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Define: Critical Thinking Skills
One of the most prominent things that you will read about time and time again is how employers want people with 'critical thinking skills' or problem solving abilities. However, we spend up to 16-20 years in school to learn a lot of 'facts' and how to regurgitate those facts. There is one course that I took at a university level that has had the biggest impact on me in my personal and professional life. I can cite its influence on my work almost every day.If I had to choose just one course for my own children to attend, it would be this - Logic.
According to Wikipedia, Logic is defined as
"the study of the principles and criteria of valid inference and demonstration. As a formal science, logic investigates and classifies the structure of statements and arguments, both through the study of formal systems of inference and through the study of arguments in natural language. The scope of logic is, therefore, wide. Ranging from core topics such as the study of fallacies and paradoxes, to specialized analyses of reasoning using probability and to arguments involving causality. Logic is also commonly used today in argumentation theory."
Everyone should have a sound foundation in informal logic – the study of the elements of language that work together to create an argument and how to ferret out fallacious arguments. Increasingly, we are asked to digest data more frequently and at a faster pace. Advertisers, politician, theologians, teachers, employers, friends and family all, consciously or unconsciously, throw their versions of truth at us daily. Too many of us are content to let someone else do our critical thinking for us.
If you've never taken a class in logic, read up on at least informal logic via the links provided in this post or visit your local community college and take a class. If you have taken one before, dust off that old philosophy book and sharpen your critical thinking skills.
This post was written by Rob Neville from RobNeville.net. If you are interested in contributing to the thinking process and become a guest writer on The Thinking Blog, find out more information here and be my guest!
16 thoughts:
Great post, I worked in an ICU for 7 years and let tell you that critical thinking is one of the best skills I have ever developed.
My Logic class teacher, way back in college, taught us to read newspapers and current events. At the beginning of every session, she gave quizzes about what happened during the day. I guess that her one way of teaching us how we are to develop critical thinking skill.
I was afraid when I took the GRE's first logic test. It was fairly easy if I used the process of elimination, from answers to questions.
We think along common lines. Another important course that goes hand and hand with logic is Ethics,
which deals with how we define and tackle a "Moral Dilemma". The code we use to reason out our position is often of more value in defining who we are, than the position itself.
Hopefully, we use logic, sometimes we use emotion, but how we decide between choices in a moral dilemma exhibits our ability to think logically.
The big question is ,
How do we prioritize goals when often life and time, forces us to place those things on the bottom of the list we consider just as important as those on the top of the list.
jon
i am pleased to see people who are wanting to use thier minds. if you are going to make it thru this life you need to have good skills in this area. as a bar manager for many years putting me in many diferant situations where i had to think! fast and right! everyone should keep up on what is going on around them to be a productive member of society. i have tried to make sure my boys were aware and active as they grew older. right now my boys and i are experiencing the very thing you arespeaking of. what is to be our top priority? everything is needed and important and every decision made now will be life changing for us all. my dad use to say, " think about each of your issues and as you think of them ask can i do anything about this today? if yes then you have made your plan, if you can't do anything then just file it back till the next day and work from there". it's worked real good thruout my life. hopefully others will find it useful too.
My wife and I had our Logic classes from two separate universities and there were some differences.
For example, in the first half of my semester, we dealt with reasoning processes, logic types and Fallacies of Relevance, such as using glittering generalities, circular reasoning and ad hominem arguments, et al. My wife's class only skimmed these.
Instead, her class heavily focused on the grunt work of using ever-more complicated Truth Tables to evaluate arguments. Yes, I had to learn Truth Tables, too, but mine at their worst, probably never had more than 144 elements to it. That's a lot to be sure, but my wife's grew much larger and were extremely tedious.
Both have their place in evaluating arguments. The Fallacies of Relevance probably work better in conversation (I can't see diagramming Truth Tables at the dinner table with an already obnoxious relative or at a business meeting with a slick salesman).
But lengthy written communication may be better evaluated by using the more discerning TruthTables.
Knock Out! discerning capability as an antidote to a swallowing the 'celebosophical' clap trap that pervades the media. Folks might also dip into Critical Theory, and Critical Realism as related areas too.
Knowing how to navigate between'dogmatic fundamentalism' and 'hedge your bets relativism' has got be good.
Because I said so, and therefore it must be true :)
I`d like to remind everyone that they know all they need to know if they just trust their decisions to be the best....and roll with them.
Operative word: their.
Many people lack such skills. Anti-intellects must be crushed!
I agree--learning how to engage in critical thinking has literally changed the way I approach issues every day. One of the most helpful tools I've learned is how to use a closed logic process to define what a problem is and what it is not. I'm amazed at how many people try to use brainstorming to identify the root cause of a problem rather than using logic to eliminate everything that can't be cause.
Glad you are trying to define CT. There seems to be a lot of confusion on the web about what critical thinking actually is. Some people are equating it with the New Atheism. Some think CT is all about debunking pseudoscience. Others are defending their own ideologies across the spectrum and calling this CT.
Also, I think you need to be pretty specific when you get into politics and ideologies.
Nice post!
Critical thinking will teach an entirely new way to look at the world and can do wonders for problem solving abilities! As a critical thinker, you’ll be better equipped to face the challenges presented by an ever changing world and you’ll be well served in both your personal and professional life.
Deshawn Romero
http://www.bizsum.com
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Good work and excellent theme! Thanks.
I'm looking forward to getting more information about this topic, don't worry about negative opinions.
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