基于英語議論文的中國(guó)高中生思辨技能研究-英語專業(yè)外文翻譯畢業(yè)論文正文終稿

蘇州大學(xué)本科生畢業(yè)論文蘇州大學(xué)外國(guó)語學(xué)院本科畢業(yè)論文（2014屆）題目：基于英語議論文的中國(guó)高中生思辨技能研究 ChapterOneIntroduction1.1BackgroundCriticalthinkinghasbeenviewedasanessentialskillthatanindividualhastopossessinhispersonal,academicandsociallife.Inviewoftherapidadvancementoftechnology,Feuerstein(1999)remarksthatmoderntechnologicalsocietyincreasinglyrequiresthedevelopmentofindividualspossessingcriticalandcreativethinkingskills.ThesignificanceofCTisalsohighlightedintheNationalEnglishCurriculum(2011).Itdictatesthat“oneofthehighlevelgoalsofthenine-yearcompulsoryeducationistocultivatestudents’abilitiestoobserve,tomemorize,tothink,toimagineandtocreate,andtoincreasetheirvision”.Ontheotherhand,writing,beingathinkingdevice,playsanequallyprominentroleinthecultivationandmanifestationofstudents’CT.Writingandcommunicationofideasareindispensabletoalldisciplines.Whatismore,afterpreliminaryreviewintothissphere,itisfoundoutthatexistingresearchestendtochooseuniversityEnglishmajorsasparticipants,thereforeseniorhighschoolstudents’CTremainstobeinvestigated.1.2ObjectivesandSignificanceoftheStudyThestudyaimstoinvestigate,firstandforemost,thecharacteristicsofcriticalthinkingskillsamongthreegradesanditsdevelopmentalpattern;secondly,thecorrelationbetweenseniorseniorhighschoolstudents’totalscoreCTskillsandEnglishcurriculargrades;thirdly,whethergenderandmajor(scienceorliberalart)makesignificantdifferencetoCTskills.Thestudyissignificantinthatfirstlyitprovidesaglobalpictureofseniorhighschoolstudents’criticalthinkingskillsandthedevelopmentalpatternwithaqualitativemeasurementsupportedbyquantitativedata,revealingboththeweakandstrongfacetsofseniorhighschoolstudents’CTskills.ItalsomakeseffortsinfiguringouttherelationshipbetweenseveralpossibleinfluencingfactorsandCTskills.Secondly,theresearchwilldrawmoreattentiontoseniorhighschooleducationreform,withwhichseniorhighschoolstudentswillbegivenmorespaceandinitiativetogivetheirpotentialtofullplay.Thirdly,thisstudyservesasawell-foundedandcogentfeedbacktothefacultywherebyteacherscanadjusttheirteachingpracticeandincludemorecriticalthinkingtrainingprogramintospecificdisciplinessoastoequipstudentswithcriticalthinkingabilitiestofacefuturechallenges.ThisinturnhelpsteacherspaymoreattentiontotheirownCTskills.Lastly,studentscanbemoreawareoftheirowncriticalthinkingabilities,andchancesarethattheywillintentionallyreceivemoretrainingtoturnthemselvesintocriticalthinkers.1.3LayoutoftheStudyTheremainderofthispaperisorganizedasfollows.Chapter2reviewsfirstlythedefinitionsofCTfromtheperspectivesofphilosophyandpsychology;secondly,twodimensionsofCT:CTskillsandCTdispositions;andthenitpresentsthesignificanceofwritingandtheoriesontherelationshipbetweenCTandwriting.Lastly,thischapterreviewsrelatedstudiesonCT.Chapter3introducesthemethodologyusedinthisstudyincludingresearchquestions,participants,instruments,datacollectionandthedataanalysisprocess.Chapter4presentstheresultsofthestudy,includingaglobalpictureofseniorhighschoolstudents’CTskillsandthedevelopmentalpatternofCTskillsacrossthreegrades;furthermore,Chapter4elaboratesonthecorrelationbetweenthetotalscoreofCTskillsandstudents’Englishcurriculargrades;italsodiscusseswhethergenderandmajormakeadifferencetoCTskills.Chapter5servesasaconclusionanditpresentsthemajorfindings,researchimplicationsandsuggestionsforfuturestudy. ChapterTwoLiteratureReview2.1DefinitionofCriticalThinkingTheexistingliteratureisfraughtwithdivergentandcompetingunderstandingsofcriticalthinking;manyscholarsdefinecriticalthinkingfromdifferentperspectivesanddisciplines.Theword“critical”hasitsoriginintheGreekword“Kritikos”and“Kriterion”,indicatingtheabilitytoquestion,makesenseof,andtoanalyzethinkingaccordingtoacertaincriterion.Generallyspeaking,thedefinitionsofcriticalthinkingfallsintotwobroadcategories:philosophicaldefinitionsandpsychologicaldefinitions.2.1.1DefinitionofCriticalThinkingfromthePhilosophicalPerspectiveDefinitionsinthelightofphilosophytendtocomprehendcriticalthinkingfromtwobranches:ontheonehand,criticalthinkingisconsideredasreasonableandreflectivethinking;ontheotherhand,criticalthinkingmeanstheinitiativetomanagethethinkingprocessandmuchemphasisisgiventothemeta-cognitiveaspectofcriticalthinking.Historicallyspeaking,Dewey(1933)definesCTasreflectivethinking,wherebyeducationismeanttoprovideconditionstocultivatehabitsandtrainthemind.Dewey(1993:9)pointsoutthat“criticalthinkingisactive,persistent,andcarefulconsiderationofabelieforsupposedformofknowledgeinthelightofthegroundswhichsupportthefurtherconclusionstowhichittends”.Similarly,Ennis(1987,p.9)thinksthat“criticalthinkingisreasonable,reflectivethinkingthatisfocusedondecidingwhattobelieveordo”.Paul(1984)suggeststwolevelsofcriticalthinking.Thefirstinvolves“micro-logical,analyticalcriticalskills”,andatthesecondlevelPaul(1985)maintainsthatthereisafocusondialecticalordialogicalreasoning.Pauliscriticalofapproacheswhichtreatcriticalthinkingasaseriesofdiscrete,technicalskillswithoutincorporatingbroaderissuesofvalues.Glaser(1985)believesthatcriticalthinkinginvolvesrecognitionofassumptionsandvalues,evaluatingargumentsandevidence,drawinginferences,andalteringjudgmentswhenjustified.Thoseskillsinvolveknowledgeoflogicalinquiryandreasoningandanappropriateattitudeofbeingdisposedtothinkproblemsinathoughtful,perceptivemanner.2.1.2DefinitionofCriticalThinkingfromthePsychologicalPerspectiveDefinitionsgivenfromtheperspectiveofpsychologyconcentrateonthecognitivedimensionofcriticalthinking,andcriticalthinkingistheepitomeofanintellectuallydisciplinedprocess.Halpern(1997,p.4)assertsthatcriticalthinkingisthe“useofthosecognitiveskillsorstrategiesthatincreasetheprobabilityofadesirableoutcome”.Morerecently,CThasbeenviewedasconsistingofhigher-orderthinkingskills.Astleitner(2002)definescriticalthinkingasahigher-orderthinkingskillwhichmainlyconsistsofevaluatingarguments.ScrivenandPaul(2003,p.132)definecriticalthinkingas“theintellectuallydisciplinedprocessofactivelyandskillfullyconceptualizing,analyzing,synthesizing,and/orevaluatinginformationgatheredfrom,orgeneratedbyobservation,experience,reflection,reasoning,orcommunicationasarubrictobeliefandaction.”Petress(2004,p.461)pointsoutthatcriticalthinkingexaminesassumptions,discernshiddenvalues,evaluatesevidence,andassessesconclusions.Inrecentyears,criticalthinkingisincreasinglydefinedwithreferencetotheproblem-solvingprocess.Halpern(2003,p.6)furtherdefinescriticalthinkingas“purposeful,reasoned,andgoal-orientedandthekindofthinkinginvolvedinsolvingproblems,formulatinginferences,calculatinglikelihoods,andmakingdecisions”.ThemostpopulousdefinitionfromtheperspectiveofpsychologyisproposedbyFacione(1990,p.4).InDelphiReport,criticalthinkingisdefinedas“purposeful,self-regulatoryjudgmentwhichresultsininterpretation,analysis,evaluation,andinference,aswellasexplanationoftheevidential,conceptual,methodological,criteriological,orcontextualconsiderationsuponwhichthatjudgmentisbased”.Thestudyisbasedonthisconceptualframeworkbecausetheclassificationinitselfisadoptablewithseniorseniorhighschoolstudentsanditisconsistentwiththeratingrubricusedinthisstudy.DimensionsofCriticalThinkingCriticalthinkingisconsideredtoencompasstwodimensions:thefirstisthecognitivedimension——criticalthinkingskills;thesecondistheaffectivedimension——criticalthinkingdispositions.2.2.1CriticalThinkingSkillsInadditiontotheabstractdefinitionsofcriticalthinking,manyscholarshaveattemptedtodefinecriticalthinkingintermsofitscorecognitiveskills.Bloom(1956)proposedasix-levelCriticalThinkingTaxonomy;heproposesthatthefundamentalcognitiveabilitiesareknowledge,comprehension,application,analysis,synthesisandevaluation.Thesixskillsarerankedsequentiallyintermsofthecomplexity,andthesequencesuggeststheprogressivecognitiveprocessoflearning.ThemostwidelyacceptedandmostfrequentlycitedclassificationofcriticalthinkingskillsisdevelopedbyFacione(1990).Beginningin1987,theCommitteeofAmericanPhilosophicalAssociation(APA)gathered46expertsfromfieldsofphilosophy,education,socialscienceandphysicalsciencetoconceptualizeCTskills,andthefinalconsensusreachedbytheexpertsisthatcriticalthinkingskillsincludesixsub-skillsofinterpretation,analysis,explanation,evaluation,inference,andself-regulation,eachofwhichcontainsseveralspecificsub-skills.Eachofthecoreskillsofcriticalthinkingisdefinedasfollows(Facioneetal.,p.1990):Table1ClassificationofCriticalThinkinginDelphiReportInterpretationTocomprehendandexpressthemeaningorsignificanceofawidevarietyofexperiments,situations,data,events,judgments,conventions,beliefs,rules,proceduresorcriteria.AnalysisToidentifytheintendedandactualinferentialrelationshipsamongstatements,questions,concepts,descriptionsorotherformsofrepresentationintendedtoexpressbeliefs,judgments,experiences,reasons,information,oropinions.EvaluationToaccessthecredibilityofstatementsorotherrepresentationswhichareaccountsordescriptionsofaperson’sperception,experience,situation,judgment,belief,oropinion;andtoaccessthelogicalstrengthoftheactualorintendedinferentialrelationshipsamongstatements,descriptions,questionsorotherformsofrepresentation.InferenceToidentifyandsecureelementsneededtodrawreasonableconclusions;toformconjecturesandhypotheses;toconsiderrelevantinformationandtoeducetheconsequencesflowingfromdata,statements,principles,evidence,judgments,beliefs,opinions,concepts,descriptions,questionsorotherformsofrepresentation.ExplanationTostatetheresultsofone’sreasoning;tojustifythatreasoningintermsoftheevidential,conceptual,methodological,criteriologicalandcontextualconsiderationsuponwhichone’sresultswerebased;andtopresentone’sreasoningintheformofcogentarguments.Self-RegulationSelf-consciouslytomonitorone’scognitiveactivities,theelementsusedinthoseactivities,andtheresultseduced,particularlybyapplyingskillsinanalysisandevaluationtoone’sowninferentialjudgmentswithaviewtowardquestioning,confirming,validating,orcorrectingeitherone’sreasoningorone’sresults.Table2ListofCriticalThinkingCognitiveSkillsandSub-SkillsSkillSub-SkillInterpretationCategorizationDecodingSignificanceClarifyingMeaningAnalysisExaminingIdeasIdentifyingArgumentAnalyzingArgumentEvaluationAssessingClaimsAssessingArgumentsInferenceQueryingEvidenceConjecturingAlternativesDrawingConclusionsExplanationExplainingStatingResultsJustifyingProceduresPresentingArgumentsSelf-RegulationSelf-ExaminationSelf-CorrectionSincewewillonlyexplorethecorecognitivecriticalskills,thereforethesub-skillswillnotbeexpoundedindetail.WastonandGlaser(2002,pp.22-23)associateCTwiththefollowingabilities:inferencesdrawnfromfactualstatements;recognitionofassumptionsinaseriesofstatements;tointerpretwhetherconclusionsarewarrantedornot,todetermineifconclusionsfollowfrominformationingivenstatements,andtoevaluateargumentsasbeingstrongandrelevantorweakandirrelevant.Halpern(2008)putsforwardhisviewthatCTiscomposedofthefollowingsubskills:verbal-reasoningskills;argument-analysisskills;andthinkingskillssuchashypothesistesting;decision-making,problem-makingandproblem-solvingskills.OnthebasisoftheTwo-dimensionalmodel(Facione,1990)andTriangularmodel(Ling,2006),Wen(2009)putsforwardtheleveltheoreticalmodelofcriticalthinkingskillswhichfurtherdividescriticalthinkingskillsintotwocategories:metacriticalthinkingskillsandcriticalthinkingskills,whatismore,thelatterisunderthemanagementandmonitoringoftheformer.Table3Wen’sClassificationofCriticalThinkingSkillsMetaCriticalThinkingSkillsCriticalThinkingSkillsCognitionAffectionSkillsStandardsCuriosityOpennessConfidenceUprightnessPerseveranceAnalysisReasoningEvaluationClarityandaccuracyRelevanceLogicalityProfundityFlexibilityTheabove-mentionedfivetypesofclassificationshavedifferentcharacteristicsandsharesomefeaturesincommon.IntermsofBloom’s(1956)taxonomy,itprovidesastructuralpresentationofawiderangeofcognitiveskills.Itisclearandworkableinthatallskillsarelabeledwithdifferentcomplexityforthecognitivedevelopmentofstudentsatheterogeneouslevels.Thereisnodefiniteboundarybetweendifferentskills,andtheskillsascendnaturallytoahigherlevel.However,theclassificationispopularandwidelyusedinthefieldofdevelopingcurriculum,designingteachingsyllabus,stipulatingexamplansetc.Facione’s(1990)classificationenjoysgreatpopularityandprominenceinthatitistheconsensusreachedbyexpertsfromdifferentfields.Theclassification,initself,ismorecompleteandapplicable.Anotherremarkablefeatureofthisclassificationisthatitincludestheskillofself-regulationintotheframework.Morestrikingly,theunderlyingassumptionofRubricfortheQualitativeSkillsInstrument(UF/QCTS)developedbyscholarsfromUniversityofFloridacentersaroundtheconstructsofthesesixcriticalthinkingskillsasproposedintheDelphiReport,whichprovidestheratingprocesswithreliableandconsistentguidance.Therefore,thepresentstudybasesitstheoreticalframeworkonFacione’sclassification.SpeakingofWastonandGlaser’s(2002)classificationandHalpern’s(2008)classification,thoughtheskillslistedareelaborate;theyarecomplicatedandintermingled,whichposesdifficultytothegradingprocedures.Wen’s(2009)modelsupplementsthepreviousclassificationsinthatitaddsthemetacriticalthinkingskillsandaffection,andproposesthatmetacriticalthinkingskillsmonitorandcontroltheCTskills.Thetwo-layerrelationshipserveswelltoemphasizethedominantrolesubjectiveinitiativeplaysincriticalthinkingprocess.However,thereisnoestablishedcompositionratingrubricbasedonthisclassification.Alltheabove-mentionedclassificationsviewcriticalthinkingasencompassingawiderangeofcognitiveskillsandthehierarchyofCTskillsisinternallystructuredfromlesscomplextothemostcomplex.2.2.2CriticalThinkingDispositionsManyscholarsworkunremittinglytolookintothedispositionaldimensionofCT.RobertEnnis(1985)expandshisdefinitionofcriticalthinkingtoincludeasetofthirteendispositionsandtwelveabilities.HugginsandEdelman(1986,p.333)definecriticalthinkingasthedispositiontoprovideevidenceinsupportofone’sconclusionsandrequestevidencefromothersbeforeacceptingtheirconclusions.Stahl’s(1991)studyalsoprovidesasetofdefinitionsandalistofseparatecriticalthinkingskillsforagiftededucationalprogramme.Oneoftheagreeddefinitionsisthatcriticalthinkingisanattitudeofbeingdisposedtoconsiderinathoughtful,perceptivemannertheproblemsandsubjectsthatcomewithintherangeofone’sexperience.Ikuenobe(2001,p.325)suggeststhat“criticalthinkinginvolvesadispositiontorigorousprocessofinquiry,learningandacquiringknowledgeintermsofrationallyevaluatingandjustifyingbeliefs”.ThemostendorsedversionofCTdispositionsistheoneproposedbyFacione(1990),hethinksthatagoodcriticalthinkershouldpossesssimultaneouslyCTskillsandCTdispositions.AffectivedispositionsofCTcalledforrespectivelyinlifeingeneralandspecificquestionsandproblemsarelistedinTable4.Table4AffectiveDispositionsofCriticalThinkingApproachestoLifeandLivinginGeneralInquisitivenesswithregardtoawiderangeofissuesConcerntobecomeandremainwell-informedAlertnesstoopportunitiestousecriticalthinkingTrustintheprocessofreasonedinquirySelf-confidenceinone’sabilitytoreasonOpen-mindednessregardingdivergentviewsFlexibilityinconsideringalternativesandopinionsUnderstandingoftheopinionsofothersFair-mindednessinappraisingreasoningHonestyinfacingone’sownbiases,prejudices,stereotypes,egocentricorsociocentrictendenciesPrudenceinsuspending,makingoralteringjudgmentsWillingnesstoreconsiderandreviseviewswherehonestreflectionsuggestschangeiswarrantedApproachestoSpecificIssues,QuestionsorProblemsClarityinstatingthequestionorconcernOrderlinessinworkingwithcomplexityDiligenceinseekingrelevantinformationReasonablenessinselectingandapplyingcriteriaCareinfocusingattentionontheconcernathandPersistencethroughdifficultiesareencounteredPrecisiontothedegreepermittedbythesubjectandthecircumstanceTheabovementionedaffectivedimensionsarelatercategorizedintosevendimensions:analyticity,self-confidence,inquisitiveness,maturity,open-mindedness,systematicity,andtruth-seeking.Sincethestudywillonlyexploreintocorecriticalthinkingskills,theconcretedescriptionofeachdispositionwillnotbetalkedindetailinthisstudy.CriticalThinkinginWritingInthissection,wewillelaborateontheimportanceofwritingandtherelationshipbetweenCTandwritingsoastojustifytheuseofanargumentationastheinstrumentofthestudy.2.3.1TheImportanceofWritingMurray(1972,p.12)pointsoutthat“writingisaprocessofdiscoverythroughlanguage.”Itisdepictedasaprocessduringwhichthewritertriestoexploreintotheoldknowledge,feelingsandexperience.Itisaprocesswherebylanguageisusedasatooltolearnabouttheworld,tocommunicatewhatweknow.Erwin(2010)listsseveralbenefitsofessaytestsingeneral,includingthefollowing:(1)enhanceconstructvalidity;(2)reduceracialbias;(3)facultyinvolvementindevelopmentandscoring,leadingtomoreawarenessofthecentralroleofcriticalthinking,problemsolving,andwritinginthecollegecurriculum;and(4)theflexibilitytoassessawiderrangeofskillsthanisfeasiblewiththemultiple-choiceformat.ForWritingacrosstheCurriculumprograms,Mcleod(1992,p.4)arguesthat“writingisnotonlyawayofshowingwhatonehaslearnedbutitselfamodeoflearning——thatwritingcanbeusedasatoolfor,aswellasatestof,learning”.Emig(1997,p.122)pointsoutthat“writingrepresentsauniquemodeoflearning——notmerelyvaluable,notmerelyspecial,butunique”.Hebelievesthatwritingrespondstocognitivelearningstrategiesbecausetherealizationandacquisitionofmosthigh-ordercognitivefunctionsdependheavilyonthesupportsystemofverballanguage——inparticular,ofthewrittenlanguage.AccordingtoFlowerandHayes(1981),writingisahighlycognitiveskillandthewritingprocesscallsforsimultaneoususeofseveralskills,suchasplanning,brainstorming,drafting,organizing,reviewingetc.Lotman(1988)pointsoutthatwritingisnotonlythemediumconveyingliteralmeaning,buta“thinkingdevice”usedtogenerateideas,expressattitudesetc.Differentfromlisteningandreading,writingisaproductiveskill.Hedge(2002)holdsthatwritingisaprocessinwhichlanguageisthemanifestationofthought,anditisaprocessthatentailsthinkinganddiscovering;itisnottantamounttorecallingfromrotememorizationandretelling.Toconclude,thenatureofwritingisinteractiveandsocial.Writingisaheuristictoolwithwhichlearnerscanlearnandgethigher-ordercognitiveskills;itis,atthesametime,acredibledisplayofthelearners’presentcognitiveabilities.2.3.2TheoriesontheRelationshipbetweenWritingandCriticalThinkingIntheresearch,anargumentativewritingtestisemployedasameasurementofstudents’CTskills.Therefore,itisnecessarytoexplaintherelationshipbetweenwritingandcriticalthinking.TherelationshipbetweenCTandwritingisbackedupbythetheoryofConstructivism.AccordingtoWang(2006）constructivismsplitsintotwobranchesofthought:cognitiveconstructivismandsocialconstructivism.Asthelatterstressestheinteractionsbetweenthelearnerandthepeers,teachersandthelearningcontext,inwhichcooperationandcommunicationplayapivotalrole.WhiletheparticipantsinthisstudyarerequiredtowriteanEnglishargumentationindependently,sotherelationshipbetweenwritingandCTwillonlybeelaboratedonfromtheperspectiveofcognitiveconstructivism.Generallyspeaking,writingisconsideredasathinkingdeviceinthecognitive-constructivistsphere.AccordingtoBruner(1966,pp.108-109),“wordsareinvitationstoformconcepts”,andBruner(1973)drawsaparallelbetweenawrittentextanda“cognitiveamplifier”.Wells(1990)alsopointsouttheepistemicpropertyofwrittentextwhichisusedasatoolforthinkinganddevelopingnewunderstandingthroughthedialogueandinteractionbetweenthereaderorthewriterandthetext.Inthisprocess,thewriterconstructsmeaningbasedonhisexperienceorexistentknowledge.Whiletheabove-mentionedliteratureonlyattemptstorevealtherelationshipbetweenthinkingandwritingfromageneralperspective,failingtorevealtheunderlyingandspecificintellectualrelationship.FlowerandHayes’(1981)“cognitivemodelsofwritingprocess”makeupforthepaucity.Contrarytothetraditionalassumptionthatwritingisaseriesofdiscretesteps,FlowerandHayes(1981)believethatwritingisaprocessofthinkingprocess.Thecognitivemodeliscomposedofthewritingcontext,thewriter’slong-termmemoryandtheactualwritingprocesswhichincludebrainstorming,drafting,planning,reviewingetc.Thefirsttwocomponentsprovidetheactualwritingprocesswiththecontext.Theactualprocess,asarguedbyFlowerandHayes,requirestheparticipationofseveralcognitiveskills.Chaffee(1999)fillsthegapthrough“Thinking-WritingModel”whichisshapedasathree-layercircle.Thefirst-layercircleiscomposedofthebasicelementsofthewritingprocess,includinggeneratingideas,definingathesis,organizingideas,draftingandrevising.Thesecond-layercircleiscomposedofthreeinteractiveprocessesinwriting:thinkingcreatively,thinkingcriticallyandthinkingthoughtfully.Thethird-layercircleprovidesfourbasicelementsofwritingcontextthatwritersshouldtakeintoconsiderationinactualwriting,namely,purpose,audience,subjectandwriter.Aswecanseefromthismodel,thethreelayersofwritingarecloselyrelatedtoCT.Thefirstlayer,takingdefiningathesisandorganizingideasforexample,arerespectivelyexplicitelementstipulatedinthedefinitionofthesub-skillsofinterpretationandexplanationintheDelphiReport;thesecondlayer,whichisfeaturedwiththinkingcreatively,criticallyandthoughtfully,ismostcloselyrelatedtoCT.ThethirdlayerisalsoassociatedwithCTasitbearsresemblancetothesub-skillofregulationofCT.Cognitivelyspeaking,itissensibleandjustifiedtoexplorestudents’CTinEnglishaugmentatives.RelatedStudiesonCriticalThinkingInthissection,wewillreviewrelatedstudiesthatinvestigatetherelationshipbetweenwritingandCT,wewillalsolookintosimilarstudiesthatlookintothedevelopmentalpatternofCTskillsandthatexploretherelationshipbetweendifferentvariablesandCT.Thesestudiesserveasgoodreferenceforthepresentstudy.2.4.1RelatedStudiesontheRelationshipbetweenCriticalThinkingandWritingManyresearchersshowgreatinterestinexploringtherelationshipbetweencriticalthinkingandwritingability.TheystartwiththetraditionalwisdomthatwritingandcriticalthinkingareinextricablylinkedasevidencedbyLindeman(1987)thatwritingisatoolthroughwhichpeoplecanknowabouttheworldandthemselves.However,alotofresearchhasdemonstratedmixedresultsasfortherelationshipbetweenCTandwriting.CondonandKelly-Riley(2004)inWashingtonStateUniversity(WSU)havedevelopedtwolarge-scaleassessmentprogramstoevaluatestudents’learningoutcomes.Thelargest,theWSUWritingAssessmentProgram,diagnosticallyevaluatestudents’writingsatentryandatmid-careertoidentifystudentsrequiringadditionalwritingsupport.Byexaminingthefreshmen-andjunior-leveltimedwritingsamples,thesurprisinginverserelationshipbetweenwritingscoresandcriticalthinkingscoresisrevealed.Inotherwords,thebetterthewriting,thelowerthecriticalthinkingscore;andthemoreproblematicthewriting,thehigherthecriticalthinkingscores.Theycometotheconclusionthatwritingisindeedatoolforcriticalthinking;however,thewritingprocessisnotalwayssimultaneouslyaccompaniedbytheprocessofcriticalthinking,ifthereis,thecriticalthinkingisonlyemployedsuperficiallyanditisnotbroughttofullplay.Meanwhile,thepositivecorrelationbetweencriticalthinkingabilityandwritingperformanceisalsomanifestedinsomestudies.SomescholarsinChinaalsoinvestigatetherelationshipbetweenthinkingandwritingprocess.Forinstance,WenandLiu(2006)conductedanexploratorystudyabout120EnglishargumentativeessayswrittenbyEnglishmajorswiththepurposetofindfeaturesandproblemsreflectedinabstractthinking.WithreferencetothefourstagesinwritingaChineseessayandafterthecloseexaminationoftwentybestessaysfromuniversitylanguagelearnersfromgradeonetogradefour;theyconstructatentativeframeworkoffourparametersforagoodargumentativeessay:relevance,explicitness,coherenceandsufficiency.Thestudypresupposesthemutuallyreflectiveandassociatedrelationshipbetweenwritingandthinking,becauseitusesthewritingsam