Table 1.

Main themes and categories associated with promotion of critical thinking in virtual education

Instructional design	Philosophical outlook and theoretical framework
	Learning management system
	Virtual teaching–learning process	Course objectives and outcome-based assessment Problem-based teaching strategies Feedback
Educational leadership and management	Meritocracy
	Empowering the instructors
	Support system for virtual environment
Local evidence	Thinking within the academic framework
	Evidence-based teaching
Belief systems	Sociocultural roots of thinking
	Previous experiences and intellectual backgrounds
	Personal characteristics and differences of the instructors
	Personal characteristics and differences of the students