Integrating Critical Thinking Into English Language Teaching: A Critical Review of Pedagogical Approaches in Higher Education

The thesis reviews pedagogical approaches to integrating critical thinking into English language teaching in higher education. It examines the evidence on explicit and implicit critical thinking instruction, the use of argumentative writing as a vehicle for developing reasoning skills, and the factors that shape implementation in Asian and other EFL contexts. The review finds that explicit instruction in general critical thinking skills currently has the strongest evidence of effectiveness, that writing-based interventions can produce measurable gains in specific skills, and that teacher knowledge, materials and assessment practices remain the main constraints. On this basis, the thesis proposes principles for embedding critical thinking in university English courses.