ABSTRACT
Critical thinking appears to stress the individual’s ability to interpret, evaluate and make informed judgments about the adequacy of arguments, data and conclusions. (Pascarella and Terenzini 1991)
Most formal definitions of critical thinking include the intentional application of rational, higher-order thinking skills such as analysis, synthesis, problem-recognition and problem-solving, inference and evaluation. (Angelo 1995a, 6)
Somewhere, at some time, someone explained or demonstrated to us how we tell the difference between fact and opinion. Later on, there were different ways of evaluating the validity and reliability of evidence. Perhaps we were lucky enough to have had induction and deduction explained. Or maybe, someone took the time to describe for us the various kinds of fallacies that pertain to evidence, such as the type 1 and type 2 grouping errors. I think about the times when these lessons occurred in my life as a student. Some of them are still happening. The skill in assessing arguments builds over a lifetime of experience. Yet, this is the foundation for all the other elements in critical reasoning. One cannot teach reasoning without a discussion of evidence and the knowledge base for evaluating it and using it.
