New York City was recently the host to the North East Conference on Science and Skepticism, or NECSS which is pronounced "nexus." NECSS ran over three days and included some great events outside of the conference in different venues in NYC. Saturday April 20th was a full day of panels and presentation, including a live taping of "The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe" with special guest James "The Amazing" Randi. NECSS was a great event for anyone who enjoys science and critical thinking.

One panel in particular that was of interest to me was Critical Thinking Education. On the panel were DJ Grothe, president of the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF), Dr. Meghan Groome from the New York Academy of Science and Marc Barnhill, who teaches critical thinking at New York University. All three panelists have been involved in teaching critical thinking either in traditional classroom settings or as part of workshops for adults and educators.

The discussion turned to how teachers can help students develop a foundation for critical thinking. DJ Grothe introduced the JREF classroom modules for teachers. These free modules introduce kids to critical thinking and scientific inquiry through activities based on paranormal phenomenon. The module Do You Have ESP? is designed to teach students about setting up experiments, sample sizes and statistical significance.

Despite the JREF's long history of debunking claims of ESP, these aren't gimmicky lesson plans designed to make skeptics out of kids. The aim is not to promote an agenda but to teach methods and allow the students to explore the results on their terms. The lessons address concepts that are part of the National Science Content Standards and the AAAS Science Literacy Benchmarks. So not only does the teacher have provocative subject matter to get the kids' attention, they are also able to stay within the standards they are expected to maintain.

Considering the amount of advertising dollars spent on getting kids to spend more money, a healthy dose of skepticism may be a good thing. Kids today are exposed to more information than any other time in history and they need tools to separate the good from the bad. Critical thinking is an important skill when trying to decide if those magnetic bracelets will really improve your sports performance or just take your money. The answer to that is left as an exercise for the reader.

For more information and to download the modules you can visit The James Randi Educational Foundation and download them free of charge. If you want to attend the next NECSS you should head over and signup for their e-mail announcements the NECSS site. While I'm at it I may as well mention that the amazing one himself, James Randi, is a contributor to the Wired Opinion blogs. Check out his latest post The Unsinkable Rubber Duckies.