Critical Thinking Through Chinese Students' Reflections in a U.S. University: A Situated Cognition Perspective

• In Event: 56.081 - Roundtable Session 24
  In Roundtable Session: 56.081-2 - Critical Thinking, Writing, and Reading

Abstract

This study was designed to explore Chinese students’ reflections on their academic writing and participation in class discussions while studying in a Western college. However, I found that the direct questions about how critical thinking concept affects the Chinese students’ experiences did not capture the Chinese students’ answers. Instead, the Chinese students’ reflections on their educational experience illustrated rich ways of how, (1) whether the Chinese students’ voices and experiences were valued in the class, (2) the cultural difference between East and West, and (3) English language proficiency affect the Chinese students’ experiences of studying in the Western university. Through the perspective of situated cognition, I discuss how critical thinking concepts need to be situated in the specific contexts.

Author

• Lei Chen, University of Delaware