A major challenge to fostering critical thinking in higher education is:

Question

A major challenge to fostering critical thinking in higher education is:

1. A. Excessive interdisciplinary collaboration
2. B. Rote-based teaching and examination-oriented curricula (Correct answer)
3. C. Overemphasis on group discussion and debate
4. D. Encouragement of questioning and curiosity

Correct Answer

Option B — Rote-based teaching and examination-oriented curricula

Detailed Solution & Explanation

The correct answer is Rote-based teaching and examination-oriented curricula.

Key Points

• The third paragraph names the obstacles: *traditional rote-based pedagogies, examination-oriented curricula, and hierarchical classroom structures often discourage questioning and intellectual independence*.
• The answer combines the first two of these.

Additional Information

• Option A (excessive interdisciplinary collaboration) reverses the passage, which recommends interdisciplinary approaches.
• Option C (overemphasis on discussion) likewise inverts the text's call for *discussion-based seminars*.
• Option D (encouragement of questioning) is the desired condition, not a challenge.
• Three of the four options are the author's remedies presented as problems — a standard distractor design in challenge-type questions.

*Ministry of Papers worked solution. The Commission has not yet published the official key for this paper; this answer will be reconciled with it on release.*