Mission and Values
‘Enable everyone to think critically.’
Definition of Critical Thinking
‘Critical thinking is reasonable, reflective thinking that is focused on deciding what to believe or do.’
Critical Thinking Skills
The outcome of a critical thinking process is to produce one’s own argument for one’s own
conclusion. The four skills which are required for this are as follows:
Interpretation
Categorising information; decoding conventions; clarifying meaning.
Analysis
Detecting and analysing arguments to identify their structure, conclusion, premises (and missing premises) and logical relations; sorting out irrelevant material.
Evaluation
Judging the truth of statements, the credibility of sources and the strength/validity of arguments; anticipating objections and how additional information might affect an argument.
Argument Creation
Supporting premises; formal and informal reasoning; presenting arguments and drawing conclusions; considering alternatives; justifying methods.
Critical Thinking Values
We believe in the values of critical thinking.
Rigorous
Focussing on the problem; being clear, precise, well-argued, well-structured and succinct.
Fair
Seeking the truth or the best decision; representing information honestly; being willing to change opinion.
Open
Being curious and questioning; seeking alternative points of view.
Confident
Thinking for yourself; going beyond the easy answer.