Integrating Critical Thinking into Argumentative Paragraph Writing: Its Impacts on University Students' Critical Thinking Dispositions
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| Title: | Integrating Critical Thinking into Argumentative Paragraph Writing: Its Impacts on University Students' Critical Thinking Dispositions |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Getachew Bekele (ORCID |
| Source: | MEXTESOL Journal. 2025 49(4). |
| Availability: | MEXTESOL Journal. Bernardo Couto 48, Col. Cuauhtemoc, Alcadía Cuauhtemoc, Ciudad de Mexico, 06880, Mexico. Tel: +55-55-66-87-49; e-mail: mextesoljournal@gmail.com; Web site: http://www.mextesol.net/journal/ |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 12 |
| Publication Date: | 2025 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Research |
| Education Level: | Higher Education Postsecondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Critical Thinking, Persuasive Discourse, Paragraph Composition, Essays, College Freshmen, Writing Tests, Scores, Logical Thinking, Inquiry, Personality Traits, Self Esteem, Maturity (Individuals), Foreign Countries |
| Geographic Terms: | Ethiopia |
| ISSN: | 2395-9908 |
| Abstract: | Positive dispositions towards critical thinking (CT) in students can be fostered by integrating CT training into argumentative writing lessons. Adege (2016) and Ruff (2005) conducted studies to see the effects of integrating CT into argumentative essay writing lessons on undergraduate students' dispositions toward CT. They, however, overlooked the argumentative paragraph writing (APW) which is the building block of the argumentative essay writing. At Wollega University, first-year students' inclination toward using CT in APW lessons seemed low although a generic CT course is offered to all first-year students. Hence, the purpose of the current study was to examine the impact of integrating CT into APW lessons on first-year students' dispositions toward CT. A quasi-experimental design was used in the study with 75 participants (non-treatment group, n=37 & treatment group, n=38). The data was collected using a questionnaire before and after the intervention. The analysis results of a mean and a one-way between groups (ANCOVA) indicated that the treatment group significantly outperformed in overall CT dispositions scores. In addition, the findings of the analysis showed that the CT dispositions scores improved in five of the seven subscales scores (analyticity, systematicity, inquisitiveness, CT self-confidence, & CT maturity). |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1492657 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | Positive dispositions towards critical thinking (CT) in students can be fostered by integrating CT training into argumentative writing lessons. Adege (2016) and Ruff (2005) conducted studies to see the effects of integrating CT into argumentative essay writing lessons on undergraduate students' dispositions toward CT. They, however, overlooked the argumentative paragraph writing (APW) which is the building block of the argumentative essay writing. At Wollega University, first-year students' inclination toward using CT in APW lessons seemed low although a generic CT course is offered to all first-year students. Hence, the purpose of the current study was to examine the impact of integrating CT into APW lessons on first-year students' dispositions toward CT. A quasi-experimental design was used in the study with 75 participants (non-treatment group, n=37 & treatment group, n=38). The data was collected using a questionnaire before and after the intervention. The analysis results of a mean and a one-way between groups (ANCOVA) indicated that the treatment group significantly outperformed in overall CT dispositions scores. In addition, the findings of the analysis showed that the CT dispositions scores improved in five of the seven subscales scores (analyticity, systematicity, inquisitiveness, CT self-confidence, & CT maturity). |
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| ISSN: | 2395-9908 |
