Enhancing critical thinking in speech-language pathology: a multisite intervention study

Critical thinking is required to implement evidence-based practice across health professions, yet is often underdeveloped during pre-service training. In speech-language pathology (SLP), students frequently report difficulty transferring conceptual knowledge to complex clinical problems, particularly in areas such as augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) that require flexible, individualized decision-making. Instructional approaches that make reasoning processes explicit through guided application and structured feedback should support learners’ metacognition. A quasi-experimental pre–post design was implemented across two U.S. universities. Sixty-one graduate students enrolled in AAC courses completed six asynchronous learning activities targeting deductive reasoning, inductive reasoning, recognizing assumptions, interpreting and evaluating arguments, and problem solving. Activities incorporated short readings, application-based questions, and automated feedback delivered through the learning management system. A standardized critical thinking test was administered during Weeks 1 and 15 to measure change in general critical thinking. Pre- and post-intervention scores were compared using paired-samples t -tests. All participants completed the intervention and both assessments. No between-group differences were observed by site. Mean scores increased from 29.98 (SD 6.71) to 34.34 (SD 6.96), representing a statistically significant improvement, t(60) = 3.55, p < .001, d = 0.45. Embedding brief, targeted critical thinking instruction within discipline-specific coursework produced moderate, statistically significant improvements in students’ general critical thinking skills over a single academic term. These findings suggest that scalable, content-integrated interventions can effectively foster critical thinking in health professions education without requiring major curricular overhaul.