Critical thinking and inclusive practice: A qualitative study of Spanish primary school teachers' perceptions

As one of the most necessary skills of the 21st century for problem solving, critical thinking should be taught and included in the curriculum of those schools in which inclusivity towards all their students is a priority. From this perspective, this study presents the educational implications for the teaching and evaluation of this skill. In addition, teachers' perceptions regarding the teaching methods used, evaluation techniques and limitations that they encounter at the moment of enhancing the critical thinking of their students are analysed. A descriptive-comprehensive research with a qualitative approach was adopted, with data collected from interviews with 10 primary education teachers in the Spanish educational system. The analysis suggests that, although there is some knowledge on the part of teachers about critical thinking skills, most of them are not able to respond to this learning need. They highlight the technique of joint discussion and interactions between teams as among the effective tools for fostering critical thinking skills. Notably, these teachers have referred to the existence of certain relationships between critical thinking and equitable and quality education.