Designing Lesson Plan Based on Critical Thinking for Language Classes

Critical thinking includes a process of reasoning in thinking as stated by some scholars. In the process, there is universal standard to follow: clarity, accuracy, precision, relevance, depth, breadth, logic, and fairness. In language classes, critical thinking creates active classes. To bring critical thinking to classes, Bloom's Taxonomy and critical thinking strategies can be working definition in order critical thinking to be applied to pedagogical materials in a practical way. Steps for critical thinking teaching includes five steps: (1) determining learning objectives, (2) teaching through questioning, (3) practicing before assessing, (4) reviewing, refining, and improving, and (5) providing feedback and assessment of learning. A lesson plan should reflect these five steps.


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In critical thinking, there is universal intellectual standard which must be applied to thinking as the assessment of thinking. The standard comprises clarity, accuracy, precision, relevance, depth, breadth, logic, and fairness (Paul and Elder, 2010). Each part of the standard has some questions that may help self assessment for thinking. In classes, teacher may pose these questions in order to help students critically. Paul and Elder (2010) 1984in Carr, 1990. Meanwhile, for writing, Elbow (1983: in Carr, 1990) has presented first order and second-order thinking. For first order thinking, he proposes free writing that will produces conceptual insight.

Discussion
To bring critical thinking to classes, working definition is important in order critical thinking to be applied to pedagogical materials in a practical way (Rear, 2010). Fortunately, %ORRP ¶V 7D[RQRP\ and critical thinking strategy can be the bridge between critical thinking and classes. Banjamin Bloom (1956) identifies three domain of educational activities: cognitive, affective, and psychomotor (in Clark, 2004). Each domain has some major categories. Clark (2004) summarizes the three domain and its categories.

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Cognitive domain has six categories. The first is knowledge or the lowest ability to recall data or information. The second is Comprehension which means the learners ability to understand the meaning, translation, interpolation, and interpretation of instructions and problems. The third is application, the ability to use a concept in a new situation or unprompted use of an abstraction; Applies what was learned in the classroom into novel situations in the work place. The next higher level, the fourth, is analysis. In this category, students or learners are expected to be able to separates material or concepts into component parts, so that its organizational structure may be understood; distinguishes between facts and inferences. The fifth is synthesis, how to builds a structure or pattern from diverse elements; put parts together to form a whole, with emphasis on creating a new meaning or structure. And the last is evaluation or to make judgments about the value of ideas or materials.
The next domain is affective which has five categories. The first requires students to have awareness, willingness to hear, selected attention.
This category is usually called as receiving phenomena. The second is responding to phenomena. In this category, students must be active participation on the part of the learners, attends and reacts to a particular phenomenon and learning outcomes may emphasize compliance in responding, willingness to respond, or satisfaction in responding (motivation). The third is valuing or the worth or value a person attaches to a particular object, phenomenon, or behavior. This ranges from simple acceptance to the more complex state of commitment. Valuing is based on the internalization of a set of specified values, while clues to these values are expressed in the learner's overt behavior and are often identifiable. The fourth is Organization or students or learners must be able to organize values into priorities by contrasting different values, resolving conflicts between them, and creating an unique value system. The emphasis is on comparing, relating, and synthesizing values. The last is internalizing values (characterization).
Students have a value system that controls their behavior. The behavior is pervasive, consistent, predictable, and most importantly, characteristic of the learner. Instructional objectives are concerned with the student's general patterns of adjustment (personal, social, emotional). Paul, Binker, and Weil (1995) write 35 aspects or instructional strategies. These strategies are in three categories: affective strategies, cognitive strategies ± micro abilities, and cognitive strategies ± micro abilities.

Critical thinking strategy
Affective strategies includes strategy 1 (S-1) until strategy 9 (S-9): S-1 thinking independently , S-2 developing insight into egocentricity or   Teacher walks around the class to observe DQG FKHFN VWXGHQWV ¶ XQGHUVWDQGLQJ ZKLOH they are doing class assignments Teacher gives some questions, e.g. to find out English teaching problems and students write the answer in a paragraph Students write an essay, e.g. research proposal The first few lines of lesson plan are class identities comprising LQVWUXFWRU ¶V QDPH WLWOH RI FRXUVH VWXGHQWV ¶ DJH OHYHO WLWOH RI OHVVRQ QXPEHU RI students, and length of lesson. It will inform three things: teacher, students, and course.
The first part is goal of the lesson. Goal and objective refers to the same thing, outcomes. However, goal refers to general outcome while objective is more specific. Objective refers to performance students will acquire in the end of the class.
The next part is prerequisites. These are assumptions teachers are

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is requirements students need to fulfill in order to be able to complete the lesson.
The third part is instructional objectives. Heinich and his colleagues (2002( in O'Bannon. 2002 suggest four parts of well written objectives or usually called as the ABCD's of instructional objectives. The A stands for $XGLHQFH ,W LV ³WKH OHDUQHU´ RU ³WKH VWXGHQW´ RU DV VSHFLILF DV ³WKH WKLUG JUDGH scienFH VWXGHQW´ 7KH B represents Behavior. It is the verb describing the competency that the student will be able to perform after the instruction. It must be measurable, observable, and specific. The C stands for Condition or the circumstances under which the objectives must be completed. The last is D or Degree of Accuracy. It is the standard that the learner must meet to reach acceptable performance.
The fourth part is lesson description. This may include pre-, during, and post-activities, steps, or techniques that the students are doing.

Assessment
There are two types of assessment: formative and summative assessment. Garrison and Ehringhaus (2007) Garrison and Ehringhaus (2007) give some of the instructional strategies that can be used formatively. The first is observations.
In this assessment, teacher goes beyond walking around the room to check VWXGHQW ¶V ZRUN 7KH WHDFKHU PD\ JLYH IHHGEDFN ZKHQ KH VKH ILQGV VWXGHQW ZKR need clarification. The second is questioning strategies that should be embedded in lesson/unit planning. It may allows an opportunity for deeper thinking and inform teacher the degree and depth of understanding. The third is self and peer assessment. This assessment allows student to assess his/her or his/her friend works. It may helps to create a learning community within a classroom.
Other sample assessments are multiple choice, constructed response (jigsaw, fill in the blank, and matching), short response (sentence to a paragraph), extended response (essay or oral presentation), process performance (showing classmates how to do something, for ex. baking a cake, assembling an airplane), project performance, portfolio, interview (oral performance: discussion, impromptus, debate), assessment Rubric.

Conclusion
Critical thinking is a process of thinking involving reasoning as the basic for action. The process follows self assessment as proposed by Paul and Elder (2010): clarity, accuracy, precision, relevance, depth, breadth, logic, and fairness. These standards comprise questions that can be applied in classes of instructional to train critical thinking to students.
Critical thinking can be applied in language classes and employ %ORRP ¶V 7D[RQRP\ and Critical Thinking Strategy as working definition. In designing lesson plan, there should be: course identity, goal and objectives of lesson, prerequisites, lesson description, and assessment. In writing objectives, ABCD model can bHFRPH WKH JXLGDQFH DQG LW VKRXOG DOVR LQFOXGHV %ORRP ¶V Taxonomy and critical thinking strategies. In addition, lesson description discusses pre, during, and after classes.