Does Saudi Society and the School Community Affect the Improvement of Critical Thinking Skills in Saudi Arabian Elementary Schools?

The intent of this explanatory sequential mixed-method study is to examine Islamic teachers’ thoughts on improving critical thinking skills in elementary schools in the Southwestern province of Saudi Arabia. This study involves the collection of quantitative data and an explanation of the quantitative results with qualitative data. In the first phase, a survey was administered to Islamic teachers in Saudi elementary schools to assess their opinions on improving students’ critical thinking skills and to identify the factors that influence or hinder their implementation of critical thinking instruction. In the second phase, qualitative data was collected using semi-structured interviews with a number of Islamic teachers in order to explore more fully their perceptions toward improving students’ critical thinking skills in Saudi elementary schools. The study’s findings suggest there is a need to also examine female Islamic teachers’ perceptions toward critical thinking in the Southwestern region of Saudi Arabia in order to identify the similarities and differences between the perceptions of male and female teachers.