Critical Thinking, Ethics, Multiculturalism and Economics

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Critical Thinking, Ethics, Multiculturalism and
Economics

• St. Cloud Winter Institute
• 2008

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Why Critical Thinking?

• Is not just thinking critical?
• Everyone thinks
• It is our nature to do so
• But much of our thinking left to itself has
  problems

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Problems with Our Thinking

• Biased
• Distorted
• Partial
• Uninformed
• Prejudiced

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Yea.Yea

• This is beginning to sound like a philosophy
  class in logic. I came here to learn something
  that I can use in my class and maybe have some
  fun.
• HOW DOES THIS RELATE TO ECONOMICS

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• The quality of our life and the quality of what
  we produce, make, or build depends precisely on
  the quality of our thought.

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• Where would we today if sloppy thinking was the
  norm in our past.
• Shoddy thinking is costly, both in money and in
  quality of life.

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Shoddy thinking is costly

• Whoa!
• That is describing an OPPORTUNITY COST.
• Excellence in thought is difficult, but economics
  is a great class to introduce and practice proper
  thinking.

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Systematically Cultivated

• Critical thinking is a mode of thinking
• If you had a Philosophy class on critical
  thinking you probably addressed the three main
  areas.
• Epistemology (Yikes!)
• Logic
• Ethics

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www.criticalthinking.org

• Critical thinking is that mode of thinking 
  about any subject, content, or problem  in which
  the thinker improves the quality of his or her
  thinking by skillfully analyzing, assessing, and
  reconstructing it. Critical thinking is
  self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored,
  and self-corrective thinking. It presupposes
  assent to rigorous standards of excellence and
  mindful command of their use. It entails
  effective communication and problem-solving
  abilities, as well as a commitment to overcome
  our native egocentrism and sociocentrism.

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To Solve a Problem

• State the question clearly and precisely.
• Clarify the question as to meaning and scope.
• Divide the question into appropriate parts.
• Which parts of the question can be answered with
  facts and which are a matter of opinion?
• What questions am I raising?
• What questions am I addressing?
• Am I considering the complexities in the
  question?

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To Analyze Thinking

• Identify the purpose (statement, article, etc)
• Question information
• Assumptions
• Main concepts
• Point of view
• Conclusions
• implications

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This is the basic writing assignment!

• Five Paragraph Essay
• Introduction
• Paragraph 1 Lead and Link
• Thesis Statement
• Statement of Provable Parts (usually three, a, b,
  c)
• Body
• Paragraph 2 Prove or expand Provable Part A
• Paragraph 3 Prove or expand Provable Part B
• Paragraph 4 Prove or expand Provable Part C
• Conclusion
• Paragraph 5 Conclusion

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I can handle this (If I only had more time) and
this is nothing like college logic classes.Or
is it?
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You are teaching economics not logic

• Even though you are not teaching logic, you can
  still use the simple terminology.
• What is the 5paragraph essay?
• An argument!!
• An attempt to convince someone (possibly
  yourself) that a particular claim, called a
  conclusion, is true
• That claim we call a conclusion looks like a
  thesis statement.

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The argument is logic

• Premises are used to prove the conclusion
• Since we most often examine this topic with the
  5paragraph essay and with news articles, it is
  worth review indicator words.

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Indicator Words for Premises

• Since For the reason that
• For In view of
• Because This is implied by
• In as much as Given that
• Suppose that It follows from
• It follows from Due to

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Indicator words for Conclusions

• Thus Therefore
• This shows that So
• Accordingly... This implies that
• Hence Consequently
• This proves that Ergo
• It follows that This suggests that

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To Assess Thinking

• Check it for
• Clarity
• Accuracy
• Precision
• Relevance
• Depth
• Breadth
• Significance
• Logic
• fairness

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Yikes, again!

• Article Review Grade Scale
• 90 - 100 A
• Three clearly labeled areas (Citation, Summary,
  Reaction)
• APA Citation
• Well developed summary of thirty to fifty words
• Well developed reaction of three paragraphs that
  include five to eight sentences
• Works in three to five chapter terms and or
  concepts into the reaction
• Underlines concepts and terms in reaction
• 80 - 89 B
• Two to three clearly labeled areas (Citation,
  Summary, Reaction)
• APA Citation
• Sufficiently developed summary that is short of
  the expectation
• Sufficiently developed reaction that lacks depth
• Works in two to three chapter terms and or
  concepts into the reaction
• 70 - 79 C
• Three areas are not clearly labeled
• Lacking a quality summary or APA Citation
• Reaction lacks clear development and direction
• 60 - 69 D

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Advanced Stuff

• All CT is based on ASSUMPTIONS
• Clearly state your assumptions
• Are the assumptions relevant?
• How do your assumption shape the question or
  problem?
• What am I taking for granted?
• What assumption has led me to the conclusion?

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Advanced Stuff

• All CT is based on a POINT OF VIEW
• Identify your point of view (liberal or
  conservative)
• State other points of view
• Try to cover various points of view.
• From what point of view am I looking at this
  issue or question?
• Is there another point of view that I should
  consider?

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Advanced Stuff

• All CT is based on DATA, INFORMATION, EVIDENCE
• Restrict your statements to be covered by the
  data you have available.
• Research and collect information on various
  viewpoints.
• Collect sufficient data and information
• What information am I using in coming to the
  conclusion?
• What information do I need to settle the claim?

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Advanced Stuff

• All CT is expressed and shaped by CONCEPTS and
  IDEAS.
• Identify Key concepts and clearly explain them.
• Use concepts with accuracy and precision

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Advanced Stuff

• All CT contains INFERENCES or INTERPRETATIONS by
  which we draw CONCLUSIONS.
• Draw conclusion and inferences only what the data
  and evidence implies.
• Check conclusion and inferences for consistency.
• Clearly identify the assumptions that have led
  you to your conclusions.
• How did I reach this conclusion?
• Is there another way to interpret the
  information?

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Advanced Stuff

• All reasoning has IMPLICATIONS or CONSEQUENCES.
• Consider all possible consequences.
• Search for negative as well as positive
  consequences from your reasoning.
• If someone accepts my position, what are the
  implications?