Guidelines for improving critical thinking assessment in physical activity and sports sciences among university students
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v52.101302Keywords:
critical thinking, educational assessment, college outcomes assessment, guidelines, university studentsAbstract
Critical Thinking (CT) is recognised as a pivotal competency in 21st-century education, offering benefits across academic, personal, professional, and social spheres. However, evaluating CT in university students poses challenges in terms of conceptualization, design, teaching and evaluation criteria, as well as data analysis. This article introduces evidence-based guidelines to facilitate the promotion and effective assessment of CT in the realm of Physical Activity and Sports Sciences. The guidelines encompass four key phases: construct definition, selection or design of assessment tools, application and data collection, and interpretation of results. Emphasis is placed on the importance of setting clear assessment objectives, selecting or creating appropriate assessment tools, applying systematic evaluation, providing constructive feedback, and monitoring the entire assessment process. Furthermore, the significance of integrating CT assessment as an integral part of the teaching and learning process is underscored. Implementing these guidelines is expected to foster a more efficient and effective CT assessment, thus promoting the development of critical competencies among university students and reinforcing the overall physical activity and sports culture. By adopting these recommendations, it is anticipated that the quality of education will be elevated, and students will be better equipped to confront present and future challenges with confidence and success.
Keywords: Critical thinking, Educational Assessment, College Outcomes Assessment, Guidelines, University students.
References
Akpur, U. (2020). Critical, Reflective, Creative Thinking and Their Reflections on Academic Achievement. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 37(July). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2020.100683
Aktoprak, A., & Hursen, C. (2022). A bibliometric and content analysis of critical thinking in primary education. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 44, 101029. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.TSC.2022.101029
Alejo, L. (2017). El Pensamiento Crítico en estudiantes del grado en Maestro/a en Educación Primaria desde la Didáctica de las Ciencias Sociales. Universidad de Málaga.
Archila, P. A., Molina, J., Danies, G., Truscott De Mejía, A.-M., & Restrepo, · Silvia. (2022). Using the Controversy over Human Race to Introduce Students to the Identification and the Evaluation of Arguments. Science & Education, 31, 861–892. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11191-021-00299-8
Bensley, D. A., & Murtagh, M. P. (2012). Guidelines for a Scientific Approach to Critical Thinking Assessment. Teaching of Psychology, 39(1), 5–16. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628311430642
Betancourth Zambrano, S., Muñoz Moran, K. T., & Rosas Lagos, T. J. (2017). Evaluación del pensamiento crítico en estudiantes de educación superior de la región de Atacama-Chile. Prospectiva, 23, 199. https://doi.org/10.25100/prts.v0i23.4594
Braun, H. I., Shavelson, R. J., Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, O., & Borowiec, K. (2020). Performance Assessment of Critical Thinking: Conceptualization, Design, and Implementation. Frontiers in Education, 5(September), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2020.00156
Brijmohan, A., Khan, G. A., Orpwood, G., Brown, E. S., & Childs, R. A. (2018). Collaboration Between Content Experts and Assessment Specialists: Using a Validity Argument Framework to Develop a College Mathematics Assessment. Canadian Journal of Education/Revue Canadienne de l’ Ducation, 41(2), 584–600. https://www.jstor.org/stable/90025226
Brückner, S., & Pellegrino, J. W. (2016). Integrating the Analysis of Mental Operations Into Multilevel Models to Validate an Assessment of Higher Education Students ’ Competency Sebastian Br uckner. 53(3), 293–312.
Butler, H. A. (2012). Halpern Critical Thinking Assessment Predicts Real-World Outcomes of Critical Thinking. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.2851
Butler, H. A., Pentoney, C., & Bong, M. P. (2017). Predicting real-world outcomes: Critical thinking ability is a better predictor of life decisions than intelligence. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 25, 38–46. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.TSC.2017.06.005
Buur, J. L., Schmidt, P., Smylie, D., Irizarry, K., Crocker, C., Tyler, J., & Barr, M. (2012). Validation of a scenario-based assessment of critical thinking using an externally validated tool. Journal of Veterinary Medical Education, 39(3), 276–282. https://doi.org/10.3138/jvme.0112-009R
Cardozo, J. M. C., Velasco, A. D., Domínguez, S. L., & Reyes, J. A. M. (2019). ¿Qué se investiga en formación docente en educación física y en recreación? Retos, 2041(36), 3–8. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v36i36.51456
Cargas, S., Williams, S., & Rosenberg, M. (2017). An approach to teaching critical thinking across disciplines using performance tasks with a common rubric. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 26(November 2016), 24–37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2017.05.005
Carter, A. G., Creedy, D. K., & Sidebotham, M. (2016). Efficacy of teaching methods used to develop critical thinking in nursing and midwifery undergraduate students: A systematic review of the literature. Nurse Education Today, 40, 209–218. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2016.03.010
Cottrell, S. (2017). Critical Thinking Skills: Developing Effective Analysis and Argument (Vol. 13, Issue 1). Palgrave Macmillan.
Cruz, G., Payan-Carreira, R., & Dominguez, C. (2017). L’éducation de la pensée critique dans l’enseignement supérieur au Portugal: Une révision systématique des pratiques éducatives. Revista Lusofona de Educacao, 38(38), 43–61. https://doi.org/10.24140/issn.1645-7250.rle38.03
D’Alessio, F. A., Avolio, B. E., & Charles, V. (2019). Studying the impact of critical thinking on the academic performance of executive MBA students. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 31, 275–283. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2019.02.002
Danczak, S. M., Thompson, C. D., & Overton, T. L. (2020). Development and validation of an instrument to measure undergraduate chemistry students’ critical thinking skills. Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 21(1), 62–78. https://doi.org/10.1039/c8rp00130h
Davies, M. (2015). A Model of Critical Thinking in Higher Education. In M. B. Paulsen (Ed.), Higher Education: Handbook of Theory and Research Volume 30 (pp. 41–92). Springer Cham. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12835-1
Davies, M., & Barnett, R. (2015). The palgrave handbook of critical thinking in higher education. In M. Davies & R. Barnett (Eds.), The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Thinking in Higher Education. Palgrave Macmillan New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137378057
Dominguez, C., Nascimento, M. M., Payan-Carreira, R., Cruz, G., Silva, H., Lopes, J., Morais, M. da F. A., & Morais, E. (2015). Adding value to the learning process by online peer review activities: towards the elaboration of a methodology to promote critical thinking in future engineers. European Journal of Engineering Education, 40(5), 573–591. https://doi.org/10.1080/03043797.2014.987649
Dwyer, C. P. (2017). Critical thinking: Conceptual perspectives and practical guidelines. Cambridge University Press.
Dwyer, C. P., Hogan, M. J., & Stewart, I. (2014). An integrated critical thinking framework for the 21st century. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 12, 43–52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2013.12.004
Ennis, R. H. (1985). A Logical Basis for Measuring Critical Thinking Skills. Educational Leadership, 43(2), 44–48. https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/80a7/c7d4a98987590751df4b1bd9adf747fd7aaa.pdf
Ennis, R. H. (2018). Critical Thinking Across the Curriculum: A Vision. Topoi, 37(1), 165–184. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11245-016-9401-4
Ericson, J. D. (2022). Mapping the Relationship Between Critical Thinking and Design Thinking. Journal of the Knowledge Economy, 13(1), 406–429. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13132-021-00733-w
Everett, A. C., Anderson, O. S., Wright, M. C., & Fontana, M. (2018). Longitudinal Assessment of Critical Thinking Skills Across a Dental Curriculum. Journal of Dental Education, 82(9), 921–928. https://doi.org/10.21815/jde.018.088
Fadhlullah, A., & Ahmad, N. (2017). Thinking Outside of the Box: Determining Students’ Level of Critical Thinking Skills in Teaching and Learning. Asian Journal of University Education, 13(2), 51–70.
Gillespie, L., & Culpan, I. (2000). Critical thinking: ensuring the “education” aspect is evident in Physical Education. Journal of Physical Education New Zealand, 33(3), 84–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jaci.2012.05.050
González-de Paz, L., Elorduy-Vaquero, M., Virumbrales, M., Real, J., Sureda, X., Borras, A., & Martínez-Sánchez, J. M. (2016). Learning to perform research in the degree of medicine: analysis and evaluation of the student ratings of the final degree dissertation. Anales de Psicología, 32(2), 484. https://doi.org/10.6018/analesps.32.2.212261
Goodsett, M. (2020). Best practices for teaching and assessing critical thinking in information literacy online learning objects. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 46(5), 102163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2020.102163
Gul, M. G., & Akcay, H. (2020). Structuring a new socioscientific issues (SSI) based instruction model: Impacts on pre-service science teachers’ (PSTs) critical thinking skills and dispositions. International Journal of Research in Education and Science, 6(1), 141–159. https://doi.org/10.46328/ijres.v6i1.785
Halpern, D. F. (2014). Thought and Knowledge: An Introduction to Critical Thinking (5th ed.). Psychology Press.
Hammonds, D. S., & Schwarze, M. J. (2019). Toward Oral Assessment in Counselor Education: Practice-Based Measurement of Competence in Pre-Practicum Experiences. Journal of Creativity in Mental Health, 14(4), 532–548. https://doi.org/10.1080/15401383.2019.1632770
Hatcher, K. ., & Possin, D. (2020). Chapter 16 Commentary. In F. Fasko, Daniel; Fair (Ed.), Critical Thinking and Reasoning. Theory, Development, Instruction, and Assessment (pp. 298–322). Brill/ Sense Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412991445.d102
Hathcoat, J. D., Penn, J. D., Barnes, L. L. B., & Comer, J. C. (2016). A Second Dystopia in Education: Validity Issues in Authentic Assessment Practices. Research in Higher Education, 57(7), 892–912. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-016-9407-1
Hernández, J. L. (2004). La Propuesta de Transformación del Título de Licenciado en Ciencias de la Actividad Física y del Deporte en el Marco del Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior: Análisis del Contexto y del Contenido.
Hyytinen, H., & Toom, A. (2019). Developing a performance assessment task in the Finnish higher education context: Conceptual and empirical insights. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 89(3), 551–563. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12283
Indrašienė, V., Jegelevičienė, V., Merfeldaitė, O., Penkauskienė, D., Pivorienė, J., Railienė, A., Sadauskas, J., & Valavičienė, N. (2021). Critical Thinking in Higher Education and Labour Market. Peter Lang International Academic Publishers. https://doi.org/10.3726/18636
Jacob, E., Duffield, C., & Jacob, D. (2017). A protocol for the development of a critical thinking assessment tool for nurses using a Delphi technique. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 73(8), 1982–1988. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.13306
Joshi, S. C., Gupta, K., & Manektala, S. (2022). Misinformation, Public Opinion, and the Role of Critical Thinking. International Journal of Management and Humanities, 8(9), 15–18. https://doi.org/10.35940/ijmh.i1483.058922
Kim, K. J., Meir, E., Pope, D. S., & Wendel, D. (2017). WordBytes: Exploring an Intermediate Constraint Format for Rapid Classification of Student Answers on Constructed Response Assessments. Journal of Educational Data Mining, 9(2), 45–71.
Ku, K. Y. L., Lee, V. S. L., & Ellis, J. W. (2017). Using artwork as problem context in generic critical thinking instruction: A strategy for thoughts. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 25, 53–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.TSC.2017.07.001
Liu, J., McBride, R. E., Xiang, P., & Scarmardo-Rhodes, M. (2018). Physical Education Pre-service Teachers’ Understanding, Application, and Development of Critical Thinking. Quest, 70(1), 12–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/00336297.2017.1330218
Liu, O. L., Frankel, L., & Roohr, K. C. (2014). Assessing Critical Thinking in Higher Education: Current State and Directions for Next-Generation Assessment. https://doi.org/10.1002/ets2.12009
Liu, O. L., Mao, L., Zhao, T., Yang, Y., Xu, J., & Wang, Z. (2016). Pilot Testing the Chinese Version of the ETS ® Proficiency Profile Critical Thinking Test . ETS Research Report Series, 2016(2), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1002/ets2.12123
Liu, O. L., Shaw, A., Gu, L., Li, G., Hu, S., Yu, N., Ma, L., Xu, C., Guo, F., Su, Q., Kardanovaj, E., Chirikov, I., Shi, J., Shi, Z., Wang, H., & Loyalka, P. (2018). Assessing college critical thinking: preliminary results from the Chinese HEIghten® Critical Thinking assessment. Higher Education Research and Development, 37(5), 999–1014. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2018.1467381
Maravé-Vivas, M., Salvador-Garcia, C., Gil-Gómez, J., Valverde-Esteve, T., & Martín-Moya, R. (2022). How Can Service-Learning Shape the Political Perspectives of Pre-Service Teachers? A Program in the Field of Physical Education. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(15). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19159175
McBride, R. E. (1991). Critical Thinking—An Overview with Implications for Physical Education. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 11(2), 112–125. https://doi.org/10.1123/jtpe.11.2.112
McComas, M. J., Wright, R. A., Mann, N. K., Cooper, M. D., & Jacks, M. E. (2013). M-OSCE as a Method to Measure Dental Hygiene Students’ Critical Thinking: A Pilot Study. Journal of Dental Education, 77(4), 485–493. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.0022-0337.2013.77.4.tb05494.x
Moore, T. (2013). Critical thinking: Seven definitions in search of a concept. Studies in Higher Education, 38(4), 506–522. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2011.586995
Morais, F., Silva, H., Cruz, G., Pedrosa, D., Payan-Carreira, R., Dominguez, C., & Nascimento, M. M. (2019). Perceptions of portuguese university teachers about critical thinking educational practices. Communications in Computer and Information Science, 993, 223–239. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20954-4_17
Mueller, J. F., Taylor, H. K., Brakke, K., Drysdale, M., Kelly, K., Levine, G. M., & Ronquillo-Adachi, J. (2020). Assessment of Scientific Inquiry and Critical Thinking: Measuring APA Goal 2 Student Learning Outcomes. Teaching of Psychology, 47(4), 274–284. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628320945114
Negret, J. (2016). Formación ciudadana, cultura física y deporte: estrategia para una formación de calidad. Revista Cubana de Educación Superior, 2016(1), 4–17.
O’Leary, M., Reynolds, K., Ling, G., Liu, O. L., Belton, S., O’Reilly, N., & McKenna, J. (2020). Assessing Critical Thining in Higher Education: Validity Evidence for the Use of the HEIghten Critical Thinking in Ireland. Journal of Higher Education Theory and Practice, 20(12), 115–130. https://doi.org/10.33423/jhetp.v20i12.3783
Ossa-Cornejo, C., Palma-Luengo, M., Martín, N. L. S., & Díaz-Larenas, C. (2018). Evaluación del pensamiento crítico y científico en estudiantes de pedagogía de una universidad chilena. Revista Electronica Educare, 22(2), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.15359/ree.22-2.12
Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2019). A Guide For Educators to Critical Thinking Competency Standards: Standards, Principles, Performance Indicators, and Outcomes With a Critical Thinking Master Rubric. The Foundation for Critical Thinking. www.criticalthinking.org
Pérez-Tejero, J., Casas-Carmona, M., & Chavez Hernandez, S. F. (2023). Competencias laborales en el mercado deportivo en España: la opinión de los empleadores. Retos, 50, 799–807. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v50.99425
Pnevmatikos, D., Christodoulou, P., & Georgiadou, T. (2019). Promoting critical thinking in higher education through the values and knowledge education (VaKE) method. Studies in Higher Education, 44(5), 892–901. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2019.1586340
Poblete-Valderrama, F., Garrido-méndez, A., Castillo, C. M., Cáceres, R. C., Toro-, A., Aburto, J. C., Aguilar, L. I., Cenzano-castillo, L., Rodríguez, K. H., & Rivera, C. F. (2023). Formación Inicial Docente en Educación Física, paradigmas de la formación desde la percepción del formador de formadores, lineamientos ministeriales y mallas curriculares: estudio de caso. Retos: Nuevas Tendencias En Educación Física, Deporte y Recreación, 49, 552–563.
Porter, T., Baldwin, C. R., Warren, M. T., Murray, E. D., Cotton Bronk, K., Forgeard, M. J. C., Snow, N. E., & Jayawickreme, E. (2021). Clarifying the Content of Intellectual Humility: A Systematic Review and Integrative Framework. Journal of Personality Assessment. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2021.1975725
Prat-Sala, M., & van Duuren, M. (2022). Critical Thinking Performance Increases in Psychology Undergraduates Measured Using a Workplace-Recognized Test. Teaching of Psychology, 49(2), 153–163. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628320957981
Prieto, G., & Delgado, A. R. (2010). Fiabilidad y Validez. Papeles Del Psicólogo, 3(1), 67–74. https://www.redalyc.org/pdf/778/77812441007.pdf
Puig, B., Blanco-Anaya, P., Bargiela, I. M., & Crujeiras-Pérez, B. (2019). A systematic review on critical thinking intervention studies in higher education across professional fields. Studies in Higher Education, 44(5), 860–869. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2019.1586333
Re, M. R., Amenduni, F., De Medio, C., & Valente, M. (2019). How to use assessment data collected through writing activities to identify participants’ critical thinking levels. Journal of E-Learning and Knowledge Society, 15(3), 117–132. https://doi.org/10.20368/1971-8829/1135051
Repo, S., Lehtinen, T., Rusanen, E., & Hyytinen, H. (2017). Prior education of Open University students contributes to their capability in critical thinking. Journal of Adult and Continuing Education, 23(1), 61–77. https://doi.org/10.1177/1477971417693416
Reynders, G., Lantz, L., Ruder, S. M., Stanford, C. L., & Cole, R. S. (2020). Rubrics to assess critical thinking and information processing in undergraduate STEM courses. International Journal of STEM Education, 7(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-020-00208-5
Rodrigues, A., Soares, P., & Da Silva, L. (2018). Translation, adaptation, and validation of the Halpern Critical Thinking Assessment to Portugal: Effect of disciplinary area and academic level on critical thinking. Anales de Psicología, 34(2), 292. https://doi.org/10.6018/analesps.34.2.272401
Santos, L. F., Gyenes, A., Fujisaki, S., & Gay, S. (2021). Critical Thinking. viii(1).
Schendel, R., & Tolmie, A. (2017). Beyond translation: adapting a performance-task-based assessment of critical thinking ability for use in Rwanda. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 42(5), 673–689. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2016.1177484
Serrano, J. L., Carrera, X., Brescó, E., & Suárez-Guerrero, C. (2019). Tratamiento crítico de la información de estudiantes universitarios desde los entornos personales de aprendizaje. Educação e Pesquisa, 45, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1590/s1678-4634201945193355
Simper, N. (2018). Rubric authoring tool supporting cognitive skills assessment across an institution. Teaching and Learning Inquiry, 6(1), 10–24. https://doi.org/10.20343/teachlearninqu.6.1.3
Smith, G. F. (2014). Assessing Business Student Thinking Skills. https://doi.org/10.1177/1052562913489028
Sokolnicky, A. C. (2019). On loaded language. CURRENTS. A Journal of Young English Philology Thought and Review, 5, 9–25.
Southworth, J. (2022). Bridging critical thinking and transformative learning: The role of perspective-taking. Theory and Research in Education, 20(1), 44–63. https://doi.org/10.1177/14778785221090853
Su, H. F. H., Ricci, F. A., & Mnatsakanian, M. (2016). Mathematical teaching strategies: Pathways to critical thinking and metacognition. International Journal of Research in Education and Science, 2(1), 190–200. https://doi.org/10.21890/ijres.57796
Thomas, K., & Lok, B. (2015). Teaching Critical Thinking: An Operational Framework. In M. Davies & R. Barnett (Eds.), The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Thinking in Higher Education. Palgrave Macmillan.
Thornhill-Miller, B., Camarda, A., Mercier, M., Burkhardt, J. M., Morisseau, T., Bourgeois-Bougrine, S., Vinchon, F., El Hayek, S., Augereau-Landais, M., Mourey, F., Feybesse, C., Sundquist, D., & Lubart, T. (2023). Creativity, Critical Thinking, Communication, and Collaboration: Assessment, Certification, and Promotion of 21st Century Skills for the Future of Work and Education. Journal of Intelligence, 11(3). https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence11030054
Tittle, P. (2011). Critical thinking: An appeal to reason. Routledge.
Velez, G., & Power, S. A. (2020). Teaching students how to think, not what to think: Pedagogy and political psychology. Journal of Social and Political Psychology, 8(1), 388–403. https://doi.org/10.5964/jspp.v8i1.1284
Zlatkin-Troitschanskaia, O., Shavelson, R. J., Schmidt, S., & Beck, K. (2019). On the complementarity of holistic and analytic approaches to performance assessment scoring. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 89(3), 468–484. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12286
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Retos
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and ensure the magazine the right to be the first publication of the work as licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of authorship of the work and the initial publication in this magazine.
- Authors can establish separate additional agreements for non-exclusive distribution of the version of the work published in the journal (eg, to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Is allowed and authors are encouraged to disseminate their work electronically (eg, in institutional repositories or on their own website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as to a subpoena more Early and more of published work (See The Effect of Open Access) (in English).
This journal provides immediate open access to its content (BOAI, http://legacy.earlham.edu/~peters/fos/boaifaq.htm#openaccess) on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. The authors may download the papers from the journal website, or will be provided with the PDF version of the article via e-mail.
