O pensar na educação : uma discussão sobre as implicações da psicologia cognitiva para o exercício do pensamento crítico

Abstract

Critical thinking is regarded as one of the most important aims of education. In spite of that, thinking critically is a difficult task given that human beings have several mental mechanisms that hamper the appropriate evaluation of reasons. The objective of this research is to investigate the implications of contemporary ideas about reasoning and decision-making for critical thinking and its development in educational institutions. A theoretical study was carried out based on the research of cognitive psychologists who work with the dual-process system of reasoning – and the cognitive biases that are normally associated with it – and philosophers of education whose writings are dedicated to critical thinking. Empirical studies in cognitive psychology converge to the conclusion that fast and intuitive processes generally predominate over rational deliberation, and these fast processes are related to several cognitive biases, mental tendencies that create the feeling that people are thinking critically when they may, in fact, be merely justifying ideas they previously embraced or conclusions that they prefer. I argue that it is possible to use some strategies and principles of inquiry – such as defeasibility, concern for truth, objectivity, and metacognitive strategies – to reduce the impact of biases and maximize the possibilities of thinking critically. These strategies and principles, however, tend to be incorporated more efficiently when people are in environments of social learning such as educational institutions, in which they can exchange reasons, reflect upon their own processes of thinking and refine them with the help of colleagues and teachers. Schools and universities, therefore, may use the knowledge about the impact of cognitive biases on human reasoning to promote learning situations that help students and educators to manage their own mental inclinations and, as a result, to be better critical thinkers.