Reading and Writing for Critical Thinking is a programme that usually uses the acronym RWCT. It is a comprehensive system that combines reading and writing with authentic classroom instruction to bring students to think independently and critically about the world. Information is not the goal here but only the starting point for further work. Ideologically, it is based on the pedagogy of the oppressed or, in the context of critical theory, that is, on socially responsive views. It reckons that the ability to work critically with information, to read and write, constitutes specific starting points for cultivating democratic and independent thinking.

From a practical point of view, RWCT consists of a theoretical didactic model that can be used both in school education and self-learning (i.e. the EUR model) And specific critical thinking methods (e.g., Pentad, INSERT, Diamond, etc.). In this module, we will only touch on some of them, as they also include, for example, mind maps, which we will work with independently and systematically.

Some statements about critical thinking:

• Critical thinking is independent, autonomous thinking.
• Information and awareness are the starting point for critical thinking.
• Critical thinking seeks and presents questions and problems.
• Critical thinking seeks thoughtful justifications.
• Critical thinking is thinking in society.
• Writing is the most valuable tool for critical thinking. (According to Klooster)

As the above list shows, critical thinking is surprisingly close to creative thinking but also to creative writing, creative techniques or working with information.

Since our focus is not on school didactics, we will only briefly discuss the model of evocation - awareness - reflection. It is a general model of learning applicable in school learning, as well as in various courses, online learning or self-learning. The authors of the RWCT, with which EUR is associated, emphasise the learner's active role - they should be the focus of pedagogical attention, and the content and pace should be adapted to them.

According to this model, each learning unit has three phases:

The timing of the three phases is not predetermined and varies depending on what topic you are working on and what it builds on. If you are working with a completely new phenomenon - for example, an introductory lecture in field theory - it is evident that the evocation and reflection phases will be suppressed because they do not have enough material for their creative activity. But this does not mean that they should not be present. But careful balancing is a matter of feeling and need for each teacher or student.

When learning something, try this three-phase model - from processing your ideas to learning to critical reflection. As natural or evident as it may seem, you may find that if you formalise the process, learning can take on a different, perhaps more interesting, dimension for you.

The EUR framework then works with all the methods we present below. This is not to say that you cannot or should not use them separately, but rather that their full potential or origin can be found partly here. And on the other hand, to implement teaching. Within the EUR scheme, these critical techniques are very well suited. Here are just a few of them.

In the scholastic period, i.e. in the early Middle Ages, the primary form of university education was disputation. If you look at Thomas Aquinas's Theological Summa, you will quickly discover a dialogical argument structure - a question, arguments for and against, answers to arguments for and against, and resolution. Yet this model of intellectual work is significant because it allows you to formulate logically clear and firm conclusions and leads. To understand counter-arguments and weigh their cost and value, to form one's position based on facts and not just feelings.

One of the most straightforward tools for this form of working with a topic is the T-graph, which is extremely easy to use:

The T-graph can be used at different stages of learning:

• In evocation, it serves to sort out one's current attitudes. In this case, there is no need to work with any documents or information. The student uses only their knowledge.
• Awareness usually works with resources. The teacher can select these, but it seems much better if the student learns to find them himself.
• The reflective part can summarise the pros and cons gained from the current study of the issue.

What to do with such selected arguments? There are several options. The T-chart can be used for discussion or dialogue if the learning occurs in a group. The method should help ensure that nothing important is forgotten. It can also easily be used as a basis for argumentative essays, where you have a clear summary of the arguments from both sides in one place that can then be combined and evaluated.

Perhaps the most exciting way is to use the scholastic method to come up with an objection or counter-argument to every argument that supports a view with which the student disagrees. A position can only be defended when the other side's arguments are false, problematic, or inconsistent. In such a case, it involves careful analytical formulation of new ideas, which is much more laborious than the first stage but results is more intellectually valuable, and the eventual discussion or essay takes on a whole new dimension through such an approach.

Other methods than writing on paper may be recommended for such an activity. Writing arguments in a word processor and adding comments or introducing two new columns - argument and counter-argument - is quite functional. The original arguments are then listed separately. The new counter-arguments may often be better than the actual arguments, or the topic becomes unclear. Such a situation is also possible but must be named and justified.

Many techniques that work with the concept of active access to the text try to summarize and connect the text to the reader's thought world. The Diamond method is based on the idea of RWCT and works with just such a summarization. It is designed primarily for younger learners and encourages creative problem-solving. It can be recommended if you have a task to create or a on a chosen topic and have expert support available. Then, not only is the helpful summary but also the vocabulary of verbs and sentences that this method produces.

Regarding the EUR model, it can be used either in the awareness phase, where it can be combined with active work with the text, or as a summative and reflective method. In our opinion, however, it is more suitable for a lot of work with the text. It allows for creating a bridge between the artistic—and journalistic texts and factual information to support creative writing, etc.

Suppose the method is used for younger pupils, for example, in sixth to ninth grade. In that case, it can play a positive role in actively approaching the text and having to fit into certain forms or even word types, which positively affects the formation of thinking and vocabulary development.

The procedure for applying the method is straightforward:

• Read the text
• Create a centred structure (hence the diamond), writing it out from top to bottom:

In terms of implementation in teaching or active reading, it is a method that is one of the most straightforward summarization tools and certainly more fun and less laborious compared to other SQ3R or PQRTS methods. Thus, it can be recommended if one is new to text summarization. It is beneficial when you want and need to reinterpret a text to find something new, interesting, or original. However, it is not suitable for working with a professional text that is to become the basis for your reflection in the form of a thesis or a scientific article.

The basis of working with the INSERT method ("interactive voting system for effective reading and thinking") is underlining the text and making marks on it. There is a standardised marking system, which we will look at below, but for particular unique needs, it is possible to use different, i.e. custom markers. This is a practical activity in literary criticism, hermeneutics, interpretive studies or journalism. We believe that, however convenient it is to start with common marks, choosing one's symbols and use should be the goal of a more systematic use of INSERT.

Basic tags are written directly into the text:

• Use plus to indicate what has new meaning for you in the text, i.e. information you did not know at the beginning.
• A minus indicates a fact that is contradictory or unreliable. It points to places in the text that one disagrees with or has yet to verify.
• Use the ✔ "check marks" to mark important parts of the text that do not contain anything new to you. They summarise the information you already know.
• The last marker is a question mark, used to identify places that interest you and will need more extended discussion or a look at further literature.

At the end of your work with the text, you can write down each group of marks in a table. Some interpretations of the method recommend filling in the table continuously and using it as a basis for discussion with colleagues. One possibility of direct application is, for example, systematic work with question marks. The reader lists anything unclear to them and can then use various methods to explore these 'mysteries' - either by looking up additional data and information or by discussion. All tags can be worked with similarly.

Writing marks are essential for reading text because they keep the reader alert and attentive and lead to more active reading and dialogue with the text, positively affecting memory and learning. The method can also be processed in colour, where each highlighter colour corresponds to one symbol. It also gives a good overview of the appropriateness and clarity of the text for a particular reader.

From a learning point of view, the most exciting parts of the text are the functions marked as plus, i.e., new information that is presented and can be worked with further. It is a good idea to record and process these in some way using tools such as Diigo or Evernote, online tools that allow you to maintain collections of exciting texts, write comments and notes on them, or tag and categorise them. This method can be used to build a knowledge base or concepts which one systematically draws on in learning or professional work.

Beginners will probably work with symbols quite intensively at the beginning. At the same time, experienced users can focus not only on the text itself but also on the context in which they are working with it - i.e. the motivation, why they are reading the document, what they need to get out of it, etc. This broader thinking then translates into a different and deeper analysis of the texts. This is similar to writing tables - it is not bad practice for school use or general overview, but it is not something that a proficient reader would be expected to conceive of in this way. They are much more likely to work with their markers and use the symbols in the text as the basis for some commentary or summary before saving it to, for example, Evernote.

Other techniques you can try include:

• Five-Leaf
• The range of opinion
• Different methods of recording reading (double diary, working with questions...)
• R/A/F/T
• Mind maps (we will come back to these later)