[skydhash]

I don’t think I’ve encountered it in French. It’s just thinking. How you do it depends on what you what to achieve, but not a state of mind or a capability. Critical thinking seems close to “raisonement scientifique” or “raisonement logique”, so scientific reasoning or logical reasoning.

School teaches the principle of logic (and scientific method) and how to apply it in debates and learning, but not critical thinking. There were words count requirements sometimes, but essays was always about logical arguments for or against some opinions.

[jenadine]

"Esprit critique" ? "Sens critique" ?

[skydhash]

Those do work, but I don't think it's used that often out of literature, pedagogy, and philosophy circles.