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1. Introduction: Critical Thinking

1.1 A brief history of the idea of critical thinking


2,500 years ago Socrates
established the importance of asking deep questions, seeking evidence, analyzing basic concepts before we accept ideas as worthy of beliefs

Plato, Aristotle, Greek skeptics
emphasized that things are often very different from what they appear to be and that only the trained mind is prepared to see though the way thing look to us on the surface.

In the middle ages Thomas Aquinas (Sumna Theologica)
ensures that his thinking met the tests of critical thinkers by answering criticisms of his ideas.

15th & 16th C. European scholars (Colet, Erasmus, More in England)
(Renaissance) started thinking critically about religion, art, society, human, law, and freedom

Francis Bacon in England
- wrote The Advancement of Learning, the 1st book in critical thinking
- argued for the importance of studying the world empirically.
- laid the foundation for modern science with his emphasis on the information-gathered process

50 years later Descartes in France
- wrote the 2nd book Rules for the Direction of the Mind
- developed a method of critical thought based on the principle of systematic doubt.

In the same period Sir Thomas More
- developed a model for a new social order Utopia in which every domain the present world was subject to critique.

16th &17th C. Hobbes & Locke
- not to accept the traditional cultural beliefs dominant in the thinking of their day as being rational and normal.
- everything in the world should be explained by evidence and reasoning

17th & 18th C. Robert Boyle & Isaac Newton in Chemistry & nature
+
and other French thinkers in sociology & politics
Adam Smith produces Wealth of Nations in economics

19th C. Darwin's Descent of Man in the biological domain
focused on the history of human culture and the basis of biological life

Sigmund Freud study in the unconscious domain.
Plus other studies in the Anthropological & Linguistics domains.

20th C. no. of thinkers have increased in every domain of human thought and within which reasoning takes place.

Thus…



Students in school should be taught how to think critically. Classes should be designed based on reasoning and rational grounds and not as series of facts.



1.2 Defining critical thinking

Critical thinking …

• is a “process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or gathered by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication as a guide to belief and action.” (pp. 10)

• is a “mode of thinking – about any subject, content, or problem – in which thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking by skillfully taking charge of the structures inherent in thinking and imposing intellectual standards upon them.” (pp. 10)

• varies according to the motivation underlying it.

• varies in quality from one individual to another.




1.3 Why critical thinking?

 Without critical thinking, a person may..…….(pp. 26)

 jump to conclusion
 fail to think through implications
 lose track to their goal
 are unrealistic
 focus on the trivial
 fail to notice contradictions
 accept inaccurate information
 ask vague questions
 give vague answers
 come to unreasonable conclusions
 think narrowly
 think illogically
 think superficially
 make poor decisions
 are poor communicators




 Without critical thinking, a person may have a dysfunctional life in which he/she may..…….(pp. 27)

- never question his/her relationships. Then, s/he avoids dealing with problems within them.
- misinterpret comments from people around him/her irrationally
- think narrowly in which he never accepts to be criticized by people surrounding him/her.
- never communicate with people other than the group that s/he in.
- never solve his problems. S/he never takes the responsibility to admit his/her mistake. S/he always blames others for his/her own mistakes

 A well cultivated critical thinker:

 raises vital questions and problems clearly and precisely
 interprets relevant information effectively and come to well-reasoned conclusions
 thinks open-mindedly within alternative systems of thought by assessing their assumptions and implications
 communicates effectively with others in figuring out solutions to complex problems.
(see pp. 11)
1.4 How to be a critical thinker: learning the art of critical thinking


To be a critical thinker, you have to consider the following four steps:

1- Clarify your thinking by trying to figure out the real intended meaning rather than the surface one.
2- Stick to the point by focusing on relevant issues and problems and drifting away from unrelated matters that may disturb the thought.
3- Question questions that are powerful, essential, and deep to make real problems explicit.
4- Be reasonable by being open-minded and accepting other’s reason before defending yourself unreasonably.




1.5 How to make students critical thinkers: helping students assess their thinking

Elder & Paul (1996) have listed 8 guidelines to develop students’ reasoning abilities:

1. All reasoning has a PURPOSE
2. All reasoning is an attempt to FIGURE SOMETHING OUT, TO SETTLE SOME QESTIONS, TO SOLVE SOME PROBLEMS.
3. All reasoning is based on ASSUMPTION
4. All reasoning is done from some POINT OF VIEW
5. All reasoning is based on DATA, INFORMATION, and EVIDENCE
6. All reasoning is expressed thought, and shaped by, CONCEPTS and IDEAS
7. All reasoning contains INFERENCES or INTERPRETATIONS by which we draw CONCLUSIONS and give meaning to data.
8. All reasoning leads somewhere or has IMPLICTIONS and CONSEQUENCES
(see pp. 19)








Summary:

• Over the years, many critical thinkers produced successful studies and inventions in various domains.
• Critical thanking is a “mode of thinking – about any subject, content, or problem – in which thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking” to make it more skillful.
• Without critical thinking, a person may have a dysfunctional life plus other weaknesses in the way s/he deals with problems.
• On the other hand, a critical thinker has more effective way in dealing with problems.
• Only through clarifying the thought, sticking to a unique point, asking questions being reasonable, the individual becomes a critical thinker.
• Students can be critical thinkers by having a purpose, forming questions, collecting data, forming assumptions, having a view point, drawing a conclusion & consequences.