Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Ramadan 17, 1445 H
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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

‘Critical thinking is essential to become successful, innovative’

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MUSCAT: The Centre of Excellence in Teaching and Learning at Sultan Qaboos University organised workshops on “Critical thinking skills” and “Alternative teaching methods” for faculty members from different colleges of the university. The workshops were delivered by Nikos J Mourtos, Professor and Chair, Aerospace Engineering, at San Jose State University, California. Prof Mourtos said that critical thinking skills are essential for teachers and learners regardless of the area in which they specialise.


“Whether you are a nurse, lawyer or plumber, critical thinking skills are essential in order to become successful and innovative in your profession. In order to be a critical thinker, a person has to put consistent and conscious effort to be rational and reasonable in his/her thought process. A person has to be self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored in order to learn new things in life and excel in his profession or field of study.”


During the workshop, Prof Mourtos, engaged SQU faculty members in how to effectively design and deliver courses and prepare assignments so that the students can inculcate critical thinking skills during the process of learning. “The traditional learning methods mostly involve pumping a lot of content to the minds of the students through lecturing without paying enough attention to developing real life skills among students.”


On the third day, Prof Mourtos, spoke about “Alternative teaching methods” as the conventional teaching method of lecturing is not effective in developing real-life skills in students. He gave insights into developing problem solving, communication and designing skills in learners and other effective teaching methods. According to Prof Mourtos, starting lessons with problems or problem-based learning is more effective than starting from theories. “Teachers should focus on the real learning process and the outcomes of the learning process rather than simply covering the content or syllabus.


Bushra Salim al Sabei, a researcher who is working on the project “Critical thinking skills for 21st century”, said that the workshop was quite effective in developing critical thinking and analytical skills. “By attending this workshop, I could get an idea of various problems that teachers face with regard to effective teaching initiatives”, she said.


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