1 / 20

Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking. What is Critical Thinking? Why do we employ it? When do we employ it? How do we read critically?. What is Critical Thinking?. Critical thinking is: the awareness and use of a set of interrelated critical questions

marie
Download Presentation

Critical Thinking

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Critical Thinking • What is Critical Thinking? • Why do we employ it? • When do we employ it? • How do we read critically?

  2. What is Critical Thinking? • Critical thinking is: • the awareness and use of a set of interrelated critical questions • the ability to ask and answer critical questions at appropriate times • the desire to actively use critical questions

  3. Why do we employ critical thinking? • to test and create knowledge • to verify accurate and credible information • to locate and negotiate reasonable courses of action

  4. When do we employ critical thinking? • when important solutions must be created • when unclear issues need clarification • when a decision must be made to take a course of action • when a simple answer is impossible or impractical

  5. How do we read critically? • First we must read “actively” • Sponge v. Panning for Gold • We must acquire knowledge about our topic • Reading and Research • Avoid the “myth” of the right answer • Although there may be a “reasonable” answer, there may be no objective “truth”—especially in matters of human affairs

  6. How do we read critically? • Ask the question “Who cares?” • Think about what controversies are important • Avoid “Weak Sense Thinking -- Use “Strong Sense Critical Thinking” • Strong sense thinking involves questioning all sides of an issue • Weak sense thinking involves defending your own beliefs or agendas

  7. How do we find the issues? • Find the Issues • An issue is a question or controversy that is responsible for the discussion—it is the stimulus for what is being said • Look for the issues in each text • Some are obvious—the writer may tell you outright • Look in the title or the beginning of the text

  8. Descriptive and Prescriptive Issues • “Descriptive” issues are those that raise questions about the accuracy of descriptions of the past, present, or future • For example: “Does watching TV make us relatively insensitive to crime on the streets?”

  9. Descriptive and Prescriptive Issues • “Prescriptive” issues are those that raise questions about what we should do or what is right or wrong, good or bad • For example: “Should sex education be taught in the school?”

  10. How do we find conclusions? • A conclusion is the message that the writer or speaker wishes you to receive or accept • Conclusions are ideas that require other ideas to support them • It is the thesis or main claim of a text • To find a conclusion, we must ask: • “What is the writer trying to prove?” • “What is the writer’s main point?”

  11. Conclusions • Conclusions are inferred: • they are derived from reasoning • they are ideas that need support • To believe one statement (the conclusion) because you think it is well supported by other beliefs is to make an inference • When we engage in this process, we are reasoning--the conclusion is the outcome of this reasoning

  12. Discover the Conclusion • Clue #1: Ask what the issue is-- • since a conclusion is always a response to an issue, it will help you find the conclusion if you know the issue • look in the title • look in the opening paragraph

  13. Discover the Conclusion • Clue #2: look for indicator words, these announce that a conclusion is coming--

  14. therefore thus but so hence in short it follows that it is believed that shows that indicates that suggests that proves that yet instead we may deduce that the point I’m making is in my opinion in fact Indicator Words

  15. The most obvious explanation it is highly probable that the truth of the matter is alas as a result it should be clear that More Indicator Words

  16. Discover the Conclusion • Clue # 3: Look in likely locations • look in the beginning of the text • look in the end • look for a statement of purpose • look for a summary or conclusion

  17. Discover the Conclusion • Clue # 4: be sure to remember what a conclusion is NOT • conclusions will NOT be any of the following: • examples • statistics • definitions • background information • evidence

  18. What are the Reasons? • Reasons provide answers to our human curiosity about why someone makes a particular discussion or holds a particular opinion • “Employers should be able to fire any employee who displeases them” • Here we need a rationale for why we should agree

  19. What are the Reasons? • Reasons are-- • Evidence: • verifiable facts and statistics • credible expert opinions • peer reviewed academic journals • textual examples (in literary study) --offered to support or justify conclusions

  20. What are the Reasons? • Reasons are statements that together form the basis for demonstrating the credibility of a conclusion • Remember: you cannot determine the worth of a conclusion until you identify the reasons • Reasons + Conclusion = Argument

More Related