Critical Thinking and Strategies for the Writing of Argumentative Essays in university students
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22308833Keywords:
Critical thinking, written expression, college studentsAbstract
Critical Thinking (CT) and Strategies for Writing Argumentative Essays (SWAE) are fundamental competencies for a well-rounded education. However, their interaction and joint development still pose challenges in higher education. The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between CT and SWAE. A non-experimental, cross-sectional, descriptive-correlational design was used. The sample consisted of 141 students from the Professional Academic School of Secondary Education, majoring in Language and Literature, at the National University of Trujillo, who completed two previously validated questionnaires. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics, including Spearman's correlation coefficient, bootstrap analysis, the Kruskal-Wallis test, and the simple linear regression model. The results show a significant and highly positive relationship between the two variables (ρ = 0.819, p < .001) and between their respective dimensions. In addition, significant differences were identified across academic cycles; however, limited levels of overall student performance persist. Finally, SWAE was found to have a high predictive power for CT, explaining 83.7% of its variability. This study provides valid and robust empirical evidence regarding this relationship and establishes SWAE as a significant predictor of CT.
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