e-Pedagogium 2025, 25(4):7-25 | DOI: 10.5507/epd.2026.012

Critical Thinking Development in Medical Schools: Insights from Future Educators

Bisola Christiana Adelekea, Iva Koribskáb, Kristýna Raimerováb
a Department of Health and Kinesiology, College of Applied Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign,, 1206 S 4th St, Champaign, IL, 61820, USA.
b Institute of Education and Social Sciences, Faculty of Education, Palacky University in Olomouc, Žižkovo nám. 5, 77900 Olomouc, Czech Republic.

A contemporary issue in education revolves around cultivating critical thinking skills, fostering individuals who possess open-mindedness and unbiased judgment capabilities. Given the complex and varied nature of healthcare practice, the cultivation of critical thinking among medical students is of paramount importance. The purpose of this study was to explore how future teachers of medical professional subjects perceive teaching strategies as tools for developing critical thinking skills in medical students, and to generate a theory grounded in their anticipatory views on their future teaching roles. The study was conducted among the first-year master's degree students in the "Teaching Professional Subjects for Medical Schools" program at Palacký University in Olomouc, Czech Republic. A qualitative research approach based on Grounded Theory was used to analyze participants' insights on problem-based learning (PBL) and reflective practices. The findings reveal the importance of adopting these strategies to better prepare future healthcare professionals for the complexities of clinical practice and to inform teacher education in medical fields.

Keywords: critical thinking, medical education, reflective practice, problem-based learning, teaching strategies, grounded theory.

Received: July 23, 2025; Revised: November 20, 2025; Accepted: December 20, 2025; Published: May 8, 2026  Show citation

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Adeleke, B.C., Koribská, I., & Raimerová, K. (2025). Critical Thinking Development in Medical Schools: Insights from Future Educators. e-Pedagogium, 25(4), 7-25. doi: 10.5507/epd.2026.012
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