Unleashing Minds: Cultivating Critical Thinking in the Classroom in the Era of AI
A special issue of Education Sciences (ISSN 2227-7102).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2026 | Viewed by 21
Special Issue Editors
Interests: industrial digitalisation; innovative approaches to engineering education; critical thinking in the era of AI; integrating ethics into engineering education; learning and teaching approaches
Interests: smart energy systems and engineering education; critical thinking in the era of AI; integrating ethics into engineering education
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Critical thinking (CT) is an essential skill in fostering informed decision-making, problem-solving, and ethical judgment across diverse domains. In the digital age, where misinformation is widespread, CT is crucial to identify credible sources. Fostering CT is a shared goal across global education systems, employers, and policymakers. This is especially the case in the context of artificial intelligence (AI). The interaction between AI and CT is a key research area: CT is vital for the ethical use of AI, and AI can help to build CT skills when effectively integrated into teaching.
Therefore, this Special Issue is dedicated to exploring the topic of interaction between CT and AI in higher education. By embracing multiple perspectives and disciplines in higher education, we aim to develop a comprehensive understanding of how CT is fostered by the use of AI in teaching and learning and, vice versa, how CT can be applied to effectively use AI in learning and future work. We would like to address following key themes in this Special Issue:
- Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks: Contributions that develop theoretical models or frameworks to systematically capture the role of CT in the context of AI use.
- Use of AI in Fostering CT in Learning and Teaching: Contributions that demonstrate how the use of AI is being effectively utilized to enhance CT in learning and teaching, such as AI tools that can prompt deeper questioning, present alternative perspectives, and supply real-time data for analysis, helping students sharpen their reasoning skills.
- Use of AI in Fostering CT in Assessment and Feedback: Contributions that focus on reimagining assessment through AI to strengthen critical thinking while protecting academic integrity, such as adaptive tests and automated feedback that can pinpoint students’ reasoning strengths and gaps, delivering personalized guidance that fosters deeper analysis.
- AI as a Partner in Critical Thinking: This sub-theme invites contributions that explore how artificial intelligence can actively support and enrich students’ reasoning processes. Potential topics include case studies of AI-assisted Socratic dialogue, structured debates, or problem-based learning activities, as well as investigations of adaptive learning platforms that promote metacognition and reflective practice.
- Cross-Disciplinary and Global Perspectives: Case studies or comparative analyses that incorporate different disciplines or cultural contexts – such as differences between STEM and humanities subjects or between higher education systems in different regions of the world.
- Ethical and Societal Implications: Analyses that highlight the opportunities and risks of integrating AI and CT—in particular, questions of bias, fairness, learner autonomy, and responsibility in teaching/learning scenarios.
- Faculty Development and Pedagogical Strategies: Contributions that examine how university lecturers can be trained and empowered by the use of AI in order to specifically promote CT among students.
- Curriculum Design & Policy: Contributions that highlight the need to redesign higher education curricula and policies so that critical thinking remains central in an AI-driven era.
- A Critical View of AI in the Context of CT: Contributions that are not necessarily positive, such as studies suggesting that AI could reduce cognitive abilities and CT, for example, through cognitive offloading and overreliance on AI.
Prof. Dr. Elena Mäkiö
Prof. Dr. Juho Mäkiö
Dr. Freeha Azmat
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- critical thinking
- artificial intelligence in education
- curriculum innovation
- ai-enhanced assessment
- human–ai collaboration
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