The Effectiveness of Critical Thinking Training for Cooperative Learning among Students of Islamic Azad University, Tehran North Branch

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of critical thinking training for cooperative learning among students of Islamic Azad University, Tehran North Branch in 2017. The research method was applied in terms of its purpose and in terms of data collection method, a semi-experimental design was a pre-test and post-test design with control and follow-up group. The statistical population consisted of 60 male and female students, majoring in accounting that were assigned to two groups of 30 experimental and control groups using available sampling method. The experimental group received eight 90-minute sessions of critical thinking training, while the control group did not receive this training. The questionnaire proposed by Cho and Bowley (1999) were used for collecting data about cooperative learning. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics (covariance analysis and t-dependent analysis) and analyzed using SPSS-V22 software. The results showed that the critical thinking training has affected cooperative learning and its sustainability has remained stable over time. Therefore, teaching critical thinking could improve cooperative learning in students.