PROBLEM-BASED TASKS AS A FACTOR IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CRITICAL THINKING IN STUDENTS

The article presents an analysis of critical thinking as one of the most sought-after skills of specialists in various fields in the coming years. The necessity of fostering such type of reasoning is substantiated by the content of numerous scientific inquiries and regulatory documents governing the educational process. The study argues for the perspective of the development of critical thinking in the modern educational process in the aspect of shaping a personality capable of comprehensively analyzing life situations, finding solutions to problems, and tackling non-trivial tasks. The main characteristics of critical thinking, its components and conditions of development are clarified. Purposefulness, reflexivity, taking into account different approaches to explaining situations or solving problems, reasoned evaluation of them, formulating own position are defined as signs of critical thinking. The use of problematic situations in the educational process as a condition for the formation of critical thinking is characterized. Different types of problem tasks have been developed for shaping of student's critical thinking skills in the process of studying the discipline "Introduction to the specialty". The ability to think critically is recognized as an important skill of a modern specialist in any field.