Considerations on the development of critical thinking in learning virtual environment

Abstract

One of the specific skills necessary to face complex global challenges, as recent studies indicate, is critical thinking. For this reason, there is a motivation to develop this skill in network learning program projects. However, there are limitations to its development since the design of online courses has several characteristics inherited from traditional education. This phenomenon is repeated in the Virtual Learning Environment of Redu, an experience developed in the Federal University of Pernambuco institutional setting. This study aimed to identify and evaluate aspects of Redu's functionalities to propose developing educational strategies that promote critical thinking. Through the triangulation method, data of diverse nature were analyzed to verify how asynchronous interactions between teachers and students eventually supported the structuring of situations to promote the development of critical thinking and identify the platform's limitations to support the progress of this skill. The results emphasized that there is a divorce between the concept of Virtual Learning Environments and the methodologies used by teachers to encourage the development of critical thinking that leads to the neglect of several of the characteristics of the students. Finally, the attributes of Redu are listed that, from our point of view, will allow the environment to become a support with the possibility of amplifying the technology to develop critical thinking.