Critical Thinking Skills as a Predictor of Student Success in General Chemistry: A Correlational Stud

There is a gap in the literature regarding the association between critical thinking (CT) skills and student success in chemistry. This study sought to fill this gap by evaluating the association between CT skills and student success in chemistry. The purpose of this study was (a) to determine whether there is a positive correlation between CT skills and student achievement in general chemistry and (b) to evaluate the predictive power of CT skills on student achievement in general chemistry. The research questions addressed in this study were Research Question 1: Is there a significant positive correlation between critical thinking skills and student achievement in general chemistry? and Research Question 2: To what extent can student achievement in general chemistry be predicted from the level of student's critical thinking skills? This quantitative study employed a nonexperimental, correlational research design. A sample of 112 General Chemistry I students in a community college in the Midwest participated in the study. Participants were predominantly White. Two types of data were collected: The CT skills were measured using Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (WGCTA) and student success in the course was measured using the Total score. Data were analyzed using SPSS and post hoc power analysis was conducted using G*Power software. Simple correlation test revealed a strong association between student CT skills and student success in General Chemistry I course (r = .66, p < .001, p < .05). Linear regression demonstrated a statistically significant positive relationship (F(1, 110) = 86.73, p < .001) between the two variables. Additionally, it was found that CT accounts for 44% of the variability of the Total score. It was concluded that students with higher CT tend to achieve better in the General Chemistry I course and that student CT score may be a fairly good predictor of student potential to succeed in the course.