In higher education, critical thinking doesn't mean criticising or finding fault. Instead it means thinking in depth about something and we can do this by asking lots of questions for example:
Why? Who? What? Where? When? How? What if? What next?
Critical thinking is about taking nothing for granted; so when you've asked the question, then it is good practice to question the answer.
Critical thinking is about examining arguments to see whether they are well-reasoned and logical (here an argument is not a disagreement but a reason or set of reasons which leads to a conclusion).
Critical thinking also involves reading between the lines and looking for what is not being said as well as what is being made obvious.
Most of all, critical thinking is about keeping an open mind and being prepared to question your own points of view and understanding alternative ones.
If the concept of critical thinking is new to you, try seeing yourself as a member of a jury who has to weigh up the evidence presented by both the defence and the prosecution team. As a juror you need to analyse information and evaluate different arguments presented to you whilst keeping an open mind. You will need these same skills as a critical thinker.
To develop your critical thinking skills, listen to radio phone-ins on topical issues and/or read the letters page in a newspaper. Think about the arguments the callers/readers are making. Are the arguments well-reasoned and logical or are the callers/readers making sweeping statements and generalisations? Are the callers using language as a way of persuading the listener to their point of view? Are they using evidence to back up their arguments and is the evidence credible?
Have a look at the following fictitious letters to newspapers regarding MPs expenses.
Think about the arguments the writers are making. Are they credible and if not, why not?
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Letter 1 Dear Sir In the eyes of the law, fraud is a criminal activity. Fiddling expenses is fraud, therefore all MPs are criminals and should be treated as such! Yours faithfully Robert Smith |
Letter 2 Dear Sir Clearly MPs regard expenses as a way of topping up their poor salaries. If MPs are to stop claiming for Hob Nobs and bath plugs, we need to pay them a decent salary. Yours faithfully Susan Jones |
Letter 3 Dear Sir The expenses fiasco is the fault of this government who should resign at once and let the general public have their say in a General Election. However it is obvious that they won't resign because they know they will lose! John Brown |
When you have read through the letters and considered them, look at the comments below.
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Letter 1 Comments If MPs were acting within the rules (whether we agree with those rules, or not!) can they be accused of "fiddling expenses"? We need to know what the writer means by "fiddling expenses" to decide whether in all cases, it constitutes fraud. The letter also generalises that all MPs have been "fiddling expenses". This is not accurate. This letter is not a credible argument.
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Letter 2 Comments Why is it 'clear' that MPs regard expenses as a way of topping up their salaries? This is an example of the use of a persuader word - 'clearly'. These are words or phrases that are used to persuade readers to accept what has been written when there is no argument presented or evidence. What does the writer consider to be a "poor" salary and a "decent" salary. People will interpret words such as poor and decent differently. Precise figures need to be given. Does it necessarily follow that MPs will stop claiming expenses if they are paid more? The argument is not credible. |
Letter 3 Comments The writer states that the 'expenses fiasco' is the fault of the government. Where is the evidence to support this? It would appear that writer has a particular political point of view which colours his reasoning. The phrase 'it is obvious' is used in the last sentence as a persuader where no argument or evidence is presented. The argument is not credible.
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On your course you will be expected to use a wide variety of information sources – books, journals and of course, the Internet. One way of finding information on the Internet is to use a search engine such as Google. However, the Internet is vast and search engines will return thousands of 'hits', many of which may be irrelevant or incorrect. The Internet is not subject to any kind of quality control. Anyone with access to the Internet can publish content online, so you need to use it as a source of information with caution. It is an ideal place to practice critical thinking skills in order to judge the authenticity of any content you find there.
It is important to consider the following:
University can feel very different to previous educational experiences where you may have had someone else guiding you and telling you what you should be doing. At university, you will be expected to take more responsibility for your self and becoming a self directed and independent learner. The ability to critically evaluate situations and ask yourself questions such as Why? Who? What? Where? and When? are an important part of this process and will gradually become second nature. You will not be on your own in all of this; there will always be staff who can provide help and support for you in the process.
You may find it useful to look at the section on Reflective Practice as the processes of reflection are closely related to the development of critical thinking.
