Download Critical Thinking Crash Course

CRITICAL THINKING CRASH
COURSE
Helen Alexander
Lecturer, Business Communication,
American Language Program
OBJECTIVES FOR TODAY’S PRESENTATION

Designed for all individuals to foster thinking
skills that can enhance written and oral
communication, participants will:
Recognize the higher order thinking skills involved in
effective communication.
 Practice organizing ideas to communicate in both oral
and written mediums for the comprehension of an
intended audience.

IMPORTANT JUMPING OFF POINTS
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Most people already have all the cognitive tools they
need to apply to communication situations.
However, many people have learned what “good”
communication is inductively: knowing what looks
right, but not sure what makes it right. Consequently,
they might have a harder time reproducing it in their
own writing and speaking.
Raising your own awareness of what makes
something readable and comprehensible to the
average English reader (or listener!) often makes
communicating much more efficient—
you are able to apply the tools from the beginning, and
 you have a better sense of what to tweak when a
misunderstanding arises. 

WARM-UP
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If you were to see these words in an email, what
would you think they mean?
claim
 report
 totally
 ramifications
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A THREE-STEP APPROACH TO
“THINKING THROUGH” MESSAGES

Step One: Identifying
Most informative or persuasive documents in English are
structured so that the document’s purpose is made explicit
at the outset.
 Even then, the author generally includes more information
after the first paragraph towards achieving that purpose.
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The body of information should generally be structured so the
reader knows what he’s looking for.
For both reading and writing (and good lectures as well!)
the pattern of organization that structures the whole
based on the (email’s) purpose is what makes it “readable,”
and helps the reader determine when the author has gone
off topic/lost the logical thread.

Individual paragraphs can have their own patterns, too.
EIGHT COMMON PATTERNS
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In professional English, there are 8 common
patterns which represent the logical
relationships we use to communicate:
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Definition
Classification
Cause/Effect
Compare/Contrast
Example
Persuasion
Problem/Solution
Process
WHAT KIND OF EVIDENCE OR INFO
SHOULD BE PRESENT TO COMPLETE THE
PATTERN?
These sentences are part of the opening of an
email. What should the reader look for if the
email is coherent and cohesive?
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The negotiations have arrived at two alternatives.
After reviewing all the material, I believe we should move
forward with the project.
The delays have resulted in a few labor and management
snags.
I need you to complete the ordering for me—there are
about three steps.
What outcomes might the author be looking for
from these emails? Would you recognize these
outcomes if the author did not explicitly ask for
them?
STEP TWO
Analyzing
 The next step to effective communication is
determining the ideas that need to be explicitly
stated--and connected!--to present a logical
argument or discussion for the reader.
 Logic gaps, especially based on assumptions of
what the reader should know, undermine
meaning.
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WHAT’S MISSING?
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How can you determine what is obvious, and
what should be included?
“I have a tree in my yard, so now I’m being sued.”
 What
possible connections could you make between this first
idea, and the outcome?
“My neighbor has a really large cat!”
 “The tree in my yard is really fragile because of
root rot.”
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STEP THREE
Evaluating
 Pay conscious, focused attention to word choice,
perspective, and tone to interpret the author’s
intention and possible needs for you to follow-up
for clarification.
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MAKING JUDGMENTS ABOUT WHAT WAS
INTENDED AND POSSIBLE DISCONNECT
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Go back to the words from the warm up activity.
What kind of relationship can the author have to
the reader to use those words?
 You
claim that the accident occurred because of faulty wiring.
 The
customer reported having trouble with the product’s cord.
 His
allegations are totally unfounded.
 We
must consider the legal ramifications before proceeding.
ORGANIZING THE PROCESS
In order to apply these skills to your own writing,
three questions are helpful:
 1) What relationship do I need to reader to
recognize?
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That is to say, what pattern of organization will help
me best encode this information?
2) What is my relationship to the reader?
 3) What does the reader need to know for this
information to make sense, for me to get the
results I need?
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Do I know what I want or need to happen? Have I
made it clear to the reader what that is?
YOUR TURN!
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Based on the scenario provided, draft an email
with your partner. Don’t forget to address
organization, language, field awareness.
You are emailing someone who you’ve only
met twice about a complaint from your
department. Your supervisor wants a solution
to the problem, and wants it within two days.
TO SUM UP!
Effective communication begins with thinking it
through—actively and contextually! 
 The elements that are most likely to affect the
outcome of your message are:
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attention to audience and assumptions as to common
knowledge;
 common organizational patterns and how they point
to appropriate support or the kind of information
that should be included, and
 accurate word choice for tone and connotation.
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