Think 2 Impact

This is the title of Montreat College’s current QEP.

Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP). Accredited schools of higher education choose a major initiative every five years to address areas where they want to enhance learning. Montreat College has chosen critical thinking as the focus of this initiative. The stated purpose of T2I is to develop the critical thinking skills of students so that they can graciously impact the world around them.

That students have enhanced ability to:

1. Identify: Students will be able to identify or derive alternative interpretations of data or observations.
2. Explain: Students will be able to explain how new information can change their understanding and ability to address a problem, so they can graciously and effectively engage with the world.
3. Recognize: Students will be able to recognize new information that might support or contradict a hypothesis.

Prior to the implementation of the QEP, Montreat College did not have a unified plan of action for campus-wide development of critical thinking for students. The lack of college-wide intentional planning created a gap in student learning and development. This hindered students from acquiring the personal and professional skills to graciously impact the world around them and implicitly allowed personal opinion and emotional reasoning rather than creative thinking, problem-solving, and communication of multifaceted ideas.

In conjunction with learning the skills for critical thinking T2I also encourages “gracious impact” with these skills. To be gracious is to act with humility and in charitable consideration of those with whom one is interacting, remembering the dignity and worth of all people inherent in the Imago-Dei. Undergraduate curricula focusing primarily on critical thought is a great starting point however, such a skill set is of limited use if students cannot communicate learned truths in a way which graciously impacts the world.

All of the instruments we are using to assess critical thinking have been built into the curriculum and/or assessment cycle. There are no additional requirements for students to fulfill. In order to measure the effectiveness of T2I through multiple measures, including the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) VALUE Rubrics a macro-level and micro-level assessment plan has been established. For example, an intro-level Education course assignment focusing on critical thinking will be identified, a sample of student submissions will be selected, a committee of non-Education Department faculty will assess these submissions using the Montreat College T2I Critical Thinking Rubric and the results of this assessment will be reported to the Education Department for inclusion in their annual program assessment. All results are provided to specific departments following the completion of each annual assessment cycle. The results of each academic year will be utilized to inform the practices and goals of the following academic year.

T2I is a means of improving the overall College curriculum by supporting the College’s mission: Montreat College is an independent, Christ-centered, liberal arts institution that educates students through intellectual inquiry, spiritual formation, and preparation for calling and career. T2I will be integrally Christ-centered through the focus on asking difficult questions, communicating and dialoguing about these questions and the use of a discipleship model in the Fellowship of Philosophers program. All of these are hallmarks of the ministry and teaching of Jesus Christ. Students, faculty, and staff will tackle contemporary issues, going into the depths of intellectual inquiry – beyond rote memorization to adaptive skills that allow for success in many fields and are integral to spiritual formation, growth, and development.

Preparation for calling and career will be an important and welcomed byproduct of T2I. The world’s most desired employers are continually seeking knowledge that goes beyond mere book smarts: they want applicants who can be creative, graciously critical and go beyond superficial standards of excellence. Finally, students will impact the world for Jesus Christ as only critical thinkers can, having a unique ability to affect change in a cynical world.

Students

• Participate in the activities provided for you through the QEP.
• Think about the way you approach course content: ask questions, analyze the material, make connections between your classes, etc.
• Be a friend of critical thinking and encourage your peers to ask questions and seek deeper understanding.
• Consider being a part of the Fellowship of Philosophers or a Wandering Philosopher.

Staff

• Be prepared to answer questions the SACSCOC On-site committee may have about the QEP
• Read QEP documents.
• Create opportunities for engaging students in conversation that requires and empowers them to critically think.
• Ask questions (email Beth Maslin at beth.maslin@montreat.edu)

Faculty

• Read the QEP Report
• Participate in the activities and professional development provided for you through the QEP.
• Think about the reasoning /critical thinking competency and how you approach that in your major courses
• Serve as a Faculty Fellow for the Fellowship of Philosophers
• Collect and forward data when requested
• Ask questions (email Beth Maslin at beth.maslin@montreat.edu)

Use the faculty fellow nomination form.

A dyad of faculty from diverse disciplines who host a Fellowship of Philosophers group for the sake of modeling critical thought for and among a specified diverse group of students.

The Faculty Fellows create a space for students where pertinent issues are discussed, thinking and reasoning are sharpened, and love for truth is cultivated.

• Cultivate a hospitable atmosphere where gracious conversation occurs around difficult issues.
• Work with a fellow faculty member, of a different discipline, to model critical thought and gracious interaction for students.
• Co-host dinner gatherings for Fellowship of Philosophers (FoPs) once per month (dinner reimbursed by T2I) for the full academic year.
• Co-host on campus meetings for FoPs once per month for the full academic year.
• Develop a mentorship/discipleship connection with identified Wandering Philosopher(s) from within one’s given FoP by meeting with that student one-on-one once per month beginning in the Spring of an academic year.
• Provide oversight and guidance at monthly Spring “Coffee House Forums” hosted by Wandering Philosophers
• Complete brief google form on progression of each FoP.
• Share experiences as a Fellow with the Critical Thinking Director and QEP Implementation Committee at the end of each semester.

• Consulting about pedagogy, instructional design, assessment and instructional technologies to support critical thinking development.
• Relief of one assigned committee meeting per month.
• Stipend paid during the current academic year.*
• Literature to support the critical thinking development of students through gracious conversation. A primary text is provided after one’s nomination to be a Faculty Fellow, to be read over the summer in preparation for the fall when the new Fellowship of Philosophers begin.
• Discretionary budget to engage and bless students within one’s FoP.

Once chosen through the College’s nomination process for Faculty Fellows, as outlined in the QEP document, the faculty member will have the opportunity to accept or deny the Faculty Fellow role. If accepted the Faculty Fellow will be prepared through various facets to provide healthy facilitation of an atmosphere for students where pertinent issues are discussed, thinking and reasoning are sharpened, and love for truth is cultivated.

• Attend an orientation/training led by the QEP Director** on how to successfully lead group discussions for critical thought and gracious communication. Components of the training include, but are not limited to:
  • Discussion based not lecture based formats
  • How to engage the students that may be more reticent to speak up
  • How to manage the group so that all are empowered in their particular thought and leadership styles
  • When and why to play the devil’s advocate
  • What encouraging critical thought for graciously impacting the world looks like within verbiage, tone, and relationship
  • Modeling healthy disagreement as a key component to the Faculty Fellow role
• Be provided with a text to read over the summer regarding pedagogy which supports the critical thinking processes and development of students in higher education.

• Welcome.
• Article / Topic / Concept discussed.
  • The discussion element will have been previously provided to FoP students. FoP students are asked to come prepared with what they perceive to be opposing thoughts and underlying themes of the article, topic, or concept.
  • QEP Director** will provide options of an article, topic, or concept, however the Faculty Fellows may choose their own as well.
• Faculty Fellows ask the following questions for students to discuss based on the identified concepts of the particular gathering: (1) Who are we?, (2) Where are we?, (3) What is wrong?, (4) What is the solution?, and (5) What time is it?
  • Asking the final question, ‘What time is it?’ clarifies the shape of worldview thinking and keeps one from losing the important ‘this-world’ dimension of critical thinking.
• Concluding thoughts.
• Decide on date/time of next gathering.
• Complete brief google form sharing how the particular FoP progressed.

**QEP Director will eventually be replaced by a Critical Thinking Director

Definition

Critical Thinking is disciplined thinking that is clear, rational, open-minded, systematic, and informed by evidence (EO 1.2).

Framing Language

The culture of higher education includes the pursuit of truth, for the sake of conveying truth to the world. In the pursuit of truth students encounter various understandings and points of view. Therefore, CT is required for students’ development through understanding, evaluating, deciding, and graciously communicating ideas and conclusions.

The goal of Montreat College’s T2I is to develop the critical thinking skills of our students so that they can graciously impact the world around them. To assess the effectiveness of T2I the following rubric is utilized. The T2I rubric addresses the skills of problem solving and learning, creative thinking, and communication of multifaceted ideas, as each are skill based components of critical thinking.

Problem solving and learning include the ability to separate relevant and irrelevant information, to integrate multiple sources of information to solve problems and to learn and apply new information to solve real-world problems. Creative thinking involves identifying or deriving alternative interpretations for data or observations, recognizing new information that might support or contradict a hypothesis, and explaining how new information can change one’s understanding and ability to address a problem. Communication of multifaceted ideas includes the ability to communicate ideas graciously so engagement with the world can be done effectively and precisely.

Work samples to be assessed include, but are not limited to, student reflections, discussion board posts, and course presentations.

Glossary

• Disciplined thinking: Controlled thought that demonstrates elements defined below:
  • Clear: Expressing ideas in a straight-forward and simple manner.
  • Rational: Thought that clearly demonstrates cognitive reasoning to come to a logical conclusion.
  • Open-minded: A genuine critical openness to the ideas and beliefs of others (EO 2.4).
  • Systematic: Organized thought that follows a logical plan to investigate or explain an idea.
  • Evidence: Quantitative and qualitative information that is supported by direct observation and empirical sources.

Evaluators are encouraged to assign a zero to any work sample or collection that does not meet benchmark (cell one) level performance.

This rubric was created using the Association of American Colleges and Universities Critical Thinking VALUE Rubric. Retrieved from https://www.aacu.org/value-rubrics

What is it?

The Faculty fellows create a space for students where pertinent issues are discussed, thinking and reasoning are sharpened, and love for truth is cultivated.

Why do it?

• To cultivate a hospitable space where gracious conversation occurs around difficult issues.
• To work with a fellow faculty member, of a different discipline, to model critical thought and gracious interaction for students.
• To co-host dinner gatherings for Fellowship of Philosophers (FoPs) once per month (dinner reimbursed by T2I)
• To co-host on campus meetings for FoPs once per month
• To develop a mentorship/discipleship connection with identified Wandering Philosopher(s) from within one’s given FoP by meeting with that student one-on-one once per month
• To provide oversight and guidance at monthly Spring “Coffee House Forums” hosted by Wandering Philosophers

Who is it for?

• Faculty wanting to mentor, disciple, and lead a specific set of students in critical thinking and gracious impact regarding real-world issues.
• Faculty willing to commit to one academic year in such a capacity.

Nomination Process for Faculty Fellows

• All-college email sent out in April for initial nomination of Faculty fellows for the following academic year.
• Top six nominees will be notified prior to the May faculty meeting.
• Nominees that accept will be announced in the May faculty meeting for service beginning in the new academic year.

What is it?

The Fellowship of Philosophers gather because we believe the Christian Gospel encompasses the whole of life itself. In essence, this means that all things hold together in Christ: art, history, music, philosophy, mathematics, literature, poetry, medicine, law, justice, science. The Fellowship of Philosophers exists to explore Christian thought, dialogue, and imagination at Montreat College by hosting difficult conversations in a gracious forum. We envision a space on the college campus where students and faculty gather to pursue faith and learning together about a broad range of narratives and topics.

Why do it?

• To engage with issues relevant to life in the world and culture at large
• To sharpen thinking about a diverse selection of topics and challenging conversations
• To be mentored by a faculty supervisor
• To grow with a group of diverse students in life together
• For free meals once a month
• An opportunity to develop and practice skills valued in the marketplace

Who is it for?

• Any returning sophomore-senior student at Montreat College
• Students with a 3.0 GPA or higher
• Any student who desires to be challenged and grow intellectually through critically thinking and gracious community conversations

Nomination Process for Student Members

• FoP members will be nominated by faculty and current FoP members.
• Students will be selected each April and formally announced at the May faculty meeting and in the final Chapel of the academic year.
• Nominees will be celebrated by Faculty Fellows and current FoPs with a passing of the sash ceremony.
• Nominees announced in May are for the following academic year.

Assessment Subcommittee

A subcommittee of the QEP Committee with the purpose of developing a comprehensive assessment plan for the Quality Enhancement Plan

Critical Thinking

Disciplined thinking that is clear, rational, open-minded, systematic, and informed by evidence.

Faculty-Fellows

A dyad of faculty from diverse disciplines who host a Fellowship of Philosophers for the sake of modeling critical thought for and among a specified diverse group of students.

Faculty and Staff Development Subcommittee

A subcommittee of the QEP Committee with the purpose of training and edifying faculty and staff to teach and participate in critical thinking, within and outside of the classroom.

Fellowship of Philosophers

A discipleship/mentorship group hosted by two Faculty-fellows wherein a diverse representation of five to seven students meet monthly over dinner and monthly on campus to address relevant topics of the day through critically thought out conversation.

Graciously

To act with humility and in charitable consideration of those with whom one is interacting, remembering the reality of the Imago-Dei (Genesis 1:26) of all people regardless of personal agreement or disagreement.

Impact

Redemptive influence, as the Christ-centered perspective understands there has been a mandate given from Jesus Christ to the Christian (John 14:12-14; John 20:21) to be one which brings truth (1 Timothy 2:1-4), restoration (Romans 8:18-30; Acts 3:19-21), freedom (Isaiah 42:6-7), and hope for all of creation (Acts 1:7-8).

Marketing Subcommittee

A subcommittee of the QEP Committee with the purpose of ensuring the QEP is well promoted and understood among students, as well as faculty and staff.

Technology Subcommittee

A subcommittee of the QEP Committee with the purpose of identifying and implementing the use of technology to promote and support QEP CT across all instructional sites, for all students, faculty, and staff.

The World

Humanity and the environment, as all are a part of Creation (Genesis 1-2).

QEP Committee

The diverse team assigned the task of developing, writing, and implementing the QEP.

Wandering Philosopher

Student employees with outgoing and caring personalities that are trained to engage the student body, as well as faculty and staff, in critical thinking by posing questions (i.e. (1) Who are we?; (2) Where are we? (3) What is wrong? (4) What is the solution? And (5) What time is it?) and engaging others in lively, good-natured conversation, which may include debate

T2I Critical Thinking Rubric Glossary

Disciplined thinking

Controlled thought that demonstrates elements defined below:

• Clear — Expression of ideas in a straight-forward and simple manner.
• Rational — Thought that clearly demonstrates cognitive reasoning to come to a logical conclusion.
• Open-minded — A genuine critical openness to the ideas and beliefs of others.
• Systematic — Organized thought that follows a logical plan to investigate or explain an idea.
• Evidence — Quantitative and qualitative information that is supported by direct observation and empirical sources.

What is it?

Wandering Philosophers are selected out of the Fellowship of Philosophers to lead conversations in the broader Montreat College community. These leaders will initiate and host gracious conversations through the life of the campus in formal and informal settings.

Why do it?

• Greater campus leadership role in the thought life of fellow students
• Lead in gracious conversations at “coffee house” events
• Host various gatherings around difficult subjects and topics, honing personal skills at critical thinking, thinking creatively, problem solving, and communication
• Be closely mentored by faculty members
• Work with fellow Wandering Philosophers to engage peers and College-wide constituencies in critical thought.

Who is it for?

• Students who stand out among the FoP and are nominated by Faculty-fellows to lead in such a capacity.
• Students who desire to develop higher order thinking, specifically as such pertains to relevant real-world issues.

Nomination Process for Student Members

• Faculty-fellows nominate students from within their given FoP to become a Wandering Philosopher
• Wandering Philosophers are nominated in November of an academic year and solidified in December
• Wandering Philosophers will begin the role in January and fulfil the role throughout the Spring semester.

Articles

• The Whetstone Fall 2019

Documents

• Think 2 Impact, Montreat College’s QEP