Summary
I like to describe critical thinking as a thought process that forces one to explore the multiple paths that a topic or preexisting conclusion of said topic may have. Critical thinking may take you from one place and you end up at the complete opposite end of the conclusion you once had. It does not exist linearly; things can branch off into many pathways. As quoted in Gary Meegan's video, Richard Paul describes critical thinking as analyzing and evaluating thinking with a view to improve it. Jesse Richardson places emphasis on how to be adaptive during thinking, keeping the mind flexible in order to have a means of taking the preexisting information and conclusions that may have been drawn and delving deeper into them. Richardson also mentions something that stood out to me, which was cognitive biases, the brain's ability to shift one's perspective in a way where one may feel more comfortable with the conclusion, due to possible preexisting notions. This is something I have studied a little bit about already in my psychology courses and it does make total sense. I do agree with their overall perspectives in these videos. I am sure that we have all experienced ideas that may seem (and maybe are) new to us during one’s time thinking about a topic, but sometimes when taking a closer look, we do see where the conclusion came from and how it may seem to fit our original perception of something to some extent. Both speakers emphasize the importance of critical thinking for its ability to not only create new pathways in thought but to identify the conclusions that either are not fully true or completely closed off to new thought. In other words, Jesse Richardson stated this, there is a self-awareness that comes with critical thinking. One must always be aware that our perspectives are not only capable of being biased, but also being incorrect in some ways because without critical thinking one may be completely content with an initial answer one may produce. Critical thinking can be quite humbling in many ways.
One thought on “Elliet Javier Conversation #1”
The following quote about ” the brain’s ability to shift’s ones’ perspective in a way where one may feel more comfortable with the conclusion, due to possible preexisting notions” definitely stood out to me as well. I agree fully with this quote. This happens in most instances, especially when someone wants to believe something they deem to be true. They tend to look for an accept evidence, whether true or untrue, to support their claim. If we think critically we can make better choices and actively become better people. It teaches us to not only reflect on our own thinking but to also understand the way others think.