Definition
Mainstream educational psychologists view critical thinking (CT) as the strategic use of a set of reasoning skills for developing a form of reflective thinking that ultimately optimizes itself, including a commitment to using its outcomes as a basis for decision-making and problem solving. In such descriptions, CT is established as a general methodological standard for making judgments and decisions. Accordingly, some authors also include a sense for fairness and the assessment of practical consequences of decisions as characteristics (e.g., Paul and Elder 2001). This conception assumes rational, autonomous subjects who share a common frame of reference for representation of facts and ideas, for their communication, as well as for appropriate (morally “good”) action. Important is the difference as to what extent a critical examination of the criteria for CT is included in the definition: If education for CT is conceptualized as instilling a belief in a more or less fixed...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Appelbaum P, Davila E (2009) Math education and social justice: gatekeepers, politics and teacher agency. In: Ernest P, Greer B, Sriraman B (eds) Critical issues in mathematics education. Information Age, Charlotte, pp 375–394
Applebaum M, Leikin R (2007) Looking back at the beginning: critical thinking in solving unrealistic problems. Mont Math Enthus 4(2):258–265
Bacon F (1605) Of the proficience and advancement of learning, divine and human. Second Book (transcribed from the 1893 Cassell & Company edition by David Price. Available at: http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext04/adlr10h.htm
Common Core State Standards Initiative (2010) Mathematics standards. http://www.corestandards.org/Math. Accessed 20 July 2013
Ernest P (2010) The scope and limits of critical mathematics education. In: Alrø H, Ravn O, Valero P (eds) Critical mathematics education: past, present and future. Sense Publishers, Rotterdam, pp 65–87
Fawcett HP (1938) The nature of proof. Bureau of Publications, Columbia/New York City. University (Re-printed by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics in 1995)
Fenner P (1994) Spiritual inquiry in Buddhism. ReVision 17(2):13–24
Fish M, Persaud A (2012) (Re)presenting critical mathematical thinking through sociopolitical narratives as mathematics texts. In: Hickman H, Porfilio BJ (eds) The new politics of the textbook. Sense Publishers, Rotterdam, pp 89–110
Garfield JL (1990) Epoche and śūnyatā: skepticism east and west. Philos East West 40(3):285–307
Jablonka E (1997) What makes a model effective and useful (or not)? In: Blum W, Huntley I, Houston SK, Neill N (eds) Teaching and learning mathematical modelling: innovation, investigation and applications. Albion Publishing, Chichester, pp 39–50
Keitel C, Kotzmann E, Skovsmose O (1993) Beyond the tunnel vision: analyzing the relationship between mathematics, society and technology. In: Keitel C, Ruthven K (eds) Learning from computers: mathematics education and technology. Springer, New York, pp 243–279
Legrand M (2001) Scientific debate in mathematics courses. In: Holton D (ed) The teaching and learning of mathematics at university level: an ICMI study. Kluwer, Dordrect, pp 127–137
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) (1989) Curriculum and evaluation standards for school mathematics. National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), Reston
O’Daffer PG, Thomquist B (1993) Critical thinking, mathematical reasoning, and proof. In: Wilson PS (ed) Research ideas for the classroom: high school mathematics. MacMillan/National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, New York, pp 31–40
Paul R, Elder L (2001) The miniature guide to critical thinking concepts and tools. Foundation for Critical Thinking Press, Dillon Beach
Pimm D (1990) Mathematical versus political awareness: some political dangers inherent in the teaching of mathematics. In: Noss R, Brown A, Dowling P, Drake P, Harris M, Hoyles C et al (eds) Political dimensions of mathematics education: action and critique. Institute of Education, University of London, London
Skovsmose O (1989) Models and reflective knowledge. Zentralblatt für Didaktik der Mathematik 89(1):3–8
Stallman J (2003) John Dewey’s new humanism and liberal education for the 21st century. Educ Cult 20(2):18–22
Steiner H-G (1988) Theory of mathematics education and implications for scholarship. In: Steiner H-G, Vermandel A (eds) Foundations and methodology of the discipline mathematics education, didactics of mathematics. In: Proceedings of the second tme conference, Bielefeld-Antwerpen, pp 5–20
Straehler-Pohl H, Bohlmann N, Pais A (eds) (2017) The disorder of mathematics education: challenging the socio-political dimensions of research. Springer, Berlin
Walkerdine V (1988) The mastery of reason: cognitive development and the production of rationality. Routledge, London
Walshaw M (2003) Democratic education under scrutiny: connections between mathematics education and feminist political discourses. Philos Math Educ J 17. http://people.exeter.ac.uk/PErnest/pome17/contents.htm
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Section Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature
About this entry
Cite this entry
Jablonka, E. (2018). Critical Thinking in Mathematics Education. In: Lerman, S. (eds) Encyclopedia of Mathematics Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77487-9_35-4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77487-9_35-4
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-77487-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-77487-9
eBook Packages: Springer Reference EducationReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Education