broadening students thinking - employer...

For more information, please visit www.employerregistry.ca and/or www.thelearningpartnership.ca Resources created by The Learning Partnership. ©2009 The Learning Partnership. All rights reserved. Revised July 2009

Part A-Purpose: Broadening Students’ Thinking What is it? A sequence of strategies to generate multiple ideas and then to limit, sort or evaluate them. Why should I teach it? Many thinking processes, including problem solving and decision making, are enhanced by the ability to generate alternatives and then to consider them critically. Considering a range of factors and priorities initially also helps to avoid hasty judgments or actions. How can these tools help? Students develop flexibility and fluency in thinking by practicing structured brainstorming techniques in small groups and individually. The use of simple anagrams (CAF‐ Consider All Factors; FIP‐ First Important Priorities) helps students to remember a sequence of thinking processes they can apply in many circumstances. How does it work? The instructor:

1. provides a rationale for the strategy (for example, by accessing prior experience) 2. engages the class in a demonstration of the process 3. reflects with them on the demonstration to make the steps in the process explicit 4. provides an opportunity to practice in small groups 5. debriefs the group activity 6. identifies opportunities for using the new strategy 7. revisits the process periodically to habituate the thinking

How can I assess student learning? Use thinking logs/journals. Students record occasions when they use strategies and the results/outcomes. Teachers may also observe students using the strategies spontaneously when planning or making decisions. What resources can I access? http://schoolnet.gov.mt/thinkingskills/thinkingtools.htm

This website explains CAF, FIP and additional lateral thinking strategies from Edward DeBono’s CoRT Thinking Skills program.


Part B-Sample Lesson: CAF Consider All Factors Introduction

Invite students to work with a partner. Each student tells a story about a time he/she made a decision that did not work out because an important factor was overlooked at the time. (Provide an example if students require one.) DeBono’s CAF strategy 1. Introduce Edward DeBono’s strategy called CAF which stands for Consider All Factors and its rationale:

• Doing a CAF is useful before choosing, deciding or planning. • It is better to consider all factors first and then pick out the ones that matter most.

2. Introduce the following example from DeBono’s CoRT Thinking Program:

“A large municipality passed a law that all new buildings must incorporate underground parking for workers. After several years, the law was revoked. Why?”

As students suggest possible reasons, record these on chart paper or on the blackboard. Label these as “factors”. 3. Debrief the demonstration:

In response to the question, students brainstormed collectively a list of possible factors. Note explicitly that during the demo: - all ideas were accepted and recorded without judgment or evaluation - multiple ideas were encouraged - students built upon previous ideas

4. Share what actually happened in DeBono’s case study:

“Providing convenient parking encouraged more people to drive to work rather than considering using public transit. Traffic congestion in the city core was worse than ever.”

5. Review the list of factors students generated. Ask: “Now that we know what happened, what additional factors might we consider adding to our initial list?”


6. Organize students in groups of 4 and ask them to do a CAF on one of the following scenarios:

a) You are making a choice between two possible part‐time jobs.

b) You are deciding what to wear for a job interview.

c) You are selecting courses for next year.

d) You are planning a surprise party for a good friend.

Note: Set a time limit for the brainstorming and suggest a target number of factors to list. 7. Debrief by inviting each group to present or post their CAF charts. You might also provide time for other students to suggest or to record additional factors.

Note: Save these charts for use in teaching the First Important Priorities strategy that follows. 8. Work with the class to generate a list of opportunities to use the Consider All Factors strategy. Encourage them to consider both in‐school and out‐of‐school scenarios. If students are using reflective journals or thinking logs, ask them to record their use of the strategy and the results.

9. Follow up next day/next week, inviting students to share examples of how they have used CAF or other lateral thinking strategies.


Part B-Sample Lesson: FIP First Important Priorities Introduction Indicate to students, that after using the Consider All Factors strategy, it is often helpful to shorten the list of factors being considered. Some factors may be more relevant or important to the planning or decision‐making. De Bono’s FIP strategy

1. Share the following example:

“A good friend asks to borrow some money. What might be some of the factors you would want to consider before making your decision?”

2. Generate a list of factors with the class. For example: • Can I afford it? • Do I trust my friend to repay it? • When will it be repaid? • If it’s not repaid, will that affect or friendship?

3. Ask students to rank order these factors from most important to least important (or if there is a long list of factors, ask them to select the top 3‐5 most important factors.) Invite students to offer a rationale for these priorities. 4. Debrief the activity.

Suggest that:

• It is important to get as many ideas as possible first, then to start identifying priorities. • Different people may have different priorities in the same situation. • If it’s difficult to identify priorities initially, try eliminating the least important first to narrow the field. • Ideas not chosen as priorities may still be considered‐ but later.

5. To practice the FIP strategy, ask students to revisit the charts generated by their cooperative learning groups during the Consider All Factors lesson. They can now take their list of factors and prioritize them using one or more of the following techniques:

• rank ordering (most important‐least important) • categorizing the list into three groups: High Medium Low • rating ( using a scale 1‐5 to assess each item on the list) • process of elimination (to shorten the list)


6. Pair two groups and invite each group to present their prioritized list of factors and to share the strategies used in making their decisions. 7. Whole class debriefing: Ask students, “What are we learning about identifying priorities?” 8. Work with the class to generate a list of opportunities to use the First Important Priorities strategy. Encourage them to consider both in‐school and out‐of‐school scenarios. If students are using reflective journals or thinking logs, ask them to record their use of the strategy and the results. 9. Follow up next day/next week, inviting students to share examples of how they have used FIP or other lateral thinking strategies.

broadening students thinking - employer...

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