I was fascinated by a tweet I came across today discussing a fifty-year-old paper that outlined ideas for what makes a theory interesting. The tweet suggested that these ideas could also be used to generate interesting articles, blog posts, and for critical thinking in general.
The 12 factors that make a theory interesting, as originally outlined by Murray Davis in a 1971 article, can be applied in various ways. They can help in determining engaging topics for popular articles, guide the search for disruptive ideas, and even encourage thinking outside-the-box. I wondered if these factors could be incorporated into classroom activities to push students to think creatively.
In my IB Theory of Knowledge class, I often challenge students to consider new paradigms, and I believe that combining the concepts from this paper could further enhance their critical thinking skills. To make it more accessible for high school students, the twelve factors would need to be simplified from their original descriptions in the paper.
Upon reading the paper, That’s Interesting: Towards a Phenomenology of Sociology and a Sociology of Phenomenology by Murray S. Davis, I found brief explanations for each of the twelve factors. While not very student-friendly, these summaries could be used as a starting point for creating more digestible versions for classroom use.
By summarizing each factor in a way that high school students can easily grasp, I hope to incorporate these ideas into my teaching practice. I plan to work on revising and adapting the concepts from the paper to make them more accessible to my students, and I will share updates on my progress.
Overall, I believe that incorporating the twelve factors that make a theory interesting into classroom activities can help students develop their critical thinking skills and encourage them to explore new ideas.
This post has been added to The Best Resources On Teaching & Learning Critical Thinking In The Classroom.