What a lot of issues in a couple of questions! We could be here all day talking about it. My take is that academic intelligence is a mixture of nature and nurture. I've known some really intelligent people who missed out on formal education and never really achieved their potential but still made their lives worthwhile, and I have come across thoroughly stupid people who had a lot of money spent on their education but never developed the ability to think clearly. But I agree with those who say there are different sorts of intelligence. I have known some academically bright people who totally lacked common sense, and others who lacked 'emotional intelligence'.

The primary goal of a traditional liberal arts education is to teach critical thinking.

I think critical thinking comes easily for some people than others. Those with higher education are taught it but those with scientific minds find it natural.

Critical thinking IS taught. Magical thinking is instinctive.
We naturally attribute causation where we find corellation.
This has little or nothing to do with intelligence, unless we go down a sort of reverse no-true-scotsman path.
Purely anecdotal evidence.
My first rigging instructor was not a very clever man. However, he chased evidence for everything and never assumed that what he was seeing was neccessarily true. It took him longer to get the answers, but they were always very good answers.

I think that with the exception of gross congential deformity or an accident that has resulted in irreversible brain damage, everyone has the same capacity for learning and it simply reduces to interest, that is, what interests you. I found "The Doctrine of DNA" by Richard Lewontin to be an interesting read and here is a link to a review of it.
[independentsciencenews.org]

Critical thinking = the ability to identify evidence that stands up to scrutiny. The only way of doing this is to adopt a scienctific approach to thinking. To think critically is to care bout the truth, all other thinking (including religion) is only to care about what you want the truth to be

I have countless academic qualifications and was a lecturer in a technical college but my spatial intelligence is zilch as is my capacity for anyhthing mathematical - My partner gives me all his change as thats the only way I can cope when shopping .I don't want to think that we are hard wired for religion and the fact that some countries are adn some not might seem to suggest its cultural.

Within reason, a lot of it is taught. I work with children with developmental disabilities and language delays. With early, intensive intervention, some of them will make it up to normal skill levels or better. Not all, mind you, but I've seen spectacular changes, especially in kids diagnosed with Autism in particular... And usually the ones whose parents tried various Biomedical interventions, such as special diets and supplements.

There is a lot of research in this area. Why ask us rather than look it up? I guess it makes good conversation.

Idfk anymore...... my name is Nietzsche though..........

Yes, There Is a Genetic Component to Intelligence

[thecut.com]

Critical Thinking can and should be taught. In this day and age with so much fake news & false reporting this should be taught in High School at the very least. Like with any subject it will be easier or harder to grasp depending on the person.

I think that intelligence is basically genetic. How else can it be explained that some children can do calculus or algebra before the 3rd grade, or understand other academic subjects, graduate from college at 12 or so? I don't think it is possible to just teach all children calculus or algebra, etc. at an early age. You either have the capacity to learn a lot of information quickly or you don't. Of course, ambition to learn has a lot to do with it as one gets older.

We will always need leaders and there will always be followers. it's in our DNA and the most intelligent tend to leed rather than the strongest. look at the mafia or an ant colony.

I learned how to use my critical thinking skills more when I came out as an atheist a year and a half ago. It's easy now.

I have, genetic memory stored in the dna could give some a head start, I think only our personal memory is stored in the neo cortex and hippocampus.

I will believe critical thinking is mostly taught when I am presented with a critical thinking chimpanzee.

You're confusing and conflating multiple points.

Dunno. Science says that children are born geniuses, but their particular cultures soon start to stamp out all patterns of thought that conflict with the approved mainstream ideas.

If you nurse and home school your kids, read to them from birth, teach them how to think, not WHAT to think, you are going to help them think more critically, for sure.

Being taught how to learn rather than what to learn can be taught, that's for sure.