Critical Thinking

Dr. Dean Russell

While others are busy working harder, you’ll be able to work smarter. You’ll be able to “think” your way to success.

Critical Skills Thinking

Critical Thinking. . .• Vocabulary - critical thinking: Disciplined,

self-directed thinking which exemplifies the perfections of thinking appropriate to a particular mode or domain of thinking.

• It is not what you think, but how you think. It is how we arrive at our conclusions!

• Not results based, but process based!

Critical Thinking. . .• Ability to think about one's thinking to

recognize its strengths and weaknesses and, as a result, to recast the thinking in improved form.

• Knowing the existence of illogical fallacies rounds out our thinking skills.

• Can make the difference between successful outcomes versus illogical game playing.

Critical Thinking Skill

• “Engaged thinking” Thinking is driven by questions, not answers!– No ?’s = No Understanding. – Superficial ?’s = Superficial Understanding

• “Answers” often signal a full stop in thought!– If you don’t ask questions before determining answers you might miss something.

• Questions – define tasks, express problems and delineate issues – are the heart of thinking and learning!– help you survive in the business world!

Top 10 CTS Questions• Purpose… to force task definition.• Information… to look at quality and sources.• Accuracy…to evaluate and test for truth.• Precision…to give details and specifics.• Assumption… to determine what we take for granted.• Interpretation…to see how we organize and give meaning.• Implication…to identify where the thinking is going.• Relevance…to discriminate what does and does not bear on

the question.• Consistency… to look for contradictions.• Logic… to put it all together in a reasonable system