Introduction

The role of the teachers can be defined as a bridge leading the students to cross the ocean of knowledge and providing access to self-learning and independent learning. Through resulted strategies of teaching, what we contribute to their development is that we show them proper values which would give them lifelong beneficial effects. Through effective process of learning, children’s thinking skills can be developed. When they acquire the ability of thinking skills, they will go through positive and effective learning experiences. This article emphasizes the importance of students-centered class and what we need to focus on is not task-based language teaching, nor exam-based language teaching, but value-based language teaching. What’s more, this article discussed how to help students to achieve critical thinking naturally in class through some teaching methods and activities for different procedures during the class.

Herbert Puchta is co-author of methodology and course books, including English in Mind and is currently president of the International Association of Teachers of English as a foreign Language. He says that critical thinking involves: Working out whether we believe what we see or hear; Finding out whether something is true; Arguing one’s case; Identifying when we need more information; Selecting information for a purpose. (Puchta 6) As we all know, children need to face challenge of a changing and unpredictable world, so what the children should develop are problem-solving and decision-making skills, they can learn these from family, school, society. It works quite well if we all take it seriously for foster thinking skills for the children.    

So how a student’s thinking skills can be developed and what we teachers can contribute to their development? Kieran Egan (79) shows his insights which are relevant as a basis for understanding how the human mind develops during childhood. Here is a very basic summary of his models and my suggestions on how to work them out.

Model1: Language and the development of cognitive tools

1.1 Rhythm and rhyme

As we know, most of the song’s lyrics could be easily to remember just because song has rhythm and rhyme. For example, if you want to teach the class to learn alphabet, and you hope the class could be more interested in the repeating of letter A, you can show them an order that with rhythm: AAA, up up up, AAA, down down down. Zheng Xianmin, a lawyer from China University of Political science and Law, points out that if the kids listen to the original songs and chant from native English singers, the rhythm and rhyme in the songs would help the kids get used to the rhythm and rhyme in language. (Zheng 122) Rhythm and rhyme should be fully exploited through the process of English Learning.   

1.2 Images and imaginative thinking

 It is easy to find that the kids have no border between imaginary world and real world. If we use a butterfly to talk with them, it is easy for them to get involved in the situation. If you want to teach a class about animals, maybe you can just hold a mini-situation about let’s go to the zoo and visit every animal. The animals can be performed by some of the students in class. 

 I have seen some teachers to practice the topic of preposition: on, under, behind, beside, in. They like to take a ball and put it on the desk, under the desk and beside the desk, and ask the students where the ball is. I don’t think this kind of practice would benefit the students and make them to think. They do not have to think, as the teacher already shows them the answers. Think about that would we point to our shirts and ask people what color my shirt is in real life?  That is crazy; it would not happen in real conversation.

My suggestion is: The teachers can ask everybody to stand up and listen to the teacher’s order, if they hear an order: I am under the desk. Then all of them should quickly go under the desk, if they hear an order: Jimmy is behind Mary. Then Jimmy would quickly go behind Mary. Games like this would arouse the students to think and it would be easy for them to have a better understanding of prepositions.

1.3 Story thinking

Egan points out that story play an essential role in the cognitive development of children. If a story you show to the kids that has a clear beginning, a middle part which can engage the kids emotionally and an end where things develop in an unexpected ending. Then kids would achieve more than the contents of the story but the language itself. We know that kids between ages of 2 to 12 are active, eager to learn, like to perform, but also get bored easily. Stories provide extra learning materials for the students, showing them values for life, allowing them to fully develop their imaginations.

1.4 Humor and small talk

Kids all enjoy jokes. If the teachers can show something funny relevant with the contents in class, it would help the kids to enjoy learning. And puns are a good thing, kids need to understand it not only because it does help to their learning but it also a way to develop their cognitive development. Small talk plays an important role in daily life and helps the kids to feel more comfortable and gives the kids a feeling of social security and acceptance.

Model2: Multiple intelligence

2.1 Logical-mathematical

Design exercise with logical-mathematical is really a good way to develop thinking skills. For example, if you want to practice the words about apple and chocolate. You can show them a logical sequence, as below. (See Table 1)

Table 1: Read the first row out together with the learners with rhythm:

2.2 Read with rhythm

Ask the kids to read with rhythm: Apple-cake-chocolate-apple-cake-chocolate and find out the logical sequence and see what goes next. This kind of practice would both help the kids to review the words they have learned and teach them to think. Herbert points out that there are so many ways that can be used in order to teach the students to develop thinking skills: making comparisons, categorizing, sequencing, making association, exploring time, exploring numbers and so forth. Just get these standards involved in your teaching activities, your teaching plan would just go up a higher level.

3 Conclusion

Critical thinking should be encouraged into the class to help the students to foster the ability of how to think, the ability of leaning autonomy. There could be other ways to contribute in English teaching; we need to do a further research in it. There could be other ways to contribute in English teaching; we need to do a further research in it.  

Work Cited 

Puchta, H. and Williams, M. Teaching Young Learners `to Think. Innsbruck and Cambridge: Helbling Languages and Cambridge University Press, 2011.

Egan, K. The Educated Mind: How Cognitive Tools Shape Our Understanding. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1997.

郑献民.你不能错过的启蒙英语. 北京: 外研社·基础教育出版分社, 2013.