Lecture 1B The Critical Thinking Process

Academic Writing II
The Critical Thinking Process

Lesson Overview
This session builds on the final topic introduced in

Lesson 1. It takes you through the three-stage
model of the critical thinking process.
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There are twety eight (28) pages in this lesson.

The blue underlined texts are links which, when
clicked, will take you directly to those sources.
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Lesson Objectives
At the end of this session, you should be able to:
1. distinguish the steps in the critical thinking process,

2. apply the steps in the critical thinking process in solving
everyday problems,
3. appreciate the significance of the critical thinking process
in problem solving/decision making.
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Pre-lesson Activities: Thinking critically
Consider the three stages of the critical thinking process

introduced in the first tutorial.
What are some of the considerations you think you would

have to make in applying each step in the process?
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Purposeful Thinking
Critical thinking is integrally tied to decision making and problem solving.
As seen from the definitions we explored in the first lesson, you have to
make a conscious decision to engage in critical thinking. This conscious
and deliberate attempt leads to purposeful thinking.
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The 3-part process
In Lesson One, we found out that the

Critical Thinking Process comprises three
(3) main steps.
At each stage, you will rely on your

critical thinking skills of questioning,
investigating, interpreting what you have
found and making judgements.
Let us take a closer look at the details of

each of these steps in the process of
critically thinking.
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Step 1 – Identifying the Issue
As a critical thinker, before you can come to a

conclusion and make judgements, you must be very
clear on what it is you are being asked to accept as
true.
In order to do so, you need to be able to:

• identify the issue/problem, the idea or action
that is being promoted,
• identify the main issue from the secondary
issues.
When you are responding to someone’s work:
• Be clear about what is said

• In the case of oral messages, seek confirmation,
• Ask questions
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As you go through the critical thinking process,
remember that the focus of the course is on
Academic Writing and as such, much of what you
will be doing is reading and writing.
For written messages, you will have to:

• rely on your comprehension skills (literal,
inferential and applied).
You may also have to:

• examine the title of the article (if there is a
title).
Ask yourself:
• What does the title suggest?
• What am I expecting the author to write
about?
What are some of the things that a title can tell you?
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For written messages, you will also have to:
• identify and examine all the main points.
In order to do that, you will need to:
1. extract the main points from the details given

in the entire piece of writing by using your
summary writing skills.
2. engage the three (3) levels of comprehension

(literal, inferential and applied) to get a complete
view of the passage.
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Here are some of the activities that you are required
to perform in identifying and examining all the main
points:
1. Read through the passage in its entirety to get a

general feel of the content,
2. Go through the passage again, reading paragraph by

paragraph, underlining the key phrases as you go along,
3. Jot down the main points of each section using your

own words,
4. After you have finished reading, put all the points

together,
5. Read the set of points you have made and identify the
line of thought that links all the main points together.
Page 10
Defining a topic
As we can see from Page 5, sometimes the
issue/problem is initiated by you. In Academic
Writing II, for your final essay, you are given a
list of topics, from which to choose one. In this
context, you will have to define a topic for
yourself.
When choosing a topic from given options, consider the following:

• personal interest in the topic,
• knowledge of the topic,
• availability of the topic.
In the cases when you are not given a topic, but have to decide on one for
yourself, you will have to consider relevance as well (to your situation etc.).
Consider the essay topic you have selected (or are interested in
selecting) for your final argumentative essay. Is it of personal interest
to you? How much do you know about the topic without having to do the
required research? How available is information on the topic of your
choice?
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Write your responses to the following activities in the discussion

post “Identifying the Issue”.
Academic Writing II Workbook
Activity 6: Page 17
Activity 7: Pages 18 – 19
Activity 8A: Page 20
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Step 2 – Sourcing valid information
As soon as you have clearly understood what the
issue or the problem is, you are equipped start
investigating. Your investigation begins with you
locating all available information on the topic from
different sources.
In Academic Writing, a source is the place where

you get information that you use in your writing. A
source can be a journal article, a website, a
newspaper or a textbook.
In searching for and locating information for the

topic, you will realize that your reading skills of
pre-reading, skimming and scanning will come in
handy.
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Primary and Secondary sources
The information that you will likely be locating
comes in two main types – primary and secondary
sources. Click on each to learn more.
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Primary Sources
Page 14
Secondary Sources
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Internet and Library sources
Although you are encouraged to use primary
sources of information where possible, you may
find that you have to rely on secondary sources of
information. The library and Internet are two
good areas to source your information.
The library houses its information including books,

periodicals, theses and dissertations, catalogues and
databases.
Library
You can also access information on the Internet using a

variety of Search Engines (such as Google, Bing, Yahoo,).
Available sources via the internet include blogs, wikis,
Internet online archives, online journals, online newspapers.
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Accessing the Calvin McKain Library
The UTech Jamaica library, the Calvin McKain
Library has a number of online databases that can
be accessed by both staff and students both on and
off the campus.
Accessing the Calvin McKain Library Database
https://www.utech.edu.jm
Calvin McKain Library
Knowledge Portal
Online Database
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Calvin McKain Library Databases
Useful Databases for Academic Writing II
.
1. EBSCO Host Database
2. IET Digital Library
3. OCLC
4. ProQuest
See a more extensive list on the Calvin McKain Library webpage.
You will require your Utech log in to access these databases (or at
least some of them). If you encounter any challenges accessing
these, contact one of the representatives from the Calvin McKain
Library.
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Here are some general tips to consider when sourcing
information.
1. As you read through your information, apply pre-

reading, skimming and scanning strategies at this
time. You can use deep-reading strategies after
you have decided on the sources you will be using.
2. While using the internet, try

• using search words,
• narrowing your searches,
• using connectors,
• book-marking pages of interest
• using more than one search engine.
1. As you locate information for possible use, create a

bibliography of the sources you have consulted.
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Evaluating sources
Once you have found sources of information, it is
very important for you to evaluate its value or
effectiveness to the topic in question.
There is the myth that everything found in the library

or on the internet is a good source, and that everything
that is written/in print is reliable.
As the researcher, you have to carefully analyze the information you find
and evaluate each piece of information. You have to determine the purpose
of the information presented as well as whether or not the information is
credible, relevant, accurate and current. Let us look closer at these.
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Evaluating sources
In order to ensure that you use quality sources in
your work, many librarians and academic institutions
suggest that you use the CRAAP technique in
evaluating your sources. Click on each to learn more.
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Evaluating sources
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Evaluating sources
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Evaluating sources
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Evaluating sources
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Evaluating sources
Page 20
You are sourcing information to be able to support
the view that all restaurants should be required to
include calories on all their menu items. You have
located the following sources, how valid are they?
Justify your response. Post your response in the
discussion forum “Sourcing Valid Information”
1. Journal Article published 1969 by Carlton Smith and Delva Jones

Thai will be done – An inside look at what you are served on a Thai menu
2. 2016 Best-seller book by Chef Don Ramsay (Oxford University Press)

Recipes and their caloric count: What you NEED to know.
3. Personal blog published June 26, 2017 by C. Davidson

Restaurants and Cookshops are modern day slaughter houses
4. Newspaper article published November 2, 2015 by food critic Del Tate

What are you being served? Eat-and-Tell tales from our restaurants
Slide 21
Step 3 – Interpreting information
So where are we now? You have understood clearly
what the issue is and you have sourced and located
information which are valid to the topic at hand. The
final stage of the Critical Thinking process is that of
going through the information so that you can
interpret the message.
When we interpret information , we

1. assess its usefulness (analyze, synthesize and
evaluate to determine its relevance to issue),
2. explore interpretations and make connections

between ideas,
3. recognize assumptions,
4. organize the information in meaningful ways,
5. use the information to draw conclusions.
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As you interpret the information that you have
gathered, bear in mind that:
1. The process of interpreting information is not simply summarizing or

condensing the information.
2. No two persons are guaranteed to interpret the same data/facts in

the same way.
3. Our interpretations tend to be influenced by a number of factors:

These include our
• experiences,
• preconceptions,
• schooling,
• beliefs.
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Consider the following statement.

What can you deduce from the
message? Is there more than
one interpretation? If yes, what
are they? Justify your response.
Post your reply to the forum

discussion entitled “Interpreting
Information”.
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Lesson Recap
In this session, we looked at the three (3) major

stages involved in the Critical Thinking Process.
We explored the detailed steps involved in
1. identifying the issue,

2. locating and determining valid sources and
3. interpreting information.
Please review these steps, do some additional

reading, and complete the activities on the critical
thinking process.
Page 25
Independent Activities
1. Decide on the stance (for or against) that you want to

take for your argumentative essay and jot down two points
you want to develop. You may refer to the brainstorming
activity you did in week one.
2. Document the types of sources that may be useful for

your final essay and start locating your sources.
3. Start having discussions with your classmates about

similar interests in topic. This will aid in formulating your
group for the final essay.
4. Complete the following activities from your workbook:

 Activity 8B: Pages 21 – 22
 Activity 11: Pages 33 - 34
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Bibliography
Seyler, D.U. (2015). Read, reason, write: An argument text and reader. (11th ed).
Boston: McGraw Hill.
Study.com. Evaluating sources for reliability, credibility and worth. Retrieved

from https://study.com/academy/lesson/evaluating-sources-for-
reliability-credibility-and-worth.html
Virtual Library. Evaluating sources. Retrieved from

https://www.virtuallibrary.info/evaluating-sources.html
Western Libraries. Evaluating sources Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyMT08mD7Ds
Page 27
Credits
Interactive Tutorial created by
Daidrah Telfer
Michelle Stewart-McKoy
Updated: September 2020
Graphics from
FreePik - freepik.com
Graphics Factory – https://www.graphicsfactory.com
Graphic Mama - www.graphicmama.com
HTML 5 conversion with

iSpring Suite 7
Use the Back button on your browser to return to the course page
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Academic Writing II

The Critical Thinking Process

This session builds on the final topic introduced in

Use the navigation buttons at the bottom of the

There are twety eight (28) pages in this lesson.

At the end of this session, you should be able to:

1. distinguish the steps in the critical thinking process,

Consider the three stages of the critical thinking process

What are some of the considerations you think you would

In Lesson One, we found out that the

At each stage, you will rely on your

Let us take a closer look at the details of

As a critical thinker, before you can come to a

In order to do so, you need to be able to:

When you are responding to someone’s work:

• Be clear about what is said

For written messages, you will have to:

You may also have to:

For written messages, you will also have to:

• identify and examine all the main points.

In order to do that, you will need to:

1. extract the main points from the details given

2. engage the three (3) levels of comprehension

1. Read through the passage in its entirety to get a

2. Go through the passage again, reading paragraph by

3. Jot down the main points of each section using your

4. After you have finished reading, put all the points

When choosing a topic from given options, consider the following:

Write your responses to the following activities in the discussion

Academic Writing II Workbook

In Academic Writing, a source is the place where

In searching for and locating information for the

The library houses its information including books,

You can also access information on the Internet using a

Accessing the Calvin McKain Library Database

Calvin McKain Library

1. EBSCO Host Database

2. IET Digital Library

See a more extensive list on the Calvin McKain Library webpage.

1. As you read through your information, apply pre-

2. While using the internet, try

1. As you locate information for possible use, create a

There is the myth that everything found in the library

1. Journal Article published 1969 by Carlton Smith and Delva Jones

2. 2016 Best-seller book by Chef Don Ramsay (Oxford University Press)

3. Personal blog published June 26, 2017 by C. Davidson

4. Newspaper article published November 2, 2015 by food critic Del Tate

When we interpret information , we

2. explore interpretations and make connections

4. organize the information in meaningful ways,

5. use the information to draw conclusions.

1. The process of interpreting information is not simply summarizing or

2. No two persons are guaranteed to interpret the same data/facts in

3. Our interpretations tend to be influenced by a number of factors:

Consider the following statement.

Post your reply to the forum

In this session, we looked at the three (3) major

We explored the detailed steps involved in

1. identifying the issue,

Please review these steps, do some additional

1. Decide on the stance (for or against) that you want to

2. Document the types of sources that may be useful for

3. Start having discussions with your classmates about

4. Complete the following activities from your workbook: