Critical Thinking Assignment Option #1: Practicing Strategic Thinking Self-Assessment Essay This course is going to be different from any course you have taken thus far because the emphasis will be on actively developing your thinking. Everything we do in this class will be designed to help you become better and better at thinking. You will therefore not be asked to memorize information. Instead, you will be required to actively participate in class so that you can improve your thinking. Think of learning about thinking as you would of learning a sport. To learn to play tennis, you would need to first learn the fundamentals of tennis at an elementary level and then practice those fundamentals during every practice session. The same is true in learning to think better. You must be introduced to the fundamentals of good thinking. Then you must practice those fundamentals every day. Therefore this class has been designed with the primary purpose of helping you develop your thinking or reasoning skills. Why is this important? Because the quality of every decision you make will be directly determined by the quality of your reasoning abilities. In fact the quality of your life in general will be determined by how well you think in general. Write a paper that is a self-assessment of your progress as a strategic thinker. Has this course been effective in teaching you how to thinking critically? Why or why not? This is an opportunity to provide positive input into future development of this course. Sources and Citation: Cite three scholarly sources to back up your claims, assumptions, and facts. You are encouraged to use the readings for the course. The CSU-Global Library is a good place to find your sources. Your paper, including citations and references, should be 4-5 pages in length, well written, and all source citations (including the reference page) should be formatted with APA 6th citation Please use these sources in writing the paper: B. O. (n.d.). The Critical Thinking Community - The Critical Thinking Community. Retrieved from https://www.criticalthinking.org/resources/articles/sts-cteverydaylife.shtml University of Louisville. (2015). Paul-Elder Critical Thinking Framework. Retrieved from http://louisville.edu/ideastoaction/about/criticalthinking/framework. Critical Thinking Development: A Stage Theory. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/critical-thinking-development-a-stagetheory/483 Practicing Strategic Thinking: A Self-Assessment 2 Practicing Strategic Thinking: A Self-Assessment “Responsibility to yourself means refusing to let others do your thinking, talking, and naming for you; it means learning to respect and use your own brains and instincts; hence, grappling with hard work” (Rich, 1977). As humans we have great potential to not only educate ourselves and become the best we can be but we also have the responsibility to educate others. In order to do this we must develop our strategic thinking skills. Developing strategic thinking skills is much like learning a new skill. Such as learning how to dribble a basketball or play the piano. Developing these skills does not happen overnight but is something that will take time, commitment, and requires us to change our habits. Stages of Critical Thinking One must truly develop their critical thinking skills in order to be an effective strategic thinker. Strategic thinking depends on critical thinking skills (Chartrand, Ishikawa, & Flander, 2013). There are six stages to critical thinking development: Unreflective Thinker, Challenged Thinker, Beginning Thinker, Practicing Thinker, Advanced Thinker, and Accomplished Thinker. In the first stage as an unreflective thinker we are not aware that there is a problem with our thinking. This stage is characterized by frequent assumptions and coming to conclusions without looking at the big picture or how it will affect others (Paul & Elder, 2012). Stage two is the challenged thinker and in this stage we become aware that we are making poor decisions based on poor thinking. I feel this is the point at which I started my personal journey with developing my critical thinking skills in my personal life. I would frequently use incomplete information or recognize problems but would find myself focusing on how my decision would affect others. I would also make assumptions and decisions based on my beliefs. In regards to my professional career I believe I fall more into the stage of a beginning thinker. As I move through my day to Practicing Strategic Thinking: A Self-Assessment 3 day actions at work there are process and procedure in place to ensure each person is meeting governmental regulations. These process and procedures really force me to look at the big picture, analyze the situation, ask questions, and check for accuracy. More practice is needed in this area because I find myself having biased beliefs especially when it comes to my strong feelings about patient care. The next stage is the practicing thinker. As a practicing thinker, I have developed a plan to practice the techniques I have learned in the class daily to help progress to the next stages. Stage five and six is the advanced thinker and accomplished thinker. The advanced thinker is devoted to continuous practice and the traits of a critical thinker start to move into the stage of an accomplished thinker as the skills become second nature and beliefs are internalized (Paul & Elder, 2012). Through these stages, I fully understand the need for continuous practice but have yet to perfect the skill of critical thinking. The traits of a critical thinker will always be a lifelong development process for me. Self-Reflection & Understanding Self-reflection is asking myself thought-provoking questions so that I can gain a greater level of understanding about myself. Our thinking is monopolized by the inclination to think egocentrically (Paul & Elder, 2012). However, as a person that wants to be expand my strategic thinking skills, I know I must make a strong commitment to fairmindedness. By being open minded and engaging in self-reflection when I feel like I could have done something differently or when I am unsure about something I am practicing being more fair-minded (Holdefer, 2014). In my self-reflection I focus on what I am thinking, feeling, and wanting and then analyzing those thoughts to truly understand the underlying focus. By doing this I feel a strong sense of control in difficult situations. Elements of Critical Thinking Practicing Strategic Thinking: A Self-Assessment 4 Critical thinking requires the development of basic intellectual skills and traits. Part of developing these skills is understanding the elements of critical thinking. All reasoning has a purpose, has an intent to explain an issue, is founded on preconceived notions, is formed from a point of view, is founded on data, is voiced through ideas, contains interpretations and leads to conclusions (University of Louisville, 2015). For me, I find that the most difficult area for me to overcome is eliminating my bias and assumptions in order to hear out the other side of the debate. I find that I have fallen victim to many forms of bias but particularly the availability bias in which I relay on information that is readily available and do not go searching for more indepth research. This course has taught me strategies to help overcome automatically jumping to conclusions based on my bias. For example, when challenged on a topic I take a few minutes to gather my thoughts in order to present them in a logical manner. I also will take some time to do some research on the topic and focus on reviewing credible sources. Often times I find myself reflecting upon my day and my critical thinking skills and reevaluating some of my approaches and answers once I have taken the time to clearly reflect. I often journal as a way to decompress at the end of each day and upon reviewing my journal entries since beginning this course I have found that I am challenging some of my own reasoning at times. Being aware that I cannot escape biases has allowed me to challenge myself and become a stronger strategic thinker. In conclusion the key learning from this course is that I must keep in mind when developing my strategic thinking skills is that it is a personal on-going journey. One in which I must make a constant commitment for growth. It involves hard work, dedication, changing my daily habits, and continuing to integrate the strategies into my daily life that I have learned in this course as well as educating myself on new strategies. Practicing Strategic Thinking: A Self-Assessment 5 References Chartrand, J., Ishikawa, H., Flander, S. (2013). Critical Thinking Means Business: Learn to Apply and Develop the NEW #1 Workplace Skill. Boston, MA: Pearson. Holdefer, C. (2014). Understanding Yourself and Increasing Your Professional Value through Self-Reflection. Intercom, 62(10), 46-49. Paul, R. & Elder, L. (2012). Critical thinking: Tools for taking charge of your learning and your life (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson. Rich, A. (1977). Claiming an Education. Retrieved from http://isites.harvard.edu/fs/docs/icb.topic469725.files/Rich-Claiming%20an %20Education-1.pdf. University of Louisville. (2015). Paul-Elder Critical Thinking Framework. Retrieved from http://louisville.edu/ideastoaction/about/criticalthinking/framework.
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