Yiannakis Vassiliades
Postgraduate student
Curriculum and Instruction
University of Cyprus
Project : Testing Rationale as a means of improving critical thinking skills at primary level

 

14th March 2007.
“I began my research with a pre-test. The results showed that the students who participated did not posses the basic skills of critical thinking and argumentation in a satisfying level.
Two months ago we began the application of the research in my class using the software Rationale. The moment I’m writing to you we are in the middle of our way in completing
the application.
From the very beginning (when the software, its tools and potentials were presented) my students showed great interest and they were anxious to work with the software. They became familiar with the software environment quickly and they learned the basic functions easily. I am glad to mention that we haven’t faced any serious problems regarding the
use of the software.
The impression I am getting up to the moment is that Rationale is easy to use, simple, well organized, friendly and can be used by the students of primary school to organize their thoughts, ideas and arguments and can scaffold their way of thinking. I find it a dynamic and
constructive tool that students can use without big difficulty.
When the application is completed, in three months from now, I am going to use a post-test in order to make several comparisons to see the effect of the use of the software Rationale as a cognitive tool that can enhance students critical thinking skills.”

Lesson plan and Rationale Maps in Greek