Pensamento Crítico Promovido em Aulas de Química Orgânica Durante a Resolução de um Estudo de Caso por Estudantes de Graduação em Química do Ensino Superior

Studies indicate the need for educators to propose problematizing activities that can develop critical thinking. In this sense, a teaching approach based on Case Study (CS) has shown promise. This work investigated which critical thinking capacities were manifested by chemistry students through writing during the resolution of a CS in an Organic Chemistry course. The course, which was based on the CS methodology, was taught to a class of 20 students in their third semester. It was observed that the three texts produced by the students at different times showed lower levels of critical thinking in the initial stages, but these levels increased throughout the course. The data indicated that the CS made students active in seeking information to solve the problem, developing various critical thinking capacities. Furthermore, the CS may have resulted in a change in posture for both the teacher and the students, as it required the teacher to reflect more critically on her practice and demanded a more autonomous attitude from the students regarding their learning. It can be concluded that the use of CS appears to be a promising methodology for developing various skills for students' more conscious engagement in society.