Critical Thinking 1

• Critical thinking


  The careful application of reason in the determination of whether a claim is true
• Critical thinking


  Judicious reasoning about what to believe and therefore what to do
• Critical thinking


  • Careful, intentional thinking
  • Use of reason or logic
  • Judgment about beliefs
  • Application to real world problems and issues
• Critical thinking is not a fast or easy process
• The goal of critical thinking is to fully evaluate all parts of a claim, not just decide whether to accept or reject it
• Critical thinking is an active process meant to move us towards greater understanding of difficult problems
• Critical thinking requires applying reason, not just emotion, intuition, faith or common sense
• The purpose of critical thinking is to determine whether a claim is true and decide how to act based on that determination
• When we engage in critical thinking

  We are expected to take a position regarding the truth or acceptability of something we've read, heard or watched
• Critical thinking gives us insight, understanding and ownership over our beliefs
• Critical thinking allows us to offer evidence and reason to defend our beliefs and take actions that fit with our beliefs
• Critical thinking provides true freedom of thought and opinion
• A hasty generalization is when we make a conclusion based on too little evidence.
• Deductive argument


  If the premises are true and the argument is valid, then the conclusion has to be true and the argument is sound
• Inductive argument


  If the premises are either true or at least acceptable, then the conclusion is likely to be true and we consider these inductive arguments to be strong
• Evaluating arguments


  • Evaluate the premises themselves on their own merits
  • Evaluate the logical link that connects the premises to the conclusion
• Premise


  The evidence on which an argument is based
• Strength of premises


  • Straightforward facts (e.g. the Earth revolves around the Sun)
  • Personal opinions or value judgments
• Evaluating premises


  Determine whether they are true or false using observed or empirical evidence
• Opinions and value judgments cannot be proven or disproven, but should still be subjected to scrutiny and evaluation
• Evaluating deductive arguments


  Look for whether the argument is valid - it is impossible for the premises to be true and the conclusion to be false
• Evaluating inductive arguments


  Assess whether the premises are relevant to the issue and conclusion, and whether they are sufficient to justify the conclusion
• Knowing to ask questions about the premises and the connection between premises and conclusion is an important step in critical thinking
• The fallacy of division is the opposite of the fallacy of composition, where we assume that something true about the whole must be true about its parts.
• Argument


  An attempt to prove or support a specific conclusion by providing reasons that can be evaluated for their truth or acceptability
• Arguments


  • Have two parts: premises and a conclusion
  • There must be a relationship or connection among the reasons provided
  • There must be a relationship or connection between the reasons and the conclusion
• An argument is not just a list of claims or conclusions without providing logic-based reasons
• Emotional appeals


  Attempts to convince others by playing on their emotions, rather than providing logical reasons
• Relying on intuition


  Claiming to "just know" something without providing evidence or logical reasons
• Beliefs based on faith are not arguments, as they are not based on proof or evidence
• Argument


  Offers a resolution or answer to a problem or issue by supporting or proving a conclusion
• Explanation


  Provides an account of how or why something happened, without necessarily attempting to prove or support a conclusion
• Arguments may contain irrelevant premises that do not actually support the conclusion
• Evaluating the strength of an argument requires examining the truth, acceptability, relevance, and sufficiency of the premises
• The crucial task is to determine whether someone has actually presented an argument, or is just attempting to persuade or sway you through non-rational means
• The fallacy of composition is the error of assuming that what's true about an individual or part applies to the whole.
• An appeal to authority occurs when someone uses an expert’s opinion as proof without providing any other supporting information.
• Appeal to emotion is when someone tries to convince others by appealing to their emotions rather than using facts and logic.
• Paying attention to language words used to convince wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone always said only exactly what they know or believe to be true in clear uncluttered terms without any attempt to use language to sway you
• Unfortunately for students trying to apply their critical thinking skills to various arguments that simply is not the case