Methods to Instill Critical Thinking in Environmental Engineering Students

In this paper, we present three different methods to instill critical thinking skills in civil and environmental engineering students. Writing assignments, supplemental instruction (SI), and interactive and collaborative learning methods were implemented to enhance critical thinking skills of the students in two civil engineering programs. Writing assignments provide a practical context that deepens student understanding and comprehension of the content area. Students develop written communication skills and a process for thinking through and solving civil and environmental engineering problems. Active learning in the classroom and self-directed learning outside of class create opportunities for the students to apply knowledge and identify questions which can be resolved in the SI session. Students follow a set of steps to develop proper questions and find their own solutions by applying critical thinking skills. Finally, project based learning creates interactive and collaborative learning opportunities that promote the logical progression in creative thinking that leads to critical thinking. This paper presents the observations made through these learning methods and provides a platform for discussion on these topic areas. The improvement in students’ critical thinking skills were reflected by the quality of the writing assignments and the higher grades obtained by the group of students attending the supplemental instruction.