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Critical thinking in the university curriculum – the impact on engineering education
Abstract
Critical thinking is a graduate attribute that many courses, including engineering courses, claim to produce in students. As a graduate attribute it is seen by academics as a particularly desirable outcome of student learning and is said by researchers to be a defining characteristic of university education. However, how critical thinking is understood and defined varies quite significantly between disciplines. The paper describes a series of in-depth, semi-structured interviews with academics involved in teaching and learning in a number of disciplines, including engineering. The objective of these interviews is to look at how different disciplines define critical thinking and how they teach critical thinking in their courses. The paper also describes how an analysis of student work and module descriptors has led to the development of a model of critical thinking that can be used across disciplines.
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“The inclusion of Ahern, et al. [24] in the review, despite the 2016-2025 scope, is justified because it provides a foundational Critical Thinking Model that remains relevant in higher education research.”
From Systematic literature review on critical thinking in higher education (2025) · cites this paper as [24]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Ahern, A., O'Connor, T., McRuairc, G., McNamara, M., & O'Donnell, D.
- Affiliations
- University College Dublin (IE)
- b School Nursing, Midwifery and Health Sciences , University College Dublin , Ireland
- Corresponding author
- Ahern, A.
- Venue
- European Journal of Engineering Education
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2012-03-08
- Volume
- 37
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 125-132
- ISSN
- 0304-3797 (ISSN-L)
- 1469-5898
- OpenAlex
- W2047600110
- Cited by
- 82
- References
- 5
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 12 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 9 · 2014: 3 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 20.23
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- European Journal of Engineering Education (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Education › Education and Critical Thinking Development
- Social Sciences › Education › Engineering Education and Curriculum Development
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Mechanical Engineering › Design Education and Practice
- Keywords
- critical thinking, engineering education, graduate competencies, higher education curriculum, disciplinary differences, student work analysis
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