1. Critical Thinking Leadership Skill Area
This project is supported by a grant from the Pennsylvania Developmental Disabilities Council (PADDC)

2. What is critical thinking?
A way of reasoning and thought characterized by judgement and rational thinking
This type goes beyond just having a series of thoughts

3. An Active Process This process includes: Gathering information
Empirical data
Evaluating it
What is relevant?
Making inferences
Making sense of it all
Reasoning, justification, theory
While any thinking requires action on the part of the individual, critical thinking is much more active. It includes more rational processes that may be relatively quick, or take a long time. Either way, it includes a person being able to first gather information about the topic or problem. Since critical thinking is to be rational and logical, the data collected should be factual and based in evidence. After you’ve gathered the information, you need to begin evaluating it. What information is actually relevant for your cause. It is possible that you will need to make inferences, or mental jumps, between some of the information to fill in the gaps. It is then that you may start to make sense of it all, using reasoning, to come up with a theory about your topic or problem.

4. Road Blocks to Critical Thinking
There can be issues that come up during each step of the process
Gathering information
Ambiguous or vague
Evaluating information
Inaccurate “jumps” between pieces of info
Making sense of it
Biases
Since there is no exact blueprint for how to think about any one particular topic, there are obviously going to be things that get in the way along this process. It is possible that the information you come across won’t be specific or detailed enough. This type of information can lead you to be either incapable of coming up with inferences, or they will end up being inaccurate. This will obviously lead to many difficulties in bringing this information together to make sense. However, you must also be aware of any biases you may have when thinking through your information. It is possible that this can color the way you analyze the situation, and will again make improper inferences.
To help save yourself from these road blocks, you should focus on trying to only gather the clearest information and be sure to stick to the facts, while thinking of all angles.

5. Critical Thinking & Leadership
Leaders are often expected to be the “problem solvers”
Those who are following will look to you to provide them with answers
This requires you to be able to go above and beyond – thinking of new and innovative ways to get to where you’re headed
Leaders are frequently put in the position to solve problems and make decisions. While one could do this without much thought, the best leaders will carefully and rationally think of the options and utilize all resources and information to solve it. This skill creates another level of trust in those that you lead.

6. “Brain Tease” Activity
We are going to use our brains to solve these puzzles
This activity can be done in teams or individually
Each person/group number a piece of paper 1-15
Write down your answer next to its corresponding number

7. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
10.
11.
12.
Answers:
You’re under arrest
Sit down
High-chair
Sandbox
Mind over matter
Broken heart
Reading between the lines
I’m on top of the world
Tricycle
Ring around the rosey
Foreign language
Square dance
Amazing grace
Rising temperature
Coming down with a cold
13.
14.
15.

8. What did you learn?
For the ones that you did not think of right away, what was your strategy for figuring it out?
How did you come up with a strategy?
Was it, or could it be, easier if you had other people to bounce ideas off of?
How can practicing this type of thinking help you at school and work?

9. “Tower Challenge” Activity
You and your team are going to build the tallest, free-standing, tower
TALLEST TOWER WINS!!
Get into groups of 2-4 people
Each group gets a bundle of 15 pipe-cleaners
Each group will have 10 minutes to build the largest tower
Tower must be free-standing – meaning NO use of other materials
After 2 minutes, group members must only use one hand each!
Any time a group breaks the rules, they will lose one pipe-cleaner
Adapted from

10. What did you learn? What was the most difficult part of this task?
How did your group eventually come up with a strategy? Could you have come up with a better one with more time?
How did losing the use of one hand effect your group’s progress?
How can learning to problem solve as you go help you at school and work?