The purpose of the proposed research is to evaluate a college educational program designed to improve students' study skills and critical thinking ability. This proposal presents a review of the relevant literature. This review is then followed by a brief delineation of the methods and procedures that will be used for data collection and analysis.
What are study skills and critical thinking skills? Klausmeier (1991) reports that at the post-secondary level, most educators agree that proper study skills should involve students being able to effectively:
(1) Establish a mood that facilitates study.
(2) Read for understanding by utilizing good comprehension strategies.
(3) Recall/retrieve material from memory that has been studied without having to refer to a text.
(4) Digest what has been learned (correcting recall as appropriate and organizing and storing the newly learned material in long-term memory).
(5) Expand upon what was learned by using self-inquiry to find applications of acquired material, to analyze and evaluate the new information, and to engage in activities that go beyond the information given in the text.
(6) Review (ability to correctly respond to questions about the material).
With respect to critical thinking skills, Stone and Nielsen (1992) define critical thinking as the ability to assess statements in a reasonable manner. According to the authors, there are four attributes associated with critical thinking. These are: comprehension of the essentials of an argument; seeking relevant information while carefully assessing bias; weighing the pros and cons; and estimating unstated assumptions, ambiguities, and unwarranted inferences.
The program which will be evaluated by the proposed research attempted to improve both the study skills and the critical thinking skills of a sample of first year post-secondary students. So that the proposed research may be placed within the contex...