Can digital technology be used to improve reflection in order to develop students’ critical thinking?

Developing students’ critical thinking skills is a main aim of higher education and most educationalists agree that cultivating such skills is essential for students who are engaged in academic study (Behar-Horenstein and Niu, 2011). This is because critical thinking enables learners to dig below the surface of subjects and engage in critical dialogue with its main arguments and theories (Cottrell, 2011). Also, critical thinking helps people to be responsible citizens, which is another aim of higher education (Behar-Horenstein and Niu, 2011). Therefore, innovative and practical pedagogies for nurturing critical thinking skills in higher education students are essential. In a digital world it is important to take advantage of digital technologies available to achieve this. Tablets are readily available so would seem to be an ideal tool for generating data and encouraging reflective pedagogic practices to nurture critical thinking. This pilot study focuses upon teacher-student interactions and their potential to nurture critical thinking, using video recorded interactions within seminar classes. Staff and student reflections on these recorded interactions, and perceived points at which critical thinking occurs, are analysed. The approach permits the exploration of characteristics within the interactions that are likely to influence critical thinking. An evaluation of the pilot study determines whether the observational method, using digital technology, can be used as a training tool for staff and students to improve critical thinking