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CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS

Critical Thinking Skills Reviewer

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CRITICAL THINKING SKILLSExercising or involving careful judgement

(The only kind of thinking that will hold up under careful examination is logical thinking- thinking that is reasonable, reliable and believable.)Critical- in accordance with the inferences reasonably to be drawn from preceding or surrounding events or circumstancesLogicalThinking logically means thinking sensibly. It means looking at all sides of a question, proposing reasonable and sensible solutions, and then supporting the solutions with good reason, interesting example, and solid evidence.The Logical Thinking ProcessDecide on the purpose and state it clearly.Gather information on the topic.Focus on a central point which can support or prove. This is called making a claim.Claims fall into three main groups: claims of fact, claims of value, claims of policy.Claims of fact state or claim that something is true or not true.ex: Television violence causes violent behaviour in children.b. Claims of value state that something has or does not have worth.ex: The Bigfoot Cross- Trainer is the best all-around shoe for the money.c. Claims of policy assert that something ought to be done or not done.ex: We need a law to prevent any more farmland from being terms into suburban housing.4. Add qualifiers as necessary to strengthen the claim. Qualifiers are terms that make a claim more flexible. Note the difference between the two claims below:Teachers ignore students excuses.Some teachers tend to ignore students excuses.

The second claim is easier to defend because it makes a qualified claims rather than an all-or nothing claim. Some of the useful qualifiers are: almost if .......then....... maybe probablyfrequently in most cases might sometimesoften likely usually

5. Define any term that maybe unclear.6. Support the points with evidence that is both interesting and reliable. A claim needs evidence for support. The more kinds of evidence one offers and stronger the evidence, the stronger his argument will be.Observation: I personally observed the audiences reaction to the movie.Statistics: According to Entertainment Weekly, over 2 million people saw the movie in the first week.Comparison: The movie was almost as moving as Schindlers List.Expert Testimony: Siskel and Ebert gave it two thumbs up.Experience: Ive seen it three times.Demonstration: The movie begins with the wide shot of.......Analysis: The plot hinges on the secret that...Prediction: Early predictions are that it will be nominated......7. Explain the evidence and why others should accept it.8. Consider any objections others could have to ones explanation.9. Make concessions; admit that some of the arguments maybe weak. Concessions are points that one lets the other side score. When an argument has some true weaknesses, it is usually best to admit it. A concession often adds believability to an overall claim. Here are some useful expressions for making concessions:Admittedly I cannot argue withEven though I agree thatgranted10. Point out weaknesses in the arguments on the other side of the issue, the arguments one does not accept. Restate the point or central claim. Urge the audience to accept the viewpoint.

One will not use all of these steps, or stage, each time he sets out to prove a point. Each situation is different and, in addition to logic, requires some creative thinking and common sense.Using Evidence and LogicAn argument is a claim of reasons that a person uses to support a claim or conclusion. To use argument well, one needs to know both how to draw logical conclusions from sound evidence and how to recognize and avoid false arguments or logical fallacies.Fallacies of ThinkingAppeal to Ignorance

One commits this logical fallacy by claiming that since no one has ever proved a claim, it must therefore be false. Appeals to ignorance unfairly shift the burden of proof to someone else.

Ex: Show me one study that proven seat belts save lives.2.Appeal to PityThis fallacy may be heard in courts of law when an attorney begs for leniency because his clients mother is ill and so on. The strong tag on the heartstring can also be heard in the classroom when students say may I have an extension on this paper?

Ex: Imagine what is must have been like. If anyone deserves a break, he does.3. Bandwagon This is appeal to everyones sense of wanting to belong or be accepted and tries to avoid the real question-Is this idea or claim a good one or not?

Ex: Everyone on the team wears high-tops. Its the only way to go.4. Broad GeneralizationThis takes in everything and everyone at once, allowing no exceptions All voters spend too little time reading about a candidate and too much time being swayed by 30-second sound bites. It may be true that quite a few voters spend too little time reading about the candidates, but it is unfair to suggest that this is true of all voters.

Ex: All teenagers spend too much time watching television.5. Circular ThinkingThis fallacy consists of assuming, in a definition or an argument, the very point one is trying to prove.

Ex: I hate Mr. Baldwins class because Im never happy in there.(But whats wrong with the class?)6. Either- or ThinkingThis consists of reducing a solution to two possible extremes. This fallacy of thinking eliminates every possibility in the middle.

Ex: Either this community votes to build a new school or the quality of education will drop dramatically.7. Half-TruthsAvoid building an argument with evidence or statements that contain part of the truth, but not the whole truth. They are especially misleading because they leave out The rest of the story. They are true and dishonest at the same time.

Ex: The new recycling law is bad because it will cost more money than it saves. (Maybe so; but it will also save the environment.)8.OversimplificationThis is signified by the phrasesIt all boils down to.....Its a simple question of.....

Ex: Capital punishment is a simple question of protecting society.9. Slanted LanguageBy choosing words that carry strong positive or negative feelings, a person can distract the audience, leading them away from valid arguments being made.

I am firm. You are obstinate. He is pigheaded.Bias in comparing three synonyms for the word stubborn.

10. TestimonialIf the testimonial or statement comes from a recognized authority in the field, great. If it comes from a person famous in another field, it can be misleading.

Sports hero : Ive tried every cold medicine on the market, and - believe me - nothing works like Comptrol. Critical Thinking SkillsSyllogistic ReasoningDecision from an assumptionInterpretationEvaluation of argumentsNumerical ArgumentsReasoning about groups or categories using All or Some statementReasoning based on Either or Neither statementReasoning about parts of group using some, Most, A Few, Almost All or Many statementReasoning from If-Then statementsReasoning by drawing probable conclusionsSkill: Syllogistic ReasoningConcept: Syllogism is a logical scheme or analysis of a formal argument consisting of three propositions- the major premise, the minor premise and the conclusion. The conclusion necessarily follows from the premises, so that if these are true, the conclusions must be true, and the argument amounts to demonstration, as in the following example:Every virtue is laudable.Kindness is a virtue. Therefore, kindness is laudable.Reviewer-Critical Thinking SkillsThe major premise is usually treated as a general rule of which the major premise is a case and the conclusion is an application. The two premises are related by a middle or common term which disappears in the conclusion; and for this reason, the syllogism is often treated as a process of elimination. The formal validity of the syllogism is entirely distinct from its truth, which depends upon the truth of its premises; hence, the use of the syllogism, as any piece of deductive reasoning, may be either to prove a conclusion by showing that it follows from known premises or to test the truth of premises by showing what follows from them.III. Activities/ExercisesSet ADirections: Read and analyse the items very carefully. Choose the letter of the correct answer.Tanya is older than Eric.Cliff is older than Tanya.Based on this, we validly conclude thatA. Cliff is older than Eric.B. Eric is older than Cliff.C. Tanya is older than Cliff.D. Eric and Cliff are older than Tanya.Set BDirections: Read and analyse the items very carefully. Choose the letter of the correct answer.1. One of the warmest winters on record has put consumers in the mood to spend money. Spending is likely to be the strongest in thirteen years. During the month of February, sales of existing family homes hit an annual record rate of 4.75 million.This paragraph best supports the statement that A. Consumer spending will be higher thirteen years from now than it is today.B. More people buy houses in the month of February than in any other month.C. During the winter months, the prices of single family homes are the lowest.D. Warm winter weather is likely to affect the rate of home sales.