This paper argues that abductive reasoning has a central place in theorizing Health Professions Education. At the root of abduction lies a fundamental debate: How do we connect practice, which is always singular and unique, with theory, which describes the world in terms of rules, generalizations, and universals? While abduction was initially seen…

According to Lev S. Vygotsky (1896-1934), the highest levels of abstract thinking and self-regulation in preschool development are established in "pretend play using object substitutions." An extensive research literature supports Vygotsky's empirical model of the internalization of self-guiding speech (social speech > private speech…

In response to the authors, I demonstrate how threshold concepts offer a means to both contextualise teaching and learning of quantum physics and help transform students into the culture of physics, and as a way to identify particularly troublesome concepts within quantum physics. By drawing parallels from my own doctoral research in another area…

A scientific definition of the meaning of human creative thought is pursued. (JD)

The creative act arises out of a need to explore human experience, and mathematics is a locus of creative activity. Mathematics should be taught to show the value of imagination and reasoning. (MT)

The paper questions the relationship among reason, imagination, and empathy, and argues that empathy fosters critical and creative thinking and that its enhancement should be adopted as an important educational goal. The paper proposes that critical and creative thinking are much more integrated processes than often supposed. (JDD)

A series of studies involving deaf and hearing impaired children was conducted to assess imagination, originality, and abstract thinking. (Author/SBH)