Animal Rights/Vegan Activists' Strategies Articles



Fostering Critical Thinking at Your Animal Sanctuary

From OpenSanctuary.org
February 2023

Critical thinking is one of the most valuable cognitive skills to develop in a sanctuary setting because it provides folks with the tools they need to question the assumptions they hold, as well as the assumptions that others hold, about nonhuman animals, engage with the challenges facing nonhuman animals, come up with creative solutions, and take informed action.



Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash

In addition to providing refuge and lifelong compassionate care to formerly farmed animals, many animal sanctuaries also strive to create spaces where humans can thoughtfully interact and (re)analyze their relationship with nonhuman animals in ways that will enable them to make kinder lifestyle choices. To help folks do this, it’s important that sanctuaries encourage them to think critically. Critical thinking is one of the most valuable cognitive skills to develop in a sanctuary setting because it provides folks with the tools they need to question the assumptions they hold, as well as the assumptions that others hold, about nonhuman animals, engage with the challenges facing nonhuman animals, come up with creative solutions, and take informed action.

What is Critical Thinking?

In Teaching for Critical Thinking, scholar Stephen Brookfield defines critical thinking as the process of becoming aware of the assumptions that frame the ways we think and act, checking the accuracy of those assumptions by exploring as many different perspectives, viewpoints, and sources as possible, and then making informed decisions based on well-grounded research. Rather than just accepting the information we hold and receive as true, critical thinking requires us to challenge it and ask questions .

Topics include:

  • Hypothetical Example of the Critical Thinking Process
  • How Critical Thinking Develops
  • Barriers to Critical Thinking
  • How to Foster Critical Thinking in a Sanctuary Setting
  • Model Good Habits of Mind

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Please read the ENTIRE ARTICLE HERE.


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