• N E V E R U N D E R E S T I M A T E T H E P O W E R O F A D E F I N I T I O N• A P P R E N T I C I N G C T R E A D I N G T H R O U G H R E A D I N G C I R C L E S

CRITICAL THINKING

DEFINITIONS AND GEN ED LEARNING

• General Education courses are at their hearts vocabulary courses, that is introductions to the basic vocabulary – concepts-- of each discipline.

DEFINITIONS

• What students begin to see is that • Definitions include terms and propositions about that

term.• That meaning of a term can differ from one discipline to

another. • That what we say about that term is itself packed with

information and implications.

FOR EXAMPLE

• Science is a process of discovery that increases our body of knowledge. (p. 7, The Good Earth, An Introduction to Earth Science)

• Science is a • Process –

• suggests there are steps or stages to knowing• suggests that scientists must learn these steps• suggests that the steps must be followed steps to knowing• suggests that the author is going to identify and explain those

steps• of discovery –

• suggests we will learn something that • we didn’t know before• changes what we previously thought

• that increases our body of knowledge.• –suggests that science is accumulates over time –

• Suggests that some discoveries will be more inclusive or better predictors than previous discoveries; that they will provide better explanations for phenomena we see.

THE 3 FUNCTIONS OF DEFINITIONS

1. They are abstractions – they allow us • to generalize about the world.• to separate the essential from the accidental.• For example,

• We see houses of various shapes, sizes, designs, colors, materials

• But from the many we can see that they are all share one concept: the concept of house.

2. They let us define clear, unambiguous terms – in academic disciplines, all scholars in that discipline know EXACTLY what a term means when they see it .

• Ambiguous terms could be taken in two or more different senses, e.g., pro-life, pro-choice, anti-choice, anti’-life, legitimate rape. Ambiguous terms prevent scholars from clearly communicating and increasing knowledge.

• Technical terms (sometimes called terms of art) may use the same word(s) but have different meanings depending on the discipline: “cell” means something quite different to a biologist than it does to a monk.

• Controversial terms, (e.g., pro-life, pro-choice, anti-choice, legitimate rape) have lots of connotations and little denotation. These controversial terms are generally NOT part of the academic vocabulary simple because not everyone defines them in the same, clear, unambigous way.

3. They also allow us to recognize when there are contradictions and how those contradictions cause trouble, e.g.,

• why are corporations considered “persons” and treated as “persons” under the law?• Synonyms for corporation include company, concern,

establishment.• Synonyms for person include being, soul, somebody, creature

• How many of you have seen the “corporations are not

people” bumper stickers? • What is a person? • How can a corporation be a person?

FOR EXAMPLE

• A frequently mentioned nostrum (medicine or health aid) for the debt crisis: “The government should be run like a business.”• What is the essence/purpose of business?

• To make a profit from buying and selling things

• What is the essence/purpose of government?• To create and maintain laws to protect the rights and safety

of the people

• Does the nostrum make sense?• Hmmm?

• How could the 1857 Supreme Court so erroneously decide that Dred Scott, a human being, was not protected the constitution of the U.S.?• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PMlDidyG_I

• Links to a clip from the Star Trek episode The Measure of a Man, which examines the question of “what is a sentient being” in order to determine who and who is not protected by the laws of Star Fleet?

• How did the Supreme Court decide that a professional golfer had to be allowed to ride in a golf cart in the Master’s Tournament? • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPsUXhXgWmI• Michael Sandel, Harvard Professor, at Ted Talks, uses the case

to show how the essential nature of something, in this case the game of golf, is critical to making decisions.

WAYS TO HELP STUDENTS ATTEND TO DEFINITIONS

• Use the CT Wheel• Use SEE-I Writing

PARTIAL CT WHEEL: WHAT IS SCIENCE?

Science is a process of discovery that

increases our body of knowledge

The purpose of science is to figure

out how the physical world operates by observation and experimentation

What can be figured out about

the physical world? How can we figure

it out?

Facts can be systematically

gathered about the physical world

Judgments based on observation and

experimentation that lead to systematized knowledge of nature

and the physical world

SEE-I FOR DEFINITIONS: RESTATE, ELABORATE, EXEMPLIFY, AND ILLUSTRATE

Responding to a definition:

Directions: Read the following definition. Then follow the SEE-I. Science is a process of discovery that increases our body of knowledge.

I State in your own words (i.e. interpret) what you think the writer is saying, especially as the idea relates to the definition of science:      II Elaborate on the author’s idea by answering the following questions:

What are the underlying assumptions in this definition?

    

Are the assumptions valid or invalid? Why or why not?

     IIII Exemplify: What are some implications of this definition?   IV: Illustrate: What can I compare this idea(s) in this definition to ?

SEE-IE X A M P L E S O F WAY S T O U S E S E E - I T O P R O B E A N D T O D E V E LO P

U N D E R S TA N D I N G

SEE-I FOR VISUAL ART: RESTATE, ELABORATE, EXEMPLIFY, AND ILLUSTRATE

Responding to a definition:

Directions: Look at the following painting. Then follow the SEE-I.

I State in your own words (i.e. interpret) what you think the purpose of this painting is:

The artist’s purpose is to show/to communicate     II Elaborate on the artist’s idea by answering the following questions:

What does the painter assume the viewer will see and understand when s/he is looking at the painting?

Are these assumptions valid or invalid for viewers today? Why or why not? 

  How does the viewer’s being able to recognize and/or understand the elements of the painting contribute to comprehending the artist’s idea?

     IIII Exemplify: What can the viewer infer about the images and their meanings in this painting?   IV: Illustrate: What other paintings can I compare this painting to? How are they similar? Different?

The Arnolfini WeddingBy Jan van Eycke

SEE-I FOR PHILOSOPHY: STATE, ELABORATE, EXEMPLIFY, AND ILLUSTRATE QUOTATIONS

 

Responding to Aristotle’s “on the Soul” excerpt and Lucretius’s “On the Nature of Things“ excerpt

Directions: Choose one of the following quotes. Then follow the SEE-I • “Now matter is potentiality; form actuality; of the latter there are two grades related to one another as e.g.

knowledge to the exercise of knowledge” Aristotle • “From all this it follows that soul is an actuality or formulable essence of something that possesses a

potentiality of being besouled” Aristotle • “Thus, the entire soul must consist of seeds. . disappears in air, or the flavour leaves/from any matter.”

Lucretius• “Therefore, to state the issue once again,. . .because when it departs it takes no weight/away with it.”

Lucretius•  I State in your own words (i.e. interpret) what you think the writer is saying, especially as the idea relates to the soul:   II Elaborate on the author’s idea by answering the following questions:

What are the underlying assumptions in this quote, especially those that relate to soul?  

Are the assumptions valid or invalid? Why or why not?   IIII Exemplify: What are some implications of this of the idea(s) in this quote, especially as they relate to soul?   IV: Illustrate: What can I compare this idea(s) in this passage to, especially as the idea(s) relate to soul?

SEE-I FOR POEMS: STATE, ELABORATE, EXEMPLIFY, AND ILLUSTRATE QUOTATIONS

 

Responding to Emily Dickinson’s “The Brain”

I State in your own words (i.e. interpret) what point(s) you think the poet is making in this poem.   II Elaborate on the author’s idea by answering the following questions:

What are the underlying assumptions in this quote?  

Are the assumptions valid or invalid? Why or why not?   IIII Exemplify: What are some implications of this of the idea(s) in this poem, especially as the ideas relate to the relationship between man and God and nature?   IV: Illustrate: What can I compare this idea(s) in this poem to?

THE BRAIN is wider than the sky,

For, put them side by side,The one the other will include

With ease, and you beside.

The brain is deeper than the sea,

For, hold them, blue to blue,The one the other will absorb,

As sponges, buckets do.

The brain is just the weight of God,

For, lift them, pound for pound,

And they will differ, if they do,As syllable from sound.

SEE-I FOR CHARTS: STATE, ELABORATE, EXEMPLIFY, AND ILLUSTRATE QUOTATIONS

 

Responding to the chart “History of Life on Earth”

I State in your own words (i.e. interpret) what point the chart is making, especially as it relates to life on earth?   II Elaborate on the information in the chart:

What are the underlying assumptions?  

Are the assumptions valid or invalid? Why or why not?   IIII Exemplify: What are some implications of the information in this chart?   IV: Illustrate: What can I compare this graphic to?

HISTORY OF LIFE ON EARTH

SEE-I FOR STUDENT SUCCESS TOPICS

Responding to 11/01/2012 reading passage

Directions: Choose one of the following statements (claims) from the passage for timed writing #3. Then complete the sections that follow the claims.

A. According to a report published by the Carnegie Foundation, non-monetary individual benefits of higher education include the tendency for postsecondary students to become more open-minded more cultured, more rational, more consistent, and less authoritarian; these benefits are also passed along to succeeding generations.

B. Additionally, college attendance has been shown to “decrease prejudice, enhance knowledge of world affairs and enhance social while increasing economic and job security for those who earn bachelor’s degrees.”

C. Research has also consistently shown a positive correlation between completion of higher education and good health, not only for oneself, but also for one’s children. In fact, “parental schooling levels (after controlling for differences in earnings) are positively correlated with the health status of their children” and “increased schooling (and higher relative income) are correlated with lower mortality rates for given age brackets.

I. Restate the idea in your own words:

II. Elaborate: What are the underlying assumptions in this claim? For example, does the author take for granted that some things (such as open-mindedness, being cultured, rational, etc.) are benefits? Are his assumptions valid or invalid? Why or why not? For example, could there be any drawbacks to being more rational, more open-minded, more cultured, etc.?

III. Exemplify: What are some implications of this claim for me and my life? Give specific examples to support your inferences.

IV: Illustrate: What can I compare the author’s claim to? For example, is getting a college degree similar to the fountain of youth that was supposed to make people have longer lives?

WHAT IS A READING CIRCLE?

• A reading circle (also called a literature circle) is a group of students who are reading the same text.

• When they meet, they discuss the parts of the book they have read and plan for the next session. “The [reading] circle is a student-centered cooperative learning reading activity for a group of four or more students.

WHAT IS A READING CIRCLE?

• Each member of a circle is assigned a specific aspect of critical reading.

• Reading circles “provide a way for students to engage in critical thinking and reflection as they read, discuss, and respond to [texts]. Students reshape and add onto their understanding as they construct meaning with other readers in their group.” http://drscavanaugh.org/lit_cir/literature_circle.htm

HOW CT READING CIRCLE TASKS DIFFER FROM TRADITIONAL READING CIRCLES

Traditional CT Reading Circles

Summarize Summarize : SEE-I

Identify UnknownVocabulary

Identify Important Terms/Concepts

Identify Interesting Points -- usually used as discussion points

Identify Points Needing Clarification

Illustrate – find/create pictures Paraphrase

Organize Discussion Identify Assumptions

Connect text to outside ideas Identify Implications

Evaluate the Reasoning

READING CIRCLES BENEFIT

• Students by • breaking down a very complex task (reading critically)

into manageable parts,• giving students the chance to discuss the reading tasks

for peer feedback,• allowing students to negotiate meaning • developing confidence in their own interpretations• giving opportunities for apprenticing critical thinking in

the context of academic discussion .

READING CIRCLES BENEFIT

• Teachers by• allowing teachers to spend class time with smaller groups

of students,• making students more responsible for their own work,• reducing students’ complaints,• reducing time spent grading.

WHY APPRENTICING?

• It takes years for a student to be able to read critically and write substantively.

• Research shows that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to master something (Outliers, Gladwell, M.)

• Every chance to hone these essential intellectual skills is contributing to those 10,000 hours.

APPRENTICING FOR L2 STUDENTS

• The language requirements of CT are very challenging – especially for non-native speakers of English.• Paraphrasing particularly difficult• Terminology L2 students often lacking vocabulary depth

DO THE CT READING CIRCLES WORK FOR TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE READING?

• Yes, especially for professional critiques/reviews, for example

• http://eprints.utas.edu.au/1684/1/tp2Ja.pdf