Critical thinking perspectives of undergraduate students: How they think about climate change impacts on global food security and hunger

Nicole Stedman,Amy Brown

doi:10.37433/aad.v1i1.29

Abstract

Today’s learners need support in not only developing capacity for a global mindset, but also for thinking critically about the world. Employers are seeking graduates who can enter the workforce prepared to work within agriculture with the ability to understand its complexities. Higher education institutions have been called upon to provide this to students and faculty are often charged with this responsibility. However, faculty are often unprepared to provide this level of instruction and need support in order to foster this in the classroom. Student participants in this study were exposed to scenarios, which are a tool used to provide multiple perspectives and outcomes to real-life scenarios. Faculty used the scenarios to complement course instruction with respect to the impacts of climate change on food security and hunger. Using Facione’s (1990) framework for critical thinking skill, statements submitted by students both prior to the scenario and post were analyzed. It was found that while students demonstrated critical thinking in both the pre and post, the post statements were much richer, in-depth, and thoughtful in how critical thinking was demonstrated. This showed that faculty support, combined with innovative teaching methods, like scenarios, will encourage students’ building of capacity for critical thinking.

Highlights

Introduction and Problem StatementThe world is rapidly changing and “employers look to colleges and universities to produce employment-ready graduates” to solve tomorrow’s problems (National Research Council, 2009, p. 18)
According to the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U, 2007), “it is clear that the United States-and individual Americans-will be challenged to engage in unprecedented ways with the global community, collaboratively and competitively” (p. 2)
Faculty instructors were recruited to participate in an academy on critical thinking in efforts to promote capacity building of critical thinking of undergraduate students in colleges of agriculture across the southeastern United States

Summary

Introduction

Introduction and Problem StatementThe world is rapidly changing and “employers look to colleges and universities to produce employment-ready graduates” to solve tomorrow’s problems (National Research Council, 2009, p. 18). The world is rapidly changing and “employers look to colleges and universities to produce employment-ready graduates” to solve tomorrow’s problems In order to solve complex problems of a global nature, students must be able to think critically about them. According to the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U, 2007), “it is clear that the United States-and individual Americans-will be challenged to engage in unprecedented ways with the global community, collaboratively and competitively” Internationalization of curriculum is becoming a priority for most universities This problem was noted a decade ago, The National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges (NASULGC, 2004) concluded the internationalization of curriculum “helps [students] to develop the global critical thinking essential to contributing as citizens of the world and competing in the international marketplace” This problem was noted a decade ago, The National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges (NASULGC, 2004) concluded the internationalization of curriculum “helps [students] to develop the global critical thinking essential to contributing as citizens of the world and competing in the international marketplace” (p. viii)

Objectives

Methods

Results