PHILOSOPHY

BATCH- 2020-2025
COURSE- BA LLB
SUBJECT-PHILOSOPHY
2ND SEMESTER

TOPIC-
Critical Thinking

SUBMITTED BY- Bhuvneshwari Rathore

SAP ID- 81012019491

SUBMITTED TO- Mrs. Sanjana Phadke

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction……………………….…………………...…………………1

2. What is Critical Thinking?………………………..………………..…….2

3. Standards of Critical Thinking…………………………………………………………...….3

4. Benefits of Critical Thinking………………….……………...………......4

5. Barriers of Critical Thinking…………………………….….….….….….5

6. Conclusion……………………………….……………………………….6

7. Bibliography…………………………………………….…………….….7
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• INTRODUCTION-

In todays’ knowledge-driven world, the advantage lies with those who can think critically and
keep improving their knowledge. Critical thinking helps you in developing your analytical
skills so that you can evaluate the data given to you and interpret it in the most optimal way.
This helps in error-minimization and taking correct decisions quickly in crucial situations.
Critical thinking, in other words, is a logical study of decision-making techniques and
enhancement of judgment-skills. It is not only about the way we think and analyse facts, but
also how we use those facts to decide upon a course of action and act upon them. Action is an
important step of critical reasoning, as the entire concept of critical reasoning revolves around
acting on solid, irrefutable evidence. The word "critical" can mean different things in
different contexts. For example, it can refer to the importance of something, or can also mean
pointing out the negative aspects of something, i.e., to criticise something. Critical thinking
skills are perhaps the most fundamental skills involved in making judgments and solving
problems. Critical thinking helps us in achieving this intellectual integrity.

• WHAT IS CRITICAL THINKING?

Critical Thinking is defined as the ability of putting forth an open-minded inquiry. It is one of
the founding stones of human civilization. It is the ability to think clearly and rationally,
understanding the logical connection between ideas. Critical thinking has been the subject of
much debate and thought since the time of early Greek philosophers such as Plato and Socrates
and has continued to be a subject of discussion into the modern age. Critical thinking might
be described as the ability to engage in reflective and independent thinking. In essence, critical
thinking requires you to use your ability to reason. It is about being an active learner rather
than a passive recipient of information. Critical thinkers rigorously question ideas and
assumptions rather than accepting them at face value. They will always seek to determine
whether the ideas, arguments and findings represent the entire picture and are open to finding
that they do not. Critical thinkers will identify, analyse, and solve problems systematically
rather than by intuition or instinct.
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• STANDARDS OF CRITICAL THINKING-

1. Clarity in thinking critically-

The first and foremost standard that we need to achieve is clarity. Being able to speak and
write clearly is essential to any exercise that involves critical thought. If we were not able to
clearly state a case, no one can evaluate what we say as either true or relevant or worth
listening to. Being clear is also essential for effective communication. Clarity is the gateway
standard. If a statement is unclear, we cannot determine whether it is accurate or relevant. In
fact, we cannot tell anything about it because we do not yet know what it is saying.

2. Accuracy-
Being accurate means being true to the facts. We should be critical before accepting any
information as true or accurate and must judge the credibility of the source of each piece of
information. We must examine the accuracy of what we believe, of what we read, of what we
hear and of what is usually accepted as truth by the majority. In doing this, we must
continuously question the source of information, judge the reliability of the source, not accept
anything that seems to be true or right without scrutiny, apply suitable methods of
scrutinising “facts”, and always try to think of counter examples.

3. Precision-
Precision is a standard of critical thinking that is closely tied with accuracy, as one cannot be
precise without being accurate. One can however be accurate without being precise. In being
precise, we become more specific and do not omit any details that are relevant to substantiate
a claim. The need for precision is felt in everyday life. The need for precision and the need
for a particular degree of precision are both relative to the context at hand. In certain spheres,
the details are less important than the overall picture. In such a case, precision is a lesser
virtue than a holistic appraisal of the situation at hand. Often, we might get bogged down by
the little details and miss the holistic picture that emerges from putting all these details in the
right perspective. In the case of precision too, we may take measures to be precise with
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respect to our own thinking and with respect to how precisely we are able to communicate
our thoughts to others.

4. Relevance-
A person who thinks about things that are irrelevant to the issue under inquiry or speaks
about such irrelevant things cannot go far in the business of thinking critically. While
thinking through a problem, we must find out what is relevant or important for that problem.
We must find and enquire into all and only those things that are relevant to the problem. In
deciding what is relevant for a particular question at hand, we must remember that there may
be many issues that are personally important to us, but they are not necessarily important for
the problem in question. We should then be able to set aside what is important for us and
concentrate only on issues that are directly or indirectly related to the question at hand.

5. Depth-

So far, we have seen that for thinking critically we need to be clear, accurate, and precise, and
focus on what is relevant. Doing all this gives a certain amount of depth in handling a
problem at hand. We realise that when we think critically, we get to the heart of a problem
and undertake a threadbare analysis of it. Any sort of half-hearted, superficial approach is
sure to have disastrous results If we want to achieve a certain amount of depth in our
approach to a problem, we need to look beyond the surface and get to the heart of the matter.

6. Breadth-
The investigation of a problem should not only be deep but also adequately broad. A study
has achieved the desired breadth when we have considered all the relevant aspects. Of the
problem and have not left any important details unattended. Looking into different aspects of
the issue at hand and adopting alternative approaches also helps us achieve the desired
breadth.

• BENEFITS OF CRITICAL THINKING-

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1. Approach-

With Critical Thinking, one of the crucial learning developments is an awareness of differing
approaches to a problem, alongside an ability to assess those approaches critically. Rather
than relying on a standard, uniform problem-solving method, you can learn how to identify
other, often more valuable, approaches, inevitably increasing your success.

2. Save time with a Critical Thinking mindset-

You will already know that not all information is relevant to your decision-making, but often
we do not know how to filter out the irrelevant from the relevant. Critical Thinking teaches
you how to prioritise your time and resources by analysing what is essential to the process.
This also helps you to know that a decision is ultimately a good one.

3. An appreciation of differing worldviews-

It is a direct result of learning how to empathise with other points of view. Critical Thinking
enables you to see beyond, not judge, cultural norms and learn how to understand other
factors that can influence decision-making. This empathy and understanding are crucial to
effective teamwork and leadership.

4. Enhanced Communication-

By teaching you to analyse and build your evidence for any given premise, Critical Thinking
can make you a more effective communicator. Consistent and relevant points to support your
theory are pivotal in communicating a proposal or idea proficiently. When you know your
stuff, so will they.

5. Decision-making-
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Abilities are transformed with a Critical Thinking approach and made a lot easier. You leave
intuition or guesswork decision-making behind and begin to work on a more analytical and
considered basis, resulting in sounder decisions.

6. Reason-

Not only will you become a more reasoned and balanced problem solver, but you will also
learn the two types of reasoning – inductive and deductive – and when it is appropriate to use
one over the other. Grounding decisions in reason and logic over emotion or instinct makes
for effective problem solving.

• BARRIERS OF CRITICAL THINKING-

The barriers to critical reasoning are many as is clear from our discussion of the barriers to
achieving the standards of critical reasoning. There are some more serious barriers to critical
thinking that are sociological and psychological in nature. A thorough understanding of these
barriers requires a certain amount of background knowledge.

1. Social brainwashing and our view of the world:

A critical thinker is a person who is trying to work her way through the world in a reflective
way. In doing so, she is required to have some sort of understanding of the world around her.
But the question is, how they form their view of the world? Usually, our views about our
surroundings are initially influenced by our parents’ views. However, they are not always
able to give us a full or unbiased picture of the world. Later in life, our views are shaped by
our role models such as our teachers, by our peers or even by celebrities like film stars whose
fans we are. But the most serious and profound influence on our view of the world is
exercised by the media, both print and electronic. What we believe about the world we live in
is to a very large extent directed by newspapers and news channels. This hidden control over
our thoughts has hindered a free and reflecting thought process. This is possibly the greatest
barrier to free critical thinking.
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2. Tendency to think in binaries:

We usually think in binaries, i.e., bad, or good, just, or unjust, we or they, liberal or
conservative, black, or white, absolute, or relative, objective, or subjective. Thinking in
binaries is not only common to the common man, but also a thought pattern so deeply
embedded in us that it affects even the most famous and astute logician, philosopher, political
thinker, or scientist. But the world and all the worldly phenomena that we encounter are not
all to be judged in terms of binaries. This has not only led to poor theories in the field of
philosophy but also to the breakdown of personal relations. Being a critical thinker is hard for
those who follow the stereotype that defines this thinking in terms of binaries.

3. Fears regarding freethinking:

We often toe the line set by others despite realising in our minds that they are wrong. We do
this because we are scared to be the first to voice a new opinion. This fear stems from our
fear of making mistakes, the fear of making a fool of ourselves. This is the result of a kind of
intellectual diffidence. This diffidence may have some sociological roots as many societies
discourage freethinking. Our educational system, which has an ingrained patronising spirit,
also discourages freethinking. A free thinker therefore can feel cornered and will need an
enormously strong will to come out and say what she thinks is right.

4. Egocentrism:

Most people think that they are the centre of the universe. Some people are even full-blown
megalomaniacs. Even still, everything that we see we see from our own perspective. In a
way, this is the only perspective we have. But to be a critical thinker, we need to go beyond
our own perspective and be able to appreciate other ways of looking at things.

5. Personal interests and experiences:

In our lives, we have many commitments that steer the direction of the path we take. Our past
experiences determine our allegiances, our emotional and social commitments. It is difficult
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to answer the call of reason in the face of the tremendous pressure that our past experiences
and commitments place upon us.

• CONCLUSION-

Critical thinking helps us in recognizing problems and finding out solutions for them. In
addition to that, it also teaches us to prioritize between a set of tasks so that we understand
the preference in problem-solving. It also helps in comprehending data with accuracy and
check for the existence of logical relationships between them. It plays a very important role in
every matter of life. It enables students to think about and evaluate their own thinking and
behaviour on issues. To challenge and act (individually and collectively) to address social,
cultural, economic, and political inequalities.

• BIBLIOGRAPHY-

1. https://library.leeds.ac.uk/info/1401/academic_skills/105/critical_thinking
2. https://open.library.okstate.edu/criticalthinking/chapter/__unknown__-2/
3. https://www.tutorialspoint.com/critical_thinking/critical_thinking_introduction.htm
4. https://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/defining-critical-thinking/766
5. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/sac-publicspeaking/chapter/chapter-6-conclusion/