what is intellectual empathy in critical thinking

Critical Thinking

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Intellectual Traits

• Intellectual Traits - What Are My Intellectual Habits?

Critical Thinking and The Intellectual Traits by Dr. Richard Paul

Quiz yourself on intellectual traits.

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If standards of thought are applied, a student has potential to grow into an individual who exhibits the intellectual character described by the Paul- Elder Intellectual Traits. These intellectual traits include intellectual integrity, independence, perseverance, empathy, humility, courage, confidence in reason and fair-mindedness (Figure 1). - By Crest + Oral-B Professional Community

Intellectual integrity  – this trait requires that the standards that guide actions and thoughts need to be the same standards by which others are evaluated. an individual exhibiting this trait treats others with kindness while avoiding harm and outwardly projects this trait. this trait eliminates double standards and hypocrisy., intellectual autonomy  – this trait requires an individual to use critical thinking tools, such as the paul-elder model, and to trust their own ability to reason critically. for example, a dental professional exhibiting intellectual autonomy will ask questions about new products and will critically think through all aspects of the products to determine their implications of use. these individuals do not have to rely on others to do their thinking., intellectual perseverance  – the tag phase for this trait is "never give up" and encourages individuals to work through any difficulties. a clinician exhibiting intellectual perseverance has to depend on their critical thinking toolkit to keep working through challenging patient issues or unfamiliar situations., intellectual empathy  – an individual achieves intellectual empathy when they actively put themselves in someone else’s shoes in terms of how they think and feel. for instance, a dental clinician may encounter a patient who has a different viewpoint about certain dental preventive agents such as fluoride. a clinician exhibiting intellectual empathy strives to understand the patient’s point of view in order to think fully about the situation before responding to it. while the clinician does not have to agree with your patient’s point of view, intellectual empathy demands that they accurately represent the thinking of a different view despite what they believe., intellectual humility  – individuals exhibiting intellectual humility accept they are human and that they do not know everything. they continue to learn and grow as they age. they acknowledge their limitations. dental professionals exhibiting intellectual humility are okay to tell patients they are not familiar with a certain product, technique, condition or research behind the product or technique, and acknowledge that they are an ongoing learner in the profession., intellectual courage  – individuals with intellectual courage stand up for their beliefs and the conclusions they have fully thought through, especially when it is difficult to do so. sometimes it will not be a popular or common thought, but if they stand up for their beliefs, change can occur., confidence in reason and fair-mindedness  - utilizing the elements of thought and the standards will lead to confidence in reason and fair-mindedness and requires individuals to look at all of the evidence and relevant points of views and arrive at conclusions that embodies the intellectual traits. this allows dental professionals with confidence in reason and fair-mindedness to trust, as thinkers, to come to sound conclusions for patient care simply by applying the framework to their thought process. 2-6.

Dr. Richard Paul briefly defines and discusses the Intellectual Traits and the importance of fostering their development in students. Excerpted from the Spring 2008 Workshop on Teaching for Intellectual Engagement. Apr 15, 2008 - (9:53)

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Empathy Is the Highest Level of Critical Thinking

NCTE 01.31.20 Professional Concerns

This post was written by NCTE Ambassador Lindsay Schneider.

What is imperative for students to know? What is important for students to know? What is nice for students to know? These are the three simple questions that guide my curriculum planning.

In a time when teachers are bombarded with district pacing guides, new trends in education, and a plethora of literacies to teach, it is easy to get lost and lose sight of what is best for students. As teachers, we can quickly get burnt out or overwhelmed when we see the endless lists of what “should” be accomplished each day, each week, and each year.

For myself, I have learned the best way to ameliorate this is by going back to the basics I was taught in my teacher licensure program. At the beginning of each new class, I create three concentric circles: in the innermost circle, I note what I believe is imperative for students to know and be able to do; in the middle circle, I note what is important for students to know and be able to do; finally, in the outermost circle, I note what is nice for students to know and be able to do.

This simple graphic organizer focuses me on what I value most in my classroom and helps me align all my other choices in my classroom with a clear sense of purpose.

As I get further into my teaching career, I notice that my inner circle stays the same: in my classroom, students must read deeply, robustly, and diversely in order to gain a better understanding of themselves, and to develop empathy for those around them; they write in ways that reflect their critical understanding of a text, not to regurgitate a list of plot events or character traits; and they work on developing their speaking and listening abilities throughout our activities.

The reading, writing, speaking, and listening we do is vital when it encourages students to think critically about themselves, others, and the world around them; yet my inner circle contains another key concept: empathy.

I believe empathy is the highest level of critical thinking.

So often we spend hours researching and creating lesson plans and activities to encourage critical thinking; we seek out rigorous texts and projects to reinforce meaningful analysis. But the highest and most important analysis we conduct as we read is empathy. Before parsing out the significance of setting, before delving into the imagery, metaphors, symbols, and motifs, we must perform a critical analysis by which we open ourselves to the lives, feelings, and experiences of others.

Through critical thinking, writing, reading, and re-reading, we analyze texts and authors’ craft in order to both gain empathy for lives we have not lived and for experiences we have not had, all while meeting a new character whom we come to care for deeply.

This work not only bolsters our students academic skills but teaches students in ways that extend far beyond the classroom and our short time together. For “every time I read a book like me, I diminish. Every time I read a book with characters not like me, I grow more than I ever thought possible” (Kylene Beers, NCTE 2019).

If the central goal in my classroom is for students to develop critical thinking skills which afford them insight into the world beyond their own understanding of it, my work and my mission is clear. If the central goal in my classroom is for students to read robustly and to read consciously in a way that stimulates empathetic imagination and action, my work and my mission is vital.

How fortunate we are to have a role in schools that allows us to select texts in which students can find themselves and gain an understanding of others! How intimidating it can be to have a role that encourages us to select texts in which students can find themselves and gain an understanding of others!

My mission is clear and vital: to design a curriculum filled with diverse protagonists, settings, and conflicts as well as curate a classroom library overflowing with  books that serve as mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors.

We cannot teach students simply to read, but rather to READ ( Randy Ribay, ALAN 2019 ); we must teach students to read with a critical eye, an open heart, and hands that are moved to action. We, too, must read this way, and more robustly than ever before.

Critical analysis takes many forms: understanding characterization, scanning lines of poetry for meter and effect, creating and substantiating arguments, and articulating meaning throughout an entire text. Yet the highest form in critical thinking is an empathy that doesn’t just read the words on a page but rather truly sees, hears, and act upon a world beyond ourselves.

Lindsay Schneider teaches senior and freshman English in North Carolina. She is an avid reader and aspiring writer who is passionate about all things related to YA lit, building life-long readers beyond the walls of the classroom, integrating the arts into the English classroom, good coffee, baking, and the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. She is honored to serve as an NCTE Community Ambassador.