Blog #4

Viewing critical thinking as a set of dispositions can be both valuable and problematic. In the previous weeks of class, we focused on critical thinking and how it related to ability. Looking through a different lens, we can also link critical thinking to motivation and the dispositions from Ritchhart. The dispositions include being open minded, curious, meta-cognitive, truth-seeking, strategic and skeptical. What is valuable about this approach is that biases are less likely to occur. When an individual is open-minded, not only are they aware of their position, but aware and open to other people’s opinions as well. This is essential for critical thinking because in order to discuss an argument, their needs to be different opinions to ultimately narrow them down to which is more logical. Logic, or a system of reasoning, is important to critical thinking because when breaking down a topic, the reasoning that comes along with it needs to make sense. Logic is used in all aspects of life, and extremely valuable to critical thought. Logic also connects to being curious. Being curious however, could be both valuable and problematic. Curiosity sometimes guides thoughts off topic, and causes an individual to stray from their main idea. Curiosity can also be resourceful because it forces ideas to be questioned and further examined to not miss any key details. Being skeptical is the same way, as it forces the individual to question beliefs and reasons, but also has the ability set a negative tone in the mind of the individual.

It was quite challenging to activate these dispositions for our second research topic. Planned Parenthood and restricting moral and sexual behavior is difficult for people to talk about because it can be classified as a “private” topic. People come from different backgrounds, have strict morals, and religious beliefs that can hinder a research topic from being successful. The majority of the class was not open-minded, or skeptical due to the uncomfortable aspect of the topic. Personally, I believe I am an open-minded thinker. To further help develop my dispositions however, I need to openly question and challenge ideas.  I am aware that I need to work on being skeptical so I can question other people’s ideas more often to add to the discussion. 

Blog #3

     It is accurate to define critical thinking as a set of skills. Critical thinking takes thinking and evaluating to a more complex level, and helps us understand situations through several different perspectives.  In order for critical thinking to be successful, however, the set of skills must be used correctly. For example, when used incorrectly, the class ran into communication issues, and clashing opinions without reasoning.The discussion then became more focused on individual opinions and biases, rather than using our skills to break down the question. Using research and evidence to support our reasoning and using examples are essential skills, that eliminates bias. It was often difficult to have a bias-free mindset because the topic of college education personally impacts me, and the rest of the students in the class.  Using personal examples can be tricky because the event or situation impacted that individual in a certain way, usually resulting in a bias. Knowing that the topic directly impacted me, it was much more difficult to be open minded to the other perspectives, even if I was wrong. It was also be helpful if I challenged other people's opinions as well, to see who has better reasoning and which is more logical. This research taught me to be more patient, and to not jump to conclusions without having strong evidence first. I was able to successfully listen to other people's opinions, but need to take them more into consideration, Taking mind notes while others are stating their opinions, and attempting to pull away from my bias on the thought of free college tuition for everyone, will lead me into being a more successful critical thinker. My weaknesses relate to the explanation and self-regulating skills mentioned in the Facione article. When explaining, I need to ask myself where I got the information from, why I thought that way and how I came to my decision. When using the self-regulation skill, I need to ask myself if my stance is precise, if I have strong and accurate evidence, and most importantly, if I am missing anything., 

Blog #2

Out of all the aspects we have recently examined, confirmation bias definitely affected my thoughts on critical thinking the most. Confirmation bias, also known as the tendency to interpret evidence based on confirmation of one’s existing beliefs or theories, actually plays a large role in society. The decisions that we make are often influenced by biases that we have already created. As we discussed in class, confirmation bias affects all people of any age all day long. It can be as simple as a mother believing her child did nothing wrong or a teacher treating a student unfairly after overhearing another teacher bash this particular student.

My thinking hero is Nelson Mandela. After learning about confirmation bias and how it influences our decisions, he might not be as much of a hero as I had once envisioned. Mandela was a South African activist and fought for rights, but the media could have played a large role in my previous thought processes. I assumed that he made of all his decisions himself and he always did the right thing to better the lives of others. This, however, I thought due to the idea of confirmation bias and previous thoughts that I had. The news, newspapers, articles and media as a whole portray Nelson Mandela as an exceptionally important man, so I based my opinion on thoughts that I heard and grew up on. Nelson Mandela himself was most likely affected by confirmation bias and it ended up altering his decisions. I believe he was good at constructing arguments because he was passionate and educated on his beliefs, although they might have been affected by confirmation bias as well. Confirmation bias significantly narrows down your thoughts and your ability to critical think. Like the Dunning Kruger affect for example, it is something hard to stop and consistently present in everyday life. 

“It always seems impossible until it’s done” (Nelson Mandela). A hero is someone who puts others before themselves. A thinking hero on the other hand, is someone who not only has a unique way of thinking, but also has the ability to act upon those thoughts. Nelson Mandela was a South African activist who recently passed away at the age of ninety-five.  He was an intellectual who always saw the bigger picture and managed to persevere in the face of adversity. He attended the University of Witwatersrand where he earned his law degree and connected with key individuals who would join him in his fight against inequality in South Africa. His mindset drove him to become a powerful leader of the ANC, the African National Congress. Nelson Mandela became a global advocate for human rights as he peacefully protested against the apartheid, a system where non-white citizens did not have equal rights. He thought that following the non-violent ways of Mohandas Gandhi would result in a more accepting community. Nelson Mandela was sent to prison for his protests and was released due to international pressure a grueling twenty-seven years later in the year of 1990. Finally in 1994, people of all colors had the opportunity to vote. Nelson Mandela ran in the South African Presidential election in 1994 and despite the odds, was victorious. Although hostility and hatred continues to persist in South Africa despite his efforts, he was able to prevent a major civil war.  As discussed in class, thinking critically is goal oriented, broken down into steps and focused. Nelson Mandela is the epitome of a critical thinker. Everything that he did from protesting, to running for office had an ending goal. Nelson Mandela’s years in jail served a bigger purpose, as he dedicated his entire life to the fight for equality. After being jailed twenty seven years he forgave those who jailed him and showed nothing but love and compassion. He gained civil rights for the majority of the people of South Africa by sacrificing his own freedom. Nelson Mandela is my thinking hero because he was a successful and persistent man who used his mind to better the lives of others.