Asee peer logo

Developing Critical Thinking Skills in the Context of Causal Analysis

Download Paper |

Conference

2024 ASEE North East Section

Location

Fairfield, Connecticut

Publication Date

April 19, 2024

Start Date

April 19, 2024

End Date

April 20, 2024

Page Count

9

DOI

10.18260/1-2--45759

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/45759

Download Count

30

Request a correction

Paper Authors

biography

Jessica Dawn Ventura Endicott College Orcid 16x16 orcid.org/0000-0002-0211-6117

visit author page

Jessica Ventura, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Engineering department at Endicott College in Massachusetts.

visit author page

author page

Rob De La Espriella Endicott College

Download Paper |

Abstract

Critical thinking is a complex set of skills and dispositions that cover both analytical and creative thought processes which are crucial for success in the workplace. Educators can help students develop these skills and dispositions through explicit explanation and implicit practice within authentic case studies. BlueDragon IPS is an innovative and modern problem-solving system that aids professionals in applying critical thinking skills to solve complex human centered problems within organizations. A one-credit skills course was developed to guide undergraduate students through the BD1 BlueDragon Analyst training program, with the goals of teaching them the professional tool and of helping them further develop critical thinking skills. The first offering of the course, with 12 students from bioengineering, engineering, computer science, and architecture demonstrated that BD1 is not only accessible to trainees at that level, but that it is an effective way for students to develop and practice critical thinking in the context of causal analysis. Assessment from both student work and a post-course questionnaire showed progress in the students’ ability to apply critical thinking to organize information, generate good questions and lines of inquiry, and find deep-seated causes. This pilot course is translatable to any college or university due to the ease of access of the BlueDragon online material.

Ventura, J. D., & De La Espriella, R. (2024, April), Developing Critical Thinking Skills in the Context of Causal Analysis Paper presented at 2024 ASEE North East Section, Fairfield, Connecticut. 10.18260/1-2--45759

ASEE holds the copyright on this document. It may be read by the public free of charge. Authors may archive their work on personal websites or in institutional repositories with the following citation: © 2024 American Society for Engineering Education. Other scholars may excerpt or quote from these materials with the same citation. When excerpting or quoting from Conference Proceedings, authors should, in addition to noting the ASEE copyright, list all the original authors and their institutions and name the host city of the conference. - Last updated April 1, 2015