Critical Thinking
Critical thinking is a kind of allowing in which you question, assay,
interpret, estimate and make a judgement about what you read, hear, say,
or write. The term critical comes from the Greek word kritikos meaning “
suitable to judge or discern ”.
Good critical thinking is about making dependable judgements grounded
on dependable information.
In the academic environment, critical thinking is most generally
associated with arguments. You might be asked to suppose critically
about other people's arguments or produce your own. To come a better
critical thinker, you thus need to learn how to
[Link] your thinking purpose and context
[Link] your sources of information
[Link] arguments
[Link] sources and arguments
[Link] the arguments of others and
[Link] or synthesise your own
arguments.
The elements of critical thought
a- The elements of critical thought
Cognitive strategies-micro-skills:
comparing and contrasting ideals with actual practice
thinking precisely about thinking: using critical vocabulary
noting significant similarities and differences
examining or evaluating assumptions
distinguishing relevant from irrelevant facts
making plausible inferences, predictions, or interpretations
giving reasons and evaluating evidence and alleged facts
recognizing contradictions
exploring implications and consequences.
b- Cognitive strategies-macro-skills:
refining generalizations and avoiding oversimplifications
comparing analogous situations: transferring insights to
new contexts
developing one's perspective creating or exploring beliefs,
arguments, or theories
clarifying issues, conclusions, or beliefs
developing criteria for evaluation. clarifying values and
standards
evaluating the credibility of sources of information
questioning deeply: raising and pursuing root or
significant questions
analyzing or evaluating arguments, interpretations, beliefs,
or theories generating or assessing solutions
analyzing or evaluating actions or policies
reading critically: clarifying or critiquing texts
listening critically: the art of silent dialogue
making interdisciplinary connections
practicing Socratic discussion: clarifying and questioning
beliefs, theanies, or perspectives
reasoning dialogically: comparing perspectives,
interpretations, or theories
reasoning dialectically: evaluating perspectives,
interpretations, or theories.
Analyze information
Briefly put, critical thinking is judicious reasoning about what to believe
and, therefore, what to do.
Judicious reasoning is deliberate and thorough. Being deliberate implies
an purposeful consideration of, a responsible station toward, ideas,
values, and so forth. Being thorough requires, among other effects, an
appreciation of the breadth and depth of the issue in question, of the
complications of the issue. As similar, critical thinking is a skill. It's not
commodity you can just study or look up. And it's amulti-dimensional
skill- take a look at the list of chops involved, according to critical
thinking practitioner Richard Paul. And, as a skill, it's commodity you get
better at, gradationally, with practice.
critical thinking is important
critical thinking is important because people who engage in critical
thinking tend to be suitable to give substantiation and logic for the
opinions they hold. This may be particularly important for our
hypercritical opinions, our praise and commination. As Browne and
Keeley put it," Critical thinkers find it satisfying to know when to say' no'
to an idea or opinion and to know why that response is applicable"(M.
Neil Browne and Stuart. M. Keeley, Asking the Right Questions A
companion to Critical Thinking, 1997). Furthermore, critical thinking
also enables people to provide reasons for their ac Aons: most people
would rather do things, especially important things, for a reason and even
better, for a good reason.
But not only reasons, and not only good reasons, but also your own
reasons that's what critical thinking leads to. So critical thinkers have
more autonomy, independence, or freedom than people who just sort of
go with the flow and accept whatever's given to them. As Richard Paul
notes, " Moust people are not in charge of their ideas and thinking. Most
of their ideas have come in to their minds without their having thought
about it.
