Critical Thinking Skills Reviewer
Critical Thinking Skills Reviewer
Critical Thinking Skills Reviewer
SKILLS
Critical
Logical
- in accordance with the inferences
reasonably to be drawn from preceding or
surrounding events or circumstances
Thinking
logically
means
thinking
sensibly. It means looking at all sides of a
question, proposing reasonable and
sensible solutions, and then supporting
the
solutions
with
good
reason,
interesting example, and solid evidence.
Fallacies of Thinking
1. Appeal to Ignorance
One commits this logical fallacy by
claiming that since no one has ever proved a
claim, it must therefore be false. Appeals to
ignorance unfairly shift the burden of proof to
someone else.
Ex: Show me one study that proven seat belts
save lives.
2.Appeal to Pity
3. Bandwagon
This is appeal to everyones sense of
wanting to belong or be accepted and tries
to avoid the real question-Is this idea or
claim a good one or not?
Ex: Everyone on the team wears high-tops.
Its the only way to go.
4. Broad Generalization
This takes in everything and everyone at
once, allowing no exceptions All voters spend
too little time reading about a candidate and too
much time being swayed by 30-second sound
bites. It may be true that quite a few voters
spend too little time reading about the
candidates, but it is unfair to suggest that this is
true of all voters.
Ex: All teenagers spend too much time watching
television.
5. Circular Thinking
This fallacy consists of assuming, in a
definition or an argument, the very point one is
trying to prove.
Ex: I hate Mr. Baldwins class because Im
never happy in there.
(But whats wrong with the class?)
6. Either- or Thinking
This consists of reducing a solution to two
possible extremes. This fallacy of thinking
eliminates every possibility in the middle.
Ex: Either this community votes to build a
new school or the quality of education will
drop dramatically.
7. Half-Truths
Avoid building an argument with evidence
or statements that contain part of the truth, but
not the whole truth. They are especially
misleading because they leave out The rest
of the story. They are true and dishonest at
the same time.
Ex: The new recycling law is bad because it
will cost more money than it saves. (Maybe
so; but it will also save the environment.)
8.Oversimplification
This is signified by the phrases
It all boils down to.....
Its a simple question of.....
Ex: Capital punishment is a simple question
of protecting society.
9. Slanted Language
By choosing words that carry strong positive
or negative feelings, a person can distract the
audience, leading them away from valid
arguments being made.
I am firm. You are obstinate. He is
pigheaded.
Bias in comparing three synonyms for the
word stubborn.
10. Testimonial
If the testimonial or statement comes
from a recognized authority in the field,
great. If it comes from a person famous in
another field, it can be misleading.
Sports hero : Ive tried every cold medicine
on the market, and - believe me - nothing
works like Comptrol.
III. Activities/Exercises
Set A
Directions: Read and analyse the items
very carefully. Choose the letter of the
correct answer.
1. Tanya is older than Eric.
Cliff is older than Tanya.
Based on this, we validly conclude that
A. Cliff is older than Eric.
B. Eric is older than Cliff.
C. Tanya is older than Cliff.
D. Eric and Cliff are older than Tanya.
Set B
Directions: Read and analyse the items very
carefully. Choose the letter of the correct
answer.
1. One of the warmest winters on record has put
consumers in the mood to spend money.
Spending is likely to be the strongest in
thirteen years. During the month of February,
sales of existing family homes hit an annual
record rate of 4.75 million.
This paragraph best supports the statement
that