The use of the Kortland’s Model of Decision-make procedure for promoting critical thinking in chemistry in higher education

Abstract

The Research has shown the contributions of different strategies and educational resources to promote critical thinking. In this regard, the present study aimed to investigate the contributions of using a tool called the Kortland Decision-Making procedure (MK) to promote critical thinking during the resolution of a case study in the course "Analytical Experimental Chemistry II" within a pre-service chemistry teacher education program. To do this, two versions (initial and final) of this tool were analyzed, correlating the stages of MK development with the critical thinking abilities expressed by the students through their written resolution. The results indicate that students demonstrated various critical thinking abilities and were highly engaged in solving the proposed case. However, during the research, it was observed that certain critical thinking abilities predominated while others did not manifest, highlighting the need for further research to investigate the contributions of this tool and methodology to promote critical thinking as well as other skills among students.