As teachers, we may be aware that we need or want to promote critical thinking on the part of our students, but may not know exactly how to go about it. The following list of suggestions may be helpful:

1. Courses should be designed so that students acquire knowledge and construct their own understanding of the course topic, rather than being "fed" the material by the teacher.
2. Courses should be designed so that students acquire knowledge and construct their own understanding of the course topic, rather than being "fed" the material by the teacher.
3. Teachers should model critical thinking by encouraging students to think like a "____" ( historian, mathematician, chemist, etc.) and by stimulating them to analyze, interpret, make inferences, and draw their own conclusions.
4. Teaching strategies that make use of cooperative learning activities are beneficial.
5. Assess the background knowledge and any preconceptions or misconceptions of the students and then use that as a starting point.
6. Limit formal lecture to no more than 20% of total class time, thereby allowing students to assimilate the material that has been presented and to make sense of what has been discussed.
7. Teach students how to read texts and other materials for themselves, so that they are forced to analyze, interpret, and contextualize the material for themselves.
8. Do not try to cover more than 50 fundamental concepts in one course. Instead, focus on the most important concepts and applications of there concepts.
9. Draw analogies between concepts and real world applications.
10. Think out loud with your students… model the mental processes associated with the subject that you are teaching.
11. Ask probing questions that prompt students to think.
12. Call on students who are usually reticent in class.
13. Use lots of examples in class so that students can make connections between abstract ideas and concrete applications.
14. Require your students to WRITE!
15. Clearly communicate the intellectual standards and expectations of the course.

Critical Thinking Consortium
Georgia state University Master Teacher Program: On Critical Thinking
Critical Thinking and Technology
San Jose State University's Center for Teaching and Learning "Mission Critical"
Critical Thinking and Problem Solving Skills
Critical Thinking: What it is and Why it Counts (PDF file)