PROBLEM SOLVING TEACHING SERVICES
STUDY AIDS FOUR: EFFECTIVE THINKING
SKILLS
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Contents |
Section One:
Core
Concept
Section Two:
The
Characteristics Of Effective Thinking
Section Three: General Ways To Improve One’s Thinking
Section Four:
Obstacles To Effective Thinking
Section
Five:
Common Flaws In Thinking
Section Six: Handling Evidence
Section
Seven:
Developing An Argument
Section
Eight:
Modifying An Argument
Section
Nine:
Strengthening An Argument
Section
Ten:
Specify
Techniques For Improving One’s Thinking Ability
Section Eleven: Concluding Comments
Appendix One: Illustrating The Three Parts Of An Argument
AIMS
After having read this document, the student should be in a position to think effectively. In particular, he/she should be able to:-
1. Understand And Memorise The Characteristics Of Effective Thinking
2. Remove Some Of The Obstacles To Effective Thinking
3. Avoid The Common Flaws In Thinking
4. Improve Thinking Ability
5. Handle Evidence Competently
6. Develop, Modify And Strengthen An Argument
7. Realise
That Quality Of Thinking Helps To Determine Quality Of Character.
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Section
One:
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Effective thinking is the ability to reason, to argue and to come to logical conclusions, based on a proper understanding of the available evidence. Also known as effective reasoning, this discipline attempts to:-
1.1 Improve The Quality Of The Work In Hand.
1.2 Create Numerous (Personally) Beneficial Results
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Section
Two:
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Effective thinking involves being able to:-
2.1 Accept The Challenge Of Any New Innovation Which May Generate Fresh Ideas
2.2 Arrive At Original Solutions To Pressing Problems
2.3 Ask Questions And Formulate Logical Answers
2.4 Comprehend, Interpret And Wisely Apply Any Difficult, Ambiguous Data
2.5 Conceptualise Any Instinctive Feelings Through The Use Of Images, Symbols And Words.
2.6 Define Words Clearly
2.7 Draw Out The Full Implications Of Any Concept Or Argument
2.8 Express Well-Founded And Carefully Chosen Opinions
2.9 Contain The Right Amount Of Tension, Avoiding Both Complacency And Aggressive Worry.
2.10 Impartially Consider All Sides Of An Argument
2.11 Maintain Good Communications With All Relevant Parties
2.12 Make Firm Decisions Based On The Available Facts
2.13 Remain Open-Minded Whilst Testing Everyday Assumptions
2.14 Step Back From Blindly Following Public Opinion
2.15 Suggest Causal Relationships
N.B. Usually, effective thinking occurs where there is some degree of originality, an ability to focus on detail and some skill in interpersonal relationships. However, it is possible to think of exceptions, i.e. Mozart's genius in music was matched by an equally strong genius for making enemies!
Section
Three:
Obstacles to Effective
Thinking
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Among people of normal health and aptitude, obstacles to clear thinking include:-
3.1 A Dislike Of Challenge Or Lack Of Confidence
3.2 A Fondness For Holding On To Comforting Illusions
3.3 An Unwillingness To Accept (Or Handle) Responsibility
3.4 Quirks Of Character E.g. The Student May Be 'A Natural Scatter-Brain'
3.5 Poor Education
3.6 Time Pressures Making One ‘Too Busy To Think’.
Section
Four:
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Usually, the most common flaws in effective thinking are:-
4.1 A Misleading Use Of Words E.g. "Whiter Than White"
4.2 Making Conclusions That Are Not Based On The Evidence E.g. "Toads Are Mostly Green, They Therefore Eat Green Peas".
4.3 Making Dogmatic
Assertions E.g. "All Doctors Have Bad Handwriting"
4.4 Resorting To Supposedly Infallible Authorities In Order To Impress People E.g. "The Priest Says" Or "Professor So And So States".
4.5 The Adoption Of "The Causal Fallacy". Here It Is Assumed That If 'A' And 'B' Occur Together, Than 'A' ® 'B' When, In Reality, The Two Could Have Been Inter-Related, Or 'B' ® 'A'. An Example Of This Is The Myth That Soap Bubbles Produce Cleaner Clothes.
4.6 The Casual Acceptance Of Groundless Assumptions E.g. "All History Is The History Of The Class Struggle".
4.7 The Forming Of A
Generalisation From One Particular (But
Often Unrepresentative) Example.
Here, Convenient Cases Are Selected In Order To Justify Already
Established Prejudices E.g. "All Short People Are Bossy Because I
Knew....."
4.8 The Forming Of
Conclusions Not Related To The Original Argument, E.g. "All School Children Are
Lazy, But 'Bloggs Minor' Works Hard."
4.9 The Glossing Over Of
Internal Inconsistencies E.g. "Have You Stopped Beating Your Wife
Yet?"
4.10 The Implementation Of A Tautological Argument. Here, The Same Thing Is Said Twice In Order To Give The Appearance Of Credibility E.g. "Ben Has Fair Hair Because He Is Blond" Or "This Corpse Is Dead". However, Such Contradictions May Not Be Easy To Spot As They Can Be Widely Separated In A Piece Of Writing.
4.11 The Lack Of Verification E.g. "I Know Life Exists On Pluto".
4.12 The Use Of Insult Or Innuendo In Place Of Argument, E.g. "That Dead Dog Pighius Said..."
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Section
Five:
Ways
to
Improve Effective Thinking
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In order to improve effective thinking it is necessary to:-
5.1 Avoid Any Of The Flaws That Can Weaken Such Thinking (4.1 - 4.12).
5.2 Establish A Direct Connection Between Basic Assumptions, Lines Of Reasoning And Conclusions (Appendix One).
5.3 Find The Interrelationship Between Various Factors.
5.4 Keep An Open Mind For As Long As Possible.
5.5 Seek Out All Relevant Information.
5.6 Take Time Before Rushing To Conclusions.
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Section
Six: Handling Evidence |
To attain competence in handling evidence, it is necessary to:-
6.1 Avoid 'Cloudy' Expressions And Terminology, E.g. 'On-Going Situation'.
6.2 Avoid Emotional Words And Phrases E.g. "Terrific".
6.3 Avoid Soft Euphemisms E.g. "Creative Accounting".
6.4 Avoid Statements Which Cannot Be Credited With Sound Evidence.
6.5 Combine Imagination With The Skills Of Intuition And Intelligent Deduction.
6.6 Consider The Evidence From All Possible Angles.
6.7 Give Careful Consideration To Alternative Evidence.
6.8 Look At Examples And Ask "Are They Typical?"
6.9 Look For The 'Underlying' As Well As The 'Manifest' Meanings.
6.10 Rely Upon A Number Of Sources Rather Than One Text Book.
6.11 Take An Argument To
Its Extreme, In Order To See Whether Any Flaws Are Revealed.
6.12 Understand All Available Evidence And Theories.
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Section
Seven:
Developing an Argument
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Beyond being presented in easy to understand persuasive language, any argument is best developed if it:-
7.1 Derives From An Assumption, E.g. "Hunger Causes Laziness" And "All Hungry Schoolchildren Are Lazy."
7.2 Fits In With Other Arguments E.g. "Some Schoolchildren From Particular Social Backgrounds Are Often Lazy. This Is Because Such Backgrounds Encourage A Dislike Of Authority."
7.3 Leads Naturally To A Logical Conclusion E.g. "Lazy Schoolchildren Need To See The Practical Relevance Of What They Learn".
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Section
Eight:
Modifying an Argument |
Modifying an argument introduces a necessary sense of caution by:-
8.1 CONDITIONING The Application, E.g. "All School Children Are Lazy IN SUBJECTS THEY DISLIKE".
8.2 LIMITING The Application E.g. "All School Children Are Lazy ON FRIDAY AFTERNOONS".
8.3 QUALIFYING The Application, E.g. "All School Children Are Lazy AS FAR AS THEY ARE ALLOWED TO BE."
8.4 WEAKENING The Application, E.g. "All School Children TEND To
Be Lazy".
Such Modifications Serve To Prevent The Student From Being Either Too Dogmatic Or Too Generalised In His/Her Assertions.
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Section
Nine: Strengthening an Argument |
An argument is strengthened if it gives reasons for the views which are held. This can be done by:-
9.1 Drawing Upon Ideas
From Recognised Authorities, (These MUST ALWAYS Be Cited).
9.2 Employing Logical Deductions Which Move An Argument On From Its Premise To Its Conclusion.
9.3 Offering Either The Primary (One’s Own), Or (Other People’s) Secondary Evidence When Required.
9.4 Using Vivid Illustrations To Generate Mental Pictures So Helping People To 'Grasp' The Points Being Made.
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Section
Ten:
Techniques for Improving Effective Thinking Ability |
Techniques for improving effective thinking ability include:-
10.1 'Brainstorming'. Often Using 'Free-Writing' Or 'Nucleated Notes', This Technique Simply Sets Down Ideas As They Come To Mind In Random Order.
No Attempt Is Made To Edit These Ideas, As The Intention Is To Encourage 'Divergent Creative' Rather Than 'Convergent Lateral' Thinking.
10.2 'Coot'. Especially Useful In Helping To Decide Which Subject To Choose. This Means:-
C = Circulating And Rearranging Important Material On Cards
O = Being Open-Minded Over What Subject To Attempt
O = Orientating Oneself In A Particular Direction
T = Talking Matters Over With Colleagues And Tutors.
10.3 'Triad' Somewhat Ambitiously, This Seeks To Develop All Five Aspects Of The Student’s Personality By:-
T = Temperament - Ironing Out Any Unhelpful Personal Idiosyncrasies
R = Responsibility - Accepting The Consequences When Things Go Wrong, E.g. By Not Blaming Others
I = Integrity - Which Implies Complete Trustworthiness And Attention To Detail
A = Ability - Personal Capacity Or Aptitude
D = Delegation - Being Able To Hand Over Responsibility To Others.
10.4 Various 'Improve Your Memory' Techniques, Some Of Which, Can Be Helpful !, Whilst Others Are Dubious And Expensive To Pay For. Great Care Should Be Taken Before Following Up Any Media Advertising, Which Promises A Sudden And Dramatic Improvement In Memory Skills.
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Section
Eleven:
Concluding Comments |
11.1 Clear Thinking Is The Root Of All Academic And Personal Competence. It Forms An Essential Basis For Effective Action.
11.2 Who We Are As People Is Often Communicated By Our Personality, Which In Turn Is Governed By Our Thinking.
11.3 Be Wary Of Any Psychological Or Meditative Techniques Which Encourage The ‘Turning Off Of The Mind'. If The Mind Is Not Being Used, Then There Is Simply No Way To Evaluate The Techniques In Question. Not Using The Mind Could Well Lead To Some Form Of Manipulation By Outside Parties. In Addition, There Is the Common Sense Point That Minds Are there To Be Used. Failure To Employ Them Can Hinder Learning.
Appendix
One: Illustrating
The Three Parts of an Argument
'TAKEN FOR GRANTED' ASSUMPTION, PREMISE,
GENERAL PRINCIPLE
¯
LOGICAL DEDUCTIONS
(Personal Conclusions That Are
Drawn Directly From Taken For Granted Assumptions)
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LOGICAL CONCLUSIONS
(Find
Conclusions That Are Based On Logical Deductions)
Illustrated above is a 'deductive' approach in which the starting point are certain assumptions or general principles, e.g. "honesty is the best policy". By way of contrast, an 'inductive' approach bases its line of reasoning entirely on raw data. This is shown below:
RAW DATA
(Government
Census Returns)
¯
LOGICAL INDUCTION’S
(Provisional
Conclusions That Are Drawn Directly From Raw Data)
¯
LOGICAL CONCLUSIONS
(Final
Conclusions That Are Based On Logical Induction’s)
N.B. In practice, both approaches can often be used simultaneously. Fresh (or raw) data may challenge certain assumptions, whilst certain assumptions can often lead onto the interpretation of raw data. Students in higher education are expected to be able to apply both approaches.