Critical Thinking – Course Outline

This course is designed to help you develop your critical thinking skills. This is one of the most valuable things that one can learn. Essentially, learning to think critically means learning to think for oneself. It means being able to reason through difficult topics and being able to make informed judgments about important issues, including ethical issues, political issues and workplace issues. It also means being able to reason and solve problems, which will make your life easier and less stressful. It will also help you succeed in your profession. Perhaps most importantly, critical thinking is essential for living in a democratic society, especially one that values freedom of speech. Thinking critically will allow you to evaluate information which is presented to you and to determine whether the reasoning is correct or poor, whether this information comes from a teacher, a doctor,a lawyer, a politician, an employer, a book, a movie, an advertisement, a magazine article, or a television program. I’m excited to teach this course because learning to think critically is the most worthwhile thing you can help a person develop. In a very real sense, thinking intelligently about philosophical topics will enrich your life and lift it above the drudgery of day-to-day living.

Upon completion of this course you will be able to:  Articulate an essential question on a topic of interest that demonstrates appreciation of diverse points of view using analytic approaches  Perform research appropriate to the chosen topic  Compose a research paper with appropriate citation style, demonstrating application of critical thinking strategies Demonstrate a tolerance for and an appreciation of ambiguity  Demonstrate creative problem-solving  Integrate knowledge from diverse viewpoints into a unified whole  Present an analysis of how critical thinking relates to workplace success Present research findings through discussion and oral and technology presentation formats  Conclude how the study of applied philosophy through the development of critical thinking skills is a critical component to one’s personal, professional, and educational development

Course Text: Judith Boss, Think, Ed 2, McGraw Publishing