Case study: AI & critical thinking

Outi Veivo, Jere Riekkinen & Leena Salmi (University of Turku): Promoting critical thinking with AI-based tools

In the age of artificial intelligence, the role and development of students’ critical thinking skills are undergoing significant change. As generative AI tools become more widely available, educators are increasingly reflecting on how these technologies might both challenge and support the development of independent reasoning in academic contexts. 

Recent research (e.g., Gerlich, 2025) suggests that the use of generative AI can lead to the outsourcing of thinking processes, potentially weakening students’ critical thinking skills. However, AI can also offer opportunities to strengthen these skills when used intentionally as a pedagogical tool. To explore this further, we collected insights from colleagues in the University of Turku through a short survey on how large language model-based AI is being integrated into teaching to support critical thinking. Below, we report the ideas and best practices that emerged from the survey. Unlike other resources on this website, they are therefore not based on a single course. 

The survey was sent via email to the staff and Ph.D. students of the Faculty of Humanities, the Faculty of Social Sciences, the multidisciplinary centre AI Academy, and the AInspiration community in the University of Turku Teams in February 2025. We received 27 responses, most of them from teachers. The survey was based on Gerlich (2025), and it included items from established instruments such as the Halpern Critical Thinking Assessment (HCTA) tool and Terenzini’s self-reported measures of critical thinking (Halpern, s.d.; Terenzini et al., 1995). 

The components of critical thinking that emerged from the responses were argumentation and reasoning skills, analytical and synthesizing skills, metacognitive skills, critical evaluation of sources and AI literacy in general.

References:

Gerlich, M. (2025). AI Tools in Society: Impacts on Cognitive Offloading and the Future of Critical Thinking. Societies, 15(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.3390/soc15010006 

Halpern, D. (No year specified.). HCTA Halpern Critical Thinking Assessment [Database record]. APA PsycTests.  Terenzini, P. T., Springer, L., Pascarella, E. T., & Nora, A. (1995). Influences affecting the development of students’ critical thinking skills. Research in higher education, 36(1), 23—39.