Critical Thinking

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Critical Thinking
Socrates 469-399 B.C.
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What is Critical Thinking?

• Critical thinking df. The careful, deliberate
  determination of whether we should accept,
  reject, or suspend judgment about a claim and
  of the degree of confidence with which we should
  accept or reject it.

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Alternative Thinking Styles

• One approach to thinking is similar to the way in
  which a sponge reacts to water by absorbing.
• Advantages
• The more information you absorb about the world,
  the more capable you are of understanding its
  complexities. For example, it would be difficult
  to judge a sociological theory before you had
  absorbed a core of knowledge about sociology.

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Alternative Thinking Styles II

• A second advantage of the sponge approach is that
  it is relatively passive. The primary mental
  effort involves concentration and memory.
• Disadvantages
• The sponge approach provides no method for
  deciding which information to believe and which
  to reject.

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Alternative Thinking Styles III

• The sponge approach emphasizes knowledge
  acquisition.
• Critical thinking stresses active interaction
  with knowledge as it is being acquired.
• An individual that takes the sponge approach to
  learning may underline or highlight key words and
  sentences. Her mission is to find and understand
  what the author has to say. She memorizes the
  reasoning, but does not evaluate it.

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A Critical Thinking Approach

• A critical thinking approach requires that the
  reader ask herself a number of questions to
  clarify logical steps in the material and to help
  identify important omissions.

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GOALS OF CRITICAL THINKING

• What is critiqued is the ideas of people, not the
  people themselves who hold the ideas.
• The goal of philosophy is knowledge through a
  disinterested search for truth, not winning or
  simply appearing to defeat another in argument.
• Critical thinking helps both ourselves and others
  when it helps us recognize that a position,
  theory, or idea is incomplete or unclear,
  insufficiently supported, or in some other way
  unconvincing, and thus helps us to arrive at the
  truth which is the goal of knowledge seekers.

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SKILLS INVOLVED IN CRITICAL THINKING

• Critical Readers Are
• willing to spend time reflecting on the ideas
  presented in their reading assignments
• able to evaluate and solve problems while reading
  rather than merely compile a set of facts to be
  memorized
• logical thinkers
• diligent in seeking out the truth
• eager to express their thoughts on a topic
• seekers of alternative views on a topic
• open to new ideas that may not necessarily agree
  with their previous thought on a topic
• able to base their judgments on ideas and
  evidence
• able to recognize errors in thought and
  persuasion as well as to recognize good arguments

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SKILLS INVOLVED IN CRITICAL THINKING

• Critical Readers Are
• willing to take a critical stance on issues
• able to ask penetrating and thought-provoking
  questions to evaluate ideas
• in touch with their personal thoughts and ideas
  about a topic
• willing to reassess their views when new or
  discordant evidence is introduced and evaluated
• able to identify arguments and issues
• able to see connections between topics and use
  knowledge from other disciplines to enhance their
  reading and learning experiences
• Schumm, J. S. and Post, S. A. Executive Learning.
  

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Thinking and Feeling

• When you first encounter a conclusion, you do so
  with a history. You have learned to care about
  certain things, to support particular interests,
  and to disregard some particular claims. You
  will be thinking critically in the midst of
  existing opinions. You have emotional
  commitments to these opinions. Sometimes it is
  good to put your feelings aside for a while.
  This will enable you to listen to others
  arguments openly. The danger of being
  emotionally involved in an issue is that you may
  fail to consider potential good reasons for other
  positions.
• One doesn't discover new lands without consenting
  to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.
  --Andre Gide

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Thinking and Feeling

• M.Neil Browne and Stuart Keeley
• As part of the human tendency to dichotomize or
  think in extremes, those who emphasize critical
  thinking as an educational necessity sometimes
  express contempt for emotions. All off us know
  that unrestrained feelings can get us into
  trouble. They seem to encourage us to act first
  and think later. But any tool can be misused.
  Emotions are an invaluable aspect of each of us.
  Many of the feelings that we have are the result
  of deep thought. We get angry at certain
  behavior for very good reasons. We may admire
  specific people for some powerful reasons. So
  how should you feel about your feelings as you
  try to think critically? Our advice is to
  recognize your feelings to the extent possible,
  respect those that are the result of careful
  reflection and try, as best you can, to prevent
  others from cluttering your reasoning.

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Practical uses

• Critical Thinking is about learning how to apply
  knowledge. For example, many people in the
  computer industry know a great deal about
  computers. They may have excellent customer
  service skills. However, it is imperative that
  they know how to apply their knowledge to an
  almost infinite array of problems. Bill Gates,
  owner of Microsoft Corporation, is considered the
  first person to really implement critical
  thinking techniques for job interviews. Since
  then, many companies recognize the importance of
  hiring critical thinkers and use puzzles to
  assess potential employees critical thinking
  abilities.

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Practical Uses II

• William Poundstone, a well-known logician, has
  written books on this subjects. He explains why
  logic problems are more important than questions
  such as what are your strengths and weaknesses.
  Questions to ask may be
• What does all the ice in a hockey rink weigh?
• How do they make MMs?
• How many gas stations are there in the US?

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Practical Uses III

• From Thad Peterson Jeremy Solomon sat across
  the table from a well-known national consulting
  company's interviewing manager, grappling with
  the question just posed to him. At that moment,
  the 70,000 education he received from Harvard's
  Kennedy School of Government was momentarily
  useless. This topic hadn't popped up in public
  policy, economics or stats classes. In fact, the
  vexing issue was one few ever think about How
  many quarters -- placed one on top of the other
  -- would it take to reach the top of the Empire
  State Building? When Jeremy Solomon was asked
  this in an interview, he didn't have a clue as to
  what would be the correct answer. Nonetheless, he
  remained calm.
• First, he asked the interviewer exactly what she
  meant by placed on top of the other. After she
  said on their sides, Solomon began to explain his
  logic step-by-step to the interviewer. He
  estimated that a quarter is about an inch in
  diameter and guessed that there are 120 floors in
  the Empire State Building, with each floor being
  10 feet tall. Then he did the appropriate math.
  Did Solomon give the right answer? Not quite --
  the building only has 102 floors, and they aren't
  10 feet tall. Did he nail the question?
  Absolutely.

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Practical Uses IV

• Critical thinking skills are valuable skills in
  the 21st century professional world.
• For instance,
• Tackling problems and opportunities head-on.
• Finding answers.
• Creating solutions.
• Developing strategies.
• We need to be able to do more than find
  information in a textbook. However, technology
  and research keeps changing at a very fast rate.
  The professional who thinks best will probably do
  best. People will need to be able to adapt to new
  situations, think on their feet, and be effective
  problem solvers. Critical Thinking will help you
  throughout your career.