Integrating weblogs in a pedagogy model for enhancing students' critical thinking skills

This study uses quantitative method to examine whether or not a social constructivist theory-driven pedagogical model integrated with weblogs is associated with improved critical thinking skills. Forty secondary two students at the age of 13 completed a series of extra-curricular activities designed according to a proposed model within ten months. Half of these students came from high ability class while the other from general ability one. The learning tasks of a topic included practice on thinking skills, written essay on a social issue, and visit to an expert or fieldtrip relevant to the learning topic as well as reflection on the learning experiences. One group of these students submitted their writing tasks in paper form (Paper Group) while the other in weblog entries. (Weblog Group). They also completed a pre-test and a post-test of the Critical Thinking Test — Level 1 (CTT-1) prior to and upon completion of all learning activities, respectively. The analysis revealed that both groups demonstrated gains in Critical Thinking scores in the post-test. Moreover, a significant gain was observed in the Weblog group as well as in the class of general ability. No significant gender difference was detected. This study was also supplemented with qualitative data to solicit opinions from teachers who assisted in the implementation of the project. Suggestions for improvement were also made at the end. Copyright © 2010 World Scientific Publishing Company & Asia-Pacific Society for Computers in Education.