Understanding Critical Thinking Practice in Everyday Life Through Stages of Critical Thinking Skills and Disposition

Previous publications used the term critical thinking (CT) skills and critical thinking practice interchangeably. This article describes the difference between them, defining skills as prerequisite abilities, while practices as real activities. People may have skills, but they do not always use them in everyday life. The question is what triggers people to practice CT given they already have skills and dispositions. To answer this, we will need to understand the roles of CT skills and dispositions in each stage of CT process. This article explains the position of the skill dimension as described by Halpern and twelve dispositions (derived from Dwyer's research) in the three stages of CT process (Pennycook, Fugelsang, and Koehler). Realizing the implication of practicing CT when people were in the detecting conflict stage is important to determine whether a person is going to think critically or not.