Tips on Thinking Critically 2
- Eric Lopez
- Mar 18, 2015
- 2 min read
Input/output Information: Find out what you need to know.
To think critically in any particular subject, one must first take the steps to learn basic facts about that said subject. To find out about a particular subject, one needs to read about it. Look for scholarly and credible materials, especially in controversial subjects such as religion and politics. Blogs, generally (never mine of course), are more often than not discredible. However if you happen to find a blog run by a renowed scholar or a famous business man or something along those lines, you might have found an acception. ".ORG" sites are usually more credible than ".COM" sites. Either or, one must use or learn to use proper discernment. Once you feel like you have learned a little bit about your subject, you can then apply the five W’s. Who, what, when, where, and why. After answering these basic questions look deeper into a new question "the how" and deeper into the "why". This is when you can apply your critical thinking skills and start figuring out and answering questions. The more credible research poured into your studies, the more credible answers you will start to obtain (ie, the quality of your sources makes up the quality of your answers). It’s important to remember that the more you know, the more you grow. And the more you ask quality questions, the more you will begin to understand.
Once you have become more developed in your understanding, you can now construct what is known as an inverted pyramid. To use this, one needs to put the most important information at the top, with the less important informtaion toward the bottom. News reporters and journalist used this technique often in times past in their line of work. Unfortunately, a lot of the media we are exposed to today fails to use this.
An outline of what an inverted pyramid is.
Activity: Once you have done all of this, it is important to make an output. You can make output by sharing new information with your friends by creating a video or a blog. I like to make blogs (as you can tell) to share newly discovered information. However, everyone is different and has their own way of sharing information. Also, feel free to share some techniques you have discovered in the comment box. Fun Fact: Normally, people who claim to know a lot about a particular subject, doesn’t really know all too much. Like-wise, those who normally say that they don’t know anything about anything, probably, more often than not, know a lot.
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