RTC's Course Encouraging Skillful, Critical and Creative Thinking embodies the FOUR C's of 21st Century Learning: Critical Thinking, Creative Thinking, Communication, and Collaboration

1. Richard Solomon
Neil Davidson
PPT presentation by
James Gilbert

2.  Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
 Creativity and Innovation
 Communication
 Collaboration

3.  Reason effectively: inductive, deductive.
 Use systems thinking: analyze how parts of a
whole interact to produce over-all outcomes.
 Make judgments and decisions: synthesize,
interpret, make connections, draw conclusions.
 Solve problems: in both innovative and
conventional ways.

4.  Thinking creatively: elaborate, refine, analyze
and evaluate ones own ideas; create new and
worthwhile ideas.
 Work creatively with others: incorporate group
input and feedback; view failure as an
opportunity to learn.
 Implement innovations: act on creative ideas to
make them tangible and useful.

5.  Articulate thoughts and ideas effectively.
 Listen effectively.
 Use communications to inform, instruct,
motivate and persuade.
 Communicate effectively in diverse
environments.
 Use multiple media and technologies to
communicate.

6.  Demonstrate ability to work effectively and
respectfully with diverse teams.
 Exercise flexibility and willingness to be
helpful – making compromises – to accomplish
a common goal.
 Assume shared responsibility for collaborative
work and value all contributions.

9. Creating the
Thoughtful and
Respectful
Classroom

12.  Devote instructional time to class and
community
 Teach students the requisite social or
relationship skills
 Empower your classroom community to
develop common values, shared goals and
expectations
 Enable your students to develop a shared
responsibility for each member of the
classroom community

13.  Empower your classroom community to co-
determine the learning task or project
 Encourage positive interdependence
 Encourage a strong sense of class or
community loyalty
 Set aside specific time to reflect on how well
the class or community is addressing its
academic objectives and relational needs.

14. • Cognitive structures (basic neurological
connections students need for thinking)
• Thinking skills and processes
• Five mind/brain learning principles for
thinking

15. 1. Each brain learns in a
unique way
2. The brain requires
social interaction
3. The brain is influenced
by emotions
4. The brain seeks
patterns and searches
for meaning
5. The brain is a complex
organ that can
function on many
levels and in many
ways simultaneously

16. Applying the thinking skills
they have acquired to the
course content or curriculum

17. In this section of the course we will
share different cooperative learning
procedures for thinking in pairs
(dyads), triads, quads and other group
configurations.

18. Sometimes termed metacognition, this
theme addresses the question:
How do we empower our students to
reflect on
• their own thoughts,
• their intrapersonal data, and
• the internal processes they use to
create meaning.

19. In this theme we focus on learning activities
designed to enable students to think creatively
and critically on the larger issues that we
confront in the st century such as
• war and peace
• global warming
• environmental protection
• hunger and poverty
• ethics
• quality education, and other important topics

20. Richard Solomon
Neil Davidson
PPT presentation by
James Gilbert