Your College Experience 12e Chapter 5 Test Bank

Your College Experience Strategies for Success 12th Edition

Gardner Test Bank
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Chapter 5: Thinking in College

Test Questions

Multiple Choice

Choose ONE answer per question.

1. Critical thinking is the ______________.

a. act of being critical of someone’s opinion

b. art of negative thinking

c. thoughtful consideration of information and ideas

d. act of disagreeing with someone on principle

2. People who do not develop their thinking skills often ______________.

a. make decisions that result in conflict

b. make spur-of-the-moment decisions

c. make decisions based on the most compelling evidence

d. think for themselves, without regard for how they are perceived by others

3. Slow thinkers do NOT ______________.

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a. make independent judgments

b. discover new information

c. examine problems

d. refrain from questioning authorities

4. Becoming a critical thinker will help you to ______________.

a. make better decisions

b. make decisions based on your feelings

c. bypass the need to make decisions

d. allow others to make decisions for you

5. Mark is having a hard time coming up with new ideas for his history project. He is supposed

to focus on an American president and he has chosen Ronald Reagan, but he doesn’t know

what to focus on next. What is a good way for Mark to generate some ideas?

a. He should take a break and check Facebook.

b. He should go for a run around campus.

c. He should give up and think about it again tomorrow.

d. He should ask some friends to help him brainstorm.

6. Critical thinking does NOT involve ______________.

a. asking questions

b. examining evidence

c. drawing your own conclusions

d. focusing on your own point of view

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7. What should you do first when you come across a statement that you consider interesting or

confusing?

a. Accept it at face value.

b. Ask yourself if you can trust the person making the statement.

c. Ask yourself what it means.

d. Ask who might agree or disagree.

8. What question should you ask yourself when presented with information?

a. Can this information be interpreted another way?

b. What does my best friend think of this?

c. Do I like the person telling me this?

d. Is the person telling me this smarter than I am?

9. When determining whether you can trust people making a particular claim, what should you

do?

a. Ask yourself if they have provided enough information to support their claim.

b. Consider the number of people who believe in their claim.

c. Determine how popular their claim is at the time.

d. Consider their status as a person in society.

10. The mark of reasonable, educated people is ______________.

a. the degrees they hold and their alma maters

b. their ability to persuade others into believing the claims they make

c. their willingness to change their minds

d. the jobs they hold and how these relate to their college degrees

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11. When engaging in critical thinking, what should you do next after considering multiple

viewpoints and drawing conclusions?

a. Ask questions.

b. Develop your own viewpoint.

c. Challenge your own beliefs.

d. Use fast thinking to make a decision.

12. A calm, reasoned effort to persuade someone of the value of an idea is called

______________.

a. evidence

b. an assumption

c. fast thinking

d. an argument

13. Erin is confused by her homework, which is to prepare an argument about global warming

for class tomorrow. She feels a bit hesitant about this assignment because she does not want

to yell at other students in class, but also doesn’t want to lose credit for not completing her

homework. What common mistake has Erin made?

a. Erin thinks she has to complete every homework assignment or she will fail.

b. Erin does not realize that an argument is an effort to persuade using reason.

c. Erin thinks that global warming is not a valid topic.

d. Erin wants to talk about the upcoming presidential election instead.

14. An effective argument does NOT involve ______________.

a. making a general claim

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b. providing evidence

c. considering a single point of view

d. providing reasons to support a claim

15. Ian is attending a rally about increasing campus safety. During the rally, another student,

Caryn, who is running for class president, gets up to speak. Ian has been planning to vote

for her opponent, Mike, in the election. What should Ian do as Caryn makes her speech?

a. Assume that her information is biased and inaccurate.

b. Try to predict where her argument is headed and why.

c. Ignore her because he’s not planning to vote for her.

d. Disagree with her positions on principle.

16. What should you do if you have evaluated the evidence in support of a claim and are still

not certain of its quality?

a. Keep looking for more evidence.

b. Assume that the claim is inaccurate.

c. Continue re-evaluating the same evidence until you come to a decision.

d. Disregard the claim altogether.

17. Abby has gotten in trouble with her physics teacher because she has failed to turn in her

homework three times in the past month. She goes to his office to try to reason with him,

but it is not effective. What should Abby have offered as a logical explanation?

a. She won’t be able to support her family if she fails his class.

b. His homework assignments were unfair because he’s mean-spirited.

c. Experts believe that homework has no real value.

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d. She didn’t understand the assignments and was embarrassed.

18. Which of the following statements about the use of logic is FALSE?

a. Attacking the person is an appropriate approach.

b. When you beg, you offer no evidence.

c. Citing authorities can offer valuable support for an argument.

d. You should avoid making hasty generalizations.

19. “Please let me take your shift this weekend. If I don’t work enough hours, I won’t be able to

pay my rent!” This statement is an example of which type of faulty reasoning?

a. Slippery slope

b. Jumping on a bandwagon

c. Attacking the person

d. Begging

20. When you make a claim based on the opinion of someone lacking expertise, you

______________.

a. make a hasty generalization

b. attack the person

c. appeal to a false authority

d. engage in begging

21. Believing widely accepted truths is an example of ______________.

a. jumping on the bandwagon

b. falling victim to a false cause

c. a slippery slope argument

d. appealing to false authority

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22. Assuming that something is true because it hasn’t been proven false is an example of

______________.

a. faulty reasoning

b. critical thinking

c. a hasty generalization

d. slow thinking

23. What is an example of falling victim to a false cause?

a. Believing that the sun will rise every morning because it has always done so in the past

b. Believing that a rooster’s call causes the sun to rise because the sun rises when the rooster

crows

c. Believing that the Earth revolves around the sun because scientific data indicates that this

is the case

d. Believing that sun is going to go out because a charismatic person said that it would

24. “If I let you take a day off, then everyone will want to take a day off, and before long I’ll be

the only one here!” is an example of which type of faulty reasoning?

a. Hasty generalization

b. Appealing to false authority

c. Slippery slope

d. Jumping on a bandwagon

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25. The highest level of Bloom’s taxonomy is ______________, which is defined as using your

ability to judge the value of ideas and information you are learning according to internal or

external criteria.

a. Application

b. Analysis

c. Evaluation

d. Comprehension

26. When you bring ideas together to form a new plan, proposal, or concept, you engage in

which level of Bloom’s taxonomy?

a. Synthesis

b. Comprehension

c. Evaluation

d. Analysis

27. Analysis is defined as _______________.

a. using what you have learned in new situations

b. breaking down the material into parts so you can understand its structure

c. understanding the meaning of the material

d. remembering previously learned material

28. Lina is used to her math homework containing questions that her instructor has already gone

over in class, so that she knows how to solve them. This week, however, although they did

indeed go over several problems in class, her instructor has handed out all new questions to

solve. What level of Bloom’s taxonomy does Lina’s homework address?

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a. Comprehension c. Synthesis

b. Knowledge d. Application

29. Which level of Bloom’s taxonomy appears between Knowledge and Application?

a. Evaluation

b. Analysis

c. Comprehension

d. Synthesis

30. Which skills are associated with the Knowledge level on Bloom’s taxonomy?

a. Classifying, describing, and translating

b. Arranging, defining, and memorizing

c. Choosing, illustrating, and interpreting

d. Collecting, organizing, and composing

True/False

31. Questions that suggest complex answers allow you to avoid the process of deep thinking.

32. In college, you will primarily be called upon to receive knowledge rather than construct it.

33. When employers say they want workers who can find reliable information, analyze it,

organize it, draw conclusions from it, and present it convincingly to others, they are seeking

individuals who are critical thinkers.

34. Most important questions have very simple answers that can be reached with high degrees

of certainty.

35. In order to practice critical thinking, you should try not to ask too many questions.

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36. Thoughtful conclusions are only useful if you keep them to yourself so other people can’t

claim them as their own.

37. A strong argument appeals most to your emotions.

38. It is important to listen to both sides of an argument before making up your mind.

39. Comprehension includes appraising, arguing, defending, and supporting.

40. Analysis includes categorizing, comparing, contrasting, and questioning.

Short Answer

41. Explain how fast thinking differs from slow thinking.

42. Explain the value of collaboration.

43. Identify four of the main steps of critical thinking.

44. Why are arguments central to academic study, work, and life in general?

45. When is it important to examine assumptions more thoughtfully, and why?

Essay

46. List the courses you are taking this term, and illustrate how each one encourages critical

thinking.

47. Consider a time when you made an argument based on faulty reasoning. Describe the

argument you made, including any logical fallacies involved, and explain what you could

have done differently to think critically about the information.

48. Pick a topic or subject area that you are learning about in this or another course, and

consider where you are on Bloom’s taxonomy in relation to how well you currently

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understand the topic. Describe what you need to do to progress through the different levels

of Bloom’s taxonomy with regard to your understanding of this topic or subject area.

49. Identify a newsworthy item that is clearly polarizing U.S. citizens, such as how the

government has responded to a recent national disaster or a current scandal. Defend both

positions.

50. Critique an Internet article to be distributed by your instructor.

Chapter 5 Answer Key

1. c, Introduction

2. b, College-Level Thinking: Higher and Deeper

3. d, College-Level Thinking: Higher and Deeper

4. a, College-Level Thinking: Higher and Deeper

5. d, College-Level Thinking: Higher and Deeper

6. d, Becoming a Critical Thinker

7. c, Becoming a Critical Thinker

8. a, Becoming a Critical Thinker

9. a, Becoming a Critical Thinker

10. c, Becoming a Critical Thinker

11. b, Becoming a Critical Thinker

12. d, Becoming a Critical Thinker

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13. b, Becoming a Critical Thinker

14. c, Becoming a Critical Thinker

15. b, Becoming a Critical Thinker

16. a, Becoming a Critical Thinker

17. d, Becoming a Critical Thinker

18. a, Becoming a Critical Thinker

19. d, Becoming a Critical Thinker

20. c, Becoming a Critical Thinker

21. a, Becoming a Critical Thinker

22. a, Becoming a Critical Thinker

23. b, Becoming a Critical Thinker

24. c, Becoming a Critical Thinker

25. c, Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy

26. a, Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy

27. b, Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy

28. d, Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy

29. c, Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy

30. b, Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy

31. False, College-Level Thinking: Higher and Deeper

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32. False, College-Level Thinking: Higher and Deeper

33. True, College-Level Thinking: Higher and Deeper

34. False, College-Level Thinking: Higher and Deeper

35. False, Becoming a Critical Thinker

36. False, Becoming a Critical Thinker

37. False, Becoming a Critical Thinker

38. True, Becoming a Critical Thinker

39. False, Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy

40. True, Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy

41. Answers will vary, but should explain how fast thinking differs from slow thinking.

Responses may indicate that fast thinking is automatic, emotional, stereotypic, and

subconscious, and that slow thinking takes more effort, involves more conscious attention,

and is more logical, rational, and deep. See Introduction.

42. Answers will vary, but students should provide reasons for why they feel collaboration is

valuable. Examples include: collaboration leads to brainstorming, which helps to get

everyone’s creative juices flowing and to generate as many ideas as possible; people think

more clearly when they are talking as well as listening; collaboration involves building on

the thoughts of others; and collaboration leads to a surer conclusion through negotiation.

Other valid answers are also acceptable. See College-Level Thinking: Higher and Deeper.

43. Students should identify any four of the following steps of critical thinking: asking

questions, considering multiple points of view and drawing conclusions, making arguments,

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challenging assumptions and beliefs, examining evidence, and recognizing and avoiding

faulty reasoning. See Becoming a Critical Thinker.

44. Answers will vary, but students should explain why arguments are central to academic

study, work, and life in general. Responses should focus on the importance of arguments to

effective decision-making. See Becoming a Critical Thinker.

45. Answers will vary, but students should indicate that assumptions should be examined more

thoughtfully when they will influence an important decision or serve as the foundation for

an argument. See Becoming a Critical Thinker.

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