Whether you’re at work or at home, everyone has and use a
unique set of thinking standards to accomplish their goals. Thinking standards
can be critical or non-critical. Critical thinking standards are what helps us
determine whether we’re going through questions effectively (Elder &
Paul, 2010) .
Non-critical on the other hand are not in-depth and act as a supplement to our
ways of thinking (Nosich, 2012) .
Personally, I have more critical thinking standards than
non-critical. Some of my big ones include precision, organization and
understanding the feelings of others (empathy). Though I believe I naturally acquired
most of these standards (especially the non-critical ones), there was a time
where it really became a part of me. During my 6th year in elementary
school, my English teacher made every student in his class to write and submit
an essay to an official island-wide contest. Writing was never my thing and I
would often jump straight to the main point without having any coordinated way
of explaining them. The teacher was pretty strict (and mean in general) and
would often yell things such as “how was this your memorable moment?” or “you
need to start all over because this paper is disorganized and confusing”
Eventually after being scolded numerous times, I did what I was told and
submitted my essay. Some time passed and I unexpectedly won first place. When being
called up the stage, I often thought how adding details and being organized can
make a huge difference in your writing. Ever since, being specific and
organized became an everyday habit.
Though my early habits were more for writing, I realized over
time that people must be organized and precise to solve or make anything work.
This is also critical in today’s leadership. We need people to look up to you
when leading something, and this requires trust. Common traits people look into
a leader include organizational skills, being knowledgeable on what you’re
trying to lead, as well as having a good connection with your people (Alliance, 2016) . Today, I often use
precision and organizational skills when advising my students. As an example, I
often have students who come into my office because they can’t enroll in a
course. I’ll immediately recognize that the student has a hold that blocks the
student from enrolling themselves, however I need to consider the different types of holds. As I look into the
student’s records I’m not only getting more information, but is also sorting
out the information to determine if I can override the hold or not. Lastly
though showing empathy is not a critical thinking standard, it supplements both
the student and I while resolving the issue. Though it is rare to have pretty
angry students, I need their full cooperation to seek more information and
solve their problem. I’m also very passionate with what I do and I express how
much I really want to help the student. Most time they will calm down and it
helps me get through the problem.
Sources:
Alliance, U. (2016). What Makes an Effective
Leader. Retrieved from University of Notre Dame:
http://www.notredameonline.com/resources/leadership-and-management/what-makes-an-effective-leader/#.VwDV5KQrKM8
Elder, L., & Paul, R. (2010, October). The
Critical Thinking Community. Retrieved from Universal Intellectual
Standards:
http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/universal-intellectual-standards/527
Nosich, G. (2012). Learning To Think Things
Through: A Guide To Critical Thinking Across The Curriculum. Boston:
Pearson Education.
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