Critical Thinking

One of the descriptions of critical thinking that I found particularly useful throughout the development of my hypertexts throughout this class was, "Critical thinking is the use of those cognitive skills or strategies that increase the probability of a desirable outcome. It is used to describe thinking that is purposeful, reasoned and goal directed - the kind of thinking involved in solving problems, formulating inferences, calculating likelihoods, and making decisions when the thinker is using skills that are thoughtful and effective for the particular context and type of thinking task. Critical thinking also involves evaluating the thinking process - the reasoning that went into the conclusion we've arrived at the kinds of factors considered in making a decision. Critical thinking is sometimes called directed thinking because it focuses on a desired outcome." (Halpern, Diane F. Thought and Knowledge: An Introduction to Critical Thinking. 1996). Throughout my writing for this class I filtered through various articles and scholarly literature in order to prove a point or truly evaluate a conflict or point of view. My thinking was direct because it focused on proving a point and not going off on tangents that would not benefit my goal. I also focused on the definition, “Critical thinking is "the examination and testing of suggested solutions to see whether they will work." (Lindzey, Hall, and Thompson, 1978). A huge part of writing for hypertext involves condensing information and determining which words or ideas are most important to proving a point. This involves a lot of reading and prioritizing in order to find out which articles will do the hypertext the most justice. Finally, and perhaps the definition that most applies to the development of my hypertext is, "Critical thinking includes the ability to respond to material by distinguishing between facts and opinions or personal feelings, judgments and inferences, inductive and deductive arguments, and the objective and subjective. It also includes the ability to generate questions, construct, and recognize the structure of arguments, and adequately support arguments; define, analyze, and devise solutions for problems and issues; sort, organize, classify, correlate, and analyze materials and data; integrate information and see relationships; evaluate information, materials, and data by drawing inferences, arriving at reasonable and informed conclusions, applying understanding and knowledge to new and different problems, developing rational and reasonable interpretations, suspending beliefs and remaining open to new information, methods, cultural systems, values and beliefs and by assimilating information” (MCC General Education Initiatives ). Knowing what determines fact from opinion in a vital part of presenting unbiased work. Critical thinking is absolutely essential in writing hypertext because you must determine fact from fiction and put your own spin on it to make the hypertext unique, informative, and well-developed.