Critical Thinking in Education

Dr. Usha James spent 12 years as a secondary teacher and five years seconded to OISE at the University of Toronto, as an instructor in the Initial Teacher Education Program and Director of the Secondary Program. She has authored textbooks, teaching and learning resources, and curriculum documents with the aim of supporting educators and leaders seeking to refine their practice. Usha has contributed to The Critical Thinking Consortium (TC2) for many years as a resource writer, editor, speaker and facilitator of professional learning. She was appointed Executive Director of TC2 in 2016.  Usha has worked with educators and administrators of kindergarten to post-secondary students, supporting their efforts to improve the quality of their students’ thinking. She has seen how an understanding of how to nurture quality thinking can deepen educator understanding and practice of assessment, instruction, curriculum design, literacy, numeracy,  differentiation and equity. Usha has worked extensively with senior district leaders to help them nurture thinking organizations, supporting their strategic planning and building capacity in leadership teams to think critically about their practice.  

Many post-secondary educators are wondering:

• What might critical thinking look like and sound like in different disciplines?
• How might we intentionally and systematically teach students to be better thinkers?
• How can we frame questions, instructional activities and assessment tasks that engage all learners in high quality thinking?
• How might we accurately assess students’ thinking competencies in light of their unprecedented access to technology?

This keynote will offer a powerful and practical pedagogical framework that can help you nurture the thinking of all learners and support ongoing professional inquiry into the impact of your practice.