ABSTRACT
Chapter 3 presents the essential elements of academic critical thinking, as it is traditionally applied to the teaching of reading and writing. For the struggling learner in the educational therapy context, critical thinking can productively be viewed through the lens of executive function. The therapeutic interaction presents unique opportunities to help students develop metacognitive strategies and self-regulation, particularly as these apply to reading comprehension. The importance of domain knowledge is noted, along with ways that the ET can assist the student to link to existing knowledge and also to systematically increase the knowledge required for effective learning. The chapter presents examples of how to foster specific critical thinking skills that support learning, and that are often listed in a student’s IEP, such as analyzing ideas into component parts, seeing connections and relationships among ideas, and applying new understandings. Three exemplary approaches are presented, to serve as models for how to support critical thinking in all areas: Inference Training, the Think Aloud Procedure, and Comparison Analysis. Each approach is supported with example materials and is presented in developmental stages. Critical thinking is included as an essential element in the treatment plan for literacy acquisition because it is the foundation of independent learning.
