Jindal Global Business School

Course Outline

Course Title Critical Thinking & Analysis

(BS-MGT-221)
Core or Elective Core
Program and Batch BBA-2
Semester &Academic Year Spring 2022
Credits 3
Discipline/Area Marketing
Provide details, if this course is a prerequisite No
for any course/specialization
Name of the Faculty Member/Course Instructor 1. Prof. Anjuman Antil
2. Prof. Gurpreet Kaur Mehdiratta
3. Prof. Sushruth Ravish
4. Prof. Vaishali Garg

Contact Details of the Faculty Member 1. anjuman@jgu.edu.in

2. gkmehdiratta@jgu.edu.in
3. sravish@jgu.edu.in
4. vgarg@jgu.edu.in

Contact Details of Support Staff N.A.

Faculty Member’s Open Office Day/s & Time TBD

Introduction to the Course

Critical thinking describes the process of analyzing and evaluating information using certain
cognitive skills to reach a specific goal or achieve a particular result. Michael Scriven & Richard
Paul define critical thinking as “the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully
conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from,
or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to
belief and action. In its exemplary form, it is based on universal intellectual values that transcend
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subject matter divisions: clarity, accuracy, precision, consistency, relevance, sound evidence,
good reasons, depth, breadth, and fairness1.”
Critical thinking is reasoned and made for a specific purpose. It is used to solve problems, make
decisions, calculate likelihoods. Critical thinking is not only thinking about thinking or making
judgments and solving problems, but also the use of certain skills and strategies to achieve a
specific purpose. Critical thinking is self-focused, self-corrective and self-disciplined. It uses
concepts to analyze and evaluate thinking. Further, critical thinking appeals for continuous
attempts to explore certain belief or knowledge based on evidence that supports it. In this course,
we will explore in a brief way how to engage in critical thinking.

Course Learning Objectives (CLOs)

The objective of this course is to sharpen students' cognitive skills. This course will do so by
explaining them the basics of building arguments, identifying assumptions, assimilating their
thoughts. Students will get ample opportunities to apply these skills in class through participating
in class discussion and assignment. At the end student will also learn the art of critical and
analytical writing. This course is expected to add immense value to their writing and thinking
capabilities.

Upon completion of the course, the student will be able to:

CLO1. Apply Critical Thinking Skills: Each student should be able to analyze and identify key
issues relevant to critical thinking, specifically, interpret and produce arguments more
effectively, recognize assumptions, and draw conclusions. The student should be able to develop
a perspective supported by relevant information and creative thinking to assess the business
situation and draw conclusions, followed by an effective style of argumentation.
CLO2. Think out of the Silo: This course aims to develop a multi-disciplinary approach among
students while analyzing any scenario or towards new ideas, and to encourage them to think out-
of-the-silo by adopting a critical and analytical approach.
CLO3. Improve Interpersonal Communication and Working in Teams: Each student will
demonstrate one’s ability to appreciate a peer group member’s viewpoint and work in a team

1
https://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/defining-critical-thinking/766
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environment, exhibiting a clear understanding of individual roles and tasks, ability to identify
and resolve interpersonal conflicts and contribute in achieving team goals.

Course Learning Program Learning Program Course

Objectives (CLOs) Objectives (PLOs) Competency Goals Assessment Item2
(PCGs)
On successful This course helps you This course helps you This learning
completion of the to develop the to develop the outcome will be
course, students following Program following Program assessed in the
should be able to: Learning Outcomes: Competency Goals: following items
CLO1 PLO8, PLO9, PCG3 A1, A2, A3, A4
PLO10
CLO2 PLO8, PLO10 PCG3 A1, A2, A3, A4
CLO3 PLO12 PCG4 A3

Teaching Method

The course will be a combination of lectures, class discussion, practice exercises, and
assignments. To participate effectively in class, the student should come prepared to the class by
reading in advance the sections of the textbook that will be covered in the session, as well as any
other material handed by the instructor. Here the onus of learning will be with the student and
the instructor will be a facilitator. Instead of only learning ‘what to do,’ the examples,
assignments, and practice exercises will also be used as examples of real-world phenomenon
where a particular issue or set of issues arise, and critical thinking skills have to be employed to
arrive at the best possible analysis of the situation.

Evaluation Schema
Please see the next page. The evaluation scheme will be applicable for both online and offline
Mode.

2
The course assessment items (A1 to A4) are described in the “Evaluation Schema” section below.
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The course grade will be determined based on (applicable for both online and offline)
Assessment Task Weightage Nature Week of PLOs to be Assessed
Assessment
A1. In-class Quiz 15% Individual 7/8 PLO8, PLO9, PLO10
A2. Poster presentation 15% Individual 14 PLO8, PLO9, PLO10
A3. Student Debate 20% Individual 11 PLO8, PLO9, PLO10,
PLO12
A4. End-Term Exam 50% Individual At the end of PLO8, PLO9, PLO10
the course

Description of Assessments:
Evaluation Item Description
A1. In-class Quiz One mid-term quiz will be conducted through UMS. The quiz will be
a mix of subjective and objective question.
A2. Poster This is an individual assignment. Students are expected to design a
presentation poster on the topic allocated by the instructor. The instructor will
announce the topics in the 23rdsession of the class. The students will
be expected to design an effective poster on it. The student is
expected to search for material on the internet and other information
publicly available on that topic to gain a critical understanding of the
key issue. This will help students to design an effective poster by
highlighting the key issues. Each poster will be evaluated on the
following parameters:
1. Overall appearance of the poster (30%)
2. Content (40%)
3. Is the poster self-explanatory? (15%)
4. The poster displays coherent information (15%)

Students should submit a A4 size poster in PDF format through

UMS at the end of 28th session of the course. The student can refer
to the following blog to learn about designing a good poster and
check out other sources as well.

https://piktochart.com/blog/how-to-make-a-poster/

A3. Student Debate This is an individual assignment. The instructor will assign topics to
each student in the 16th session, including which students will speak
“for” the topic and which student “against.” Each student will be
given 120 seconds to present the arguments. The students are also
encouraged to listen to the counter arguments as after all students
have presented their views on one topic, another 180 seconds will be
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allotted collectively to students for rebuttal and cross examination.

This activity will be conducted in 22 & 23 sessions of the course.

Since the schedule of this activity is preannounced, every student is
expected to ensure their presence during the activity. Only student
with permitted absence will be given a make-up assignment. The
debate will be judged on following criteria

 Organization & Clarity: Main arguments and responses are

outlined in a clear and orderly way.
 Use of Argument: Reasons are given to support the resolution
 Presentation Style: Tone of voice, clarity of expression, precision
of arguments.
 Use of cross-examination and rebuttal: Identification of
weakness in the opponent team’s arguments and ability to defend
itself against attack.

A4. End-Term Exam This will be a take-home Exam in case of online mode and in offline
mode it will be conducted in accordance with the university norms.

Textbook / Course Package / Other Readings

The required textbook for the course is:

Cottrell, S. (2017). Critical thinking skills (3rd ed.). London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan UK.

We recommend getting a copy of the book and reading along with the class to be up to date with
what your faculty is discussing in class. Chapters from this book are assigned as required
readings in the class schedule below. Please read the chapters before coming to class for an
engaging classroom discussion. Cases and any other reading material assigned for reading will
be uploaded on a shared folder (or the e-learning platform, as suitable).

Program Competency Goals –BBA

Please refer to the table in the next page.

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Guest Lectures

S. Faculty Guest Speakers Week #

No. member(s) [Name, designation, and company] (Tentative)

1. Dr. Anupam Kaushik, Senior Manager at 6

Bioquest Solutions
2. Ms. Ravneet Bhangu, Associate Director, JAMP 6
1 Anjuman Antil Pharma Group
3. Ms. Shivali Beakta, Manager at PWC, UK 15
4. Ms. Upasana Kharb, Senior Consultant at IQVIA
15

1. Arvind Mehrotra- ex-President- NIIT Tech

2. Sumant Bhattacharya- National Head- 6
Communication planning- Group M 6
Gurpreet
2
Mehdiratta 3. Rajbeer Kaur- Business Strategy and Planning-
15
Virtusa

1. Ms.Sneha Joshi, Associate Fund Manager-ESG 6

2. Mr. Amlok singh, Vice President, Reliance
Power
3. 3. Mr. Shivesh Singh, Senior General 6
Sushruth Ravish
Manager, BCML
4. Mr. Roshan Lal Tamak, Executive Director, 15
DSCL
15
1. Dr. Roy Kshmendra Sharma, Communication
Manager, TATA Group 19
4. Vaishali Garg 2. Mr. Rohit Singh, Guest Relations Manager,
Ahilya Fort 26
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Session Plan
Week 1; Session Nos. – 1,2
Objective of the session
Readings
Case Title and Number
Pedagogy
Week 2; Session Nos. – 3,4
Objective of the session
Readings
Case Title and Number
Pedagogy
Week 3; Session Nos. – 5, 6
Objective of the session
Readings
Case Title and Number
Pedagogy
Week 4, 5; Session Nos. –
7, 8, 9
Objective of the session
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Session Details CLOs Covered
An introduction to critical thinking CLO1
In these sessions, I will introduce the course to you and take you
through the evaluation components. I will also lay down the
ground rules that we will follow. Further, at the end of these
sessions, you will have a basic introduction to the idea of critical
thinking, why it is beneficial, and knowing the terms that are
employed.
Textbook Chapter 1
N.A.
Lecture and class discussion
Identifying arguments CLO1, CLO2
These sessions offer you opportunities to identify the key
components of an argument and develop strategies for identifying
reasons, conclusions, and arguments within a message, with a
specific focus on critical thinking.
Textbook Chapter 3
N.A.
Lecture and class discussion
Arguments vs. non-arguments CLO1, CLO2
At the end of these sessions, you will learn about the differences
between arguments and non-arguments, and the various forms of
the later. We will also look at analytical writing vs. descriptive
writing.
Textbook Chapter4
N.A.
Lecture and class discussion
Clarity, consistency, and structure of arguments CLO1, CLO2,
CLO3
These sessions offer you opportunities to check arguments for
clarity and internal consistency, check for logical consistency and
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order and analyze the two types of reasons most commonly used,
with a specific focus on critical thinking.
Readings Textbook Chapter 5
Case Title and Number N.A.
Pedagogy Lecture, class discussion, and assignments

Week 5,6; Session Nos. – Underlying assumptions and implicit arguments CLO1, CLO2,
10, 11, 12 CLO3
Objective of the session Arguments are often based on unstated assumptions and latent
methods of persuasion. In these sessions, we will practice
identifying hidden assumptions and implicit arguments.
Readings Textbook Chapter 6
Case Title and Number N.A.
Pedagogy Lecture, class discussion, and assignments

Week 7, 8; Session Nos. – Cognitive biases CLO1, CLO2,

13, 14, 15 CLO3
Objective of the session These sessions follow from the last discussion, where the student
has been exposed to various types of assumptions. In these
sessions, we will discuss cognitive biases. Cognitive bias is an
umbrella term that refers to the systematic ways in which the
context and framing of information influence individuals’
judgment and decision-making. There are many kinds of
cognitive biases that influence individuals differently, but their
common characteristic is that—in step with human individuality,
—they lead to judgment and decision-making that deviates from
rational objectivity.
Readings This material is from the book “The Art of Thinking Clearly” by
Rolf Dobelli, 2013 edition, published by Hachette India.
Case Title and Number N.A.
Pedagogy Lecture and class discussion

Week 8, 9; Session Nos. – Flawed arguments CLO1, CLO2,

16, 17, 18 CLO3
Objective of the session In these sessions, we will discuss different kinds of flaws that an
argument might include, for example, the difference between
cause and effect.
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Readings Textbook Chapter 7

Case Title and Number N.A.
Pedagogy Lecture and class discussion

Week 10; Session No. – 19 Guest Lecture-1 CLO1, CLO2,

Objective of the session We will have an industry guest speaker in this session to how he CLO3
has used critical thinking in his field of work.
Readings N.A.
Case Title and Number N.A.
Pedagogy Lecture and class discussion

Week 10, 11; Session Nos. Finding and evaluating sources of evidence CLO1, CLO2,
– 20, 21 CLO3
Objective of the session In these sessions, I will take you through concepts such as
authenticity, validity, currency, reliability, and relevance of
evidence. We will also cover the related aspect of plagiarism and
how to avoid plagiarism (especially,citing authors and
paraphrasing).
Readings Textbook Chapter 8
Case Title and Number N.A.
Pedagogy Lecture and class discussion

Week 11& 12 Session 22 Student Debates CLO1, CLO2,

&23 CLO3
Objective of the session The session is reserved for student debates
Readings N.A.
Case Title and Number N.A.
Pedagogy N.A.

Week 12, 13; Session Nos. Critical reading and note making CLO1, CLO2
– 24, 25
Objective of the session In these sessions, we will discuss about developing strategies for
reading selectively while not sacrificing on understanding of the
text. We will also see strategies to check whether our
interpretation of a text is accurate or not.
Readings Textbook Chapter 9
Case Title and Number N.A.
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Pedagogy Lecture and class discussion

Week 13; Guest Lecture-2 CLO1, CLO2,

Session No. – 26 CLO3
Objective of the session We will have an industry guest speaker in this session to how s/he
has critical thinking in her/his field of work.
Readings N.A.
Case Title and Number N.A.
Pedagogy Lecture and class discussion

Week 14, 15; Session Nos. Critical, analytical writing CLO1, CLO2
– 27, 28, 29
Objective of the session These sessions are aimed at introducing the characteristics of
critical, analytical writing and understanding usage of language
structures for indicating the direction of one’s argument.
Readings Textbook Chapter 10
Case Title and Number N.A.
Pedagogy Lecture and class discussion

Week 15; Course summary and wrap up CLO1, CLO2,

Session No. – 30 CLO3

Objective of the session In the last session of the course, we will wrap up by drawing
connections between the different ideas discussed in the course.
Readings N.A.
Case Title and Number N.A.
Pedagogy Lecture and class discussion