Critical Thinking (again)

Critical thinking is a very broad term with multiple sub components that go into it. First, after taking this class I realized that critical thinking was more than just thinking; it’s understanding as well. You cannot fully analyze and think critical about something if you only have a slight grasp on the subject being considered. In my first blog I wrote that I was capable of weighing the pros and cons of subjects, I still feel this is true, but my process of weighing pros and cons has definitely matured form this class. Now I know I must pay attention to the sources of information I receive, note bias in information, and understand that there are different opinions and views on everything.
Regarding critical thinking, this class also helped me to understand flexibility on a subject. Through group projects I was able to witness and communicate many different positions on different topics which sometimes would affect my position on the same topic. This helped me to realize that critical thinking is not just scrutinizing and dissecting something, it’s talking about it with others and getting all the information and ideas possible before coming to a decision when a position can be assumed.
I never paid much attention to how often critical thinking is used in everyday life until I understood it. In conversations with my dad (who I sometimes am afraid to have conversations with because he is both bright and opinionated, making him a great and frustrating debater) I know find myself more comfortable with speaking on current events that I have an opinion on. I am able to find the relevant information and points of the subject and focus on those and ignore matters on the subject that are irrelevant. I believe being capable of sorting relevant information from irrelevancy is also a component of critical thinking. For example, a bullshitter  could go on for hours about irrelevant topics and if we as an audience do not have the ability to sort through useless information we will accept everything a bullshitter says is true. To sum it up, critical thinking protects us from bullshit!
The first time I responded to this prompt I hoped that this class would “improve my critical thinking skills by showing me the necessary tools to apply when considering something objectively”, which is exactly what I got out of this class. I also hoped that improving my critical thinking skills would improve my ability to be open minded. I know for a fact I have become more available to alternative options and opinions to ideas I already may hold. I feel my thought process hit a maturity level that has not been required of me before. This was definitely my most challenging class to date, and I am sure I can expect to see that same sort of demands from University classes. I would like to think that this class has tested my thought process to the point where I can advance and succeed in similar classes I may encounter in my educational future.

The Research Project

Oh, the research project. How I wish I would have read these books differently. When I read this assignment I was a little frustrated that it was on Reading Lolita in Tehran because it’s probably the book I read the most lackadaisically. The idea of using this book which has a lot of hidden meaning and symbolism to then compare to a theme from another book is overwhelming to say the least. I still have not started it; I just finished filming a video project for part of my history final, and am for some reason, facing a lot of tests in my other classes. It’s not procrastination-just time management (that’s we will sugar coat it as.) 
My first step was to choose a project, my obvious choice for me was the Great Gatsby because it’s the only book I have already read and felt I had some knowledge on, reading it again would only make it easier to understand. Boy was I wrong; looking for the idea of “reinvention” of Gatsby seemed to be quite a stretch. I actually considered Gatsby to be a rather inflexible man who could not see any other side of life than what he lived. I guess that’s the point of research projects right, to dig a little deeper? I can only hope I found a good path to lead in my paper and that it will be in keeping with the topic. I always fear when writing papers that I will completely miss the topic and not meet the criteria of the prompt.
After reading The Great Gatsby again I thought I would get ahead by making an appointment in the writing center, you know, be on top of things. I was told I could not make it more than a week in advance, not that big of a problem, but just frustrating! I am not an organized person and I do not normally do things ahead of time, so this little bump in the road didn’t help motivate me to get ahead on more things. Fortunately, when the time comes and I have to buckle down, I will find a way. It always makes me angry with myself I live my life and do my work this way but it has not changed in years and I don’t see it changing in the future.
When I saw the prompt for this blog I sort of had to vent to myself a little bit about how much it sucked, how much time it’s going to take, how much work it’s going to be. But when I relax and think about it this is what I signed up for and this is what I will need to master for my future education and career. I hope I can turn out a great last essay and really finish the semester and this class of strongly. I wish the best of luck to everyone and if anyone else is feeling overwhelmed-you got a friend in me!

WA question #1 Page 253

In a world over run with electronic communication we must always be aware of the paper trail we leave behind us. With websites like MySpace and Facebook taking over the internet, more and more people are divulging their private lives online. I think it is very important for people who are members of these sites to think twice about every word they type and every picture they post.
Fortunately, I have been very careful about everything I do online to avoid being embarrassed by something I should not have posted online, however I have made the mistake of viewing things other people have posted on their networking sites and misinterpreted them to a negative light. For example, I once got into a two month fight with a friend because she had posted a picture of her and I and put a caption that was not flattering to say the least. On this situation I may not have exactly misinterpreted anything, but I definitely overreacted and was too sensitive about a joke one of my good friends had made. It’s possible that the fact that this picture with the vulgar caption underneath was open for all to see bothered me more than the words my friend typed.
One experience that my older sister had was a negative experience for her, but turned out to be a good lesson and affected me positively. My sister is twenty eight, pretty, and a softball coach at a University. She is still young enough to be involved in these networking sites which are pretty much public, while they can be set to private, there is always some sort of loophole. My sister had posted a picture of her with my family, on a cruise, sitting at a table with a glass of wine. The picture was not distasteful or offensive and did not even show her drinking the wine. The University my sister teaches at is very academic and very expensive to attend, the students, parents, and faculty is very serious about their education. About five days later after posting this picture, my sister was called into the Athletic Director’s office. The school had set up a program that could monitor any public web pages their faculty used, including my sisters. She was told the picture needed to be removed immediately because it “showed the use of alcohol by a member of the staff at this pretentious University”. She was shocked at how strict this seemed, but also realized as a softball coach these girls look up to her and she needs to be extra cautious at how she represents herself. This was a good lesson for her and me to remind us that there is always someone watching and you make your life public with everything you put on a networking site.
MySpace and Facebook are great tools to connect people all over the world and give people a place to speak their minds, share their opinions and stories, and let others know about who they are. However the world can be dangerous and judgmental and so can other people. So a good rule of them is to always allow yourself time to think over what you are going to put on a public website so that you can be assured it will never come back to bite you in the you know what.

Writing Improvements

Writing has always been something I have enjoyed, but never felt truly confident about. I cannot say I am completely confident in my writing now, but I do have more faith in my writing after ten weeks of this class. When this semester first started, one of our assignments in this class was to write about what we would like to get out of this class and what skills we think we are going to gain from the course. If I remember correctly I was hoping to improve my researching skills and prompt writing ability. After the entire process of the many drafts and comments that surrounded the first essay submitted (the rhetorical essay) I realized that I was even shallower on research paper writing than I had even realized. I am hoping that my second and third essays will show improvement and I will start to fully understand the process behind writing one research that has been obtained and combined.
I believe what has improved after this class is my ability to think critically. After the various group projects and different assignments, I have found that my ability to “think outside of the box” has improved. One reason why I believe I can attribute this to the group projects is because I was given the opportunity to see different points of view from my group members. There were many times I would read a response a member of my group had and absolutely felt their response was better than my own. I enjoy being able to try and see many different perspectives on the same subject.
My writing has definitely improved in one way, and that’s development organization. By development I mean I am now aware of creating a thesis statement and elaborating further on it. Organization has improved in the way that I am now focused on the set up of pieces I write, ensuring I have an opening, a conclusion, and a strong body that does not go off subject and establishes my position when necessary. This could be due to the essays and critical thinking responses we do every week. In many of the critical thinking questions the reader is asked to identify certain things in an essay and explain why these parts are important to the author and the development of the essay. Having to critically consider these essays by professional writers can only help a person improve their own writing.
This class has definitely been a challenge for me. English has always been a strong subject for me, but as the courses get tougher as I continue my education, I realize I have much more to learn and master. I think the writing required in this class will give me the skills I need to carry me through the rest of my education and then onto my career. Writing is something that can always be changed and improved and I think this class has provided the opportunity to challenge the writing I became comfortable with producing to make it stronger and more comprehensive.