Adapting critical thinking assessments for use in diverse cultural contexts

In recent years, new recognition of the ways in which higher education contributes to development has motivated a wave of reforms intended to improve the academic quality of Africa’s universities. Implicit in the language of... [ view full abstract ]

In recent years, new recognition of the ways in which higher education contributes to development has motivated a wave of reforms intended to improve the academic quality of Africa’s universities. Implicit in the language of many of these reforms is an assumption that universities can and should foster the development of critical thinking skills within their student populations. Critical thinking is viewed instrumentally as necessary for participation in the global knowledge economy but is also advocated as being crucial for the expansion of individual capabilities and the promotion of sustainable futures.

However, despite apparent consensus around the importance of critical thinking, there is limited information about how universities in non-Western contexts might cultivate the development of such skills and dispositions. To date, one barrier to research in this domain has been the lack of culturally appropriate instruments for assessing critical thinking. The few studies that have attempted to investigate critical thinking in low-income contexts have relied on assessments developed in the U.S. or Australia, despite widespread acknowledgement of the limited validity of such an approach.

This paper presents a possible solution to this challenge by outlining a method for adapting a critical thinking assessment for use in diverse cultural contexts. The paper - informed by the author’s experiences using the method, first in her doctoral work (in Rwanda) and now in an ongoing ESRC/DFID-funded project in Kenya, Ghana and Botswana - offers insights into the kinds of strategies that could improve the evidence base informing academic reforms in the region.