Critical Thinking Journal

Running Head: CRITICAL THINKING JOURNAL 1

CRITICAL THINKING JOURNAL 2

Critical Thinking Journal

Olawoyin Ibitoye

Professor Oakes

Chamberlain University

09/05/2021

Critical Thinking Journal

Critical Thinking

Critical thinking is the capability of an individual to actively and adeptly conceptualize, apply, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate information collected from or created by observation, knowledge, reasoning, experience, communication, reasoning, or reflection to guide their actions, thoughts, behaviors, and beliefs (Hitchcock, 2018). Here, an individual undertakes autonomous thinking and analyzes diverse ideas and their associations to discover the best decision to solve a problem.

Heart of the Matter

Taking into account what I read in chapter 2.3, "Looking Ahead" of the textbook, I think the authors view “chapters 12, 13, and 14” as the “heart of the matter” because they illustrate the three most critical patterns used in human reasoning. Like the brain, which is the most critical part of thinking, these chapters are vital in thinking. These three chapters educate students on how to identify and assess ideological, empirical, and comparative thinking, which are important in critical thinking to make sure people make logical and impartial decisions (Facione & Gittens, 2017). In addition, the phrase “heart of the matter” can be perceived to denote the textbook's three major themes that influence human reasoning. Thus, the chapters are here to sum up, the main patterns utilized when individuals think critically.

As stated by the authors, the chapters educate people on two important concepts comprising how to recognize and assess their reasoning. Thus, they can understand the risks, benefits, and purpose of every kind of reasoning. Recognition is the first concept, and it is the capability to discover the presence of an issue, which requires to be solved critically (Facione & Gittens, 2016). The second concept is assessment, which involves evaluating diverse problems within reach before reaching the most appropriate decision. Recognition and assessment are the ultimate conceptions in critical thinking because they aid individuals in thinking independently and establishing a detailed outline for assessing their arguments; this enables them to advance their distinct opinions.

Challenges and insights

My utmost challenge for this session is managing family, classwork, and work, which might be regarded as simple things. However, they need critical thinking skills to formulate an effective schedule that will enable me to balance these three areas of my life. Making financial decisions at home is not an easy task, and without critical thinking skills, we cannot manage daily activities. I live in a big family where people depend on me financially, emotionally, and mentally in most instances. In this case, I have to make good use of my critical thinking skills to come up with ideas that will enable me to provide my family members with whatever they require without having any difficulties.

On the other hand, I head the finance department at work, which adds me additional tasks aside from the usual duties. Additionally, schoolwork is also demanding, and balancing between families, work, school is not easy as all of them require our full attention. Thus, I will utilize critical thinking skills to formulate a plan and a schedule to enable me to balance school, work, and family. Consequently, the three chapters of the textbook will assist me in unraveling this challenge. Besides, in my normal life, I have diverse responsibilities, which must be addressed, and thus, I will utilize critical thinking skills to assist me to properly manage time by devising a comprehensive plan to enable me to handle my responsibilities effectively.

References

Facione, P. A., & Gittens, C. A. (2016). The power of critical thinking. Facione PA, Gittens CA. Think critically. Boston: Pearson Education, 1-17.

Facione, P. A., & Gittens, C. A. (2017). Think Critically. Chapter 1.

Hitchcock, D. (2018, July 21). Critical Thinking (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy). Plato.Stanford.Edu. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/critical-thinking/