Abstract

Interest in the subject of critical thinking has mounted, seeking ways to transcend rote learning and to remedy a widely perceived lack of critical, analytical abilities amongst school students. A growing literature on teaching thinking and problem solving maintains this commitment, reflecting a common belief that thinking skills of a general nature can not only be identified, but can be taught successfully. The paucity of empirical evidence that intellectual skills thus identified actually transfer between domains of thought or subject matters has done little to diminish faith in the possiblity that this is achievable.