Critical and creative thinking development tools under war conditions: efl classroom online mode

Abstract

The paper deals with the issue of EFL teaching under conditions of war and with provoking learners to develop and improve the skills of critical as well as creative thinking. To the priorities of the paper belong the outlining of the teaching tools and shaping peculiarities of their application under conditions of unstable internet connection and inability to join the tutorial being under war conditions. The article offers an assessment of the tools to use in EFL classes for undergraduate students of the Law school based on the responses of the learners provided within two questionnaires conducted in the academic years 2021–2022 and 2022–2023. Among the most effective tools are those of a predominantly digitalised nature that enables to launch the skills of problem-solving regardless of the place of residence and the electric power blackout schedules. The respondent’s points of view are crucial as far as the efficacy of the tools named by them is concerned. The relation of the tools mentioned by the respondents, as the most effective ones to the development of critical thinking and creative thinking skills, is described and their influence is explained. The paper offers the 3-staged approach to acquiring critical thinking skills while dealing with different educational tasks. The impact of the tools mentioned by the respondents on acquiring creative thinking skills is elicited. The article draws special attention to the correspondence of M-O-V-E approach to the formation of professional vocabulary in combination with FLIPPed classroom and the EFL teaching concept postulated by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment, supporting the same principles of life-long learning and sustainable education grounding on the high standard of teaching strategy as those adhered to in the paper.