PLS2601/201/1/2023

Tutorial Letter 201/1/2023

Critical Reasoning

PLS2601

Semester 1

Department of Philosophy, Practical and

Systematic Theology

Discipline of Philosophy

This tutorial letter contains important feedback information on your first assignment
of the First Semester.

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 CONTENTS

Page

1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 3
2 ASSESSMENT PLAN FOR PLS2601 .......................................................................................... 3

3 FEEDBACK ON ASSIGNMENT 1 (UNIQUE NUMBER: 750080) ................................................ 3

4 USE OF myUNISA: ...................................................................................................................... 4

5 CONCLUSION.............................................................................................................................. 7

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 PLS2601/201/1/2023

1 INTRODUCTION

Dear student of PLS2601 Critical Reasoning,

This follow up tutorial letter contains the answers to Assignment 1 for semester 1. The questions were
eight (8) in number.

2 ASSESSMENT PLAN FOR PLS2601

As you begin your assignments for this module, please bear in mind the weight which each assessment
carries to the composition of your final module mark:

Formative assessment Summative FINAL

(40% of final mark) assessment MODULE
+ (60% of final mark) = MARK
Assignment + Assignment Examination (100%
01 02
(20% of final (20% of final
mark) mark)

As each assessment component comprises a significant percentage of your final module mark, you are
encouraged to submit each assignment, on time, and completed to the very best of your ability.

3 FEEDBACK ON ASSIGNMENT 1 (UNIQUE NUMBER: 750080)

In this multiple choice assignment you were required to:

• Select the one correct answer from the four options provided for each of the eight multiple choice
questions;
• This assignment was completed online on myUnisa-myModules.
• The correct answers are highlighted in yellow. Please note that it can be misleading to simply
look at the question number and its corresponding answer represented by an alphabet (A, B, C,
or C). For instance, the answer to question 1 is B. But moodle may have mixt up the answers for
each student. So, it is advisable to look at the highlighted answer rather than the alphabet.

For each question, the correct answer is highlighted in yellow.

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 Unique number: 750080

Instructions:

1. This compulsory assignment consists of eight multiple-choice questions.

2. All questions must be answered, by identifying the one correct answer.
3. You are encouraged to submit your answers on myUnisa.
4. It is not necessary to submit a signed declaration on plagiarism with a multiple-choice question
assignment.
[20]
1. What do the symbols “P1”, “P2” and “C” refer to in the context of this module?

A. P1: minor Premise; P2: Major Premise; C: Conclusion

B. P1: Premise; P2: non-Premise; C: Conclusion

C. P1: Predicate; P2: Proposition; C: Conversation

D. P1: First Premise; P2: Second Premise; C: Conclusion

2. Which of the following is an example of “natural language”?

A. (a + b)2 = a2 + 2ab + b2

B. Some S is P

C. if p then q,
p
therefore q

D. “Some politicians are corrupt people.”

3. Complete the following sentence making use of one of the options provided below:

“In critical reasoning, an argument which is structured in such a way that the premise
statements lead to the conclusion statement, is known as an argument in
________________________.”
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A. Standard form

B. Natural form

C. Ordinary language

D. Argument rewriting

4. Which of the following statements would critical reasoners be inclined to critique based

upon its “dogmatic” nature?

A. “The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York has a 16th century ivory pendant, which
is a carving of the Queen Mother Idia, made by the Oba people of Benin.”

B. Idi Amin, the late president of Uganda, bore the full title: ‘His Excellency, President for
Life, Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin Dad, VC, DSO, MC, Lord of All the Beasts of
the Earth and Fishes of the Seas and Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa in
General and Uganda in Particular’.”

C. “US President Donald Trump made so much sense when he spoke about the
Coronavirus: ‘… I talk about the Chinese virus… [t]hat’s where it came from… [This] was
a Chinese virus…’”

D. “By delaying the spread of the virus, we have had time to prepare our health facilities
and mobilise some of the essential medical supplies needed to meet the inevitable
increase in infections” (President Cyril M. Ramaphosa, Address to the Nation, 23rd
April 2020).

5. Which of the following is not a competence that is developed through critical reasoning?

A. Thinking for yourself on important ideas

B. Relying upon your parents’ opinions

C. Reasoning in an informed way

D. Reflecting critically on one’s own positions

6. Which of the following statements is an example of a “bias”?

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 A. My philosophy lecturer telephoned me this morning.

B. White people are heartless and racist imperialists

C. I believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.

D. Sibongile prefers reading novels to autobiographies when relaxing.

7. How best can the following statement be described:

“Teachers should not even bother teaching mathematics to girls at school, we all know that
boys are scientifically and mathematically inclined, and girls are more into music, dance
and other creative things.”

A. Bias/prejudice.

B. A dogmatic statement

C. Standard form argument

D. A rhetorical statement

8. Identify which of the following arguments is in standard form.

A. All comets are sparkly, because when comets fly across the sky they leave a silvery trail
behind.

B. Critical reasoning helps one with being able to argue in the workplace, and my work
life has really been enriched by the skills in argumentation that critical reasoning has
taught me.

C. Giovanni’s makes the best pizza in Gauteng, since Giovanni owns the restaurant and is
the chef, and you know, he is from Naples in Italy!

D. If I eat my supper, then I will not be hungry. If I am not hungry, then I will be able to
sleep. Therefore, if I eat my supper, then I will be able to sleep.

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4 USE OF myUNISA - MyModules:

We hope that you are enjoying this module, and that you are feeling challenged, but excited, about
learning how to think critically.

We would like to encourage the greater use of myUnisa-myModules by PLS2601 students. You will find
that coupled with many additional online resources, there are opportunities online to engage with us, via
the discussion forums. Within the discussion forums, please feel free to post your problems and
concerns and we will attempt to respond to them timeously.

5 CONCLUSION

We hope that you have found this Tutorial Letter useful. Should you have any queries, questions, etc.,
please do not hesitate to contact us or your group’s e-tutor.

With kind regards, and best wishes for your studies in Critical Reasoning,

Dr. Ezekiel Mkhwanazi

Discipline of Philosophy
Department of Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology

Telephone: +27 12 429 6397

e-mail: mkhwaesn@unisa.ac.za