Core 100: Critical Thinking
Dr. James Wallace

King’s College
Spring 2005

 

INTRODUCTION

 

Critical Thinking studies a process which is indispensable to all educated persons--the process by which we develop and support our beliefs and evaluate the strength of arguments made by others in real-life situations. It includes practice in inductive and deductive reasoning, presentation of arguments in oral and written form, and analysis of the use of language to influence thought. The course also applies the reasoning process to other fields such as business, science, law, social science, ethics, and the arts.

 

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

 

 Successful completion of this course will enable you to

  • identify, evaluate, and construct inductive and deductive arguments in spoken and written forms;
  • recognize common fallacies in everyday reasoning;
  • distinguish the kinds and purposes of definitions;
  • distinguish the functions of language and its capacity to express and influence meaning; and
  • recognize and assess arguments in various forums of reasoning.

 The goals of the course are to help you 

  • develop the habits of assessing and defending the reasonableness of your beliefs and values and those of others;
  • appreciate the importance of looking at an issue from a variety of points of view and of recognizing the complexity that surrounds most controversial issues; and
  • appreciate the value of critical thinking in both public and private decision-making.

 After you have finished this course, you should be more:

  • Self-aware, recognizing your own biases and influences;
  • Inquisitive and curious, wanting to learn more about issues before passing judgment;
  • Objective, basing your judgments on evidence and avoiding twisting evidence to fit your opinion;
  • Open-minded, having the ability to say, "I don't know" or "I was wrong";
  • Sensitive to language, avoiding slanted language, recognizing ambiguous, vague, emotionally laden language, defining key terms;
  • Imaginative, approaching topics and problems from various angles;
  • Fair and intellectually honest, avoiding misrepresenting the ideas of others or misinterpreting data and research to fit your own purposes.

 

 

 

TEXTS AND MATERIALS

 

The required text for the course is Critical Thinking: A Student's Introduction, 2nd ed.  (Bassham, Irwin, Nardone, and Wallace). Many supplemental materials will be distributed as needed.  Also, since thinking critically depends largely on your being aware of your world, I recommend that you read a daily paper and familiarize yourself with some of the periodicals available in the library and with news sources available on the Internet.

 

A number of helpful Internet sites are available to students of critical thinking.  The Center for Critical Thinking (at Sonoma State, California), provides a number of helpful resources including a glossary of terms used in the study of critical thinking. A very useful page for critical thinking students and for all researchers and writers is maintained by the King's College librarians.  For an intelligent guide to web sites, start with The Internet Public Library's Reference Center.   We will look at several other sites in the course of the semester.

 

METHODS, REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING

 

Because this course is intended to help you develop the skills necessary for making you an effective thinker, there will be very little lecturing. If you feel that the success of a course is measured by the amount of lecture notes a student can accumulate during a semester you will be very disappointed in this course. The course will consist almost entirely of discussion and practice.

 

In completing the assignments during the semester, you can earn a total of 200 points as follows:

Your participation--which means coming to class prepared, expressing and defending your ideas clearly and constructively, contributing relevant points of interest, making connections between course material and material from other classes and from the world outside the school, demonstrating enthusiasm, and completing in-class exercises--will count for 15 points on the final grade.

There will also be a number of exercises—projects, short essays, worksheets—and quizzes during the semester.  These exercises and quizzes will add up to 120 points, or 60 percent of the final grade.  Some exercises will be assigned for homework and collected in class.  Some exercises will be assigned and collected in the same class period.  Homework assignments handed in late will be accepted, although a penalty my be assessed.  In-class exercises cannot be made up.  

A final, cumulative exam will count for 25 points.

A large percentage of your grade—40 points (20 percent)—will be determined by your performance on a six- to seven-page argumentative essay.   In this essay, you'll present a claim and defend it with solid evidence and clear reasoning.  Instructions for the essay will be provided early in the semester. 

Grading  Scale:

A      =    193  to 200
A-     =    186 to 192 
B+    =    178 to 185
B      =    170 to 177
B-     =    162 to 169
C+    =   154 to 161
C      =    145 to 153
C-     =    137 to 144
D      =    120 to 136
F       =    Below 120

 

ATTENDANCE

 

Attendance is mandatory in classes at King’s.  I will take role every day until I learn your names, after which I will take notice of who is in class and who is not.  Whether you come to class or not is your decision, but keep two things in mind: 1) fifteen points of your grade will come from your class participation, and 2) in-class exercises cannot be made up. 

 

PLAGIARISM

 

We'll talk about plagiarism early in the semester so that you'll know what it is and how to avoid it.  Plagiarism, which means attempting to give your reader the impression that words or ideas in an essay are your own when in fact they are someone else’s, is a serious academic offense that can get you thrown out of college.  Don't take any chances.  If you have questions about what should be documented and cited, please ask.  (A more developed policy on plagiarism is available here.)

 

OFFICE HOURS AND COMMUNICATION

 

My office is Hafey-Marian 401.  Office hours are  

 

Monday and Wednesday, 1:00 to 2:00 and 3:30 to 5:00 p.m.  I will hold hours on Tuesday and Thursday mornings by appointment. 

 

Besides talking to me before or after class or during my office hours, you can communicate with me by e-mail (jmwallac@kings.edu) or by phone at 208-5900, ext. 5673.

 

COURSE MATERIALS

 

Click here for additional readings.

 

COURSE OUTLINE

 

1. WHAT IS AN ARGUMENT?

In-class discussions

Statements: What must be proved

Read: 30-33

Exercise: 2.1.I: Statements

Premises and Conclusions

Read: 34-37

Exercise: 2.2.I: Premises and conclusions

Exercise:  2.2.II: Premises and conclusions

What is not an argument?

Read: 40-48

Exercise: 2.4.I (1-25): Arguments and non-arguments

Exercise: 2.4.II (1-20): Arguments v. explanations

What is a “good argument”?

Read: 200-207

 

2.  PREPARING AN ARGUMENT: THE EARLY STAGES  (By end of week 2, students must choose argument to work on for the remainder of semester.  The argument will be written in drafts, which will be due at various points in the semester.)

Read: 377-395

 

3.  BEING AWARE OF BIAS

Critical Thinking Standards

Read: 1-8

Barriers to Critical Thinking

Read: 11-18

Exercise: 1.3.I (in class)

Characteristics of a Critical Thinker

Read: 26-27

 

4.  DEFINING TERMS: LANGUAGE

The Need for Precision: Vagueness, Ambiguity, Overgenerality

Read: 90-94

Exercise: 4.1.I: Vagueness, ambiguity, overgenerality

Exercise: 4.1.II: Verbal vs. factual disputes

Precise Definitions

Read: 96-105

Exercise: 4.2.I: Defining terms

Exercise: 4.2.II: Does the definition fit?

Exercise 4.2.III: Types of definitions.

Exercise 4.2.IV: Strategies for defining

Emotive Language

Read: 110-115

Exercise: 4.4.I: Describing action

Exercise 4.4.II (1-3): Identifying emotive language

Euphemisms and Political Correctness

Exercise 4.5: Euphemism or P.C.?

 

5.  PROVING YOUR CASE I: REASONING INDUCTIVELY AND DEDUCTIVELY

Deduction and Induction

Read: 55-58

Exercise: 3.1.I, II, and III (in class)

Induction

Read 70-74

Assumptions

Organizing Your Argument

Read 395-401

 

6.  AVOIDING FALLACIES

Fallacies of Relevance

Read: 122-136

Exercise: 5.2.1

Fallacies of Insufficient Evidence

Read: 143-158

Exercise:6.1.I

 

7.  PROVING YOUR CASE II: GATHERING SUPPORT

Finding Sources

Read: 327-333

Exercise: 12.1 (in class)

Evaluating Sources

Read: 339-342

Exercise: 12.2.I: Listing facts and opinions

Exercise: 12.2.II: Separating fact from opinion

Read: 344-354

Exercise 12.3: How reliable are these sources?

Taking Notes

Skim pages 356 to 362

Paraphrasing

Read: 362-363

Exercise: 12.4: Paraphrasing

Acknowledging Sources

Read: 367-370

Exercise: 12.6: To document or not?

Incorporating Sources

Read 371-374

 

8.  THE MEDIA AS SOURCE

Exercise 14.3.III (in class)

The Mass Media and The News Media

Read: 419-438

Exercise: 14.3.I and II

Exercise 14.4

Media Literacy

Read 438-440

Advertising

Skim 440-450

 

 9.  WRITING THE ARGUMENT

Read: 401-418