Teaching critical thinking with film and documentary

This chapter explores the use of teaching critical thinking with film and documentaries. International Business students (n = 124) in a University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands took part in this art-based pedagogy. In this mandatory Thinking in Action course, students were taught diverse concepts of critical thinking - i.e. framing, heuristics, argumentation, perspective-taking - using film fragments and documentaries connected to their professional field. Such critical thinking skills are in line with a sustainability mindset whereby people are able to encompass concepts beyond the scope of their personal lives. An inductive study was used to explore how this art-based method impacted learning in students and how course instructors experienced teaching this course. The findings indicate different learning routes for students: a) smooth and steady; b) theory and film; c) applied learning; d) scattered emotions and enjoyment. The different course components relate to learning via head, heart and hands. A conceptual framework underpinning art-based methods and sustainability is presented to be utilized by the community of scholars, educators, and trainers who use art-based methods as a pedagogy.