DQ 6-False Premises / Two Wrongs + Stereotyping - #9

DQ 6-False Premises / Two Wrongs + Stereotyping - #9

In Cotrell's (2005) list of the skills and attitudes involved in critical thinking as a process, she includes "being able to read between the lines, seeing behind surfaces, and identifying false or unfair assumptions" and "recognising techniques used to make certain positions more appealing than others such as false logic and persuasive devices" (p. 2). 

False or unfair assumptions and false logic and persuasive devices are all called fallacies of critical thinking. She gives a complete list of fallacies on page 24 (Cotrell, 2005).

We are going to be working on identifying these fallacies over the next two weeks and identifying them in our presentations and final papers.

Here is an example of a false premise fallacy:

Write it (or copy paste) here. If it's from the web, be sure to put the reference.

Reference

Cotrell, S. (2005). Critical thinking skills: Developing effective analysis and argument (2nd ed.). Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.

Sample:  FALSE Premise

-Gas/ petrol prices go down when production increases , and demand stays the same.

-Currently, world production has increased, therefore, the gas prices in the UAE will go down..  

False premise:  Gas prices in the UAE are NOT linked to production / supply

Add: Two Wrongs - 'My friend cheats on exams, therefore it's ok for me to cheat.'

Stereotyping:  'All ________ are _________..

 

DQ 6-False Premises - Exercise #8

DQ 6-False Premises - Exercise #8

Post 5 of your passage analyses (1 old + 4 new) on your blogs by midnight tonight.. 

We'll discuss the various forms of false premises in day #2..

In Cotrell's (2005) list of the skills and attitudes involved in critical thinking as a process, she includes "being able to read between the lines, seeing behind surfaces, and identifying false or unfair assumptions" and "recognising techniques used to make certain positions more appealing than others such as false logic and persuasive devices" (p. 2). 

ARGUMENT 1 – Exercise #7

Finish ALL your posts #1-#7 by 28 March!!

ARGUMENT 1 – Exercise #7 

Post your own Argument paragraph WITH a topic sentence on your blog.. !

Follow this form:

The following are the basic factors of an argument:

Topic statement - 

·         A position or a point of view

·         An attempt to persuade others to accept that point of view

·         Reasons given to support that point of view.

·         Conclusion

ARGUMENT 1 – Exercise #6

ARGUMENT 1 – Exercise #6

The following are the basic factors of an argument:

·         A position or a point of view

·         An attempt to persuade others to accept that point of view

·         Reasons given to support that point of view.

·         Conclusion

Read the following passage and identify the following:

Main argument:

Reasons that support the argument:

Conclusion:

It is important that pregnant women and those with a poor immune systems become aware of the potential risks posed by cat. Many of us keep cats as house pets without realizing the dangers they may be harboring. Cats are hosts to infectious protozoa that cause disease in mammals such as humans. Adult humans rarely showed signs of significant disease if they become infected. However, if pregnant women become infected, the foetus can become infected by parasites and suffer serious congenital damage. In the worst cases, infants may lose their eyesight and acquire motor deficits. In people with poor immune systems or AIDS protozoa can cause seizure and death. The symptoms of the disease are not evident in cats so there is no way of knowing if a particular cat is at risk. 

DQ2-Benefits of Critical Thinking - exercise #5

 DQ2-Benefits of Critical Thinking - exercise #5


Using the book Stella Cotrell's Critical Thinking: Developing Effective Analysis and Argument (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2005). [Look on the menu on the left hand sidebar. There is a copy there for you, and I strongly suggest reading Chapter 1]. 

Look on page 4 in the call out box. You will see that she lists 6 benefits of critical thinking.      Write each one of the benefits and give an example from your real life to explain what the benefit is.
1. For example, the first benefit is "improved attention and observation."

An example from my real life is when I decided to buy a new phone because I was tired of my BlackBerry taking so long to load when I went on the Internet. I started noticing what kind of phone everyone was was using if it were a BlackBerry, an IPhone, or a Samsung. I began looking at the screens and noticing how the person used the phone.

2. The second benefit is "more focused reading,"
So when I looked up information about the phones on the Internet I read it very carefully, I also read newspaper articles about BlackBerry, iPhone, and Samsung.

3. The third benefit is .......
Do this for each one of the six benefits. Think about when you bought your phone or your car, or chose to study at ADMC.

Post to your Blog as Exercise #5

DQ 3- Barriers to CT

Cotrell (2005) also lists 7 barriers to critical thinking on pages 10-12.

Write each of the barriers to critical thinking and write an explanation of the barrier in your own words.

   For example:

Barrier 1--Misunderstanding what is meant by criticism

Some people think that criticism is just saying what is wrong with your work. But criticism also means analyzing something like a piece of art, a book, or a movie to understand thoroughly what it is about and deciding what your opinion about it is. Criticism can actually mean that you like something or you think someone did a good job on something.

Post to your Blog as Exercise #4  for ALL seven barriers