Alexey Kapterev: Critical Thinking 101 (Part 1)

How often in your daily life do you have to work with information and process everything you see and hear? Do you trust everything you learn unquestioningly, or do you still evaluate its reliability? Are you looking for confirmation and proof of what you think is right or wrong? Do you give reasons for your position when communicating with other people?

Most likely, you will answer all of these questions (or at least most of them) positively. And this means that literally every day you are faced with the need to think critically. This is probably true of most of us. But doubts and the search for reliable facts do not at all mean that we know how to think critically correctly and do it effectively. Based on what exactly we are doing in life and at the current moment, we can apply different levels of critical thinking.

In everyday life, we are forced to take quite a lot of different things on faith, otherwise we would have to scrupulously study and check every little thing. Therefore, we ourselves have the right to decide when and how much information we may need, whether it is worth questioning and verifying it, and to what extent. The extent of verification and the amount of information required will vary from case to case. The magnitude of these changes depends on what exactly we need to do: turn on the water in the tap, come up with a new plumbing scheme, or study the flora and fauna of the Caribbean Sea.

Simply put, critical thinking is both the ability to determine when, where and what information we need, and the ability to choose the optimal type and level of complexity of data for each specific case. But not every person has such skills, and critical thinking technologies are not taught everywhere. However, the importance of the ability to think critically is undeniable (we will talk about this later). Anyone can learn to do this, including you. And especially for this we have developed the presented course.

So, let's get acquainted with the course.

What is critical thinking?

Critical thinking is a system of judgment used to analyze phenomena, things and events and then formulate sound conclusions. This is how people get reliable assessments and interpretations, as well as the opportunity to apply the results to problems and issues that are relevant to them.

Critical thinking promotes an objective view of ideas, decisions and actions, allows you to identify weak points and establish the veracity of facts and assumptions, relying on logic and cause-and-effect relationships. However, critical and logical thinking should in no case be confused, because the first implies the use of the second. Criticism relies on logic in constructing logical chains and patterns, which often serve as the basis for critical conclusions and conclusions.

Critical thinking, coupled with logical thinking, gives a person the opportunity to find patterns, predict options for the development of events, determine the relationship of objects, objects and phenomena without the need to immerse themselves in serious research, and competently justify their point of view using linguistic tools.

When examined in more detail, learning to think critically offers us a wealth of benefits that can bring practical benefits to our personal, social, and professional lives.

Examples

We find examples of critical thinking throughout the development of mankind, when the most important laws of physics, mathematics and other sciences were discovered. All discoveries are examples of asking the right questions, searching for meaning and patterns.

An example of the development of this thinking in elementary school is a teacher’s question about some phenomenon: “Children, where do you think it is better to learn swimming: at sea or on the river?” Thinking students will express an opinion and begin to come up with arguments. And if the teacher really wants to teach, he will first conduct an experiment and then ask the question again.

Well, this is such a primitive example, but it shows how to develop a child in the educational process. By the way, Newton, Einstein, and ancient Greek philosophers had the ability to think critically. It is thanks to them, in particular Hippocrates, that we still use the principles of dividing personality into types and treating diseases.

Why be able to think critically?

We need a critical approach everywhere. In order not to be unfounded, we will give just a few examples of its practical benefits:

• In professional and everyday life, critical thinking helps you think and work more accurately and accurately, quickly determine what is important and unimportant, solve problems more effectively, and cope with various tasks more carefully and efficiently.
• In learning along with the development of critical thinking, you will develop skills in quickly recognizing arguments, quickly identifying key ideas in texts, using evidence and testimony from experts and specialists, distinguishing critical and analytical materials from others.
• In the personal sphere, critical thinking will teach you to quickly analyze the judgments, views, evidence and opinions of others, competently justify your words and argue with reason what you do not agree with, and better understand other people's and your own beliefs, thoughts and actions.

A person who can think critically can:

In addition to this, the development of critical thinking also forms a number of auxiliary skills, such as:

• Ability to express oneself competently.
• Ability to be persuasive.
• Ability to interpret effectively.
• Ability to make your own judgments.
• Ability to analyze and criticize.
• Ability to make effective decisions.
• The ability to be reasonable.
• Ability to reason logically.

It often happens that a person overestimates his ability to critically comprehend what he sees, hears, reads; what you encounter at school or at work. In addition, many people believe that they know “more than everyone else” and can tell everyone “what it costs.” But when others disagree, self-doubt appears and the inability to justify one’s position appears. This causes unnecessary problems both in study and work, and in banal communication.

We can assume that you are already using some critical thinking skills (you know the difference between good and bad, right?). But as you get older, get an education, and gain new life and professional experiences, you will certainly need more advanced skills. The more skills you master, the more confident you will be in handling new projects, tasks and problems.

Critical thinking is an intellectual activity, and in order to master it, you need to have good theoretical and practical materials. Our “Critical Thinking” course is one of these, during which you will get acquainted with all its basic elements.

Aspects of the ability to think critically, which our course examines, can be successfully applied in training and work, when preparing presentations and writing scientific papers, when resolving conflict situations and everyday problems.

Purpose of the course:

Learn in depth the principles and techniques of critical thinking and teach you to use them confidently. The main information, as you should expect, will be given in the lessons (we will touch on their content later), but now we want to talk a little about practice.

Before you move on to developing critical thinking, we suggest you solve a case and check how developed this skill is in you now.

key skills

Key skills are understood as a kind of algorithm with the help of which a person questions incoming statements and independently finds the answer to his questions.

Analysis

A person “sorts out” a difficult situation. Having analyzed the identified components of the problem, he finds its root and eliminates it. An analytical attitude allows you to replay the problem in your thinking; this is very useful, since the psyche independently tunes in to search for a way out.

Standardization

After the analysis, a person needs to choose the most suitable solution. This requires a standardization process, which helps to leave some actions on the machine and free up the necessary resources to complete tasks.

Differentiation

People with the ability to think critically can distinguish a necessary solution from an ideal one and choose the most optimal path. These decisions are often not the same.

Search for information

The ability to search for information, systematize it, process it and take advantage of it is available to few. Finding information from different sources on different topics is a necessary skill. This type of thinking can be developed through reading and writing.

Logics

Such people have excellent logic. They can select facts and draw conclusions based on the information received.

Anticipation

In order to move a little forward and determine your plan of action, you need to learn to predict the situation and its outcome. At the same time, if you come up with several outcomes of the situation, this will only be a plus for you, because then you will show your creativity.

Methods for developing critical thinking

If you consider yourself a comprehensively developed person or strive to become one, you cannot do without critical thinking, because it is this that allows a person to form his own views and not depend on outside opinions; it is this that helps a person to grow and develop personally.

The technology for developing critical thinking is such that you need to train regularly, and you can start such training at absolutely any age. Systematic classes allow you to achieve a new level of development and new goals. Although developing critical thinking and staying on track can be difficult, if you prioritize and define your life goals from the beginning, getting closer to the result will become much easier.

Learning to think critically takes time. Almost always a person has free time, he simply spends it on unnecessary activities, for example, watching TV, “hanging out” on social networks or playing computer games. And the first step towards critical thinking should be taken right here - critically evaluate where your free minutes and hours go.

Another way to start learning a new skill is to analyze your day every day: what you did, what successes you achieved, what failures you had, what mistakes you made, etc. When the analysis is done, you can begin to draw up a plan for eliminating errors, eliminating chronophages (“time eaters”), and managing time.

Even these simple actions will begin to develop your ability to think critically about everything. If you suddenly face a new task, try to search for the maximum amount of information on solving it, consider a variety of options for action and choose the most effective one. By the way, we advise you to take a critical approach to completing our course: think carefully about how and when you will take it, and find time for this in your schedule.

Here are some critical thinking techniques for you. At first it may be unusual to use them, but this is just a matter of practice. Try to constantly evaluate how you think, what you think about, whether you are occupying your brain with useful things or doing whatever the wind takes you.

To make your critical learning more effective, adopt the right approach to everything you do and encounter. This means:

However, applying critical thinking techniques is only one side of the issue. Another is that you need to develop a critical mindset. Let's tell you how it's done.

Simple and healthy habits for every day

Available at any age and do not require special equipment:

• Set your priorities. Analyze your goals and capabilities. Then the result will not be long in coming and new goals and objectives will appear at the next level of development.
• Evaluate your time. Think about where you spend your free time and how necessary this expenditure of resources is. Especially if you hang out on social networks, watch everything on TV or are into computer games.
• Review your day. Celebrate successes and mistakes made. Make a plan to reduce wasted time.

These simple tricks, if you turn them into habits and practice them regularly, will help you to be conscious of the reality around you. The brain is lazy, it is easier for it to act according to habit and patterns. Play on this, develop the habit of thinking about useful things and spending time wisely.

Formation of a critical mindset

A person in modern society is under constant pressure from other people's opinions. One of the most effective ways to develop a critical mindset is to begin to be as critical as possible about the information disseminated by the media, advertising, agitators, etc.

Not all information people receive is true. You need to distinguish between truth and lies and stop taking everyone’s word for it. It is also necessary to think about the prospects, so all situations should be assessed critically, and an action plan should be developed as carefully as possible.

Another method of developing a critical mindset is to develop correct self-esteem. You always need to objectively evaluate yourself and understand the possibilities of your potential and act, taking them into account. At the same time, it is important to improve by reading books (we will provide a list of references at the end), leading a healthy lifestyle, gaining new knowledge and improving any skills.

Among other things, human behavior is often determined by unspoken rules. If you know them, it will be easier for you to make the right decisions and act effectively. In any unfamiliar situation, you need to be observant and collect as much information of various kinds as possible.

As you probably know, people communicate with each other not only verbally, but also nonverbally. It is recommended to master this form of communication. Learn to read hidden signals in people's behavior, compare them with what you already know, and only then analyze them.

Before making any decision, weigh all the pros and cons again, avoid haste and unfounded conclusions. Be resistant to pressure from others, the imposition of other people's opinions, the influence of advertising, fashion and the media. Careful analysis of everything that happens is a direct path to the formation of a critical mindset and the development of critical thinking.

In the lessons of our course we will talk about these and many other useful and important things. A lot of interesting and useful information awaits you. However, you can get acquainted with what you have to study now.

Signs

What skills and abilities indicate the presence of critical thinking:

• observation, detail;
• ability to interpret, analyze, synthesize, compare, generalize, draw conclusions, evaluate;
• logics;
• metaknowledge, high intelligence, broad outlook;
• accuracy, clarity and depth of thoughts and judgments;
• creative imagination, creativity, values, emotionality;
• reflection;
• communication;
• independence;
• mobility;
• tolerance.

What a person with critical thinking is capable of:

• establish cause-and-effect relationships;
• determine the importance of information, filter out unimportant details;
• acknowledge and respect other opinions;
• evaluate;
• argue;
• take responsibility for your choices;
• identify inconsistencies and errors and point them out openly but delicately;
• solve problems consistently and systematically.

It is not surprising that modern employers strive to get such employees. After all, they know how to work with information, quickly generate ideas and are able to resolve the most problematic situation. However, it must be borne in mind that they can completely objectively evaluate the actions of their superiors (from the point of view of the law, professionalism, humanity). So it won’t always be easy with them; you’ll have to keep your eyes open and fit the position you occupy.

Lessons in Critical Thinking

When developing our course on teaching critical thinking and compiling the material, we tried to take into account only the most important, necessary and useful information suitable for quick practical application. And to make it easier to understand and assimilate, we have adapted it for a wide range of people, including even those who are hearing about critical thinking for the first time.

The course “Development of Critical Thinking” includes six large lessons, each of which examines and masters individual topics. The information is both theoretical and practical in nature. Going through all the lessons step-by-step logically and objectively will introduce you to the specifics and techniques of critical thinking. As a result, by the end of the course you will already have all the necessary skills and competencies.

You can use relevant literature as supporting material. But we will offer a list of the book a little later, but for now we will briefly talk about each of the lessons.

Lesson 1. Critical thinking: skills, abilities and competencies

Teaching critical thinking is impossible without developing the corresponding skills and competencies. Only in this case can one count on the successful application of the ability to think critically in professional and everyday life. Like any other ability, it has its own specific base, and the first step is to study and master it.

In the first lesson we will talk again about what critical thinking is, what it requires from a person; Here is a list of everything you need to pay attention to. We will also talk about the importance of developing the ability to understand, study advantages and disadvantages, avoid extremes, and give other recommendations for the development of critical thinking and its application in life. At the end of the lesson, you will take a short test to determine your current level of critical thinking.

Lesson 2. The Scientific Method: Learn and Think Like a Scientist

Critical thinking is one of the ways of thinking used by scientists and researchers around the world. This indicates that it is directly related to the application of a scientific approach (scientific method). The result of mastering it will be mental flexibility, a high level of creativity, rapid generation of ideas and a creative approach to everything you do.

At the beginning of the second lesson, you will learn what exactly connects critical thinking and the scientific approach, get acquainted with the definition of the scientific method and its brief history. The second part of the lesson is devoted to the types of scientific method and their characteristics, and consideration of the practical benefits of using this approach. But in addition to theory, you will learn how to implement the scientific method into your life - you will receive more than a dozen of the most effective recommendations from the American scientist Daniel Dennett and, of course, the 4BRAIN team.

Lesson 3. Argumentation: how to reason consistently and logically

Getting your interlocutor or opponent in a dispute to accept the theory or idea you propose is not always easy. Science, education, business, politics, and even ordinary everyday life - everywhere you need to be able to substantiate your position and interpret it competently. Nobody has this skill from birth, so it also needs to be developed.

The third lesson is devoted to everything related to argumentation: you will learn its definition and understand why it is so important, get acquainted with the structure, rules and criteria for evaluating arguments, and master the basic methods of argumentation. We will also talk about the rules and techniques of successful argumentation, present argumentation structures, and talk about argumentation tactics and convincing arguments.

Lesson 4: Critical Thinking: Obstacles

Critical thinking is a skill that can and should be developed. Everyone can do this, but not everyone copes with this task easily and naturally. Quite often, all sorts of barriers and obstacles arise along the way, making it difficult to learn critical thinking. To overcome obstacles you need to know about them and how to eliminate them.

In the fourth lesson we will talk about the main barriers to critical thinking: overestimation of the ability to reason, reluctance to criticize, incorrect assessment of criticism, lack of methods and experience, the influence of emotions, conformism, propaganda, censorship and others. You will find out what American psychologists A. Hall and P. Hill think about such obstacles, and how domestic researchers propose to overcome them: B. M. Kedrov, A. V. Antonov, V. V. Mukhortov, R. M. Granovskaya and other.

Lesson 5. Irrational thinking

Many people tend to admit that reality cannot always be understood using scientific methods. To put it simply, such people are accustomed to thinking irrationally, as a result of which they make many mistakes in life, work and other areas and encounter completely unnecessary obstacles and problems. Irrational thinking is another barrier to developing critical thinking.

In the fifth lesson you will become familiar with the definition and characteristics of the irrational, the typology of irrational thoughts and their influence on human life and activity, the causes of irrational thinking. The practical part of the lesson offers effective ways to combat irrational thinking, and also discusses the benefits of the skill of thinking rationally.

Lesson 6. Working with information

The last century was the century of industry, but the 21st century is the era of information, the importance of which you yourself are well aware of. Nowadays, any promising, prestigious and highly paid profession is associated with data flows, and developing critical thinking and training skills in working with information are extremely important for achieving success in any field.

The final lesson is devoted to working with information. From it you will learn why it is needed (strategic, tactical and operational goals), what are the theoretical and practical foundations of searching for information and working with it. You will master methods of working with information (brainstorming, filtering, analysis, inference and formulation) and become familiar with the rules and three zones of information storage.

You probably noticed that each lesson is interesting in its own way and worthy of attention and study. But in order for information to be perceived and assimilated with maximum efficiency, teaching critical thinking in the lessons of our course must be subordinated to a specific system.

How to take classes?

Mastering critical thinking professionally can be difficult. If initially thinking obeyed other laws and followed habits, restructuring it in a new way causes rejection and discomfort. But if there is a clear goal and you are determined to achieve your goal, it is important to be persistent and use all available means. Our course will be one of the most effective among them.

We have already mentioned that the material presented is theoretical and practical in nature. This means that there is certain information that needs to be read, studied and absorbed - and here everything is extremely simple. And there is a certain amount of practical recommendations - with them everything is a little more complicated. Practical knowledge needs to be transferred to the field of action as soon as possible so that new skills begin to be formed and consolidated faster. Practice is the cornerstone of any learning, and you should always remember this.

You can complete the classes in the way that is most convenient for you, but we still advise you to follow the existing sequence. It is best to allocate 2-3 days to study each lesson, of which one will be allocated for reading, the second for repeating the most important points, and the third for the practical application of knowledge.

Let us not fail to note that it is the third day that is of greatest importance, because theory without practice is just a baggage of information that has no real use. Actions, even in cases where they are not supported by theory, always lead to a result, albeit not always to the desired one. But you have everything you need, so you can be sure that the result will be appropriate.

We also note that it is useful to combine teaching critical thinking in the lessons of our course with the use of auxiliary materials, which in our case are books. Below we offer you a small list of relevant literature.

Kinds

In psychology, only one classification has been proposed.

Poor critical thinking

Belongs to a highly qualified pseudo-intellectual who has a selfish motivation, is exclusively occupied with his own good and does not think about the ethical consequences of his actions. Pursues selfish goals.

Strong critical thinking

It belongs to a person who strives to comprehend the logic of what is happening with good intentions, for the purpose of objective study. There is no egocentric bias. Direction to overcome obstacles on the path to truth.

How does this classification work in real life? Let's imagine a large holding company. The head of the financial analytics department, with poor critical thinking, discovered an unofficial flow of money going past the accounting department. He immediately analyzes the situation, calculates all the moves, finds a way to transfer this money to his personal account, without thinking about the company’s losses and the affected parties.

If in his place there is a person with strong critical thinking, he will analyze the situation in such a way as to legalize the discovered financial flow and use it for the development of the holding.

Books on Critical Thinking

In this supplementary materials section, we have collected some excellent works on the topic of developing critical thinking. From them you will learn a lot of useful information, and your knowledge will become much deeper. The experience of other people is invaluable: firstly, it provides unique information, and secondly, it saves you from many mistakes and mistakes, thereby saving you energy and time.

Books on critical thinking:

• “The Psychology of Critical Thinking” by D. Halpern
• “Mind VS Brain. Conversation in different languages" R. Burton
• “How to Lie with Statistics” by D. Huff
• "Deception in Science" B. Goldacre
• “Someone is wrong on the Internet! Scientific research on controversial issues” by A. Kazantseva
• “Critical thinking: method, theory, practice” A. Butenko, E. Khodos
• “Critical thinking: a complete course of lectures” I. Kleiner
• "A Treatise on the Critical Mind" by H. Albert
• “Think, try, develop” D. Anderson
• “The art of thinking and success in school, career, life” S. Cottrell

And before you start mastering the main material, we want you to take a little break and relax.

Uncritical people

Alas, today even smart and educated people are distinguished by their inability to think critically (partially or even completely). And there is nothing to say about material and professional success: society and those in power encourage “obedient,” loyal and trusting individuals. It’s no wonder that abandoning one’s own opinion and flirting with one’s superiors is an indispensable attribute of corporate culture. People who express their own opinions risk joining the ranks of the marginalized and losing all the “benefits of civilization,” or even being killed.

Of course, if everything were so clear, the human race would have been destroyed fifty years ago. Many of our contemporaries realize that by receiving material benefits in exchange for abandoning personality and self-realization, they lose the meaning of life as such and become wordless consumers of goods. Some of them, without thinking twice, commit suicide (probably many have heard about the suicides of rich and “successful” people, including celebrities). And others, after thinking a little longer, decide to live and fight. And they achieve real success - they develop a critical attitude to reality, without becoming outcasts or marginalized. Such people move humanity forward, make new discoveries and inventions, and even deserve wide recognition and authority.