Enhancing Critical Thinking through Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116: A Problem-Based Approach in a Cross-Cultural Middle School Classroom
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70232/jrep.v2i4.119Keywords:
Critical Thinking, Problem-Based Learning, Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116Abstract
This study investigates how Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116 is used as a resource to encourage critical thinking among third-year middle school students in a multiculturally mixed classroom setting in Morocco. Twenty-five students were involved in a learning intervention in the PBL (problem-based learning) framework, with a focus on collaborative inquiry, cultural interpretation, and performance activities. A one-group pre-test/post-test design was used in this study to examine differences in the students’ critical thinking from prior to the intervention toward after the intervention. Findings suggested that students had learned to interpret literary topics, negotiate abstractions such as love or fidelity, and relate these to their real circumstances. Discussion and production outside of the sonnet had encouraged students to exercise their interpretive skills, and they had gained experience in cognition, argumentation, and reflection. The results provide evidence of the potential of embedding classics in contemporary pedagogy, such as PBL, to stimulate students’ cognitive engagement and promote intercultural understanding. The study also demonstrates the way Shakespeare’s works, if contextualized effectively, can overcome cultural frontiers and offer wider possible resources for literacy and critical understanding. The findings suggest that literature-based instruction can offer benefits beyond the development of academic literacy skills, in helping shape open-minded, reflective individuals who can engage in thoughtful exploration of diverse views. In the final analysis, the paper supports the pedagogical benefit of using Shakespeare in Moroccan schools and calls for both lovers of literature and lovers of education to tap into literature as a conduit for critical and culturally responsive pedagogy. These educational strategies enhance classroom conversation, foster interpretative independence, cultivate empathy, promote student agency, and stimulate profound engagement with many human experiences.
Metrics
References
Agustin, G. P., Afrizal, A., & Irwanto, I. (2024). Analysis of students’ critical thinking abilities through the Numbered Heads Together (NHT) cooperative learning model on the topic of buffer solutions. Journal of Research in Education and Pedagogy, 1(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.70232/zfd29e68
Baden, M. S., & Major, C. H. (2004). Foundations of problem-based learning. McGraw-Hill Education.
Bendraou, R., & Sakale, S. (2023). The impact of problem-based learning and reading stories on the development of Moroccan middle school students’ critical thinking skills. Journal of English Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics, 5(2), 74–80. http://dx.doi.org/10.32996/jeltal.2023.5.2.9
Birgili, B. (2015). Creative and critical thinking skills in problem-based learning environments. Journal of Gifted Education and Creativity, 2(2), 71–80. https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/516543
Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2007). Research methods in education. Routledge.
Cook, T. D., Campbell, D. T., & Day, A. (1979). Quasi-experimentation: Design & analysis issues for field settings (Vol. 351). Houghton Mifflin.
Facione, P. (1990). Critical thinking: A statement of expert consensus for purposes of educational assessment and instruction (The Delphi Report). California Academic Press.
Hakes, B. (2008). When critical thinking met English literature: A resource book for teachers and their students. How to Books.
Hansen, C. (2023). Shakespeare and Place-Based Learning. Cambridge University Press.
Hidayatullah, & Setiawan, B. (2024). Empowering students’ collaborative skills sustainably by utilizing problem-based learning as an instructional strategy in online learning. Cogent Education, 11(1), 2362006. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2024.2362006
Hmelo-Silver, C. E. (2004). Problem-based learning: What and how do students learn? Educational Psychology Review, 16, 235–266. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:EDPR.0000034022.16470.f3
Jeyaraj, J. S. (2017). Understanding Shakespeare through Socratic Questioning. American College Journal of English Language and Literature, 6, 57–60. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3486381
Karantzas, G. C., Avery, M. R., Macfarlane, S., Mussap, A., Tooley, G., Hazelwood, Z., & Fitness, J. (2013). Enhancing critical analysis and problem‐solving skills in undergraduate psychology: An evaluation of a collaborative learning and problem‐based learning approach. Australian Journal of Psychology, 65(1), 38–45. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajpy.12009
MacGregor, A. (2021). To Teach or Not to Teach: Is Shakespeare Still Relevant to Today’s Students? School Library Journal, 4. https://www.slj.com/story/to-teach-or-not-to-teach-is-shakespeare-still-relevant-to-todays-students-libraries-classic-literature-canon
Manlove, C. N. (2020). Critical thinking: A guide to interpreting literary texts. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Masek, A., & Yamin, S. (2011). The effect of problem-based learning on critical thinking ability: A theoretical and empirical review. International Review of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2(1), 215–221.
McCarthy, M. (2019). Active learning principles with illustrations from Shakespeare. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas, 92(2), 49–54. https://doi.org/10.1080/00098655.2019.1705752
McEvoy, J., & Cox, K. (2022). Response-able pedagogy: Teaching through Shakespeare in a time of crisis. Teaching in Higher Education, 27(7), 915–929. https://doi.org/10.1080/14759551.2022.2031198
McPherson, J. (2020). Active Learning Principles with Illustrations from Shakespeare Education. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas, 93(1), 42–49. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00098655.2019.1705752
Peterson, E. (2010). Problem-based learning as a teaching strategy. Critical Library Instruction: Theories and Methods, 71–80.
Purnama, Y. D. (2024). Research trends in critical thinking: Bibliometric analysis using VOSviewer (1994–2023). Journal of Research in Education and Pedagogy, 1(1), 30–45. https://doi.org/10.70232/wdvegb78
Razak, A. A., Ramdan, M. R., Mahjom, N., Zabit, M. N. M., Muhammad, F., Hussin, M. Y. M., & Abdullah, N. L. (2022). Improving critical thinking skills in teaching through problem-based learning for students: A scoping review. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 21(2). https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.21.2.19
Sawyer, R., & Panjwani, V. (2017). Introduction: Shakespeare in Cross-Cultural Spaces. Multicultural Shakespeare: Translation, Appropriation, and Performance, 15, 9–14.
Sellnow, D. D., & Ahlfeldt, S. L. (2005). Fostering critical thinking and teamwork skills via a problem-based learning (PBL) approach to public speaking fundamentals. Communication Teacher, 19(1), 33–38. https://doi.org/10.1080/1740462042000339258
Semler, L. E., Hansen, C., & Manuel, J. (2023). Reimagining Shakespeare Education. Cambridge University Press.
Shadish, W. R., Cook, T. D., & Campbell, D. T. (2002). Quasi-experiments: Interrupted time-series designs. In Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs for Generalized Causal Inference (pp. 171–205).
Shakespeare, W. (1968). Sonnets, 1609. Payson & Clarke.
Tan, O.-S. (2021). Problem-based learning innovation: Using problems to power learning in the 21st century. Gale Cengage Learning.
Thabane, L., Ma, J., Chu, R., Cheng, J., Ismaila, A., Rios, L. P., Robson, R., Thabane, M., Giangregorio, L., & Goldsmith, C. H. (2010). A tutorial on pilot studies: the what, why, and how. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 10, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2288-10-1
Thorndahl, K. L., & Stentoft, D. (2020). Thinking critically about critical thinking and problem-based learning in higher education: A scoping review. Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning, 14(1). http://dx.doi.org/10.14434/ijpbl.v14i1.28773
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Bendraou Rachid, Shih Yi-Huang, Sana Sakale, Taoufik Alaoui Hichami
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
