Philosophy 115: Critical Thinking

Summer 2010

Instructor: (Brian) Lars Enden

E-mail: brian.enden@bellevuecollege.edu

Office location & hours: TBD

Course Information

Course Outcomes

After completing this course, students should be able to:

• Recognize and use basic philosophic vocabulary relevant to critical thinking (e.g., “valid,” “invalid,” “sound, etc) in in-class and take-home essays, short answer test, and/or matching quizzes.
• Recognize and create valid arguments using methods of deduction. For instance, students may be given a list of deductive arguments and be required to determine which are valid. Or students may be asked to create a two-premise valid argument with a specified conclusion.
• Recognize and create strong arguments using methods of induction. For instance, students may be given a list of inductive arguments and be required to determine which are strong. Or students may be asked to create a two-premise strong argument wit a specified conclusion.
• Recognize and name informal fallacies. Students should be able to read a list of arguments and determine which ones are guilty of informal fallacies and be able to name the fallacy in each case.
• Recognize the different types of definitions, and to create accurate definitions. Students should also be able to point out common mistakes in definitions (e.g., being too narrow or broad, being merely enumerative).
• Use scientific (i.e., hypothetical) reasoning to
• create a hypothesis to explain an puzzling phenomenon,
• suggest an implication to that hypothesis,
• suggest a test for that implication,
• explain in writing what may be concluded given the result of the test. Students should be able to explain in a short answer some of the limitations to scientific reasoning.
• Develop arguments from analogy and critique existing arguments from analogy appealing to criteria learned in class.
• Use Mill’s Methods of Causality to determine the cause of an event.
• Explain in writing what the logical strengths and weaknesses are in an example of rhetoric or persuasive reasoning.
• Write an argumentative essay containing a clear thesis claim, strong arguments for the thesis, reasonable consideration of opposing views, and conforming to the writing standards set forth in the "BCC Philosophy Writing Guidelines" (found at www.bellevuecollege.edu/philosophy).

How Outcomes will be met

We will mostly be engaged in two separate, but related, projects. The first project will be to do our best to discover what counts as good reasoning. To this end, we will discuss fallacies (bad, but tempting, reasoning), distinguish different types of reasoning, and try to discover the principles of good reasoning for each of the types. The second project will be to develop our speaking and writing skills as critical thinkers. To this end, we will openly debate various topics and write critical essays. Although, these are the main projects of the class, we will occasionally study some of the applications of our topic to such fields as mathematics, natural science, social science, law, art, history, linguistics, education, and, of course, philosophy.

Grading

Although I reserve the right to increase final grades based on such factors as class participation, effort, and improvement, grades will mostly be determined based on the following point distributions (400 points total).

Homework: (100 points total, 25% of final grade)

10 Assignments @ 10 points each = 100 points

Writing Assignments: (100 points total, 25% of final grade)

4 Writing Assignments @ 25 points each = 100 points

Final Paper: (100 points, 25% of final grade)

Midterm Exam: (50 points, 12.5% of final grade)

Final Exam: (50 points, 12.5% of final grade)

The following is a rough guide to the minimum standards for each final grade ranking. Keep in mind that these are merely approximations. Actively engaging in class activities, exerting consistent effort, and showing improvement are all non-quantifiable aspects of the learning process that can only help your final grade.

A 370 C+ 276

A- 352 C 270

B+ 332 C- 261

B 320 D+ 249

B- 296 D 240

NB: I do not accept late work! You cannot make up an assignment without a REALLY, REALLY good reason. I cannot stress enough the importance of attending class and practicing your developing skills everyday! Do not miss class unless you absolutely must!

Books and Materials Required

The Following Text is Required:

Critical Thinking, 9^th edition by Brooke Noel Moore and Richard Parker (McGraw Hill, 2009).

Classroom Learning Atmosphere

Student Responsibilities

Reading: It is important that you do the required reading before we talk about it (otherwise you often won’t know what examples we are talking about). So, reading should be done before class on the day it is assigned. It is also a good idea to read a section again after we talk about it, since the subject of good reasoning demands careful study. See the schedule for specific due dates.

Graded Work: Because we will be focusing both on acquiring knowledge and on developing skills, the graded work is divided into two main categories:

1. Knowledge Acquisition:

a. Homework Assignments: The homework assignments are designed to broaden your knowledge of the subject matter. See the schedule for specific due dates. In general, we will spend the first hour of our class time on days homework is due reviewing the homework together so that you have the opportunity to hear an explanation for (and to ask questions about) those exercises that you found difficult. It is a good idea to make a copy of your homework so that you can look at it while we talk about it.

b. Exams: Exams are designed to test the knowledge you have gained. There will be a midterm and a final, each lasting approximately one hour. See the schedule for dates.

2. Skills Development:

a. Writing Assignments: The writing assignments are designed to help you develop critical thinking skills. See the schedule for specific due dates.

b. Final Paper: The final paper is designed to test the practical reasoning skills you have developed throughout the quarter. The writing assignments will be used together to form the majority of this paper. Basically, we will be writing a five-to-seven-page paper, in chunks, throughout the quarter. See the schedule for due date.

Homework Assignments: See the schedule for specific due dates.

HW1. Exercise 1-4: 2,3,5,6,11,12,14,15; Exercise 1-5: 5,6,7,8; Exercise 1-14: 2,3,8,9

HW2. Exercise 2-4: 5,6; Exercise 2-6: 3,5,6; Exercise 2-10: 5,6; Exercise 2-11: 3,5,6;

Exercise 2-13: 2,3,5; Exercise 2-14: 3,5

HW3. Exercise 5-1: 1,3,8,9,11,16; Exercise 5-4; Exercise 5-10: 2,3,5,9,13,15

HW4. Exercise 6-2: 6,9,11; Exercise 6-7: 5,6,8; Exercise 7-3: 2,3,5,6; Exercise 7-4: 2,3,5,6,11,12

HW5. Exercise 3-2: 2,3,5,6; Exercise 3-7: 2,3,5,6; Exercise 3-9: 2,3,5,6,7; Exercise 3-10

HW6. Exercise 9-2: 3,4,7,13,14,15; Exercise 9-4: 2,3,8,9; Exercise 9-15: 2,3,11,12,14

HW7. Exercise 8-1: 2,3,5,6,8,9; Exercise 8-3: 2,3,5,6; Exercise 8-11: 2,5,6; Exercise 8-12: 2,3,5

HW8. Exercise 10-1: 2,3,8,9; Exercise 10-5: 2,3,8,9; Exercise 10-6: 2,3,8,9; Exercise 10-9; Exercise 10-15: 2,3,5

HW9. Exercise 11-4: 3,5,6,8; Exercise 11-7: 1,2,6,8; Exercise 11-10: 3,4,5,6; Exercise 11-11: 2,3,5,6

HW10. Exercise 12-5: 2,3,5,6,11,12; Exercise 12-6: 2,5,6,8,9; Exercise 12-11: 3,11; Exercise 12-14: 2,3,5

Class Schedule

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday
pp. 1-12 June 28	pp. 12-21 29	HW 1 pp. 41-48 30	WA 1 pp. 48-54 July 1
Holiday 5	HW 2 pp. 147-151 6	pp. 151-159 7	pp. 159-168 8
HW 3 pp. 183-191 12	WA 2 pp. 211-222 13	pp. 222-228 14	HW 4 pp. 69-82 15
pp. 82-92 19	HW 5 Review 20	Midterm pp. 297-304 21	WA 3 pp. 304-321 22
HW 6 pp. 254-262 26	pp. 263-278 27	pp. 278-281 28	HW 7 pp. 346-353 29
WA 4 pp. 353-365 August 2	pp. 366-371 3	HW 8 pp. 385-388 4	pp. 389-400 5
HW 9 pp. 436-448 9	Paper pp. 456-467 10	HW 10 Review 11	Final 12

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