whole. Portfolios can provide the authentic experience and
the authentic assessment called for by today's educational
theorists, writer-researchers, and classroom teachers to prepare
students for the complex world waiting for them in the twenty-first
century.
subject codes .WRL
Robert Schoenberg
Using Stress Management to Promote Critical Thinking
1992, May
Directed by
This paper examines the effects of distress upon critical thinking
and offers a variety of stress management techniques to enhance
critical thinking skills. A major theme throughout this paper is
that one cannot think clearly when one is distressed. The harmful
effects of distress upon critical thinking are discussed in the
context of the works of several authors in the field of stress
management and cognitive psychology. Several different types of
stress reduction techniques are presented and discussed.
The critical thinking skills of metacognition, frame of reference
and methodological believing are reviewed with a focus on how stress
management can enhance these skills. Teaching strategies
incorporating these critical thinking skills, with specific
examples, are offered for high school teachers. A theoretical
discussion addresses the topics of stress and distress, the need for
stress management, stress strategies. Following this discussion,
stress management techniques and critical thinking skills are
integrated.
This paper culminates with the presentation of four workshops
designed to enhance critical thinking through the use of stress
management. Each workshop is designed for high school teachers and
consists of theory, practical applications and several hands-on
activities and exercises. Although these workshops are aimed for
teachers helping students to think more critically, the teachers may
find that these techniques impact on their own thinking.
In conclusion, this paper demonstrates that stress management plays
an integral role in promoting critical thinking and offers the
reader several strategies to accomplish this goal. The theoretical
discussions of both stress management and critical thinking set the
stage for practical applications.
subject codes .COM.MSE
Ellen Schoenfeld-Beeks
A Case for Dialogue in Public Education: Individual and
Collective Learning through the Dialogue Process
1995, September
Directed by Lynn Dhority
The purpose of this thesis is to examine the theoretical and
conceptual elements of the Dial ogue process in the context of our
present and pressing need for dynamic educational organization and
reform. The Dialogue process provides an approach for shifting
consciousness. Dialogue is thus reviewed as a vehicle for creating
learning and transformation in individuals and groups by cultivating
individual capacities to shift from a Newtonian-objective reality to
a post-modem Systems world-view. Such a paradigm shift is relevant
for understanding the underlying theory fundamental to
constructivist practices, for integrating transformational thinking
skills into curricula, and for creating the kind of collaborative
environment and leadership necessary for cultural changes that
improve teaching and learning.
Learning and practicing new ways of speaking, listening and thinking
develops Thus, Dialogue provides a practicing context useful
uncovering the underlying assumptions and presuppositions that serve
as barriers to our individual and collective learning. Dialogue is a
process by which individuals can develop a capacity to be in
"learning space" an internal orientation toward learning and
generative thinking as opposed to reacting mindlessly from assumed
(previously learned) position of "certainty."
This thesis also explores the scientific underpinnings for Dialogue
found in quantum theory and the philosophy of the Dialogue process
as proposed by quantum physicist David Bohm. The current Dialogue
literature is reviewed and together with the writer's own Dialogue
experience provides an overview for those interested in the
application of Dialogue's holistic, systemic and relational
principles to educational reform.
subject codes .COM
Elin Schran (Gardiner)
Creative Skating: A Creative Approach to Figure Skating
1999, June
Directed by Steven Schwartz
Standard figure skating training methods focus on rote learning and
skill practice. Little or no attention is given to the development
of the skater's creative self. As a skater, coach, competitor and
professional performer, it is my contention that it is this lack of
attention to creativity that contributes to the high rates of
burnout and stress-related disorders found in the sport. By
enhancing creative development, I believe that confidence levels and
levels of intrinsic motivation can be improved which should in turn
lead to better, more substantial skill development and more
contented skaters. In this paper, I will describe one such program,
Creative Skating, that I developed to speak to these concerns.
The conceptual framework for this project is grounded in the fields
of creativity, education, and psychology, including the work of
Teresa Amabile (1996) who has studied extensively the effects of
intrinsic motivation; Bernie Warren (1997) who has focused on the
use of creativity as a therapeutic tool; and Roger Von Oech (1997)
who advocates the value of play for stimulating creativity and
breaking the mental set.
The Creative Skating method proposed here is intended as a
supplement to standard training. This paper examines the problems of
standard training methods, describes the Creative Skating method
that I have designed, and presents evidence from a small pilot study
of adult beginners participating in the Creative Skating workshop,
as documented by a companion video tape. The participants' stress
and confidence levels were tested by several instruments, including
the PANAS measure (Watson, Clark, & Tellegen 1988), a visual
self-portrait and a specially designed questionnaire before and
after the workshop. The results offered considerable support for my
hypothesis. Participants reported greatest gains in the areas of
pride, trust in one's body, and confidence suggesting that by
enhancing intrinsic motivation through play, adult beginners are
better able to relax while skating, and begin to automate
kinesthetic skills. Further study of the importance of creativity as
a means of increasing intrinsic motivation levels, lowering stress
levels and encouraging confidence in acquiring complex motor skills
is warranted based on the positive results of this study.
subject codes .SPO
Dustin Senger
Participatory Spheres:
Decentralized Media and Democratized Tools
2016, May
Directed by Jeremy Szteiter
qq
subject codes.COM.TEC
Scott Seiler
A case for implementing an electronic document managament system
(EDMS)
2002, August
Directed by Peter Taylor
We live in a world where documentation and record keeping are
considered not only necessary but also essential. This documentation
produces and unprecedented amount of paperwork. Keeping track of
this volume of paper is a task of monumental proportions. Faced with
this task, I sought to sell the idea of an Electronic Document
Management System (EDMS) to the senior staff of the governmental
agency that employs me. Participation in the Creative Critical
Thinking Program at the University of Massachusetts-Boston, has
afforded me the opportunity to formulate an implementation scheme to
accomplish this.
Included in my synthesis project are the documented advantages and
disadvantages of using an EDMS. These findings consist of
explanations of what has been done in the agency so far and how
further development would help the agency in the future. EDMS can
enhance the agency's ability to achieve greater value in its
business practices and processes. A review of case studies provides
comparative insight into possible problems that could and are
encountered in implementation of an EDMS within an organization.
Problems such as staff fear of the unknown and resistance to change
group process along with communication breakdown. This is where CCT
processes of problem solving using dialogue, group communication
enhancement /involvement, and other thinking skills come into play.
I identify the key components I would employ to change the existing
work culture, set up training programs and enhance the aspects of
team effort that will contribute to my successful implementation
plan.
This synthesis has provided an opportunity for me to form a
collective documented approach with accumulated knowledge and schema
for a successful implementation plan. This paper concludes with my
reflective perspective on lessons learned, new problems identified,
hopes for future development and personal educational aspirations.
subject codes .COR.TEC
Nancy Sheehan
Helping Middle School-Age Girls Understand the Value Of
Participating in Physical Education Programs Through Critical and
Creative Thinking
2003, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the importance of
utilizing physical education as a vehicle for middle school-age
girls to think critically and creatively about major health issues
in their lives. The paper examines different health issues that can
affect girls' health including, weight control (specifically,
obesity and anorexia), disease prevention (specifically, coronary
heart disease and osteoporosis), and mental well-being
(specifically, low self-esteem and depression).
Middle school-age girls are at a transitional stage in their lives
and need guidance in acquiring proper thinking tools to make
well-informed decisions. Thinking strategies that can train middle
school-age girls to think more thoroughly are problem-solving,
decision-making and metacognition. Thinking tools such as a
Problem-Solving Graph, a Decision-Making Matrix, Journaling,
SCAMPER, and Why-Why Diagramming are introduced to help girls work
through the various thinking strategies.
The purpose of this paper is to training girls to think critically
and creatively about the implications of physical education for the
mental well-being. This paper proposes a manual to guide instructors
through different teaching techniques that can be significant in any
middle school-age girl's learning abilities.
subject codes.GEN.SPO
Denise Sheppard
The Development of Self in Women: Healing Workshops for Survivors
of Sexual Abuse
1991, September
Directed by
As a curriculum development project, this thesis focuses on the ways
in which the integration of critical and creative thinking skills,
particularly flexibility in thinking, problem-identification,
problem-solving and awareness of frames of reference, have
influenced and refined the author's counseling skills, as they
pertain to women who were sexually abused as children.
Following a review and synthesis of relevant works of Warren,
Sternberg, Gardner, Torrance, Gallo, and Rogers, ten healing
workshops, designed to be problem-finding and problem-solving in
nature, draw upon the inspiration of authors from spiritual,
educational, and psychological practice, in particular Borysenko,
Gruber and Wallace, Bass and Davis. 'These workshops begin with a
look at each individual, through one's own eyes and then through the
eyes of another. During the course of ten weeks, the participants
use writing, clay, drawing, role-play (through visualization) ,
ritual and discussion to re-claim their bodies and spirits and to
find their individual voices that were silenced through abuse and
its ramifications. The workshop sessions culminate with a verbal
sharing in the group of each woman' s autobiography.
All of the workshop exercises have been read, reviewed, and
evaluated by women who are presently in the healing process. Based
on these insights and experiences, the thesis includes suggestions
for the transfer of critical and creative thinking skills to life
situations and identifications for further implementation.
In a broader context, this thesis serves as an illustration of the
usefulness of critical and creative thinking strategies to
illuminate frames of reference that have lost their usefulness and
to create new ones. It also details a problem-solving approach that
allows not only for discarding that which is no longer necessary,
but also for the creation of new, more empowering visions of life
available for women. As Torrance says so succinctly, "Creative
behavior has healing qualities- and so does solving one's problems."
(E. Paul Torrance. "Sociodrama: Teaching Creative Problem Solving as
a Therapeutic Technique." Chap. in Children's Needs: Psychological
Perspectives, eds. Alex Thomas and Jeff Grimes. Washington, D.C.:
National Association of school Psychologists, 1987, p.591)
subject codes .GEN.CTY
Justin Sherman
Developing Generative Leadership through Emergent Learning
1996, December
Directed by John Murray
This thesis is the current synthesis of a deep exploration of the
foundations of collaborative, transformational learning within
organizations. I begin with a basic assumption which informs all the
thinking that unfolds throughout this thesis: the sustainability of
our organizations, and quite possibly the survival of our species,
is dependent not on the leadership and the development of a chosen
few, but on our collective ability to deeply listen for and sense
what most needs to happen within a given group of people and then to
act on this.
We live our lives with deeply entrenched, mostly tacit beliefs about
deferring to "experts" and the need for strong, charismatic leaders.
These tacit beliefs have largely disempowered and disconnected us
from accessing our most fully creative, generative selves.
The deepest reservoirs of learning are found in collaborative,
"emergent" learning experiences. In essence, the question becomes:
what can happen when groups of people gather together as teachers
and learners to share their thinking, their imaginings, their hopes
and fears? What new thinking can be born? And how might this impact
our sense of leadership and collective action?
There are many forms which emergent learning can take. Contemporary
structures for emergent learning have many of their roots in the
group sensitivity training movement of the 1960s and '70s. Present
structures for emergent learning include: the dialogue process,
Community Building, Open Space Technology and various hybrid forms
of both verbal
and non-verbal collaborative, co-creative processes. The essence of
'emergent" learning is an experiential immersion in many of the
foundational skills of critical and creative thinking: systems
thinking, metacognition, inquiry, empathic and reflective listening,
and seeing from multiple perspectives.
While emergent learning structures can have many purposes, I believe
the greatest value of these learning experiences is developing the
capacity for what I refer to as "generative" leadership. Generative
leadership is about developing what I call advanced group
sensitivities -- listening for what is wanting and needing to happen
within the collective and then having the courage to act on this. It
is about engendering a new quality of leadership within
organizations-- unfolding, shared leadership as an alternative to
traditional, hierarchical control, and authority.
subject codes .COR
Jennifer Simmons
Thinking about Grammar in the Middle School: A Study and
Recommendations
1992, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
The study involved 53 sixth graders in a small, rural town in
southeastern Massachusetts. Its purpose was to identify some of the
grammatical concepts held by these students. The survey is
presented. Briefly, these students lack understanding of basic
grammatical concepts (such as the subject/verb relationship and
subject versus object). These and other misconceptions indicate that
students do not understand the role of word function in language. A
central finding about students' attitudes toward grammar study is
that students do not realize that they have intuitive knowledge of
their native language. Although students are not sure what grammar
is, most of them believe that grammar should be studies in the
middle school.
This thesis suggest that teachers strive to identify students'
misconceptions about language and devise ways to bring about changes
in understanding. New learning ideally should be interactive as
opposed to additive. A learner must relate a new idea to what is
already known. A series of five lessons on language structure and a
series of four lessons on contemporary usage are recommended. All
lessons reflect a critical and creative thinking approach to
learning.
In this thesis, grammar is defined as meaning sentence structure but
including usage. Grammar has always been a traditional part of the
English language arts curriculum despite the fact that the study of
grammar in isolation has been rejected by the National Council of
Teachers of English. This thesis agrees with that view. The current
literature on the teaching of grammar is reviewed. Grammar studies
generally recommend integrating grammar into writing and reading, a
whole language approach.
Literature on early adolescent learner readiness is also reviewed.
Three main issues are identified as being crucial to the well-being
of early adolescents and their success in school: social- emotional
development, biological development (i.e. brain growth), and
cognitive development.
subject codes .MSE.LAN
Sharon Sloman
Train The Trainer Workshops: Enhancing Listening And Social
Skills to Improve Employment Opportunities For Individuals With
Disabilities
2002, August
Directed by Dr. Nina Greenwald
People with disabilities need employment skills to enhance their
employment opportunities. As the economy improves and the baby
boomers age and retire, a shortage of qualified talent will diminish
and the need for new talent will increase. The lack of interpersonal
skills has been determined to be a major factor in job loss for
people with disabilities.
It is demonstrated that people with disabilities are judged harshly
in their efforts to be considered for employment. Employers are
fearful of costs associated with making accommodations for
disabilities, doubt that they can find qualified candidates who are
disabled, or maintain long held myths and attitudes about people
with disabilities as unqualified, not trainable and unproductive.
Studies indicate that people with disabilities are loyal, dedicated
and productive contributors in the workplace and enhance the work
environment by encouraging similar behaviors in their colleagues.
The author has designed two workshops as part of a train-the-trainer
program for Employment Training Specialists who work with the
non-profit organization Community Work Services (CWS). CWS provides
training and job placement to individuals who have varying degrees
and types of disabilities. The first of the two workshops is
entitled Listening Skills: the Gateway to Successful Communication
in the Workplace and is an experiential workshop focusing on the use
of critical and creative thinking skills and adult learning
techniques to develop active, empathic and reflective listening
skills. The second workshop is entitled Encouraging Appropriate
Behaviors in the Workplace and uses similar techniques to develop
the concepts of respectful interactions and communications through
the development of tolerance for differing points of view,
interviewing skills and customer service.
subject codes .COR
Ashley Smith
Using Critical and Creative Thinking to Enhance Productivity in
Integrated Marketing Communications Meetings and Procedures
2010, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
This paper provides a teaching model for how to effectively
incorporate Critical and
Creative Thinking (CCT) methods into a business setting to initiate
organizational change. I
developed a workshop on workplace meetings based on the
imperfections of the marketing
team at “ICS.” The workshop touches on CCT methods that are needed
in order for
organizations to change. I also integrated CCT methods into the
Integrated Marketing
Communications (IMC) Procedure to enhance productivity and produce
results. Integrated
marketing is made up of many pieces of the media field, but often
the participants in IMC are
searching for the same end result. Following the views of Kevin
Roberts, communication
among each participant is critical in order for great brands to
survive or to move products
strategically. IMC is an important resource for a company, because
like sales, the end result is
to create loyalty and awareness among consumers, and to sell and to
generate revenue.
Communication is a key element in making sure that people are on the
same page in IMC in
order to reach the end result. Effective workplace meetings,
brainstorming sessions, and other
collaborations enhance communication, which is a vital piece in
moving forward in business.
subject codes .COR
(Full Text)
Sharon Sprong
Adolescents and AIDS: Dealing with Misconceptions
1991, December
Directed by Carol Smith
Many adolescents are at risk for becoming infected with the human
immunoideficiency virus (HIV), which causes acquired immune
deficiency syndrome (AIDS). This is due to the risk-taking behaviors
that are common among young people, including experimentation with
drugs and sexual intercourse. Some of the factors that contribute to
their decisions to engage in high-risk behaviors may include
misconceptions they have regarding HIV/AIDS. In this study a
clinical interview was designed to determine the prevalence of three
misconceptions about AIDS among adolescents: l:): the belief that
they are invulnerable to the disease; 2) the idea that transmission
of HIV occurs through risk groups rather than risk behaviors; and 3)
the negative emotional reaction to having casual contact with a
person with HIV/AIDS (PWA). The interview was given to twelve high
school students in Boston before and ten after they participated in
a peer leadership training program using the curriculum Peer
Leadership Preventing AIDS, to see if the misconceptions existed and
if there was any evidence of conceptual change following the
program.
Prior to the training program, two subjects held only one
misconception, four held two misconceptions held by the subjects.
The greatest improvement was in Misconception 2, followed by #l and
then #3. It appears that conceptual change did occur for most of the
subjects. This may have been due in part to using the Peer
Leadership Preventing AIDS curriculum, since it emphasizes looking
at one's self-theory. The participants were encouraged to look deep
within themselves and consider their positions on several critical
issues, them discuss them with others in the group. This may have
facilitated the exchange of conflicting or alternative views.
In the areas where the least change occurred in misconceptions,
particularly the subjects' emotional reaction to having casual
contact with a PWA, suggestions for improving the curriculum were
made. In addition, areas for further study were proposed, including
a larger sample with representatives from a variety of peer
leadership programs (school- and community-based, urban, suburban
and rural areas, etc.) a follow-up interview six to twelve months
after completion of the training program and interviews of young
people who interacted with the peer leaders.
subject codes .MED.GOV
Anne Marie Stanton
When There Will Be Great Women Artists
1999, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
Linda Nochim has posed the question why there are no great women
artists? (Nochim 1988) While this question can be challenged as a
issue of perspective, I attempt to address it as an actual
phenomenon. What is it that limits the productivity of women in art?
Historically, women in the modem industrialized world have been
objectified and stereotyped, and I will present a brief overview
that discusses the definition of woman in this context (Bohan 1993,
West and Zimmerman 1987, Hare-Mustin and Marecek 1990), and also
demonstrate this view has saturated society. As a first step to
change, women must recognize the impact of this historic perspective
on their attitudes, thinking, and behavior.
A second step considers the research that the psychology of women
differs significantly from that of men, and this can influence how
relationships and priorities are developed in their lives (Gilligan,
1993, Bepko and Krestan, 1993, Miller, 1986, Belenky, et. al.,
1986). These two steps attempt to define some of the internal
conflicts facing women artists.
In addition, I will also examine the material impediments women
artist face. For example, Csikszentmihalyi 's (1991) research
highlights obstacles many women artists encounter entering a
predominantly male art world. The forces that determine the
commercial success or failure of an artist are generally
male-controlled, and this can add to the invisibility of the woman
as artist (Mavor 1996, Nemser 1975).
These influences should be recognized for the artist to make clear
choices to exercise her creativity. External supports, with
mentoring as an example, would provide compatible structure, both in
terms of women's "ways of knowing" (Belenky, et.al., 1986), and
their need for connection. Through the combined strategies of
metacognition as well as external supports, women artists will have
another tool to find their voice in the world of art.
subject codes .GEN.CUL
Heidi Straghan
How a Business Plan Turned Into a Life Plan Through The
Application of Critical and Creative Thinking Skills
2004, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
My entrance into the Critical and Creative Thinking Program at the
University of Massachusetts Boston was a personal quest for skills
which would clarify and focus both my personal and professional
life. My work in this program has provided me with critical thinking
skills that allow me to examine assumptions, reasonings, evidence
and biases brought to bear on issues by myself and others
(Nickerson, Perkins, and Smith 1985). Newfound creative thinking
skills allow me to explore complex, disordered, ambiguous problems
and make connections I had not previously seen. It has helped me
identify a creative energy I did not know I had.
This paper is a "real time" example of what happens when one puts
their critical and creative thinking skills to work- the sometimes
unexpected but positive results! My intention as I started this
project was to create a business plan. What was originally intended
to be a small step in that process- creating a fishbone diagram-
took me in a whole new direction and in addition to a business plan
I also created a life plan incorporating important elements in my
life that were identified through the fishbone technique. I have
used the fishbone image to guide the reader through the paper-
taking them on my personal journey from high school through the
following 16 years as I struggled to find my place in the world.
subject codes.RPN
Clare Sullivan
Critical Thinking and Middle School Mathematics
1990, December
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Critical thinking is an area of research which has profound
implications for educators. Included in this research are the
components of creative thinking as well as those of critical
thinking and the dispositions needed to do both. Through critical
and creative thinking research we are learning what thinking is and
what characteristics good thinkers have. If the ultimate goal of
educators is to produce a thinking citizenry, then educators need to
avail themselves of this current research knowledge.
To date, the experts in critical and creative thinking have
addressed the curriculum areas of English Literature, Social Studies
and Science, using many examples from each of how an educator might
teach thinking skills while teaching these subjects. However,
examples of how one might teach critical and creative thinking
skills in the subject area of mathematics are decidedly absent.
While there is research on mathematical problem solving and
quantitative thinking in young children how critical and creative
thinking can be taught at this level within the subject area of
mathematics is unclear.
What is needed, then, is an exploration of the specific critical and
creative thinking skills used in a mathematics curriculum which is
designed for good quantitative thinking. This paper presents an
analysis of those thinking skills defined in current research as
critical and/or creative which can be found in selected activities
of a middle school mathematics curriculum.
The curriculum selected was designed by its authors to develop good
quantitative thinking in students. For the purposes of this
analysis, that goal is assumed to be accomplished, that is, that the
students are developing good quantitative thinking when using this
program. Therefore, the analysis of thinking skills in this paper
goes beyond the goal of the authors to show another level of
thinking skills which can be used to enhance the material. After the
analysis methods are given for classroom instruction, assessment of
students and for the transfer of the critical and creative thinking
skills to other areas of the middle school curriculum.
subject codes .MSE.SCI
Michael Sullivan
Teaching American History and Thinking Skills: The Nineteen
Twenties in America and Lessons in Critical and Creative Thinking
and Philosophical Inquiry
1990, December
Directed by John Murray
This thesis will explore some of the many options for integrating
thinking skills into the traditional study of American History,
specifically the study of the 1920's in American History. This study
invites examination of elements of critical and creative thinking
such as: recognition and analysis of stereotypes; analysis of word
meaning and connotation, as in the recognition of the use and misuse
of euphemism; evaluation of cause and effect relationships;
evaluation of sources; drawing of parallels between historical
periods including connections to the present; group problem solving
which utilizes creative thinking dispositions and skills; and,
philosophical discourse which is directly related to the content
area. This list is not inclusive, of course, nor is the content area
focus unique. Such work can be readily incorporated into more
traditional study of any time period. This paper offers a limited
model for such work, and the argument that such integration between
content area study and thinking skills development is important and
quite practical.
subject codes .MSE
Nancy Sullivan
1997, December
Directed by
For many years, as a teacher of literature, I just taught the story-
who did what, to whom, when, where, and why. The students in my
classes explored all the conflicts in the literature they read,
memorized beautiful lines of poetry and answered questions that
correspond to all levels of Blooms's Taxonomy. Then, at some point
in the 80's, while teaching Romeo and Juliet and reading newspaper
accounts about teenage suicide rates, I realized that I needed to do
more than just teach the story. I could no longer simply teach this
play without dealing with several ethical issues. Here we were, in a
suburban high school, banning certain articles of clothing from
school in order to try to discourage the formation of gangs while
the minor characters in the this play, the servants in the two major
households, are mindlessly engaged in street fights to perpetuate a
feud that they do not understand. I had to help my students to see
the connections between this behavior and the behavior of some of
their peers who were daily involved in similar street fights for
often as vague a cause as the one portrayed in the play. They there
is the issue of drug use...
subject codes
Julia Swan
Conceptual Understanding of Quadratic Expressions
1992, December
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
The learning theories of Skemp (l987) and various conceptual change
theorists are synthesized to delineate four levels of understanding:
instrumental understanding which is equivalent to unconnected or
weakly connected surface knowledge; relational understanding which
is the beginning of deeper, more connected knowledge; symbolic
understanding which provides a sound connection between surface and
deep structures; and conceptual understanding which demands a level
of commitment to and trust in a framework of constant and connected
knowledge.
A teaching model is presented to assist the educator in teaching for
the goal of conceptual understanding in students. The model
illustrates the premise that teaching for conceptual understanding
within a specific content area must take into account content
skills, student dispositions, creative and critical thinking skills,
and teaching/learning strategies, all within the realm of critical
thought. Perkin's (l986) Knowledge as Design questions of purpose,
structure, model and argument are offered as a strategy to harness
and focus the student's content skills, dispositions and thinking
skills to form a viable means of constructing conceptual
understanding in a content area.
The topic of quadratic expressions is used as an illustration of the
learning theory and the model of teaching. The four levels of
understanding are outlined for the structure of a quadratic
expressions, the evaluation of quadratic expressions, binomial
multiplication and factoring. A geometric model is used to build
relational, symbolic and conceptual understandings.
The teaching model is applied to the teaching of quadratic
expressions with the possible source of knowledge, prior
misconceptions and required content skills being delineated. The
Knowledge as Design strategy, with accompanying creative and
critical thinking skills, is analyzed for its effectiveness as a
tool in enabling students to construct conceptual understanding.
Although it may not always be practical to guide students all the
way to conceptual understanding for every concept, it should be an
educator's ideal goal. If teachers would begin to teach for the
minimum of relational understanding, students would exhibit fewer
misconceptions in their understanding and have more faith in their
own knowledge.
subject codes .MSE
Davis Sweet
Teaching Critical Thinking as a Late-Life Career Change
2004, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
Having studied philosophy intensely for ten years and then spent
twenty years in the computer industry, I am now embarking in a new
career teaching critical thinking. My teaching style will draw
heavily on my philosophical background, but my studies in the
Critical and Creative Thinking Program have broadened my conception
of critical thinking. In my synthesis paper, I discuss the important
elements of critical thinking, the tools I intend to use to teach
critical thinking, initial efforts to create a forum for critical
thinking professionals (building on a dormant think tank hosted by
CCT), and the steps I plan to take after graduation to secure a
teaching position.
The important elements of critical thinking include dispositions,
(intellectual honesty, Socratic ignorance, dispassion, common sense,
intellectual rigor, an ear for language, the dispositions to be
curious and questioning, broad, adventurous and organized thinkers,
and the disposition to give thinking time), close analysis,
linguistic analysis, logical analysis, definition of words, use of
rules of thumb and aphorisms, and scrutiny of examples. The tools I
intend to use to teach critical thinking include lists of
guidelines, posters, handouts, facilitating, group activities,
problem-based learning, free writing, methodological believing, and
scrutiny of examples. In a sample syllabus divided into eleven
lessons, I introduce these elements and techniques and include a
separate lesson specifically about the Internet.
subject codes.TCE
Jeremy Szteiter
Exploring The Teaching Mind: Extending Participation in Lifelong
Learning Through Engagement With a Supportive Community
2009, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
This paper extends the notion of lifelong learning beyond gaining
knowledge over a lifetime to preparing oneself to teach what has
been learned to others. The "Teaching Mind," as I define the idea,
involves thinking about what has been learned and what one knows by
reconsidering that knowledge through the eyes of self as a teacher.
The Teaching Mind assumes a broad notion of teaching that relates to
informal and community learning across all areas of life and
culture, beyond professional teaching in formal schools. The pursuit
of the Teaching Mind is highly accessible to all those who wish to
expand their personal and organizational participation in lifelong
learning, and four qualities constitute this possibility: it is
inclusive of all people across varied personal and professional
situations who are not necessarily professional teachers but have
diverse motivations to learn to teach; it is communal such that it
is explored in the company of others; it is expansive to allow
meanings of teaching and learning that are outside of conventional
understanding; it is familiar by using natural, flexible ways of
behaving and communicating to support learning about teaching while
welcoming experimentation, enjoyment, ambiguity, and humor into the
process.
In the active process of engaging with others to explore the
Teaching Mind, face-to-face group forums are essential, as one's
progress in relation to the Teaching Mind necessarily involves
sharing reflections, ideas, and questions with others in a focused
way within a conducive environment. I present a collection of
fundamental principles for orienting a group of lifelong learners to
engage in the pursuit of the Teaching Mind together. Further, I
offer a model that outlines how a group might initiate a Teaching
Mind exploration in a specific, practical way; this model can be
adapted by groups of private individuals or sponsoring organizations
to their own interests. The core of the model is a cycle of
reflecting upon past experiences, engaging with others to interpret
reflections and expose new insights, and imagining how this new
understanding informs future teaching possibilities.
subject codes .FRP.TCE
(Full Text)
Linda Taylor
The Cultivation of Thinking Dispositions in Grades Three and Four
1997, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
Synthesis
subject codes .ELE
Regina Temple
Critical and Creative Thinking and Humor
1992, September
Directed by Delores Gallo
Schools need to be more creative in helping students devise adaptive
methods so as the ability to analyze, compare/contrast, and
evaluate, and creative thinking behaviors, such as fluency,
flexibility, and originality, are needed to solve the complex
problems which students face in today's world. This thesis suggests
the idea that humor, particularly humor resulting from the
recognition and resolution of incongruity, found in jokes, puns,
metaphors and visual representations, is related to and can
facilitate the basic processes of critical and creative thinking,
and hence facilitate complex problem solving.
This thesis examines the importance of finding ways to initiate
humor into the educational experience by incorporating humor into
the classroom and by incorporating it into critical and creative
thinking activities. Humor is intrinsically enjoyable, facilitates
retention, aides in coping with frustration and stress and is a
mechanism for cultivating adaptive methods. The teacher who uses
humor makes learning more interesting and enjoyable and promotes a
student's intellectual, social and emotional development. In order
to teach for critical and creative thinking, instruction using and
including the development of humor should be considered as both an
appropriate goal and a motivating pedagogical strategy.
This thesis also suggests the relationship between humor and
critical and creative thinking. Summarized are the three historical
explanations of the origins of humor: superiority theory, relief
theory and incongruity theory. Current research in critical and
creative thinking as well as problem solving is explored. The
psychological and sociological theories together with the functions
of humor in relation to critical and creative thinking and problem
solving are examined and elaborated upon.
Presented in this thesis are the results of a student survey which
focused on the impact that humor had on classroom environment, on
student attitude toward the teacher, and on student learning and
memory. The results support the positive impact of humor on student
learning. In conclusion, I describe the ways in which I used humor
in my classroom to create a positive climate, to present and deal
with management problems, and to facilitate learning curricula.
subject codes .ELE
Tara Tetzlaff
Constructivist Learning Verses Explicit Teaching:
A Personal Discovery of Balance
2009, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
This synthesis reflects my exploration of the theories of
constructivist learning, explicit teaching, and social learning in
the context of my work as instructor at Children's Technology
Workshop- a company that runs creative technology programs for
children. I provide a description of each theory with examples based
on my experience at CTWorkshop and claim that while constructivist
learning and explicit teaching do have some noticeable differences,
they share the common element of social learning opportunities.
Additionally, I argue that constructivist learning and explicit
teaching are not necessarily incompatible approaches to education,
but can be effectively combined to minimize the deficits and utilize
the strengths of each, and such a combined approach to instruction
can enhance the social learning opportunities available in the
educational environment of CTWorkshop's icamp program.
Since this paper is reflective of my own, personal experiences
working in a particular educational environment, I do not except
that the specific uses of these theories described in this paper
will necessarily pertain to the educational settings in which others
may work; however, my intent is not to design a plan for others to
use in their own instruction, but rather inspire others by my
example to think more deeply about their own methods of instruction.
As my reflective conclusion explains, the process of working on this
project has affected me deeply, and I hope this paper may motivate
others to seek their own insights.
subject codes.LRN
(Full Text)
Leslie Thurber-McGuire
Curriculum Unit: Developing Respect
1997, May
Directed by
Moral education is a much needed aspect in the lives of today's
children, in order for them to be functioning, contributing members
of society both as children and as adults. Despite the ongoing
social changes, instruction in basic moral values is essential.
There are numerous theories and views on the topic of moral
education. When deciding how to approach the topic one needs to
think critically. I moral education is to be taught outside of the
home, a joint effort needs to be made by all those involved in
evaluating and implementing a moral education program.
This synthesis project includes an overview of approaches to moral
education and related topics and a curriculum unit. The unit offers
one option to educators for teaching one element of moral education
and that is the quality of respect: respect for self and others.
The paper begins with delineating the need for moral education. It
discusses some of the possible factors that may contribute to this
growing need. Moral education itself had gone through many changes
over the past century. The path to moral education has taken over
the years is summarized including current beliefs and practices.
When the topic of moral and education arises so do many question.
Questions such as: who should teach it and why, what should be
taught and how. This paper attempts to give some of the many views
concerning these questions.
The core of this synthesis project is a curriculum unit on the theme
of respect. An important component of the lessons is the development
of critical and creative thinking skills. The works of Gary Davis,
Delores Gallo, and Richard Paul are used to defining what these
skills entail. Another important aspect of the unit is the use of
literature in the lessons. The value of literature in moral
education is presented in this paper. The overall goal of the unit
is for students to gain self respect as well as respect for others.
subject codes .MOR
David Tick
A Critical Evaluation of the Thinkabout Instructional Television
Curriculum
1991, May
Directed by Steven H. Schwartz
As educators in a changing society, one of our objectives is to
guide students in their own learning. To accomplish this goal, most
of us develop and implement educational programs from a variety of
sources that, we hope, inspire students to ruminate what has been
presented and discussed in our classrooms. With such a plethora of
materials available, what criteria should teachers use to assess
whether or not a particular curriculum effectively promotes
individual, logical and ideational thinking?
ThinkAbout is a video series of sixty (fifteen minute) video
segments and thirteen program clusters, formulated and designed to
enhance the overall thinking of students, ten to twelve years of
age. The curriculum is produced by a consortium of state and
provincial education agencies in the United States and Canada under
the supervision and direction of the Agency for Instruction
Television, an American-Canadian Organization located in
Bloomington, Indiana.
ThinkAbout is an interesting curriculum because of its comprehensive
objectives and practical teaching strategies. However, is it a
cogent way of presenting critical and creative thinking, and does it
arouse and stimulate the processes necessary to enhance thinking
skills better than other curriculum? The purpose of this thesis is
to analyze the theoretical bases of ThinkAbout and critically
evaluate a sample of eight programs from two clusters. This thesis
also evaluates the connection between the theory and strategies
utilized, reviews some previous evaluations, and proposes specific
changes and modifications to address some of the alleged
methodological problems or limitations.
While concrete evidence of gains in conceptual thinking is difficult
to report, there is evidence to suggest that ThinkAbout does have an
impact on its students. By influencing the attitudes of its viewers,
the curriculum is able to create a new forum that enables students
to generate and exchange ideas.
subject codes .MSE.CUL
Shari Tishman
Philosophic Inquiry in a Pre-College Setting
1984, May
Directed by ?
...there is a natural confusion about what philosophy is, and what
its role in education should be. What sort of background do teachers
need to teach philosophy in elementary, middle and secondary school?
How is it related to other studies? Should there be special
philosophy curricula, or can philosophical activity occur in all
classes? What materials can be used? One aspect of philosophy that
sets it apart from the hard and social sciences is that it is
continually grappling with its own definition. Unlike, say, biology,
which can be defined without actually doing biology, 'knowing is
doing' in philosophy. The first part of this thesis aims to help
teachers think philosophically about what the boundaries of
philosophy are, and, in doing so, come to an understanding of its
nature. It is hoped that doing this will illustrate to teachers the
relevance of philosophy to general education, so that their own
inquiry can be a model for introducing philosophy into their
classrooms.
...The conception of philosophy advanced in this thesis is that it
is a constellation of many different kinds of questions and
considerations, unified by a process of inquiry into the foundations
of human endeavor. As we have seen so far, this process involves the
critical ability to assess and develop sound reasoning, and the
creative ability to provide hypothetical possibilities that extend
the scope of inquiry. It also includes valuing for their own sake
the intellectual attitudes and dispositions which nurture the
inclination to probe deeply into fundamental questions, and, in
doing so, form the larger context in which these thinking skills are
applied. Because this thesis is concerned with philosophy in
pre-college education, and because my conception of philosophy
implies that its scope is the foundational issues in all areas of
study, I will inquire further into the relation of philosophy to
general education, and review some existing curricula for the
teaching of pre-college philosophy. The third chapter of this thesis
includes a survey of some critical and creative thinking skills
relevant to philosophic inquiry; the fourth chapter is a discussion
of selected attitudes and dispositions that help define the larger
context in which inquiry occurs.
subject codes .MOR
Robert Alfred Tocci
Critical Thinking Skills and Motivation: A Model for Literature
1987, September
Directed by Arthur Millman
Maslow claims that the "study of moptiovation is the study of
ultimate human goals, desires, or needs." (Maslow 1970, 22) He
implies that the topic of motiovation is as rich and varied as the
types of human personalities. My interpretation of Maslow's claim is
not limited to only living people. It also includes characters in
literature whoaren't living in a physical sense, but who,
nevertheless, hae a life on the pages pf a book. My original idea
was to help students discover characters' lives by using a model,
which I devised, to determine motivation.
subject codes .WRL
Irvent Torres
Young Adults' Moral Education: A Critical Reflective Thinking
Approach
1993, May
Directed by
This thesis proposes a theoretical educational model, described as
intentional education, based on critical reflective thinking and
characterized by a dialogical and dialectical educational
environment. The educational aim is characterized by the five R's:
responsibleness, reasonableness, reflectiveness, respectfulness and
relationship.
Intentional education expands on the constructivist theory and
incorporates critical reflective thinking as psychological and
educational tools. It recognizes the importance of the spiritual
dimension early in the education and moral development of people. A
theoretical curriculum model is provided to train educators,
counselors and religious administrators and to show how intentional
education differs from basic values, values clarification and
cognitive constructivist theories.
This thesis focuses on young adults and the effect of
overprotective, authoritarian parenting on their moral development.
Specifically, the focus is on young adults who are enmeshed in a
particular crisis of moral development and who are the products of a
caring and authoritarian parenting style. The argument is made that
these young adults experience both moral and identity crises which
stunt their consistent development and that these crises surface
later in adulthood than previously noted in the literature.
Four important dimensions to the problems and dilemmas confronted
during young adulthood are discussed: (1) educational: cultivation
of career or vocational choices; (2) psychological: cultivation of
relationships, public and private; (3) sociological: cultivation of
social and community values; and (4) theological: determination of
moral and spiritual values.
One of its goals is to generate knowledge with understanding that
serves academic and nonacademic pursuits. The claim is made that
knowledge without the understanding of its social and moral
consequences does not promote the moral development of a just,
responsible and thoughtful multicultural society. Education and
moral development mean more than knowing what to do; rather they
represent understanding, self-consistency and knowledge of what kind
of human to be. For people to understand what they are taught, they
need to reflect critically on their behavior, actions and feelings.
To do this they must emotionally wrestle, with themselves, with the
past, with the present and with the future, and fully utilize
imagination and critical reflective thinking.
subject codes .MOR.COM
Frederic Torzs
Interpersonal Communication and Critical Thinking; Exploring
Power and Solidarity in a Computer-Mediated Conversation.
1992, May
Directed by John R. Murray
This thesis is an examination of a computer-mediated conversation
among a group of education researchers. It examines how, even in the
context of written, non face-to-face communication around a central
concept in education theory, language continues to serve an
interpersonal function: researchers will structure their
communication in terms of power (the need to preserve distance from
others, to feel independent and protect privacy) and solidarity (the
need to have a sense of community with others, to feel accepted and
involved).
It is the claim in this thesis that the literature on critical
thinking focuses on refining one's speech so that meaningful
information can be clearly transmitted. The critical thinker, in
this view, needs to be aware of, and pure his/her communication of
bias words, euphemisms, innuendo, marked words, hedging
equivocation, emotional language, vagueness, ambiguity, and the
like, in order to be able to focus on increasing ideational clarity
for oneself and others.
However, this thesis points out that what the literature on critical
thinking focuses on purging from communication is, in fact, an
essential part of the interpersonal function of language, and that
the failure to understand this leaves a gap in the development of
critical thinking as a viable educational objective.
subject codes .TEC.THR
Jean Tower
Using Computer Technology to Teach Thinking
1996, September
Directed by John R. Murray
The successful reform of education in America will center on student
learning and will bring together three seemingly separate agendas:
student outcomes that reflect deep understanding and higher order
thinking skills, curriculum that includes well-integrated uses of
technology, and professional development for teachers that
incorporates the two previously named agendas Each of these
initiatives alone has potential to impact education positively, but
any single one in the absence of the other two will not be as
effective.
This thesis examines the state of education today with regard to
student goals and outcomes and teacher education and training. It is
the finding of this thesis that schools do not set strong student
goals and that the inclusion of critical and creative thinking
skills is markedly absent from those goals. The author finds that
student goals relevant to critical and creative thinking are crucial
to education and that to teach with such goals and objectives will
require extensive teacher training.
This thesis goes on to demonstrate that technology is a great tool
to use for the infusion of critical and creative thinking skills
into the curriculum. Computer technology can be seen as a tool for
thought, and teachers can encourage the use of the computer as such.
Chapter four, the culmination of this thesis, is a pre-service
teacher preparation course which incorporates both integration of
technology and infusing teaching with higher order
thinking skills outcomes. The course design and philosophy bring
together the three agendas: student goals of critical and creative
thinking, the incorporation of technology into
the curriculum, and extensive teacher training focused on sound
pedagogical techniques.
subject codes .SCI
Matt Tower
Developing Healthy and Balanced Minds: How Creative, Critical
and Moral Thinking Promote Good Cognition
2009, May
Directed by Peter Taylor
My experiences with the Critical and Creative Thinking program have
given me time to articulate and reflect on how creative, critical
and moral thinking relate to a healthy and balanced mind. This paper
explores each of these three thinking styles individually through
reflection and literature review, and then combines them into
coherent pictures like a biphasic cyclical machine and a garden of
components to be cultivated. I propose that by promoting and
balancing creative, critical and moral thinking, we can develop
healthy and balanced cognition for both ourselves as individuals,
and as groups.
subject codes.THR
(full text)
David Valdez
Including Spirituality Into Systems of Western Psychology
1998, December
Directed by Delores Gallo
In our culture, we tend to separate religion and psychology,
spiritual practice and therapy. If we are to redress this division,
we must appreciate the need and appropriateness of reintroducing
attention to the spiritual dimension of the individual back into
Systems of Western psychology.
This paper critically regards former attempts and limitations to
relate issues of spirituality into the science of Western
psychology. It explores the development of Allport's (1967) and
Baton's (1976) research on religious orientation and constructing
spiritual inventories. In addition, the paper also provides a
definition of mental health as it reviews empirical research that
regards spirituality as a legitimate independent variable. These
experiments help to justify the inclusion of the spiritual dimension
into psychological investigation and into modes of Western
psychology.
The paper then examines issues of spirituality in the frameworks of
psychotherapy. In an effort to address this spiritual omission, this
paper explores the work of Moore (1992) and Hillman (1975), who call
for the idea of polytheism to be Infused Into therapeutic
techniques. This idea considers multiple psychological needs of an
Individual, which Moore and HilIman describe as addressing the care
of the soul. In this way, psychology may invite a serious discussion
of spirituality and its role in healthy functioning.
Finally, the paper addresses the issue of reductionistic language in
some sectors of Western psychology and its relationship to issues of
spirituality Specifically, this paper explores the potential of
religious language as a tool for reintroducing the spiritual
dimension back into the realms of Western psychology.
The paper then concludes with practical recommendations for
constructing empirical investigations that use widely accepted and
replicable methodologies to study spiritual phenomenon. If followed,
these recommendations can contribute new knowledge about the value
of spiritual practices to sound psychological health. Such efforts
will not only add depth and breath to our Western psychology, but
also add insight into the role of spirituality in the fully
functioning individual
subject codes .CUL.DIV
Luz Valdez
A Journey To Make Documentaries That Entertain As Well As
Enlighten
2006, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
I am a documentary filmmaker whose films focus on ordinary people
living in different circumstances, and places in the world, who are
trying to overcome life's obstacles so they can reach their goals. I
have always believed that these lives are rich and full of meaning.
I want my documentaries to address a general audience-ordinary
people that want to be entertained, while being psychologically and
intellectually engaged in the experience. By presenting topics that
incite curiosity for learning, I hope to generate a real desire for
knowledge in my audience. I hope to help them feel that a continuous
acquisition of knowledge is essential to them as individuals, both
emotionally and cognitively. This paper sets a frame to support my
endeavor.
Understanding better how audiences structure their thoughts and make
meaning of things while viewing documentaries would help me to
better manage their needs and expectations, and establish more
fulfilling connections with them. To this end, I explored different
aspects of film theory, cognitive psychology and audience
exploratory research, paying special attention to a positive role
for emotions. I argue that the architecture of a documentary film
does not have to be different from the architecture of a fiction
film because both of them share a common goal, namely, to shift the
audience's perspective of their human legacy and to inspire
individuals to reflect and perhaps make changes that may improve the
quality of their lives. In this sense, my future documentaries
thoughts and emotions will be crucial in a process that uses
different techniques and resources based on a creative and critical
thinking approach.
I also present a classification of documentaries and suggested
titles to help the audience to identify what types of documentaries
fulfill better their intellectual and emotional needs. The criteria
for this classification system have been developed with four main
questions in mind regarding documentary: What to tell? (that covers
the topic), how to tell? (that covers the narration resources and
techniques to be used), whom to tell? (that covers the type of
audience to whom the documentary is addressed to), and what is the
degree of subjectivity and creativity used in the manipulation of
materials?
subject codes .ART
Elizabeth Van Atten
Looking for the Question: A Critical Thinking Goal for a Second
Grade Teacher
1992, May
Directed by Patricia S. Davidson
Advocates for critical thinking have steadfastly maintained that
skills for understanding how problems are solved are more important
than memorizing facts. Such problems would be more representative of
real life than the usual contrived problems created to practice an
academic skill.
Piaget is said to have asked how his findings could accelerate
learning. In fact, he had been asked this so often, he called it the
"Americana question" (Piaget in Pulaski, l980, p. 202). His response
was that educators have not effectively addressed three fundamental
questions; What is the aim of teaching? What should we teach? and
How should we teach? These basic questions remain unanswered today
and are a continuing challenge to teachers.
This thesis focuses on second grade students and advocates that
traditional academic practice be more developmentally appropriate.
The author addresses these issues daily in her classroom by
providing many opportunities for the students to see the usefulness
of acquiring the basic skills of reading, writing, and mathematics.
Furthermore, these skills become the tools useful for reaching the
primary goal of the author, which is to develop the traits of
personal responsibility, social responsibility, self-dependency,
leadership, organization, and concern for the environment.
Activities for practicing the skills mentioned above are designed to
duplicate real-life situations. Many opportunities for critical
thinking as well as creative thinking are included as a vital part
of each day. The classroom itself is filled with ingredients which
stimulate the natural curiosity of children. By working a time into
the daily schedule that allows students to select what they want to
do from a wide number of choices, such as arts, blocks, carpentry,
cooking, crafts, games, keyboarding, planting science, theme work,
tutoring, and writing, they begin to generate their own ideas.
"Looking for the Question" refers to the anticipation of requests
posed, by children whose curiosity has been stimulated by their
surroundings. The ultimate goal of teaching for critical thinking
has been fulfilled, as a teacher and students alike search for
answers amidst a climate of self-growth and shared responsibilities.
subject codes .ELE
Lisa Veldran
Cultivating Thinking Dispositions in Middle School Learning
Disabled Students: A Unit Plan
1999, December
Directed by Peter Taylor
Thinking dispositions are defined as "inclinations and habits of the
mind that benefit productive thinking" (Tishman, Perkins, and Jay
1995, 37). As a special needs teacher for 13 years, I have observed
that learning disabled students who have not acquired certain
thinking dispositions often encounter great difficulty learning
skills and strategies that aid them in successful task completion. I
believe that time should be allotted in the curriculum to
specifically teach and cultivate thinking dispositions in these
students. These "habits of mind" will be the building blocks that
help learning disabled students become ready, willing and able to
acquire and apply specific study skills or cognitive strategies to
content areas in school.
I present a unit I have created, titled "Cultivating Thinking
Dispositions" that, using content from their regular education
curriculum, will allow learning disabled students to practice
integrating nine specific thinking dispositions into various
academic and social situations. The dispositions are critical
listening, good questioning, wondering, perseverance, controlling
impulsivity, perspective taking, reflective thinking, goal setting,
and decision making.
I highlight specific research that supports the need for cultivating
thinking dispositions in learning disabled students, including
research on metacognition, transfer, and Vygotsky's Theory of
Proximal Development. I also recommend that when implementing this
unit teachers use techniques of reciprocal teaching and scaffolded
instruction, and strive for a classroom culture that integrates
thinking dispositions into all aspects of the curriculum.
As Oxman-Michelli states, "dispositions will develop as they are
welcomed, encouraged, supported, and rewarded during the course of
mindful activities " (Oxman-Michelli 1992, 3). Cultivating thinking
dispositions within the learning disabled population at the middle
school level is well worth the time and investment given by both the
teachers and students.
subject codes .MSE.LRN
Thomas Vendetti
A Thinking Skills Approach to Affirmation and Conflict Resolution
1990, May
Directed by
subject codes .ELE
Benjamin Wade
Critical and Creative Thinking for Corporate Managers
1991, December
Directed by John R. Murray
The need for critical and creative thinking (CCT) in the affairs of
mankind has never been so great. The rate of change in all areas of
life continues to increase, bringing with those changes problems
that need solutions. To meet this need, problem solving, supported
and integrated with critical and creative thinking skills, is now
receiving increased attention at all levels of education. But the
need for solutions to today's problems can't wait for the next
generation. The author argues that there is a great need for CCT
training in the business world and especially in the corporate
sector.
The author addresses this need by presenting a five half-day seminar
curriculum to introduce basic CCT skills and strategies to corporate
managers. The seminars are designed to accomplish the following:
Instill an awareness of mind among managers that includes and
emphasizes metacognition (i. e. thinking about thinking).
Introduce managers to critical and creative thinking skills and
strategies in managerial problem solving situations.
Acquaint managers with the principles necessary to create and
support a critical and creative thinking environment in their
workplace.
Provide follow-up assessment in the form of pre and post seminar
surveys designed to elicit evidence of possible conceptual change in
participants, as well as ;other evaluative factors.
The thesis introduces a theoretical and practical framework that
supports the curriculum in a number of areas including critical and
creative thinking, metacognition, problem solving and conceptual
change. The thesis attempts to introduce conceptual change in the
following areas:
Mind as a manageable resource and the concept of managing this
resource for thinking.
Metacognition as am important thinking skill for managers.
Critical thinking as an essential ingredient in problem solving.
Guidelines for a classroom and workplace environment that encourages
and supports CCT are developed. The guidelines are demonstrated in
the seminar environment and also taught to seminar participants as
management principles to be implemented in their workareas. These
principles are designed to encourage and support CCT in the
workplace for both managers and the employees they manage, creating
businesses in which everyone values and practices critical and
creative thinking.
subject codes .COR
Laurie Jo Wallace
Creative Drama and Youth Voice: Teaching Health Topics and
Empowerment Through Theater and Peer Education
1997, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
In this paper, the Teenage Girls InFormed (TGIF) theater project has
shown the power and value of using theater as a creative and
critical teaching tool in order to reduce violence in girls' lives.
The introduction explains the nature of the project which uses drama
as a teaching tool in a peer leadership project focusing on girls
and violence. The paper explains in detail the process of developing
the theater piece through the individual "stories" of four Boston
high school students and one college student. The performance piece
was then performed for middle school audiences with the goal of
involving the audience in discovering and creating strategies for
violence reduction among young women in the areas of interpersonal
violence and relationship abuse. Three major areas of research were
addressed: I) critical and creative thinking, 2) creative drama, and
3) youth empowerment and peer leadership. Finally the evaluation of
the project was developed through the implementation of several
tools which indicated the growth of the peer leaders in theater
skills, knowledge of strategies for violence prevention and personal
confidence. The response of the audience was also assessed and
further supported the efficacy of theater and peer leadership as
teaching and empowerment methods.
subject codes .MED
Angela K. Walsh
Structured Preoperative Education For Cataract Surgery Patients:
A Creative Teaching Model
2001, May
Directed by Nina Greenwald
The objective of this synthesis is to propose a more effective
instructional model for educating preoperative cataract surgery
patients. The aim is to use the adult learning theory to educate
rather than transmit or share information with patients.
Current preoperative teaching practices in patient education were
reviewed for their effectiveness in providing patients with an
understanding of their diagnosis and the reasons for surgery.
Sources for this include professional literature and information
pertaining to the physical and psychological limitations of cataract
surgery patients. Interviews were conducted with Ophthalmologists
who perform the procedure, and a pilot study was conducted on
twenty-seven patients scheduled to undergo cataract surgery.
Based on this review, an analysis is made of key problems and the
implications for change, with respect to existing patient education
approaches. The results of this analysis become the basis for
proposing a revised teaching model that invites patient
participation and disseminates, reinforces and evaluates the extent
to which preoperative information is successfully transmitted to a
patient.
subject codes .MED
Kathleen Walsh
Embracing Systems Thinking and the Dialogue Process Within My
Classroom
2004, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
The Critical and Creative Thinking program has introduced me to many
new ways of looking at my classroom. As a music teacher who
encounters many different situations on a daily basis, I have
struggles to find more consistent ways of making my teaching more
effective, and a more enjoyable process for both my students and
myself. Some of the most helpful techniques and attitudes have come
from the work of Peter Senge and his concept of "systems thinking".
This concept, coupled with Senge's consideration of the Dialogue
process as an effective communication tool, has greatly influenced
and changed my teaching methods. Many of the things I had previously
done in my classroom, that just seemed to "work" or be "right" at
the time, now also have greater explanation as I find that they too
were a natural part of Senge's considerations for which I had no
name when I first applied them within my classroom. Now I have begun
to name those most effective methods, and develop them further
through my reading of Senge's works and further practice within the
CCT program. Examples include a "check-in" process for kindergarten
students and putting aside my prior expectations of students with
learning disabilities.
This paper serves to show what my daily struggles consist of, how I
now choose to see them, and how I plan to continue to improve my
teaching methods through the continued use of Senge's theories.
subject codes.COM
Zhenxing Wang
Destination?: A Play About Workplace Ethics
2007, August
Directed by Lawrence Blum
Destination? is a play intended to arouse in the readers some
reflections on issues of morality, professional ethics, creativity,
and their relations to regulation and law. The readers are presented
several conflicts that SPEEDY, the protagonist, encounters in his
work environment of a taxi business. SPEEDY, a man of Chinese origin
and a philosophical, creative thinker, identifies a source of the
conflicts in the taxi business. He comes up a way to fix that
problem, but it violates the regulations of the taxi company. The
play thus brings forward an ethical issue. It leaves the question
open whether it is ethical to break certain regulations of a company
for which one works. The evolution of the play is also described.
subject codes.ART
Celeste Warner
Helping American businesses deliver exemplary customer service
& recovering the costs associated with consumer silence
2002, May
Directed by Nina Greenwald
This synthesis proposes that consumers, who are motivated to provide
feedback to businesses, can help these businesses provide more
effective customer service. First, an overview of some literature
and theories pertaining to consumer behavior and its relationship to
customer service is presented. Next, field research conducted by the
author indicates the need to redesign a customer service program she
had previously implemented in a Vermont based nursing home. The
results of this research, combined with the results of two sets of
interviews with successful business professionals concerning the
problems with implementing good customer service, strongly suggest
that customer service training alone cannot generate customer
feedback. The results indicate that, under normal circumstances, the
average customer will remain silent when receiving less than
adequate service. The proposal that a customer can be motivated to
provide feedback to businesses via an intensive public relations
campaign, is currently being tested by a pilot group of SouthCoast
chamber businesses. This campaign includes the use of news releases,
direct mail, radio and television. Should this proposal be correct,
this synthesis will be available to Chambers of Commerce throughout
the Country.
subject codes .COR
Barbara Waters
Applying Cognitive Strategies to Critical Barriers in Learning a
Science Concept: Groundwater Conceptual Change
1989, May
Directed by Carol L. Smith
The thesis applies cognitive change strategies to teaching science
concepts, with the ultimate purpose of promoting a conceptual change
view of science learning in elementary school teachers. A twofold
framework was structured to produce both change in teacher's
specific science concepts and general views of the learning process.
First, the teachers took part in an intervention that challenged
their naive conceptions about Cape Cod groundwater. Then the
teachers reflected on the strategies that helped bring about their
own conceptual change and thought about how they could be applied to
teaching science to children.
The research was accomplished through a four part intervention, with
eleven elementary teachers (grades 3-5) over a two month period. The
intervention consisted of pre and post-interviews, a workshop, a
class demonstration, and readings. The study's intervention used
recent cognitive research on conceptual change. The design of the
learning model was centered around nine conditions for conceptual
change including probing for misconceptions, creating cognitive
conflict, applying analogies, and using directed discovery through
interactive dialogue.
The philosophical bias of the study focused on the elementary
teacher as a necessary partner to meaningful educational research.
Until the elementary teacher is allowed to be a part of the process
of developing new approaches to learning, research will remain with
the academics and away from classrooms and students. By working with
the eleven teachers on a co-professional basis, I received
enthusiastic, honest, insightful responses to my questions.
The study produced evidence of significant change in the teachers'
understanding of groundwater concepts. There was also evidence that
the eleven teachers now have a beginning understanding of how to
apply cognitive strategies to become more effective in their science
teaching.
subject codes .SCI.ENV
Nathan Weaver
Third Divergence: Representations and Reflections
2012, May
Directed by Jeremy Szteiter
This paper presents an exploration of the process of developing a music composition through various layers of interaction with ideas through the abstract and the real. The composition is the most significant component of the project as a whole, and this paper regards itself as a sort of artist's journal developed during creation of the composition, making some attempt to show the process of improvising through the project. The project as a whole explores the various conceptualizations of the idea, of the relationship between the abstract and the real, and representations of a work that cannot be fully known. The composition itself represents the whole project through the interaction of two central ideas merging towards a circle of relation. Particular attention is given to the dynamic of composition and improvisation, and the role of improvisation in the creation of new work.
subject codes.ART
(Full Text)
Catherine M. Weber
Creativity Empowerment for Women: Workshops and Practices for
Lifelong Learning and Growth
1999, June
Directed by Delores Gallo
History shows that there have been far fewer eminently creative
women than men in Western civilization due to culturally imposed
gender biases that result in social and psychological challenges for
women. These biases sometimes force women to make choices between
procreation and creation and may limit resources like time, space
and financial stability. As a result, many women feel powerless to
fulfill their aspirations.
This paper adopts Amabile's finding that the creative person is
influenced by internal and external factors including
social-environmental variables and personality dispositions. Women,
however, face unique challenges to the creative life due to social
and culturally imposed gender biases (Abra, Bond, Hayes,
Kirschenbaum, Mowrer, Popiel, Ochse, Purto, Pohlman, Pollard and
Pollard, Reis and Valentine-French, and Woolf). Arredondo theorizes
that women can learn new dispositions and attitudes as a path to
empowerment, which is identified as creating identity through
relationship, having clarity of thought and self-esteem through
literature by Arredondo, Belenky, Miller, Surrey, and Wilson-Schaef.
Attitudes and dispositions for creativity in women named in the
literature by Amabile, Csikszentmihalyi, Davis, Estes and Torrance
are used with adult learning principles and practices for teaching
women. Theories by Davis, Eitington, Gardner, Johnson and Johnson,
Lawler, and Rice are used for a workshop structure and strategy.
Using this strategy and structure, I developed a five-module
curriculum that introduces and cultivates creative dispositions in
women, develops confidence and self-knowledge while in relationship
with others and supports continued creative practices for life-long
learning. This curriculum goes beyond teaching concepts, to
facilitating the incorporation of the production of creative work
into every day life.
It is necessary for women to empower themselves if they are to have
the same impact on the world that men have. This challenge raises
questions about a system that was designed for the success of men by
men which undervalues and shows little support for women in creative
endeavors.
subject codes .GEN
Barbara Wickwire
Finding Voice: Turning Fragments Into Stories -- Teaching Memoir
to Enhance the Journey of the Non-Confident Student
2002, June
Directed by Nina Greenwald
Finding Voice: Turning Fragments into Stories chronicles the
author's journey in developing a course in the reading and writing
of memoir in historical context for the non-confident adult literacy
or community college student. This paper specifically addresses a
class in an adult literacy program in Cambridge, Massachusetts where
the author is currently teaching, and is also informed by her
teaching experiences with community college students who must take
remedial reading and writing courses before matriculating.
Rather than offering fragments of learning (i.e. grammar skills,
building blocks) to a non-confident student population, the author
proposes holistic learning experiences using the lens of memoir, and
framed by constructivist practices that promote critical and
creative thinking. The discussion of sources such as Peter Elbow's
first and second order thinking about writing, and an experimental
City College of New York program offering a whole language approach
focusing on fluency, offers a rationale for constructing meaning
through active learning.
This exploration into the essence of a good learning experience
resulted in a series of three lessons on memoir. Using
constructivist practices of the students making meaning, capturing
their own experience to form the base of memoir in historical
context, the lessons focus on fluency, flexibility and opportunity
to transfer lessons learned into the wider world. As well as a
journey in which students celebrate voice, this synthesis reflects a
parallel one for the author documented in a reflections section
following each lesson.
subject codes .TCE.WRL
Luanne Witkowski
Basic Training: Inspiring Institutional Change in Higher
Education in the Fine and Professional Arts Through Wholistic
Practice and Sustainability Education
2003, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
This paper documents the process by which I developed "Basic
Training", a wholistic program for the education of artists, and
came to see this program as a model for sustainability education
more generally.
I am an artist who, shortly before joining the Critical and Creative
Thinking Program (CCT) at the University of Massachusetts/Boston
(UMass), left my full-time job so I could have more time for
painting. I have done this - establishing a studio, a practice, and
networking - culminating in both solo and group exhibits of my small
and large paintings and works on paper. To make ends meet, I took on
a half-time position as a painting studio manager at Massachusetts
College of Art (MassArt). Finding that I was the first person in
this position, I put in place studio guidelines and organization to
ensure a personally healthy and environmentally responsible
workspace. This led me to develop a three-part plan, "Basic
Training" for artists, making use of the tools for personal and
organizational change I was learning through my course work in CCT -
i.e. strategic planning, evaluation, problem-based learning, and
reflective practice. "Basic Training" not only includes health and
environmental concerns, but also an artist's responsibility to
engage with the communities that artists rely on to experience and
support our artwork. In this spirit, I took up an offer of use of a
storefront in Jamaica Plain, and initiated the Efka Project. As Efka
Project's director and coordinator I coach emerging artists to
prepare, publicize, curate, and staff their first exhibits. In turn,
the Project provides an opportunity for the public to gain exposure
to, and education about artists in their community who are about to
embark on their careers. I went on to develop a curriculum for
MassArt and explore the institutional challenges of getting this
implemented. I was also drawn into education for sustainability
efforts at UMass/Boston and have translated my MassArt course into a
possible UMass course for a more general group of students, - not
only artists. In the process described in this I have experimented
and taken risks in applying what I was learning in CCT, reflecting
on the outcomes, and building up a set of tools, practices, and
perspectives that work in my specific professional and personal
endeavors.
subject codes.ART.TCE
Mary Catherine Wollak
Paradox of Difference: Teaching Metacognition to Adolescents
1997, June
Directed by Lawrence Blum
As teachers we face the awesome responsibility of providing our
students with the skills necessary for survival and success in our
world of constant change. Hopefully, they will use their skills
toward the betterment of society as well as for self-fulfillment.
Adolescents are confronted with the challenge of exploring the world
around them as they develop independence in their decision making.
Providing opportunities in the classroom that have students test
their decision making skills, examine the possible consequences of
those decisions, and explore options and alternatives to the
expected outcomes can make our students more critical and creative
decision makers and problem solvers.
This thesis explores the use of metacognition in the lives of young
adolescents, fifteen and sixteen years of age. In order to develop
basic thinking skills, students must direct their attention to the
processes and products of their thinking. Focusing on the use of
language, particularly teens' use of stereotypes when in
relationships with others, this thesis has students become aware of
the creation and use of "loaded language," and how its use is
indicative of faulty reasoning and the behavior of a non-critical
thinker. By exercising metacognition students are instilled with a
more "mindful" attitude of life that can develop and transform their
internal life and their interpretation of who and what they are and
what they may become.
This thesis will define the terms pertinent to the topic of
metacognition, provide a rationale for teaching metacognition to
teenagers, and present the responsibilities of the professional
educator in introducing and enhancing the students' skills in
metacognition. Also, this thesis will provide exemplary activities
that demonstrate these opportunities as integrated within a
sophomore English curriculum.
subject codes .TCE.MSE
Anna Yangco
Creating Inner and Outer Sacred Space: An Adult Learner Program's
Wholistic Approach to Supporting Low-Income Women Who Have Been
Impacted by Violence
2004, June
Directed by Peter Taylor
At our Adult Learner Program, we have identified that women who have
experienced violence need various supports in order to effectively
learn upon their reentry to school. Using three broad definitions of
violence, I have investigated the impact of violence on low-income
women's learning at our literacy program. We have found that if our
program supports transformation of the inner and outer sacred space
of a woman, then she can gain the qualities she needs to learn
throughout her time at our program, but for lifelong learning.
"Sacred" in the sense used here denotes something worthy of respect.
This paper documents the curricula, activities, and transformation
of the sacred space that our Adult Learner Program has given
attention to, especially during the past five years. Our curricula
include activities that acknowledge that the essence of a human
being is comprised of four inseparable aspects: the mind, body,
spirit, and emotions. Using the First Nations' medicine wheel, we
have developed lessons that "bring the whole person to learning
(Horsman, 2000)." The curricula also focus on empowering learners
through cultivating a greater sense of self (understanding the
interconnectedness between the four aspects of the person) and
developing a sense of place (establishing the self with a supportive
community). We explored ways to construct a sacred learning
environment for the women in the program. By catering to all the
senses in the classroom, we wanted to create an environment, which
we felt our learners were worthy to be in. We took on the challenge
to transform a sacred space that reflected the value we knew our
students possessed.
subject codes.GEN.TCE
Rachael Yoffee
From Failure-Orientation to Mastery-Orientation: A Workshop for
Women
1993, May
Directed by
When an outcome is not as expected or desired, some people conceive
of it as a failure. But the subjective meaning of a failure can have
personal and psychological implications that are deeper than the
objective meaning of an unsuccessful outcome. There are people,
women more than men, who become discouraged after failing. Giving up
on the task and lacking persistence are some of the characteristics
of the learned helplessness pattern of behavior that is typical of
these people. Psychologists have tried to understand the underlying
reasons for the learned helplessness pattern of behavior.
In this thesis I first review some of the theories that try to
explain learned helplessness. The cognitive explanation (which
focuses on the framework one uses to interpret a situation), the
egotism theory (which focuses on the need to protect self-esteem),
and some social theories (which focus on situational variables which
influence behavior) are presented and discussed. I also examine the
possible relations among the theories. Next, I review studies of
individual differences in learned helplessness. Studies conducted
with young children, older children, and adults have found that
older children and adults are more susceptible to learned
helplessness than young children. This section of this thesis
examines the reasons for these differences. I also review the
evidence for differences between women's and men's reactions to
failure and success. Studies have indicated that women show more
learned helplessness than men. As a woman I am disturbed by this.
Therefore, I have attempted in this thesis to understand the
underlying reasons for these differences and to find what can be
done to change it, at least on the personal level.
The theories and studies mentioned in the sections above support the
conclusion that certain patterns of thinking (in which one jumps to
an unwarranted negative conclusion from scanty evidence and fails to
consider other possible meanings) foster learned helplessness. These
patterns of thinking can be affected by one's level of self-esteem,
one's intuitive theories about ability, as well as factors in the
social situation. This led me to propose a design for a workshop
that aims to change that pattern of thinking by making individuals
aware of their reaction patterns as well as alternative
orientations.
The thesis concludes with a detailed discussion of that workshop and
its activities. It shows how the use of critical and creative
thinking components and the "Rotating Moderator" method can help one
to perceive the outcome more neutrally as "unsuccessful outcome"
rather than as "failure". The workshop also tries to change one's
attitude from "failure in the performance" toward "mastery of the
task". I believe that the ability to see any outcome as a means of
learning and growing can lead women to be more optimistic and
adaptive in their behavior.
subject codes .GEN.COM
Susan Anne Ripley Young
A Teachers' Guide to Improving Students' Creative Thinking in
Mathematics
1995, May
Directed by Judish Collison
A teacher's approach to mathematics instruction greatly influences
students' learning. To help children develop positive "mathematical
self-esteem", become competent in mathematics, and deal with the
importance of mathematics in today's world, I propose infusing more
creativity into the teaching and learning of the subject.
The key factor in this approach is self-actualization, or achieving
one's potential. It is the fundamental part of Abraham Maslow and
Carl Rogers theories, and makes creativity accessible to everyone.
Just as all people have the potential to be creative, everybody has
the ability to succeed in mathematics. Neither is restricted to a
select group of particularly talented people. Through
self-actualization, anyone can enhance her creativity, and by
increasing one's creativity, a person can improve her "mathematical
self-esteem".
Educators need to take a creative approach to their mathematics
teaching, making use of all of their abilities, taking risks,
experimenting, and trying new things. Mathematics must be presented
as a multi-faceted subject with components and applications for
everyone. Teachers need to foster students' discovery of their own
mathematical abilities in the context of a safe
classroom atmosphere that encourages risk taking. Pupils should be
taught mathematics through their different intelligences to help
them realize the various ways of knowing and understanding the
subject. Using such instructional methods can assist all students in
finding success in mathematics.
The examples in this curriculum development project illustrate such
an approach for teachers and include a unit on division, an
integrated activity based on a children's story, and an annotated
list of children's books containing mathematical concepts. Teachers
and students who make use of their creative abilities in mathematics
may also see benefits in other areas. Once pupils develop their
creative thinking in mathematics and become more confident, they
should be encouraged to transfer those skills and attitudes to other
contexts. Similarly, teachers should apply the creative methods used
in mathematics instruction to the other subjects they teach. Thus,
the positive results of such an approach extend beyond the
mathematical classroom for both teacher and student.
subject codes .TCE.SCI
Edip Yuksel
??
Directed by
subject codes
Cynthia Zafft
Enhancing Thinking Ability in Beginning Nursing Students
1995, September
Directed by
Beginning nursing students find themselves overwhelmed by the vast
amount of new information they must learn, particularly in
fast-paced, associate degree programs. As students step into their
nursing education they often leave behind previous ways of thinking
and knowing because there seems to be no suitable location for it.
In the process, student thinking becomes impoverished and limited. A
focus on thinking -- critical, creative, and metacognitive -- can
provide a bridge for appropriate integration of previous knowledge
with new learning.
The central concern of this thesis is the development of classroom
activities which use common experiences as a base from which to
examine and expand thinking. Emphasis is placed on the ways in which
previous experience provides important information about new
learning. This focus aids in transference of facts into flexible and
usable knowledge. It also creates a place where cultural issues
which impact nursing, such as gender, can bubble to the surface and
be addressed.
Along with specific classroom activities are several design criteria
which focus on thinking and guide educators in the development of
classroom activities. Blocks to critical and creative thinking are
also addressed. And, threaded throughout the work, are a number of
"stories" which describe what it is like to be a beginning student
nurse.
subject codes .MED
David Zwicker
Transfer of Learning: An Inquiry into the Generalizability of
Metacognitive Thinking Strategies
1998, December
Directed by Carol Smith
Transfer of learning, a criteria or outcome of learning, is one of
the most important goals of education, and the ultimate aim of
teaching. However, over 75 years of cognitive psychology research on
transfer produced mostly negative results. I will argue that this
research, often based on static models of learning and memory,
produced negative results because the experiments failed to take
into consideration the dynamic interaction of cognitive, affective,
and social variables in the learning environment. Contemporary
research and theory has re-framed the transfer problem in terms of a
dynamic model of learning which takes into consideration new
understandings of how the mind processes information, how affective
traits of learners influence cognitive processes, and how social
structures and conditioning frame the whole.
This paper will introduce the reader to basic definitions, history,
and terms related to transfer, then discuss the cognitive,
affective, and social dimensions of transfer, examine in detail the
most successful program which has achieved positive transfer
results, the Reciprocal Teaching program, and explain how it has
achieved success. Finally, this work will suggest guidelines for how
future learning designs can promote transfer of learning.
subject codes .LRN