CRITICAL THINKING

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CRITICAL THINKING
What, Why, and How?
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Definition and rationaleBreaking down critical
thinking into categoriesBlooms Taxonomy
Applying higher and lower levels of thinking in
writing

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WHAT IS CRITICAL THINKING?
- Critical thinking is a set of skills designed
to help the thinker analyze, assess and question
a given situation or reading.   - Critical
thinking skills push the thinker to reject
simplistic conclusions based on human
irrationality, false assumptions, prejudices,
biases and anecdotal evidence. - Critical
thinking skills give thinkers confidence that
they can see issues which are complex and
which have several answers and points of view and
that opinions and insights can change with
new information.
WHAT DO CRITICAL THINKERS DO?
Consider all sides of an issue Judge well the
quality of an argument Judge well the
credibility of sources Create convincing
arguments using sound evidence and analysis
Effectively recognize and use ethos (ethics),
pathos (empathy) and logos (logic) in argument
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?
People will listen to and respect critical
thinkers with these abilities because
Considering all sides of an issue means they are
open-minded, informed, and mindful of
alternatives and other points of view.
Judging well the quality of an argument means
they can effectively identify and evaluate
anothers reasons, assumptions and conclusions
and not be fooled into believing false or
unsubstantiated claims.
Judging well the credibility of sources means
they can recognize and present the most
reputable, trustworthy and convincing evidence.
Creating convincing arguments using sound
evidence and analysis means they can formulate
plausible hypotheses and draw conclusions which
are thoughtful and verifiable.
Effectively recognizing and using ethos, pathos
and logos in argument means they construct
well-crafted points using a balance of morality
and ethics, consideration and empathy for others,
as well as sound and logical reasoning.
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HOW DO I USE CRITICAL THINKING?
Breaking down into categories how to analyze a
topic or text (one written by you or another
author) will help you examine it thoroughly and
critically. Use the guiding questions to assist
you
Clarity Is it understandable and can the meaning
be clearly grasped? Is the main idea clear?
Can examples be added to better illustrate the
points? Are there confusing or unrelated points?
Accuracy Is it free from errors or
distortionsis it true? Do I need to verify
the truth of the claims? Is credible evidence
used correctly and fairly? Is additional
research needed?
Precision Is it exact with specific details?
Can the wording be more exact? Are the claims
too general? Are claims supported with concrete
evidence?
Relevance How does it relate to the topic or
assignment? Does it help illuminate the topic
or assignment? Does it provide new or important
information? Who does the content have the most
relevance for?
Depth Does it contain complexities and delve
into the larger implications? What are some of
the complexities explored? What are some of the
difficulties that should be addressed? What are
the larger implications or impact?
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HOW DO I USE CRITICAL THINKING?
Breadth Does it encompass multiple viewpoints?
Do I need to look at this from another
perspective? What other people would have
differing viewpoints? Do I need to look at this
in other ways?
Logic Do the parts make sense together and are
there no contradictions? Do all the points work
together logically to prove one clear argument?
Does one paragraph follow logically from the
next? Does the evidence directly prove the main
points?
Significance Does it focus on what is
important? Is this the most important aspect to
consider? Which of the facts or points are the
most important? Does it examine a larger
significance?
Fairness Is it justifiable and not self-serving
or one-sided? Do I have any vested interest in
this issue that can affect my reaction? Is
personal bias or a hidden agenda driving the
point? Are the viewpoints of others
sympathetically represented?
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PRACTICE
Use this chart to help you apply these critical
thinking categories to a particular text or topic
(Pause)
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Blooms TaxonomyBenjamin Bloom, a
well-respected American educational
psychologist, headed a group who developed a
classification of levels of intellectual behavior
important in learning. The image of the pyramid
gives a visual of how lower level thinking builds
up to higher level thinking.
This hierarchy shows how a critical thinker can
build upon and consciously employ multiple levels
of thinking and learning
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PRACTICE
Using Blooms Taxonomy to Analyze a Text
When you analyze a text, you want to be able to
employ all of the levels of thinking. Lets take
a look at a passage from Narrative of the Life of
Frederick Douglass.
I was now about twelve years old, and the thought
of being a slave for life began to bear heavily
upon my heart. Just about this time, I got hold
of a book entitled The Columbian Orator. Every
opportunity I got, I used to read this book.
Among much of other interesting matter, I found
in it a dialogue between a master and his
slave. The slave was represented as having run
away from his master three times. The dialogue
represented the conversation which took place
between them, when the slave was retaken the
third time. In this dialogue, the whole argument
in behalf of slavery was brought forward by the
master, all of which was disposed of by the
slave. The slave was made to say some very
smart as well as impressive things in reply to
his masterthings which had the desired though
unexpected effect for the conversation resulted
in the voluntary emancipation of the slave on
the part of the master.
Continued
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PRACTICE
Using Blooms Taxonomy to Analyze a
TextContinued
Either using this passage from Narrative of the
Life of Frederick Douglass or your current
reading assignment, fill in an example sentence
(in the white boxes below) that demonstrates each
level of thinking. An example has been included
for each level to guide you.
(Pause)
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APPLYING THE LEVELS OF THINKING IN YOUR WRITING
Now that we have looked at the hierarchy of low
level to high level thinking, you as an academic
writer want to make sure that your writing
includes and is lead by the higher level skills
of analyzing, evaluating and creating and does
not get stuck solely in the lower levels of
remembering (defining and repeating) and
understanding (reporting and summarizing).
In academic writing, you want a balance of higher
and lower order thinking but be sure to LEAD the
paper with higher order thinking so reporting and
summarizing does not take over your paper.
EXAMPLE
Here is a paragraph from the sample essay on
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. The
higher levels of thinking are in bold and the
lower levels of thinking are not
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PRACTICE
Identifying Higher and Lower Levels of Thinking
Using this paragraph from an essay written on The
Autobiography of Malcolm X, underline the parts
that demonstrate higher order thinking
The diligence and persistent effort Malcolm X
showed in learning to read has become
disappointingly rare. Malcolm X in his
autobiography tells us that when he went to
prison, he could hardly read or write. He
decided the way to improve would be to copy the
entire dictionary word for word by hand. He
said to copy just the first page alone took an
entire day. The next day he reviewed all the
words he did not remember, so he slowly built his
vocabulary, and at the same time he started
educating himself about the larger world as he
describes the dictionary as a miniature
encyclopedia (2). Malcolm X carried on until he
copied the entire dictionary cover to cover.
However, the time he dedicated to his writing was
not confined to this amazing achievement alone
Between what I wrote in my tablet, and writing
letters, during the rest of my time in prison I
would guess I wrote a million words (2). The
dedication to his own education and how he
strengthened his own intelligence and abilities
through sheer force of will is impressive but
unfortunately is the exception rather than the
norm. In Generation Me, the author Jean Twenge
addresses the present generation of people who
have been taught to put themselves first and
expect instant results without working hard to
achieve them. Twenge states They are less
likely to work hard today to get a reward
tomorrowan especially important skill these
days, when many good jobs require graduate
degrees (157). If people are less willing today
to work hard, then we are going to have
increasingly uneducated, lazy people who spend
more time complaining than achieving. With a
lack of education we wont be strong critical
thinkers so will be easily taken in by people who
want to exploit us for profit like advertisers
and corporate America. Instead of defining who
we are, people who want to sell us things will
continue to shape our wants, desires and
perceptions of ourselves.
(Pause)
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ANSWER
Using this paragraph from an essay on Malcolm Xs
autobiography, underline the parts that
demonstrate higher order thinking
The diligence and persistent effort Malcolm X
showed in learning to read has become
disappointingly rare. Malcolm X in his
autobiography tells us that when he went to
prison, he could hardly read or write. He
decided the way to improve would be to copy the
entire dictionary word for word by hand. He said
to copy just the first page alone took an entire
day. The next day he reviewed all the words he
did not remember, so he slowly built his
vocabulary, and at the same time he started
educating himself about the larger world as he
describes the dictionary as a miniature
encyclopedia (2). Malcolm X carried on until he
copied the entire dictionary cover to cover.
However, the time he dedicated to his writing was
not confined to this amazing achievement alone
Between what I wrote in my tablet, and writing
letters, during the rest of my time in prison I
would guess I wrote a million words (2). The
dedication to his own education and how he
strengthened his own intelligence and abilities
through sheer force of will is impressive but
unfortunately is the exception rather than the
norm. In Generation Me, the author Jean Twenge
addresses the present generation of people who
have been taught to put themselves first and
expect instant results without working hard to
achieve them. Twenge states They are less
likely to work hard today to get a reward
tomorrowan especially important skill these
days, when many good jobs require graduate
degrees (157). If people are less willing today
to work hard, then we are going to have
increasingly uneducated, lazy people who spend
more time complaining than achieving. With a
lack of education we wont be strong critical
thinkers so will be easily taken in by people who
want to exploit us for profit like advertisers
and corporate America. Instead of defining who
we are, people who want to sell us things will
continue to shape our wants, desires and
perceptions of ourselves.
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that concludes
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CRITICAL THINKING