Lecture 4 - Critical Thinking for Law Students PDF

5.10707: LAW STUDY SKILLS & LIBRARY RESEARCH ( L ANGUAG E & C O M M U NI CATI O N S K I L L S C O M P ONE NT) Critical Legal Thinking Lecture 4: Critical Thinking Towards Critical Reading & Critical Writing  OBJECTIVES...

5.10707: LAW STUDY SKILLS & LIBRARY RESEARCH ( L ANGUAG E & C O M M U NI CATI O N S K I L L S C O M P ONE NT) Critical Legal Thinking Lecture 4: Critical Thinking Towards Critical Reading & Critical Writing  OBJECTIVES At the end of this lecture, you will be able to: o Explain the importance of criticality in ‘critical thinking’, ‘critical reading’ and ‘critical writing’. o Identify the skills and key questions asked in critical thinking and critical reading. o Differentiate between descriptive writing and critical writing. o Write an academic paper that is analytical and critical in its approach.  INTRODUCTION The word "critical" can mean different things in different contexts. For example, it can refer to the importance of something, or it can also mean pointing out the negative aspects of something, i.e. to criticise something. However, critical thinking at university does not mean looking only for the most important aspects of a topic or just criticising ideas. It is also about not accepting what you read or hear at face value, but always questioning the information, ideas and arguments you find in your studies. Being critical is important in all subjects and disciplines in academia. It goes beyond describing what you have heard or what you have read. Being critical utilizes the higher order cognitive skills of synthesizing, analyzing and evaluating what you have learned to develop your own argument or position. Hence, criticality can be described as a cyclical, four-stage process of critical thinking, critical reading, critical note-taking and critical writing. See below, an overview of criticality as a cyclical, four-stage process of critical thinking, critical reading, critical note-taking and critical writing. Analyzing and Questioning texts evaluating an issue in through analysis and order to form a evaluation to form a judgment. judgment Critical Critical thinking Reading Critical Critical Note- Writing taking Interpreting evidence Noting key concepts, and source material to evidence and examining demonstrate the implications of a text understanding and and drawing conclusions. develop a stance on a topic.  WHAT IS CRITICAL THINKING? “Critical thinking is a purposeful mental activity that involves taking something apart (what you see, hear and read), and analyzing it on the basis of standards.’” The 9 standards of critical thinking include: include: clarity, accuracy, precision, relevance, depth, breadth, logic, significance and fairness. Critical thinking is a key skill that should be applied to all aspects of your studies. In academia, you need to be able to think critically about the resources and information you use in your work; ask the right questions when reading the work of others; demonstrate through your writing, your ability to weigh different arguments and perspectives, and use evidence to help you form your own opinions, arguments, theories and ideas. Hence, critical thinking is about questioning and learning with an open mind. Someone with critical thinking skills can understand the links between ideas; determine the importance and relevance of arguments and ideas; recognize, build, and appraise arguments; identify inconsistencies and errors in reasoning; approach problems in a consistent and systematic way, and reflect on the justification of their own assumptions, beliefs and values. So, why is critical thinking important for law students? In any profession where an individual is required to make decisions or contribute towards making decisions for another person or group of people, critical thinking skill are important. Legal professionals will benefit greatly from having these skills since they need to be objective at all times while arguing their case in court. They also need to be able to pick out flaws in the opposing argument very quickly while preparing their own argument. Therefore, critical thinking skills are essential law to students as possessing these skills will aide you to: identify your own biases, understand and tell the difference between fact and opinion, see the bigger picture, see the connections between ideas, present information clearly and logically, analyse information, and make better decisions. THE CRITICAL THINKING PROCESS Critical thinking is an important life skill, and an essential part of university studies. It is a process that requires a considerable amount of time to undertake well. It may require a lot of time for you as a student to develop the attitudes and skills necessary for critical thinking. Bloom’s (1956) taxonomy shown below is a useful tool for categorizing a progression from the descriptive to higher levels of critical analytical thought. Central to critical thinking is asking meaningful questions. This three-stage model, adapted from LearnHigher, will help you generate questions to understand, analyze, and evaluate something, such as an information source. 1. Description Starting with the description stage, you ask questions such as: What? Where? Why? and Who? These help you establish the background and context. For example; o If you are reading a journal article, you might ask questions such as: Who wrote this? What is it about? When was it written? What is the aim of the article? o If you are thinking through a problem, you might ask: What is this problem about? Who does it involve or affect? When and where is this happening? These types of questions lead to descriptive answers. Although the ability to describe something is important, to really develop your understanding and critically engage, we need to move beyond these types of questions. This moves you into the analysis stage. 2. Analysis From the description stage, you move on to the analysis stage, where you will ask questions such as: How? Why? and What if? These help you to examine methods and processes, reasons and causes, and the alternative options. For example; o If you are reading a journal article, you might ask: How was the research conducted? Why are these theories discussed? What are the alternative methods and theories? o If you are thinking through a problem, you might ask: What are the contributing factors to the problem? How might one factor impact another? What if one factor is removed or altered? Asking these questions helps you to break something into parts and consider the relationship between each part, and each part to the whole. This process will help you develop more analytical answers and deeper thinking. 3. Evaluation Finally, you come to the evaluation stage, where you will ask 'so what?' and 'what next?' questions to make judgments and consider the relevance; implications; significance and value of something. You may ask questions such as: What do I think about this? How is this relevant to my assignment? How does this compare to other research I have read? Making such judgments will lead you to reasonable conclusions, solutions, or recommendations. This model is not intended to be used in a strictly linear way, or as a prescriptive set of instructions. You may move back and forth between different segments. For example, you may ask, 'what is this about?', and then move straight to, 'is this relevant to me?' Instead the model is intended to encourage a critically questioning approach, and can be applied to many learning scenarios at university, such as: interpreting assignment briefs; developing arguments; evaluating sources; analyzing data or formulating your own questions to research an answer.  WHAT IS CRITICAL READING? Critical thinking and critical reading are intertwined. That is, critical reading informs one’s thinking, and in the same way, critical thinking guides how one selects and reads sources of information. You will select sources and read them in different ways depending on their value to your assignment. For example, you might read to: o get a general overview of the text by skimming through it; o look for specific information or to understand some core concepts by scanning the text, or o examine the text in depth and actively ask questions of the source, in order to understand its relevance and reliability for your own research topic. The last approach is particularly important for any work you submit for assessment. You should ask yourself: o Why am I reading this? Are you reading for a presentation, assignment, pre-reading for a lecture, or for finding ideas? o What do I want to get out of it? Are you looking for specific facts, a general idea of the content, the author's viewpoint? o What do I already know? o How will I know when I have read enough? 1. Select what and how to read Usually, you can't read all the texts you find on a topic, or even everything suggested on a long reading list. You need to make choices and be selective. Opt for quality and not quantity, and choose reliable and current sources. You can start with an easy text to give you an overview of the topic, and utilize one of four main reading strategies below: o Predicting: making an educated guess about what the text is about before you start to read. o Scanning: looking through the text very quickly to look for keywords. o Skimming: reading the introduction and the first line of each paragraph to work out what the text is about. o Intensive reading: reading a short section of text slowly and carefully. 2. Critical reading questions You will need to make use of high-quality evidence and information. But, how can you decide what to use? Not everything you find, particularly on the web, is appropriate for academic study. You need to be able to think critically and judge what is relevant and appropriate for your purpose. If we consider the critical thinking process, the description segment in particular helps us to generate the type of questions you may ask when making an initial evaluation of information. Questions you may ask include: o What is the source about? How relevant is it to your context? o Who is the author? Is the author a subject expert? o When was the material published? Is that significant to you? Has the information been superseded? o What evidence is provided? Are there references to follow up to check any claims made? These questions will take you through the description, analysis and evaluation stages as presented in the critical thinking model. The questions will help you to evaluate the relevance and significance of your reading to your research or assignments. You will be prompted to make the decision on how you will use the reading and what the relation is between this reading and the other information you have read. However, this is not a comprehensive list and you may need to adapt or add your own questions for your subject, different assignments or a particular purpose. 3. Evaluating the author’s argument When you have found a section of text that is directly relevant to your research, you need to slow down and read it more intensively. Critical reading is about analyzing and evaluating the author's argument, not just looking for information. The author should outline their viewpoint clearly and provide evidence from reliable sources to back this up. Ask yourself: o Is the author's argument clear? How is it presented? o What evidence is provided? How is it used and interpreted? o Is the argument convincing? How does it reach its conclusion? 4. Making effective notes Making meaningful notes as you read can help you to clarify your thinking, organize your ideas and engage critically with the information.  WHAT IS CRITICAL WRITING? Students sometimes receive feedback such as "your essay is too descriptive" or "you need to show more critical analysis". While some description may be necessary – for instance if you are providing background information – most university assignments require you to produce work that is analytical and critical in its approach. Your lecturer wants to know what you think Your writing needs to show your interpretation of the evidence and source material, how you have used that information to demonstrate your understanding, and your subsequent position on the topic. Being critical in your writing means engaging in academic debates and research happening in your subject area. The sources you select, the way you show how they agree or disagree with other pieces of evidence, and the way you structure your argument will all show your thought process and how you have understood the information you have read. Use evidence to strengthen your position Always keep your reader in mind and try to anticipate the questions they would ask. You can use evidence to help you strengthen your position, answer readers' questions, and "neutralize" opposing points of view. Remember to keep descriptive statements to a minimum - there is no need to provide large amounts of background or historical information. Make sure you move from description to analysis and evaluation. Give your interpretation of the facts, and explain the significance, consequences and implications of the statements you have made. Descriptive vs. critical writing examples The following examples demonstrate the difference between descriptive writing and critical/analytical writing (Cottrell, 2003): 1. State what happened vs. identify its significance To write critically you will need to not only describe what happened, but also identify the significance of what happened. Descriptive example "The data shows that the incidence (new cases) of asthma rates in children under 15 years old increased rapidly from 1977, peaking in 1993 and then declining, though rates still remain significantly higher than pre-1976 levels.” Critical example "The trend, from 1977 until 1993, of a rapid rise in rates of asthma diagnosis in children under 15 years, suggests that one of the causal factors was particularly prevalent during this time, but has since declined in importance or effect." 2. Explain the theory vs. show its relevance Descriptive writing will explain what the theory says. To write critically you need to go further and show why that theory is relevant. Descriptive example "Carl Rogers' theory of a person-centred approach focuses on the freedom of the individual to determine what values should be used to measure successful personal outcomes or benefit, and is particularly relevant for social workers when wanting to take into account the diverse needs of the client group.“ Critical example "Carl Rogers' theory of a person-centred approach is particularly suitable for social workers wanting to work with a client group with diverse needs because it allows the client to determine what values should be used to measure successful outcomes, rather than those externally determined by, for example, the service, state or dominant culture in society." 3. Note the method used vs. indicate its appropriateness Rather than simply noting the method used, which is the descriptive approach, a critical writer will show how appropriate that method was. Descriptive example "In addition to competency-based questions, the candidates were asked to complete an in-tray exercise, which required them to allocate different priority levels to tasks, as an appropriate method to measure their likely performance in the actual job.“ Critical example "In addition to competency-based questions, candidates were asked to complete an in-tray task prioritization exercise. This was because it was considered a more effective way to measure likely performance in the actual role as the majority of the job would involve similar tasks, with little interaction with customers and therefore less requirement for highly developed communication skills."  CONCLUSION In conclusion, critical thinking, reading, note-taking, and writing are interconnected processes that enhance one’s ability to engage deeply with information. By moving beyond mere description to synthesizing, analyzing, and evaluating, individuals can develop well-founded arguments and positions. This cyclical process involves questioning with an open mind, selecting and critically evaluating sources, and making meaningful notes to organize and clarify thoughts. Ultimately, critical writing demonstrates one’s interpretation and understanding of evidence, showcasing the ability to use information effectively to support one’s viewpoint.  REFERENCES Cottrell, S. (2003). The Study Skills Handbook. 2nd ed. London: Palgrave. Critical Writing. (n.d). Student Learning Support. Australian College of Applied Professions. [online] Available at: https://www.sls.navitas-professional.edu.au [Accessed 9 Aug. 2024]. Monash University. (2024). What is Critical Thinking. [online] Available at: https://www.monash.edu/student-academic-success/enhance-your-thinking/critical-thinking/what- is-critical-thinking#:~: [Accessed 10 Aug. 2024]. SkillsYouNeed (2017). Critical Thinking. [online] Available at: https://www.skillsyouneed.com/learn/critical-thinking.html. [Accessed 10 Aug. 2024]. The University of Edinburgh. (2024). Critical Thinking. [online] Available at: https://eww.ed.ac.uk/institute-academic-development/study-hub/learning-resources/critical. [Accessed 11 Aug. 2024]. University of Leeds Library. (2024). What is Critical Thinking?. [online] Available at: https://library.leeds.ac.uk/info/1401/academic-skills/105/critical-thinking/4 [Accessed 9 Aug. 2024]. University of Tennessee, Chattanooga. (2024). Basic Elements of Critical Thinking. [Online] Available at: https://www.utc.edu/academic-affairs/walker-center-for-teaching-and-learning/faculty- programs/faculty-fellow-programs/faculty-fellow-program-development/basic-elements-of-critical- thinking [Accessed 11 Aug. 2024].