Critical Thinking 101

October 14th, 2022

In my fourth year of university, it's safe to say that I've chatted with many people and heard tons of different perspectives on life. I've learned that the perspectives that others hold can come from a plethora of different sources. Whether information is coming from social media, news outlets, or even the institution in which you attend school, it is so easy to just believe something because you saw it somewhere, or because someone says it is true.

After talking with some friends and family about blindly believing any information fed to you, I thought it might be something important to bring up and discuss in Good Student Review. Critical thinking skills are something that such a useful tool and can be sometimes necessary in your university life, and possibly in your career afterward. So this week's blog is going to focus a bit on my opinions about some issues I've noticed revolving around critical thinking, and also some suggestions to help you refine your critical thinking skills, which will hopefully benefit you in the long run.

Something I've learned in many of my courses at Western is to question everything. Never just believe something because you see it on the internet or on TV. I've learned that never questioning things and believing them because you read them online can cause a wildfire spread of misinformation. It also gets people into the habit of becoming lazy, instead of seeking out answers when they have a feeling that something isn't right.

On top of this, personal biases can also have a large effect on whether or not you are allowing yourself to receive all the information at hand. I would also like to point out that not only are the social media feeds and TV news that you are consuming biased, the very places in which you study for your degrees, and the places that you work have some sort of biases within them as well. I think this is where I start to see issues. I think so many people are taking on the beliefs of what they see on TV, on their phones, or even in their lectures, and just choosing to believe it because it makes sense, or they support those ideas.

Unfortunately, the problem that arises when people do this without looking for, or accepting all of the other facts at hand, is that our society ends up becoming so close-minded and no one is able to think for themselves. If you've ever sat in a philosophy lecture, you might know that when offering up an opinion or suggestion, there's never really a wrong answer. This is because the point of philosophy is to question absolutely everything and even to try and find your own subjective truth. Sadly, this may not be the case for other courses in other realms or faculties.

This is why it is so important to critically think about the information that is being handed to you. Do you agree? Do you know all possible arguments for, and against the information? Are you open to hearing other opinions and viewpoints? There is no detriment to asking these questions. At the very least, you are able to broaden your scope of knowledge and form your own ideas and opinions about matters. In turn, you may even understand what you are talking about on a deeper level.

Below, I've incorporated some starter tips for starting your journey to becoming a critical thinker:

1. Do your research - make sure you are as well informed on all sides to an issue, argument, point of view, etc.

2. Acknowledge your biases - sometimes your own biases will inhibit you from following tip #1.

3. Consider possible outcomes - if something is at stake, consider what the outcome of all possible avenues may be.

4. Try not to overcomplicate things - thinking critically should provide you with well-informed clarity, not send you into existential dread.

5. Know that your opinions can be subject to change - just because you believe in something at one point in your life, doesn't mean you are forced to keep that same opinion for the rest of your life. As you grow, your outlooks, opinions, and knowledge will as well.

All in all, I hope you enjoyed this week's post on critical thinking and found it helpful! Thank you for reading, and feel free to contact me if you are interested in keeping a discussion going!

-Sam