Promoting critical thinking through mathematics and science teacher education: the case of argumentation and graphs interpretation about climate change

Abstract

ABSTRACT A shift from teaching to learn to learning to think is necessary to promote critical thinkers. Since teachers tend to replicate the educational models they have experienced as students, new references are needed. In order to address these concerns, we present an interdisciplinary intervention in initial teacher education and analyse its impact on teachers’ critical thinking and awareness of the importance to promote it. The intervention is based on the potential of socio-scientific issues to support argumentation and provide meaningful contexts for graph interpretation. The content analysis of participants’ responses before and after inquiring about climate change shows an increase in the level of argumentation and the capacity to read beyond data, providing evidence of the development of critical thinking. In addition, pre-service teachers explicitly refer to their future responsibility in preparing students to face current challenges, demonstrating awareness of the need to promote critical thinking.