Critical Thinking Blog #1

Part One:

I remember when I first began taking standardized tests in elementary school and just about everyone dreaded the words "critical thinking". When I think of critical thinking, I think of a selected reading or situation that provokes deep thought and analysis. I always enjoyed having a discussion about the reading or situation with my classmates rather than writing out my answers on a sheet of plain binder paper. Critical thinking works so much better when everyone can join in and add their points to the subject. Plus, it is so much more enjoyable to actually be able to hear other's opinions and thoughts rather than just my own.

When I was a senior at Bella Vista High School, I took a political science course. Inside that course, my class had the opportunity to work with the Sacramento Country Juvenile system and participate in Youth Court. Youth Court was where students could act as a jury, under a real judge and over a real case. The defendants and their families have agreed to a set of terms that the defendants would comply with the jury's decision on a sentence, per se. The defendants had already plead guilty, so all the jury was allowed to do was listen to testimony and hear evidence about the case, and to come to an appropriate sentence. Since I aspire to be a lawyer, naturally I jumped on the opportunity. I served on two juries and was the foreperson in one of the cases. I remember listening to the evidence and testimonies, then going back into the deliberation room to make a decision with my fellow jury members. It took a lot of critical thinking to make sure we paid due attention to all the important factors of the case so we could make an appropriate decision, in terms of a sentence.

Let's see...a time that I did not use critical thinking. I guess the first thing that comes to mind is actually a personal story. My parents have been divorced since I was about eight years old, but they always lived within fifteen minutes away from each other so my brother and I could always see both of them equally. However, when I was a freshman in high school, my mother decided that she wanted to move to Las Vegas and she wanted my brother and I to go with her. I did not give it much thought because I didn't want to move away from my home. I quickly made the decision to stay with my father in California. It ended up working out for the best in terms of my education and opportunities, but I do sometimes wonder what my life would be like if I did move to Las Vegas with my mother.

Part Two:

When I think of the word "intellectualism", I think of someone who uses their mind, in both moral and intelligent ways to make an informed decision. A lot more than just plain smarts go into making an informed decision. People use their beliefs, morals, and previous experiences to make decision, along with common sense (if it even exists). The word "intellectualism" has positive connotations for me because it describes using all forms of decision-making, and I think that is very important.

"Logic" is a word that I don't have an exact definition for. My first impulse of that word is "duh" because when I think of "logic", it usually means something that is obvious. For example, when someone gets dumped by their significant other, it's logical that he or she would be upset. Granted, not everyone gets upset over things like that, but it would not be unreasonable for someone to be upset. "Logic", to me, has both a positive and negative connotations because some people don't understand other people's logic, therefore disagreeing because they do not understand.

I really enjoy the word "reason" simply because it is so hard to define. "Reason" is definitely one of those words that every person has their own definition. Everyone uses "reason" to explain an event or decision that they want an answer to. I believe there is a reason for everything, even if I do not know of, let alone understand that reason. "Reason" has a positive connotation to me because it is the solid ground beneath why people do anything. If people believe their reason is correct, then they will always justify it, regardless of how others feel about their reasoning. "Reason" is completely objective.

By the way, I really like that quote, it's very true.