Abstract:

In an educational context shaped by social complexity, information overload, and the growing need to prepare learners who can interpret, question, and justify their judgments, the development of critical thinking has become increasingly important. Within this framework, poetry emerges as a promising pedagogical resource, as it encourages inferential reading, the interpretation of ambiguity, openness to multiple meanings, and reflection on human, social, and cultural experience. This study examines how poetry may contribute to the development of critical thinking across educational contexts through a systematic literature review.

The search was conducted in the SCOPUS and Web of Science databases using the descriptors poetry and critical thinking, combined with the Boolean operator AND and applied exclusively to article titles. Five results were identified, of which four met the inclusion criteria: publication in peer-reviewed indexed journals. The analysis focused on the aims, methodologies, and main findings of each selected study.

The results consistently highlight the potential of poetry as a pedagogical strategy for fostering critical thinking. Across the studies reviewed, the reading and discussion of poetic texts promoted the ability to move beyond literal meaning, evaluate ideas, construct reasoned opinions, question social and cultural assumptions, and transfer reflective skills to other learning contexts. In addition, poetry proved especially productive when integrated into collaborative and reflective learning environments supported by the teacher, particularly through activities centred on metaphorical analysis, intercultural rhetoric, communities of inquiry, and connections with other art forms and with concrete social issues.

The reviewed studies also suggest that working with poetry can strengthen dimensions closely related to critical thinking, such as confidence in expressing ideas, empathy, creativity, social awareness, and intellectual autonomy. Its effectiveness appears to depend less on the poetic text itself than on the pedagogical design surrounding it, namely the extent to which learners are given opportunities to interpret, argue, discuss, and reflect critically.

It is therefore concluded that poetry, beyond its aesthetic and literary value, constitutes a relevant pedagogical resource for the development of critical thinking in diverse educational settings. Its interdisciplinary nature further reinforces its formative value and supports its inclusion in educational practices aimed at fostering more reflective, critical, and socially aware learners.

Keywords:

Critical Thinking, Poetry, Systematic Literature Review.