Abstract
Critical-thinking skills (CTS) are among the essential skills required in the contemporary world of work. However, building CTS among technical college students in Nigeria is making little impact on students as current teaching uses is “traditional” rote learning methods which do not foster the building of skills. Therefore, a new teaching method is required that emphasizes learning, understanding, and measuring skills rather than rote learning. Educators unanimously agree that, CTS can be taught using different teaching methods including concept mapping, critical questioning workshops, and systematic literature reviews and to problem based learning (PBL). PBL is a student-centered, task-based instructional method in which the teacher serves as a facilitator. The paper adapted a library based work; the data were collected using textbooks, journals articles and internet search. The literatures reveal that; PBL is the best approach to build CTS, integrating it into all areas of learnings and to the student’s entire life. In PBL, students demonstrate an enhanced ability to use CTS in their activities. Against this backdrop, the paper aim to outline the impact of PBL in building CTS among the technical colleges students. The paper recommends that, for the purpose of filling the CTS gap, technical colleges should equip their students with the required skills through the application of a superior teaching method such as PBL. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2016.v7n3p356
Highlights
Technical colleges in Nigeria were purposely opened to train people to acquired and mastered knowledge and skills for their formal daily use (Edu, Ayang, & Idaka, 2012) and to meet country’s employment needs of middle and medium manpower, but it is noted that the preparation of workers for today’s industries in Nigeria is ineffective leading to high unemployment rate of technical vocational education and training (TVET) graduates together with short fall of human resources (Udofia, Ekpo, Nsa, & Akpan, 2012; Uwaifo, 2009).The world is rapidly changing and the growth of different occupations and enormous demands for high-skilled workers that make a four-year degree less valuable for gaining employment
Technical colleges in Nigeria were purposely opened to train people to acquired and mastered knowledge and skills for their formal daily use (Edu, Ayang, & Idaka, 2012) and to meet country’s employment needs of middle and medium manpower, but it is noted that the preparation of workers for today’s industries in Nigeria is ineffective leading to high unemployment rate of TVET graduates together with short fall of human resources (Udofia, Ekpo, Nsa, & Akpan, 2012; Uwaifo, 2009)
Brodie & Irving, 2007; Celuch & Slama, 1999; Gürses, AçÕkyÕldÕz, Do÷ar, & Sözbilir, 2007; Kumar & Natarajan, 2007; Masek & Yamin, 2012; Saraoglu, Yobaccio, & Louton, 2000; Snyder & Snyder, 2008), and all the results demonstrate were in favour of effectiveness problem based learning (PBL) in Critical-thinking skills (CTS) building
Summary
Technical colleges in Nigeria were purposely opened to train people to acquired and mastered knowledge and skills for their formal daily use (Edu, Ayang, & Idaka, 2012) and to meet country’s employment needs of middle and medium manpower, but it is noted that the preparation of workers for today’s industries in Nigeria is ineffective leading to high unemployment rate of TVET graduates together with short fall of human resources (Udofia, Ekpo, Nsa, & Akpan, 2012; Uwaifo, 2009). Employers today are focused on how to recruit better workers who possess technical (hard) skills, and have critical thinking, problem solving, decision making and good reasoning skills among others (Audu, Kamin, Musta’amal, Saud, & Hamid, 2014) To overcome these challenges, Miri et al (2007); and Zoller et al (2000) suggested that, CTS should be integrated into the students’ training in order to serve as a catalyst toward the analysis of unfamiliar. The literature reviewed for this article, it reveals that good PBL approaches requires effort in three domains: planning (identifying course content and defining measurable learning objectives for it); instruction (selecting and implementing the methods that will be used to deliver the specified content and facilitate learner achievement of the objectives); and assessment and evaluation (selecting and implementing the methods that will be used to determine whether and how well the objectives have been achieved and interpreting the results) (Felder & Brent, 2003).
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