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Critical Thinking Guide - FINAL

Critical thinking involves carefully evaluating ideas and evidence, identifying flaws in arguments, and making objective judgements. It requires questioning assumptions, considering context and bias. To think critically about a text, one should examine its methodology, evidence, logic, assumptions, and relation to other works. Critical writing interprets evidence to support arguments, includes counterarguments, and avoids generalizations. It demonstrates independent analysis while remaining fair and avoiding prejudice.

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Rashmi Mehrotra
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25 views4 pages

Critical Thinking Guide - FINAL

Critical thinking involves carefully evaluating ideas and evidence, identifying flaws in arguments, and making objective judgements. It requires questioning assumptions, considering context and bias. To think critically about a text, one should examine its methodology, evidence, logic, assumptions, and relation to other works. Critical writing interprets evidence to support arguments, includes counterarguments, and avoids generalizations. It demonstrates independent analysis while remaining fair and avoiding prejudice.

Uploaded by

Rashmi Mehrotra
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Critical thinking and writing

Introduction
This guide helps you to:
• Understand what critical thinking is.
• Develop a strategy to critically evaluate texts, theories, arguments etc.
• Understand how to write critically in your assignments.

What is critical thinking?


When looking at the instructions or marking scheme for an assignment, you will often find that you are
required to be critical in some way. For example:

Critically discuss… Critically evaluate…

Give a critical
account of…

Being critical can mean slightly different things in different assignments, but these are some general
principles that usually apply. Critical thinking is:
• Carefully considering an idea and evaluating the evidence supporting it to see if it is
convincing.
• Explaining why the evidence is convincing or unconvincing. Building an argument.
• Being thoughtful or sceptical, asking questions, and not taking what you read/hear/see for
granted.
• Identifying patterns, trends and relationships.
• Looking for bias.
• Noticing flaws in the logic of an argument.
• Making an objective evidence-based judgement, while paying attention to context.
Ways to start being critical
In some assignments, you’re asked to examine the internal robustness of a study, paper, theory, etc.
Here are some questions you could use as prompts to help you start thinking critically about the
study, paper or theory you’re looking at:
• Is the methodology sound? (e.g. Was there a sufficient sample size? How was the sample
selected?)
• What evidence is the writer basing their claim on? Is this evidence sound?
• Does the claim/conclusion follow logically from the evidence/findings?
• What assumptions is the writer making? Are these reasonable?
• What bias might the writer have? Are they credible / an authority?
• Are there any contradictions within the writer’s theory?
• Are any of the words used not clearly defined?
• Has this work been peer reviewed?

For additional questions, look at CASP tools: http://www.casp-uk.net/casp-tools-checklists


You’ll see that there are eight different CASP tools. To choose the right one, you need to know what
type of study you are looking at (e.g. qualitative study, randomised control trial, etc.).

In addition, sometimes you might be required to think more broadly about how the study/paper/theory
relates to other literature, or how it relates to the question or problem you’re writing about. In that
case, these questions might help:
• How useful is a particular theory (or study/policy/guideline/model) in addressing a particular
problem (or scenario/issue). Is another theory better suited to the given problem?
• Is the theory (or study, policy, etc.) consistent with others in the field? e.g. How far does study
A agree with study B? Why (not)?
• To what extent is the theory (or study, policy, etc.) applicable outside of its original context?
• What are the implications of the theory/theories for your question/problem?

How to get more critical analysis into your essay


• Avoid unnecessary description – only include general background details and history when
they add to your argument.
• Interpret your evidence – explain how and why your evidence supports your point. You should
not rely on the evidence "speaking for itself".
• Be specific – avoid making sweeping generalisations. Be more measured and tie your
argument to precise examples or case studies.
• Use counter-arguments to your advantage – if you find viewpoints that go against your own
argument, don't ignore them. It strengthens an argument to include an opposing viewpoint and
explain why it is not as convincing as your own line of reasoning.
(University of Reading, 2016)

Hitting the right tone


Aim for:
• healthy scepticism … but not cynicism
• confidence … but not arrogance
• judgement which is critical … but not dismissive
• being ‘fair’: assessing fairly the strengths and weaknesses of other people’s ideas and writing
… without prejudice
(Wellington et al., 2005)

Are you meant to be giving your opinion?


• You should be writing a reasoned and objective answer to the essay question, supported by
evidence. The books, articles and research material that you read for your essay provide this
evidence.
• The way in which you select and interpret the evidence, and explain why it answers the question,
is where you demonstrate your own thinking. A string of quotes is not an essay.
• Where possible, paraphrase. Don’t expect direct quotes to do all the work for you.
(University of Reading, 2016)

Example of effective critical writing


This example was originally one paragraph, but it is broken up below for ease of reading:
There are a number of methodological difficulties in evaluating treatment efficacy in this area,
and this has contributed to controversy within the research literature surrounding treatment
outcomes for this group of offenders (Marshall, 1997).

Firstly, while there is no doubt that the primary measure of treatment success is a reduction in
the rate of re-offending (Marshall et al., 1999), reconviction data does not, in isolation, provide
a realistic representation of actual levels of re-offending by this group.

It is well established that there is a discrepancy between re-offending and reconviction rates:
the latter underestimating the number of offences committed (Grubin, 1999).
Indeed, a significant proportion of offences committed by offenders are either unreported, or do
not result in the offender being convicted (Abel et al., 1987).
(University of Leicester, 2017)
You can see how the author is considering the available evidence, but also the limitations of that
evidence, and will take all of this into account in drawing conclusions.

More advice from the Academic Skills Team


For further study skills advice, please enrol on our Moodle page:
https://moodle.city.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=38922
To make an appointment for one-to-one study skills support, please complete this form:
https://city.tfaforms.net/4723090 or email [email protected]

References
University of Leicester (2017) Critical writing. Available at: http://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/ld/resources/writing/writing-
resources/critical-writing (Accessed: 20 April 2017).
University of Reading (2016) Essay writing. Available at: http://libguides.reading.ac.uk/essays/developing (Accessed: 21
April 2017).
Wellington J., Bathmaker A., Hunt C., McCulloch G. and Sikes P. (2005) Succeeding with your doctorate. London: Sage.

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