Synopses & Reviews
The second edition of this leading guide helps students to develop reflective thinking skills, improve their critical analysis and construct arguments more effectively.Written byStella Cottrell, leader in the field with over 1/2 million book sales to date, this text breaks down a complex subject into easily understood blocks, providing easy-to-follow, step-by-step explanations and practiceactivities to develop understanding and practise your skillsat each stage.Essential for students who are mystified by tutor comments such as 'more critical analysis needed', this is an invaluable tool for anyone wishing to develop advanced skills in this area and learn to apply them to tasks such as reading, writing and note-taking.
Now in two-colour, this edition has been fully revised and contains a brand new chapter on 'Critical Reflection' along with additional material on essays and referencing.
Review
'I think this book is strong: clear, concise and relevant' - Liesl Schwabe, Yeshiva College, New York
'I liked this book - it is fun and new!' - Julie Engstrom, Brigham Young University-Idaho
'I found this text very useful not only for students but also for newly appointed staff teaching Academic Skills. The activities are most useful for the novice lecturer in particular to developing their own style while using this text as a guide' - Ann Anka, Havering College of Further and Higher Education
'I really endorse this book both for its clear and structural approach and its use of humour to more fully engage its audience' - Deidre Kelleher, University College Dublin
'One of the best texts for general critical thinking around at the moment… very good value for money' - Victor Glynn, Oxford University
Synopsis
Critical Thinking Skills has taken the seemingly baffling art of analysis and broken it down into easy to understand blocks, with clear explanations, good examples, and plenty of activities to develop understanding at each stage. This easy to follow, step-by step guide to developing reasoning skills even applies the techniques to tasks such as reading, note-taking, and writing.
About the Author
STELLA COTTRELL is Director for Lifelong Learning at the University of Leeds, UK. She is the 1/2 million copy best-selling author of The Study Skills Handbook, The Palgrave Student Planner, The Exam Skills Handbook and Skills for Success, a key text on personal development planning.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Glossary
Acknowledgements
What is Critical Thinking?
How Well Do You Think? Develop Your Thinking Skills
What's Their Point? Identifying Arguments
Is it an Argument? Argument and Non-Argument
How Well Do They Say It? Clarity, Consistency and Structure
Reading Between the Lines: Recognising Underlying Assumptions and Implicit Arguments
Does it Add Up? Identifying Flaws in the Argument
Where's the Proof? Finding and Evaluating Sources of Evidence
Critical Reading and Note-Making: Critical Selection, Interpretation and Noting of Source Material
Critical, Analytical Writing: Critical Thinking When Writing
Where's the Analysis? Evaluating Critical Writing
Critical Reflection
Texts for Activities
Practice Activities on Longer Texts
Appendix
Bibliography
Index