Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Refer to the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric under the Settings icon above for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.
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Logic and Life [WLO: 4] [CLOs: 2, 3, 4]
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Prior to beginning work on this discussion, read Chapter 9 in your textbook and complete the interactive module The Graduate (Links to an external site.). In addition, watch the video The Value of Critical Thinking in Daily Life (Links to an external site.) (displayed below).
One of the advantages of learning logic and critical thinking is that it can benefit all areas of one’s life. The ability to research all sides before arriving at a position on an issue, the humility to consider opposing points of view in a fair-minded way, the wisdom to evaluate the quality of reasoning for and against positions, the capacity to recognize and avoid logical fallacies, and the skill to be able to construct effective reasoning all can benefit us by helping us to arrive at positions that are most justified by the evidence (and therefore most likely to be true). These habits, when applied, can also help us to make decisions based on a more comprehensive understanding of different points of view, to better appreciate other people’s perspectives, to be more clear and persuasive in our reasoning, and to avoid making decisions that are not rationally justified. The discussion this week is designed to assist us in this process of applying critical thinking to our daily lives.
Your instructor will choose the discussion question and post it as the first post in the discussion forum. Answer all the questions in the prompt, and read any resources that are required to complete the discussion properly.
Though it has focused on arguments, this course is not merely designed to give skills and tools for creating arguments; it is designed to create critical thinkers. Critical thinking is not merely a set of tools, but a habit of mind based on carefully reasoning about what is true and how best to live. It is an approach to life based in careful thought (Vic Le vine, 2012). In other words, it is possible to use the lessons from this course to genuinely live better and smarter lives. This discussion is designed to explore some of the virtues of mind that one can develop as a result of developing the habit of critical thinking.
Prepare: In addition to using the readings and scenarios of this course, take a close look at the web pages associated with the Foundation for Critical Thinking (Links to an external site.) website. Unfortunately it appears that to access complete articles on this website a paid subscription is requested. Students may wish to at least explore the various menus, and glean what you can for no charge. For instance, scan the LIBRARY drop-down menu; under issues in critical thinking several fundamentals of critical thinking and valuable intellectual traits are at least enumerated (see our list below). Students might also wish to reach out to the Ashford Library reference librarian to find resources incorporating expanded discussions on these traits. The traits, we might emphasize, are intrinsically tied to intellectual values and principles. If anything, I am hopeful that this course be an important incremental starting point to a life-long pursuit of intellectual growth, development, and maturation.
Reflect: Search within the website for the pages associated with the options below, and Reflect how each can help you to live a better life. Choose one of the four topics below and develop the ideas in the page into a plan for implementing it into your life more.
Write: Choose one of the topics below from the Critical Thinking Community website and address the prompts underneath.
Purpose, Point of View, and Decisions
Outline a problem that you currently face or have faced recently. Define the assumptions that you have about this issue. Explain your point of view, and outline the information that you have analyzed in relation to this problem. Finally, explain the implications that have arisen or will arise when you respond to this problem. How can critical thinking help you to address this problem in a healthier and more intelligent manner? (Here is a good example of such an approach: Steven Brookfield on Critical Thinking: http://vimeo.com/65688214 (Links to an external site.)
Valuable Intellectual Traits
Of the valuable intellectual traits listed in the online readings from this week, identify three of them that you can further strengthen. Explain the traits, and then describe how you will attempt to implement actions in your life that will maximize those intellectual virtues. How can each of them make your life better? Will you be more likely to find truth by developing them?
Open-Minded Inquiry
Using the online reading “Open-minded Inquiry,” identify what you consider to be the three most important attributes that one must have as he or she approaches problems. Explain why you think these attributes are the three most important, and describe examples from your own life, or from the lives of those you know, in which people failed to display those attributes. How will learning this virtue improve your life and relationships with others? Will it help you to find more truth?
Guided Response: Guided Response: Post a minimum of three responses, two of which must be to your classmates. The third response could be to a classmate or your instructor. Be sure to post on three separate days throughout the week to promote further engagement and discussion. Each response should be a minimum 75 of words.
Discuss what you learned from their musings and how you have learned from similar experiences. You might add to the understanding of the points they have raised. You might comment on the value of the intellectual traits they have discussed. You might discuss how these traits can help us to be more successful in our daily lives. You might comment on some aspect of the Chapter or any other resources you have used during this course as they may relate to the discussion.
