Preface

INTRODUCTION

A Start-Up Definition of Critical Thinking

How Skilled Are You as a Thinker?

Good Thinking Requires Hard Work

The Concept of Critical Thinking

Become a Critic of Your Thinking

Establish New Habits of Thought

Develop Confidence in Your Ability to Reason and Figure Things Out

Chapter 1 - BECOME A FAIRMINDED THINKER

Weak versus Strong Critical Thinking

What Does Fairmindedness Require?

Intellectual Humility: Strive to Discover the Extent of Your Ignorance

Intellectual

Courage: Develop the Courage to Challenge Popular Beliefs 

Intellectual Empathy:

Learn to Enter Opposing Views Empathically

Intellectual Integrity: Hold Yourself

to the Same Standards to Which You Hold Others

Intellectual Perseverance:Refuse to Give Up Easily; Work Your Way through Complexities and Frustration

Confidence in Reason: Respect Evidence and Reasoning, and Value Them as Tools

for Discovering the Truth

Intellectual Autonomy: Value Independence of Thought

Recognize the Interdependence of Intellectual Virtues

Conclusion

Chapter 2 - THE FIRST FOUR STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT: AT WHAT LEVEL OF THINKING WOULD YOU PLACE YOURSELF?

Stage 1: The Unreflective Thinker

Stage 2: The Challenged Thinker

Stage 3: The Beginning Thinker

Stage 4: The Practicing Thinker

A “Game Plan” for Improvement

A Game Plan for Devising a Game Plan

Integrating Strategies One by One

Chapter 3 - SELF-UNDERSTANDING

Monitor the Egocentrism in Your Thought and Life

Make a Commitment to Fairmindedness

Recognize the Mind’s Three Distinctive Functions

Understand That You Have a Special Relationship to Your Mind

Connect Academic Subjects to Your Life and Problems

Learn Both Intellectually and Emotionally

Chapter 4 - THE PARTS OF THINKING

Reasoning Is Everywhere in Human Life

Reasoning Has Parts

A First Look at the Elements of Thought 

An Everyday Example: Jack and Jill

Analysis of the Example

How the Parts of Thinking Fit Together

The Relationship between the Elements

Critical Thinkers Think to Some Purpose

Critical Thinkers Take Command of Concepts

Critical Thinkers Assess Information

Inert Information

Activated Ignorance

Activated Knowledge

Critical Thinkers Distinguish between Inferences and Assumptions

Critical Thinkers Think through Implications

Critical Thinkers Think across Points of View

The Point of View of the Critical Thinker

Conclusion

Chapter 5 - STANDARDS FOR THINKING

Take a Deeper Look at Universal Intellectual Standards

Clarity

Accuracy

Precision

Relevance

Depth

Breadth

Logic

Significance

Fairness

Bring Together the Elements of Reasoning and the Intellectual

Standards

Purpose, Goal, or End in View

Question at Issue or Problem to Be Solved

Point of View or Frame of Reference

Information, Data, Experiences

Concepts, Theories, Ideas

Assumptions

Implications and Consequences

Inferences

Brief Guidelines for Using Intellectual Standards

Chapter 6 - ASK QUESTIONS THAT LEAD TO GOOD THINKING

The Importance of Questions in Thinking

Questioning Your Questions

Dead Questions Reflect Inert Minds

Three Categories of Questions

Become a Socratic Questioner

Focus Your Thinking on the Type of Question Being Asked

Focus Your Questions on Univers