How to Improve your Critical Thinking & Reflective Skills

Kathleen McMillan and Jonathan Weyers work within the University of Dundee’s Learning Centre and Academic Affairs Office respectively and have each been teaching for over 25 years and now specialize in supporting academic skills across both the arts and sciences.

• Introduction1. Key concepts and processes - how thinking, reflection and creativity involve important skillsKey approaches to thinking2. Critical thinking - how to develop a logical approach to analysis and problem-solving3. Reflective thinking - how to evaluate your feelings in academic contexts4. Creative thinking - how to generate innovative and original ideasCritical thinking in practice5. Arriving at a viewpoint - how to sift fact and opinion to arrive at a position on a topic6. Supporting and opposing an argument - how to express your point of view through discussion and debate7. Interpreting and manipulating data - how to approach graphs, tables, formulae and basic statistics8. Decision-making and work-planning - how to make choices, plan ahead and prioritise9. Group effort and collaboration - how to enhance your contribution to teamworkEvaluating the ideas of others10.   Evaluating information sources - how to filter and select reliable material11.   Effective academic reading - how to read efficiently and with understanding12.   Note-making from texts - how to create effective notes for later reference13.   Plagiarism and copyright infringement - how to avoid being accused of 'stealing' the ideas and work of others 14.   Citing and listing references  - how to refer appropriately to the work of othersPutting your thinking into words15.   Tackling a writing assignment - how to respond to the specified task16.   Academic writing style - how to adopt appropriate language conventions17.   General writing structures – how to select and shape your content appropriately18.   Writing about reflection - how to structure and report your thoughts19.   Editing and presenting your assignment - how to review your own work and follow academic conventionsForward thinking20.   Exploiting feedback - how to learn from what lecturers think of your work21.   Preparing for employment- how to transfer your thinking skills to a career