Critical Thinking
Give someone a fish and they'll eat that day
Teach them how to catch a fish and they'll never go hungry
Proverbs like these remind us how learning skills
helps to move us towards self-reliance
This is never more true than with critical thinking
Memorize the solution to a problem and you may master that particular problem
Improve your critical thinking and you'll give yourself the tools
to create your own effective solutions to a multitude of unfamiliar problems
Critical Thinking refers to a diverse range of intellectual skills and activities
concerned with evaluating information
has well has our own thought in a disciplined way
When we're willing and able to examining our own capabilities as thinkers
acknowledging problems and weaknesses
this can help us refine our thought processes
so that we learn to think and assess information in a more comprehensive way
that increases our ability to identify and reject false ideas and ideologies
Critical Thinking isn't just thinking a lot
a person may spend a great deal of intellectual energy
defending a flawed position or pursuing a question
that actually needs reformulating before progress can begin
if they never examine possible flaws and biases behind their approach
that's not thinking critically
we must want to be better at thinking
to pinpoint and minimize any biasing influence on our thought
from culture and upbringing
to seek out and be guided by knowledge and evidence that fits with reality.
even if it refutes our cherished beliefs
indeed when we think critically
beliefs tend not to be cherished but held on the understanding
that if they are shown to be unfounded
a change of position is the most appropriate response
critical thinkers cultivate an attitude of curiosity and eagerness
to widen their perspective and broaden their knowledge
and they're willing to do the work required
to keep themselves properly informed about a subject
they recognize that explanations must actually explain and be testable
to be worthy of serious consideration
and that legitimate theories clearly define the circumstances
in which they'll concede defeat
Critical Thinking embraces scepticism.
Skepticism doesn't mean an indiscriminate rejection of ideas
as some mistakenly believe
it refers to doubting
and suspending our judgement about claims with which we are presented
so that we don't simply accept claims which might be unjustified
but first take the time to understand them
examining the reasoning and possible assumptions and biases behind them
Reasoning behind factual claims should be based in sound, consistent logic
not on emotions and social pressure
because the truth value of factual claims
isn't determined by the emotion that accompanies them
or the fact that they may be believed by certain social groups
sometimes people try to persuade us that reason has no value
but that an untenable position
arguing against reason is cutting off the branch on which you sit
using the very thing you're dismissing in order to construct a case against it
reason has an intrinsic role in the decisions and judgements we make
as we negotiate our way through life
whether they be momentous or trivial.
If a particular line of reasoning is flawed
What will increase our understanding?
Dismissing the value of reason? Or looking honestly at the flaws?
A lack of respect for reason or evidence
or any number of obstructive character traits
will sabotage one's capacity for critical thought
One of the biggest barriers to critical thinking
is an unwillingness to see complex issues
in anything other than black and white terms
if one sees only two options when more exist
this constitutes a false dichotomy
Consciousness is often presented as something that's either
an eternal immaterial entity or reducible and identical to brain states
when in fact there are various other positions.
Many divide people into those who accept evolution
and those who believe in specific gods
when these categories are not mutually exclusive
if we think in false dichotomies we'll tend to draw false conclusions
for example by judging that if option A is false, option B must be true.
We may also misrepresent others
by wrongly assuming that if they don't hold attitude X
they must hold attitude Y
Black and white thinking often reflects an underlying reluctance or refusal
to deal with the uncertainty that results from complexity
and an absence of definite answers
but leaping to flawed conclusions
because you can't tolerate the ambiguity of not knowing
is not about truth or curiosity but comfort
the critical thinker can handle uncertainty
preferring to be aware of their own areas of ignorance
and they can wait for valid evidence and evidence-based answers
Critical thinking provide each of us
with the keys for unlocking our own intellectual independence
leaving us willing and able to explore and solve problems for ourselves
it moves us away from rash conclusions, mystification,
and a reluctance to question received wisdom, authority, and tradition
it moves us towards intellectual discipline,
the clear expression of ideas,
and the acceptance of personal responsibility for our own thinking
communities in which individuals are eager to acquire
and apply the best knowledge and reason in all fields
and willing to acknowledge and correct flaws in their own thinking
are better equipped to create more profoundly effective solutions
to the challenges we face in living, and living together
When we teach and encourage critical thinking
we empower individual lives and invest in our collective future