Chapter Three: Critical Thinking
and Argument
=Applications=
I. Introduction
In the theoretical part of this chapter, I discuss the two principal senses of "argument", viz., as
the activity of arguing and as a rationale, or a conclusion supported by reasons. I
then develop and defend the view that one can succeed in teaching critical thinking skills
by teaching students how to evaluate arguments, where this amounts to teaching them how to
(a) identify arguments, (b) reconstruct them, and (c) analyze them. The
applications below focus primarily on the nature of argument and
arguments.
II. Teaching Points
- Make the two senses of 'argument' plain. Students are familiar with the
activity of argument, having just lived through puberty. However, perhaps surprisingly,
many will come to you unaware of the fact that the word "argument" has a second
sense, viz., a piece of reasoning intended to establish the truth of a conclusion. As this
second sense is the more relevant to the practice of critical thinking, it is important
that the students understand what it means. Make it clear that arguments understood as
rationales are found all over the place, even where there is no hint of argument the
activity.
- Expose them to both senses of 'argument' at once. As I just noted,
arguments as rationales are often found outside of contexts in which anyone is actually
engaged in the activity of argumentation. Nevertheless, arguments understood as rationales
are often most effectively introduced in the course of an argument. Dont shy away
from using the activity of argumentation to teach students what arguments as products look
like; however, dont work on achieving this end exclusively through the activity of
argumentation, as that will incline the students to see them as much more closely related
than they are.
- Be sure to emphasize the form/content distinction. This is a
difficult distinction to make, even in a class that is completely focused on
the logic of arguments. However, efficiency and ease in critical
thinking requires that one be able to recognize patterns, and it will
simplify things if formal patterns are distinguished from patterns in the
subject matter. Content similarity is likely something you won't need
to discuss---that should be pretty clear. However, similarity in form
can be tough to see. You needn't belabor it or go symbolic, but you
should call attention to common argument forms when you find them, and you
might talk about the arguments you encounter in an abstract fashion so as to
familiarize them with the formal level of analysis. Among other
things, this can help motivate and clarify formal evaluative standards, such
as validity.
- Arguments aren't necessarily bad things. Familiarity with the term
"argument" only as it applies to the activity of arguing will likely leave
students with a bad taste in their mouth. This, however, should not adversely affect
the role that arguments play in critical thinking. After all, as we are thinking of
them, arguments are found whenever a claim is supported by reasons, and so they are found
in many contexts where no one is arguing with anyone else. They may not like to
argue, but this does not mean that they will not like to analyze arguments and, through
this, think critically.
- Arguments are everywhere. Anytime someone makes a claim that they
support with reasons, they are making an argument. Many actions can be seen, in
context, as arguments. (Consider the fact that the action may well be the result of
a piece of practical reasoning that preceded the performance.) Advertisements are
arguments. Textbooks are full of them, as are lectures. The media traffics in
arguments, both through what they choose to cover and what they choose not to cover.
(Note that it is a mistake to think of arguments as residing only on Op/Ed pages in
a newspaper---most stories contain arguments, where a certain interpretation of events is
served up as correct, supported by observations, quotes, etc.) Once students begin
to see arguments where they are, they will appreciate the importance of honing their
critical thinking skills.
- Think about the relation between the definition, the model, and the
skills. A definition will help you identify what counts as
critical thinking, a model will help you figure out how to teach it, and the
skills will be what you focus on in the exercises you conduct with your
class. But to do this effectively, you must come to understand the
relationships among these things. I have tried to extract my model
from my definition, and I have argued that the skills which count as
critical thinking skills in certain contexts are covered by the model.
However, our efforts in here have been abstract and your efforts will be
more specific and concrete. Given this, you should try to develop a
definition and model that are informed by your subject matter, giving
special emphasis to those skills that are central to the methods and
practices of your discipline.
- Don't feel compelled to reveal it all. I have argued that explicit
instruction in critical thinking skills is important if you want your
students to retain what you teach. However, this does not mean that
you must tell them everything. For instance, many of the distinctions
and lists that have been discussed in Chapters 2 and 3 need not be included
in the material you supply your students. It is important to make
distinctions and teach critical thinking in stages that you make explicit;
however, you might decide that a lengthy list of skills is just too much
information. This is especially true if you are teaching these skills
in an embedded way---you don't want the critical thinking details to
overwhelm the subject detail. Nevertheless, even if you choose not to reveal
much, it is important that you could, if called upon to do so. Don't
refrain from reflecting on the details just because you don't plan to teach
them explicitly.
III. Instructional Ideas
- Have them talk about what they take arguments to be. Begin class with a free
write where they describe, in brief, what they take an argument to be. They discuss
what they have come up with. The goal of the discussion should be to impress on them
the fact that there are two senses of "argument" relevant to critical thinking,
and that one of these is more relevant than the other, viz., argument as rationale.
- Ask them to spot arguments and turn in brief descriptions of their nature.
This could be done in advance of a class discussion of the location of arguments,
i.e., where they can be found. After introducing students to the rationale sense of
"argument", ask them to find as many of these as they can and write them down,
turning this in before class. Review them and let them know if they haven't
understood what it is they should be seeking. This could be done in conjunction with the
more focused argument identification exercises introduced in Chapter Four, or it could be
done in advance of that. In the latter case, the work done in Chapter Four could be
used to hone their skills.
- Use the "15-minute" debate. Capitalize on their familiarity with the activity of arguing
by having them engage in mini-debates. This can be done with any topic on
which there could be a difference of opinion, including interpretations of literary texts,
etc. Dived the students up into groups of 10. If you have 4 of these groups, you
will need two debate topics. Assign to two groups positions with respect to one
topic, and to the other two positions with respect to the other. Give them 10
minutes to work up a defense of their position, making sure that someone acts as scribe
and writes down their defense. Give each side no more than 5 minutes to state their
case. This will leave about 15 minutes or so in a 50 minute class period, and I would
recommend using this time to discuss the nature of the arguments presented, their
strengths, and their weaknesses. This debate is not about winners and losers;
rather, it is about exposure to the process of critical thinking, and this should be the
focus of a general discussion at the end of the class meeting. The point of 15-minute
debates is two-fold: (a) it allows you to combine critical thinking practice with topic
coverage, since you can select the topics from material you wish to address in class that
day, and (b) it exposes the students to the process of critical thinking. This can
be done at any point in the semester.
- Argument briefs. If you have students read a paper that is argumentative,
or a paper that is likely to elicit a reaction from them, have them write a brief, one
paragraph piece in which they take a stand on the paper and defend it. This can be
done in a free write at the beginning of class, in the middle of class when it becomes
clear that they have a reaction to the paper you're discussing, or prior to a discussion.
It can also be done outside of class in a journal.
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