A Concerto Is a Conversation

 A Concerto Is a Conversation

https://breakwaterstudios.com/film/a-concerto-is-a-conversation/

How to Use Rhetoric to Get What You Want

 View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/on/6etp1hUD​ How do you get what you want, using just your words? Aristotle set out to answer exactly that question over two thousand years ago with a treatise on rhetoric. Camille A. Langston describes the fundamentals of deliberative rhetoric and shares some tips for appealing to an audience’s ethos, logos, and pathos in your next speech. Lesson by Camille A. Langston, animation by TOGETHER.

HOW TO MAKE PEOPLE DO ANYTHING

 

Find out how to make people do anything, using a few magic combinations of words. Become powerful, persuasive, influential and convincing. Learn the best way to win an argument and get what you want from people.

What is the argument? 

Do you have a counterargument? If so, what is it?

Summarize the argument. Put in standard form. 

Final Exam Plan: May 2, 2021

The final meetings, I'd like students to present a discussion on Critical Thinking as a way of life.  After each presentation we will engage in a discussion on theory. 

Please choose a topic from The Miniature Guide:

1. Three Levels of Thought (36);

2. The Spirit of Critical Thinking (28);

3. Intellectual Virtues of the Fairminded Critical Thinker + Traits (23-25); 

4. Intellectual Standards (21-22); Universal Intellectual Standards (19-20);

5. Elements of Thought and Questions (14-15);

6. The Human Mind Is Frequently Irrational While Having the Capacity for Rational Thought (37-43);

7. Envisioning Critical Societies (45-48). 

Please open the presentation with a personal story with evidence of how this course has affected your critical thinking skillset. Using the language of argument (WLTC -- Chapters 1-7) talk about the nature of critical thinking and what you are now capable of given this academic experience.  Drop concepts and language like "world view," "truth", "explanation," "audience", "concession," "common ground", etc., whatever (3-7) concepts that resonated with you. 

Let us know where critical thinking fits in your role as clergy. Talk about challenges if any to your values. Did you need to search for evidence for ideas held by faith? What concepts or ideas? How do you feel now? Was the exercise useful? 

Secondly shift to the idea: "Critical Thinking" as necessary social reconstruction (Paul & Elder). Tie in a current issue and how the outcome might have been different if those persons had possessed this high level thinking capacity. 

Is critical thinking something a person develops over time or does a person need instruction? Again, we need proof. 

Submit an outline or abstract of your presentation, Monday, May 3.  Do not read the paper at the presentation; however, you can turn the essay in at the same time.  This essay (3-5 pages) is worth 50 percent of the grade. An essay is due by Friday, May 7. Make sure the essay has a bibliography and a works cited page. 

Resources for MLA documentation from Purdue OWL: MLA Essay Sample,  MLA Citations & Style Guide

TED: Why do we argue? with Philosopher Daniel H. Cohen

 1. Watch the TED Talk.

2. Think about the premise

3. Put the argument in Standard Form

4. Is this a deductive or inductive argument? Why or why not? 

5. Summarize, with analysis, the author's argument. Make sure you include the analogy. Cite the author to support your ideas. 

6. Include a Works Cited page. 

Why do we argue? To out-reason our opponents, prove them wrong, and, most of all, to win! Right? Philosopher Daniel H. Cohen shows how our most common form of argument -- a war in which one person must win and the other must lose -- misses out on the real benefits of engaging in active disagreement.

This talk was presented to a local audience at TEDxColbyCollege, an independent event. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

Essay: Propaganda Techniques by Ann McClintock

 Ann McClintock Essay.

Propaganda Techniques in Today’s Advertising
by Ann McClintock

Americans, adults and children alike, are being seduced. They are being brainwashed. And few of us protest. Why? Because the seducers and the brainwashers are the advertisers we willingly invite into our homes. We are victims, content—even eager—to be victimized. We read advertisers’ propaganda message in newspapers and magazines; we watch their alluring images on television. We absorb their messages and images into our subconscious. We all do it—even those of us who claim to see through advertisers’ tricks and therefore feel immune to advertising’s charm. Advertisers lean heavily on propaganda to sell their products, whether the “products” are a brand of toothpaste, a candidate for office, or a particular political viewpoint.

Propaganda is a systematic effort to influence people’s opinions, to win them over to a certain view or side. Propaganda is not necessarily concerned with what is true or false, good or bad. Propagandists simply want people to believe the messages being sent. Often, propagandists will use outright lies or more subtle deceptions to sway people’s opinions. In a propaganda war, any tactic is considered fair.

When we hear the word “propaganda,” we usually think of a foreign menace: anti-American radio programs broadcast by a totalitarian regime or brainwashing tactics practiced on hostages. Although propaganda may seem relevant only in the political arena, the concept can be applied fruitfully to the way products and ideas are sold in advertising. Indeed, the vast majority of us are targets in advertisers’ propaganda war. Every day, we are bombarded with slogans, print ads, commercials, packaging claims, billboards, trademarks, logos, and designer brands-all forms of propaganda. One study reports that each of us, during an average day, is exposed to over five hundred advertising claims of various types. This saturation may even increase in the future since current trends include ads on movie screens, shopping carts, videocassettes, even public television.

What kind of propaganda techniques do advertisers use? There are six basic types:

1. Name Calling. Name calling is a propaganda tactic in which negatively charged names are hurled against the opposing side or competitor. By using such names, propagandists try to arouse feelings of mistrust, fear, and hate in their audiences. For example, a political advertisement may label an opposing candidate a “loser,” “fence-sitter,” or “warmonger”. Depending on the advertiser’s target market, labels such as “a friend of big business” or “a dues-paying member of the party in power” can be the epithets that damage an opponent. Ads for products may also use name calling. An American label of foreignness will have unpleasant connotation in many people’s minds. A childhood rhyme claims that “name can never hurt me,” but name calling is an effective way to damage the opposition, whether it is another car maker or 2 congressional candidates.

2. Glittering Generalities. Using glittering generalities is the opposite of name calling. In this case, advertisers surround their products with attractive—and slippery—words and phrases. They use vague terms that are difficult to define and that may have different meanings to different people: freedom, democratic, all-American, progressive, Christian, and justice. Many such words have strong, affirmative overtones. This kind of languages stirs positive feelings in people, feelings that may spill over to the product or idea being pitched. As with name calling, the emotional response may overwhelm logic. Target audiences accept the product without thinking very much about what the glittering generalities mean—or whether they even apply to the product. After all, how can anyone oppose “truth, justice, and the American way”?

The ads for politicians and political causes often use glittering generalities because such “buzz words” can influence votes. Election slogans include high-sounding but basically empty phrases like the following:

“He cares about people.” (That’s nice, but is he a better candidate than his opponent?)

“Vote for progress.” (Progress by whose standards?)

“They’ll make this country great again.” (What does “great” mean? Does “great” mean the same thing to others as it does to me?)

“Vote for the future.” (What kind of future?)

“If you love American, then vote for Phyllis Smith.” (If I don’t vote for Smith, does that mean I don’t love American?)

Ads for consumer goods are also sprinkled with glittering generalities. Product names, for instance, are supposed to evoke good feelings: Luvs diapers, New Freedom feminine hygiene products, joy liquid detergent, Loving Care hair color, Almost Home cookies, and Yankee Doodle pastries. Product slogans lean heavily on vague but comforting phrases: Kinney is “The Great American Shoe Store,” General Electric “brings good things to life,” and Dow Chemical “lets you do great things.” Chevrolet, we are told, is the “heartbeat of America,” and Chrysler boasts cars that are “built by Americans for Americans.”

3. Transfer. In transfer, advertisers try to improve the image of a product by associating it with a symbol most people respect, like the American flag or Uncle Sam. The advertisers hope that the prestige attached to the symbol will carry over to the product. Many companies use transfer devices to identify their products: Lincoln Insurance shows a profile of the president; Continental Insurance portrays a Revolutionary War minuteman; Amtrak’s logo is red, white, and blue; Liberty Mutual’s corporate symbol is the Statue of Liberty; Allstate’s name is cradled by a pair of protective, fatherly hands.

Corporations also use the transfer techniques when they sponsor prestigious shows on radio and television. These shows function as symbols of dignity and class. Kraft Corporation, for instance, sponsored a “Leonard Bernstein Conducts Beethoven” concert, while Gulf Oil is the sponsor of National Geographic specials and Mobil supports public television’s Masterpiece Theater. In this way, corporations can reach an educated, influential audience and, perhaps, improve their public image by associating themselves with quality programming.

Political ads, of course, practically wrap themselves in the flag. Ads for a political candidate often show the Washington Monument, a Fourth of July parade, the Stars and Strips, a bald eagle soaring over the mountains, or a white-steeple church on the village green. The national anthem or “America the Beautiful” may play softly in the background. Such appeals to Americans’ love of country can surround the candidate with an aura of patriotism and integrity.

4. Testimonial. The testimonial is one of advertiser’s most-loved and most-used propaganda techniques. Similar to the transfer device, the testimonial capitalizes on the admiration people have for a celebrity to make the product shine more brightly—even though the celebrity is not an expert on the product being sold.

Print and television ads offer a nonstop parade of testimonials: here’s Cher for Holiday Spas; here’s basketball star Michael Jordan eating Wheaties; Michael Jackson sings about Pepsi.

American Express features a slew of well-known people who assure us that they never go anywhere without their American Express card. Testimonials can sell movies, too; newspaper ads for films often feature favorable comments by well-known reviewers. And, in recent years, testimonials have played an important role in pitching books; the backs of paperbacks frequently list complimentary blurbs by celebrities.

Political candidates, as well as their ad agencies, know the value of testimonials. Barbra Streisand lent her star appeal to the presidential campaign of Michael Dukakis, while Arnold Schwarzenegger endorsed George Bush. Even controversial social issues are debated by celebrities. The nuclear freeze, for instance, starred Paul Newman for the pro side and Charlton Heston for the con.

As illogical as testimonials sometimes are (Pepsi’s Michael Jackson, for instance, is a health-food adherent who does not drink soft drinks), they are effective propaganda. We like the person so much that we like the product too.

5. Plain Folks. The plain folks approach says, in effect, “Buy me or vote for me. I’m just like you.” Regular folks will surely like Bob Evans’s Down on the Farm Country Sausage or good old-fashioned Country time Lemonade. Some ads emphasize the idea that “we’re all in the same boat.” We see people making long-distance calls for just the reasons we do—to put the baby on the phone to Grandma or to tell Mom we love her. And how do these folksy, warmhearted (usually saccharine) scenes affect us? They’re supposed to make us feel that AT&T—the multinational corporate giant—has the same values we do. Similarly, we are introduced to the little people at Ford, the ordinary folks who work on the assembly line, not to bigwigs in their executive officers. What’s the purpose of such an approach? To encourage us to buy a car built by these honest, hardworking “everyday Joes” who care about quality as much as we do.

Political advertisements make almost as much use of the “plain folks” appeal as they do of transfer devices. Candidates wear hard hats, farmers’ caps, and assembly-line coveralls. They jog around the block and carry their own luggage through the airport. The idea is to convince voters that the candidates are average people, not the elite—not wealthy lawyers or executives but the common citizen.

6. Bandwagon In the bandwagon technique, advertisers’ pressure, “Everyone’s doing it. Why don’t you?” This kind of propaganda often succeeds because many people have a deep desire not to be different. Political ads tell us to vote for the “winning candidate.” The advertisers know we tend to feel comfortable doing what others do; we want to be on the winning team. Or ads show a series of people proclaiming, “I’m voting for the Senator. I don’t know why anyone wouldn’t.” Again, the audience feels under pressure to conform.

In the marketplace, the bandwagon approach lures buyers. Ads tell us that “nobody, but all like Sara Lee” (the message is that you must be weird if you don’t). They tell us that “most people prefer Brand X two to one over other leading brands” (to be like the majority, we should buy Brand X). If we don’t drink Pepsi, we’re left out of “the Pepsi generation.” To take part in “America’s favorite health kick,” the National Dairy Council urges us to drink milk. And Honda motorcycle ads, praising the virtues of being a follower, tell us, “Follow the leader. He’s on a Honda.”

Why do these propaganda techniques work? Why do so many of us buy the products, viewpoints, and candidates urged on us by propaganda message? They work because they appeal to our emotions, not to our minds. Often, in fact, they capitalize on our prejudices and biases. For example, if we are convinced that environmentalists are radicals who want to destroy America’s record of industrial growth and progress, then we will applaud the candidate who refers to them as “tree huggers.” Clear thinking requires hard work: analyzing a claim, researching the facts, examining both sides of an issue, using logic to see the flaws in an argument. Many of us would rather let the propagandists do our thinking for us.

Because propaganda is so effective, it is important to detect it and understand how it is used. We may conclude, after close examination, that some propaganda sends a truthful, worthwhile message. Some advertising, for instance, urges us not to drive drunk, to become volunteers, to contribute to charity. Even so, we must be aware that propaganda is being used. Otherwise, we will have consented to handing over to others our independence of thought and action.

Use Template for Analyzing the Logic of an Article to analyze this essay (Paul & Elder 29). Put the argument in Standard Form. 

 

Logical Fallacies Meet Inductive and Deductive Argument

 Last week we reviewed Logical Fallacies and defined Inductive and Deductive Reasoning. Homework was to complete the exercises in WLTC Chapteer 6 "Fallacious Arguments" (122). 

"Propaganda Techniques" by McClintock 

We concluded with students sharing their definition essays. 

Homework was to read Chapter 6 and skim Chapter 7. 

Today we will conclude the chapter on fallacies and spend the remainder on deduction and induction. 

If we have time, we will look at the Template for Problem Solving (Paul & Elder 31). 

Definitions

Chapter 5 in WLTC

Today we will talk about definitions, abstract and concrete nouns and appositive, noun phrases that help clarify meaning. 

We start with a brief review of Rogerian Argument:
Here is a clip from the News Hour about legalizing drugs. What do you think?
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/could-oregons-decision-to-decriminalize-hard-drugs-provide-a-model-for-the-country


Chapter 5 (94)
Exercises


Homework (?)

WA8 for next week.

Let's look at another topic, Georgia's new voting law:
The right to vote is central to our democracy; however, there are many citizens who feel this right is being threatened. Look at the recent GA laws (Links to an external site.) (Links to an external site.) research at the Brennan Cente regarding voting rights. NAACP comments the issue on NBC News (Links to an external site.) (Links to an external site.)

Here in CA persons denied this right (Links to an external site.) (Links to an external site.) were given it back at the last election, yet, this right remains challenged, especially in the southern states such as Georgia.  Why is this? 
What are your views on voter rights and voting? Support your views with premises. Use research and personal experience where appropriate. 
x

 

Critical Thinking at LIAT March 15, 2021

Today we will continue with work left unfinished last week. 

1. We open with a short film for discussion: Backward God, directed by Natalie Cook, writer and producer. The film tells the story of how man made God in his image. The film interweaves elements of ecology and spiritualty to retell the book of Genesis through a womanist lens.

Natalie Cook is a filmmaker, poet, and theater-maker. Natalie’s poetry film, “Backwards God,” received the Best Social Justice Film Award at the New York International Film Awards and was the Grand Prize Winner of the AT&T Film Awards. She is the founder of Atlanta Word Works, as well as an alumna of the First Wave Hip Hop Theatre Ensemble, the BARS Workshop at The Public Theater, and the Gates Millennium Scholarship Program. She received a Bachelor in Arts in English with an Emphasis in Creative Writing and Afro-American Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a Master of Arts in Film, Black Studies, and Art Education from the NYU Gallatin School of Individualized Study. 

2. Discussion or analysis (chose an Essential Intellectual Trait p. 24-25 in MGCT). What is her argument? Concession? Premises? What analogy is present? What visual clues reinforce the thesis or plot? 

3. Summary -- Let's look at the op ed from last week on Bloody Sunday. 

4.  Share WA 7 with class for discussion.

5 Homework. Read Chapter 5 pp. 94-121. We will look at definitions and how what is certain can change (smile). 

Critical Thinking at LIAT

Last week we reviewed WLTC, Chapter 3: The Structure of Argument (50). We practiced reducing arguments to Standard Form. We spoke about assumptions, especially hidden assumptions in an argument. 

1. Today we will review Exercise 3C (62). We are also going to practice writing a summary together. Let's review Strategies for Wrting a Summary (65). 

2. Review difference between Arguments and Explanations (68). Review (70-71).

3. Share Writing Assignment 6. 

4. If we have time identify the parts of the essay: 

I want to give everyone the link to the 56th Annual Bloody Sunday Virtual Anniversary program in Selma, Alabama, March 7, 2021.  

Article about Bloody Sunday: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/03/07/time-some-more-good-trouble-voting-rights-56-years-after-bloody-sunday/

See The Miniature Guide p. 29 for response(s)


Homework: 
Writing Assignment 7. Send to your classmates for feedback. Here are guidelines on how to respond to a classmate's work. Purdue OWL is a great academic resource. 

The essay should be 2-3 pages. The two page option does not include a Works Cited page. The documentation should be minimally 3. You do not have to cite from all your sources. Put the additional documents (uncited) in the bibliography. 

Works Cited Resource: Purdue OWL  Look on the left margins and scroll down for Chicago Style Guide. 

Sample paper using MLA citations. 

Extra Credit or Optional (for now)
If you like, start reading Chapter 5 (94). Just work on your essay. 

For practice, watch some of the footage from the virtual Bloody Sunday Commemoration (link above) or analyze the Washington Post op ed (or a related article). 

You could also write a summary response to one of the two documents.  

Critical Thinking at Leadership Institute @ Allen Temple

 The Plan:

We will be reviewing the terms in Chapters 1-2 and delving into Chapter 3, "The Structure of Argument," Chapter 3 (50). 

For our warm-up, we'll look at this short clip from The Black Church, a series on PBS presently:"Church Welcoming All"

Using The Miniature Guide to Critical Thinking, "Questions Using Elements of Thought," (15) let's talk about the clip we just watched.  Let's look at another clip, this from The Black Church Part 2: and review "A Checklist for Reasoning" (16-17).

The parts of an argument are: premises and conclusions (51). Terms: Standard Form, Premises and Conclusions; Assumptions, Hidden Assumptions. 

Homework:

1. Watch one of the episodes of The Black Church.

2. Identify 5 arguments. Put the arguments in Standard Form.

3. Summarize the episode. Use the worksheet or complete WA 5 (67). Complete one not both. 

Link to worksheet: https://documentcloud.adobe.com/link/track?uri=urn:aaid:scds:US:d6bfbdf8-eaf7-4623-bd41-b3601651e4b0

  

LI@AT February 8, 2021 Class

 The Plan:

1. Review Chapter 1 Assignments

Audience
Topic
Purpose
Question you'd like your essay to answer?
Writing Strategy: Cause and Effect; Problem Solution; Classification, Definition. . . 


WA 1 (13-14)

Watch "Camanda-in-Chief" Amanda Gorman's presentation at Superbowl LV Sunday this weekend. 

"Today we honor our three captains

For their actions and impact in

A time of uncertainty and need.

They've taken the lead,

Exceeding all expectations and limitations,

Uplifting their communities and neighbors

As leaders, healers, and educators.

James has felt the wounds of warfare,

But this warrior still shares

His home with at-risk kids.

During Covid, he's even lent a hand

Love-streaming football for family and fans.

Trimaine is an educator who worlds nonstop,

Providing his community with hotspots,

Laptops, and tech workshops

So his students have all the tools

They need to succeed in life and in school.

Suzie is the ICU nurse manager at a Tampa Hospital.

Her chronicles prove that even in tragedy, hope is possible.

She lost her grandmothers to the pandemic,

And fights to save other lives in the ICU battle zone,

Defining the frontline heroes risking their lives for our own.

Let us walk with these warriors,

Charge on with these champions,

And carry forth the call of our captains!

We celebrate them by acting with courage and compassion,

By doing what is right and just.

For while we honor them today

It is they who every day honor us."

2. Chapter 2
Inference
Judgement
Fact

Example from W;t
This play is about a professor who is dying and how she finds hope in punctuation-- the semicolon ";" vs period ".":
Chip 4
Clip Highlights
Clip 1
Last Clip: Do you ever miss people (6:34)
W;t  which won the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for drama, comes to Burlington thanks to another woman named Vivian — Vivian Jordan, a Shelburne resident who plays the lead role and whose profession merges the performing arts with the medical arts.  Jordan works at the hospital as a “standardized patient,” which means she acts out roles for medical students learning how to diagnose illnesses. It brings awareness of end-of-life issues and spark discussion on the complex nature of dying in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play. For more info please visit: https://www.uvm.edu/medicine/?Page=ne...

Holy Sonnets: Death, be not proud

BY JOHN DONNE

Death, be not proud, though some have called thee

Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;

For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow

Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.

From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,

Much pleasure; then from thee much more must flow,

And soonest our best men with thee do go,

Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery.

Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,

And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell,

And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well

And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then?

One short sleep past, we wake eternally

And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.

Exercise 2D (28-29)

The structure of the essay: Introduction, paragraphs, thesis or conclusion or claim, premises or evidence. Key terms (47). 

Chapter 3: The Structure of Arggument: Standard Form (53); Claims or Premises and Support (50). 

Hidden Assumptions (59)
Summaries (65)

Writing Assignment 5 (67)
What is the difference between arguments and explanations (69)

Summarize W;t. 
Write an explanation about W;t
Write an argument about W;t

Homework: Read the chapters for next week. Complete the WA and exercises (1-2/3s). Think about what topic you would like to prusue in your first argument. 


Notes:
Juxtapose the fictional character in W;t with the real character, Henrietta Lacks, who also had cancer, hers ovarian. She was 31 when she passed, mother of 4 children. Treated in the "colored people's lab at Johns Hopskins Hospital in Baltimore, she had a very different treatment than the fictional college professor here.

Mrs. Lacks is the Mother of Modern Medicine, her cells, HeLa the basis for scientific research and findings for cures unattributed to her until recently. She would have been 100 August 1, 2020. A book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, written by Rebecca Skloot with Mrs. Lacks daughter, Deborah, who went on an investigative journey to find Deborah's mother and recover her history. There is also an HBO film, which stars Oprah Winfrey as Deborah. 

When we think about the Coronavirus and the skepticism many African American feel about the American medical association, Mrs. Lacks story is a recent case not often cited that gives reason to our distrust. 

I wonder what Mrs. Lacks would have thought about John Donne and his Holy Sonnets. 

WLTC Chapter 1 Exercises and Assignment

Writing Logically, Thinking Critically Chapter 1 Exercises and Assignment

Here is Chapters 1 in Writing Logically, Thinking Critically.  Read the entire chapter and complete the following exercises. Again, if the information is not challenging, you do not have to complete all the exercises. Just do 1-2/3rds. 

Examining your worldview 1-3 (6-7). Choose one to respond to. If you can think of another normalized "outrage," use your example. If you can relate any exercise to Do the Right Thing and Mookie or another aspect or theme from the film, do so.  What is Mookie's world view? How does Radio Raheem's killing alter it irrevocably? Writing Logically Thinking Critically - Chapter 1.
 
Writing Assignment 1 (14) -- 3 paragraph essay responses are fine; 1C (17); 1D (20). In the analogies about gun violence esp. the first writer how does the writing make you feel? Do you have a similar feeling when you read the other essay where guns are compared to cars? 

This article is also mentioned in this section on analogies: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/02/14/the-order-of-things (Links to an external site.)

Analogies are important in arguments as evidence and also as the conclusion or the major claim when the analogy is debatable. Oher claims are claims of fact and claims of value. 

Amanda Gorman uses analogies in her poem. See if you recognize any.

 

Writing Logically, Thinking Critically Learning Objectives

 Writing Logically, Thinking Critically Learning Objectives

Over next few weeks, you will do the following:

Introductions:

1. Think about your learning style and strengths and share with classmates
Take a Reading Inventory
Complete introductions

2. Readings in: Writing Logically, Thinking Critically, this first week will help student scholars become familiar with terms: Analogy, Brainstorm, Critical Thinking, Ethos, Logos, Freewrite, Logos, Metaphor, Pathos, Worldview; Inference, Fact, Judgment, Explicit, Implicit, (Implicit Bias), Fiction, Visual Image; Premise, Conclusion; Summary; Hidden Assumptions; Argument, Explanation (what’s the difference between the two).

Other terms: Truth, Persuasive, Claims, Support, Audience and Purpose, Open mind; Self-Defense

3. Student Scholars will also be able to define Critical Thinking and how World View shapes our thinking

4. Student Scholars will review: Research Skills using Online Resources

6. Student Scholars will complete select exercises in Writing Logically, Thinking Critically (WLTC). Again, if a student scholar understands the concept, just complete 1/3-2/3rds of the exercises unless instructed otherwise.

Overview 

In order to talk about argumentation we need a shared language. What is great about the text, Writing Logically, Thinking Critically is the glossary of terms at the end of each chapter, along with a summary of key concepts.

I suggest you read the end of each chapter first to guide your thinking as you read. If any of you is familiar with Golden Lines (Links to an external site.) and chunking, two skills used in Reading Apprentice (Links to an external site.) (RA).

In Chapter 1 (Feb. 1-8) the authors review the writing process with emphasis on audience and purpose. It is really important to have a reason to write, especially when we are thinking about argument, not that exposition – writing that explains and informs or narration, do not arrive from similar motivation. In order for discourse to be argumentative, it has to be persuasive.

In Chapter 2 (Feb. 15-20) we continue to look at the Language of Argument with attention to how persuasion is not limited to text.  Advertising is one of the more common ways of swaying or developing a consumer market. Also, persuasion shows up in nonfiction writing, even poetry. The way a person might tilt a cap tells us something about its subject.  Visual arguments are perhaps the more subtle way to ease an idea into a population, that and perhaps music and style even food. What's hot in any given epoch is largely the result of a good PR team whether is is a firm or a government. 

Chapter 2 also looks at how we differentiate between fact and fiction, argument and explanation. What's the difference? Inferences are judgments based on associative knowledge, that is, we form an opinion based on what we think we know about a topic. A judgment is an inference with baggage, the conclusion is negative.  Inferences come in handy when we have to move on an issue before we have all the "facts," yet there is the chance that certain "assumptions" or "biases" can disrupt a process.  Have you ever been on a team where consensus was difficult to reach? Difference at the table often makes consensus hard. We are back at the concept: worldview.  So anyway. . . I am leaking into Chapter 3 here a bit. However, we read a few short stories and look at a legal case and analyze images (advertisements) to see what we infer and the difference between implicit and explicit intent. Sometimes the idea is to trick or fool the consumer or audience which I think is unethical. 

In Chapter 3 (Feb. 22-27) we well learn the parts of the argument. You probably know the term thesis. A thesis sentence of statement if the rock where the essay sits. It is the claim your essay proves. Similarly, in an argument, which is an essay (although arguments can be verbal and even visual or multidimensional). Another name for the thesis, when we are talking about the parts of an argument is “conclusion.” The other part(s) is the claim. Yes, a claim can also be the thesis. Claims are often evidence of support for the argument or thesis. There are major and minor claims.

There are some really fun exercises in Chapter 1. I’d like everyone to write a 1-3 paragraph response to a few of the exercises. One exercise is to imagine two difference audiences and how the audience shapes the writing. Observe how in each other’s work.

How you'll complete this module:

• Step 1: Write introduction to instructor and email: professorwandasposse@gmail.com
• Step 2: Read Chapters 1-2 in WLTC. Discuss with partner(s)
  
  
• NOTE:  In WLTC the "Writing Assignments" are essays. 250 min. response is fine. This does not include the Works Cited page or Bibliography.  You can change the topic to reflect a topic or theme more interesting to you. 

Thinking Critically@ Leadership Institute @ Allen Temple Feb. 1, 2021 Lecture

 

 I am teaching 4 classes, three at the College of Alameda, another class starts later this month, another next month. Two of these classes are Freshman Comp. We are using a book called Let's Talk: A Pocket Rhetoric by Andrea Lunsford. 

What I like about the book is putting persuasion at the center of the discourse on writing that starts with a chapter on listening. If the goal is mutual understanding and common ground (something we will look at in Chapter 4 in WLTC) then what Wayne Booth, a noted scholar and critic, calls "deep listening" is where we start (Lunsford 12). 

If "rhetoric is an 'ethical art' (based on good intentions), rhetoric can also be used for unethical purposes (with bad or evil intent)" -- as Trump and Nixon and here in CA Reagan, Schwarzenegger have done.  We need to understand rhetoric to communicate our own ethical messages and to be able to recognize and resist that others attempt to use against us (Lunsford 14).

Once again we define rhetoric as the practice of ethical communication. 

A practice one should consider cultivating is listening for understanding, before forming a conclusion about a topic discussed-- listen closely before saying what you think. Have you ever noticed how the power differential influences the outcome in a situation when the person with decision making power speaks first and when those assembled know the one with that hat does not really care what others think. 

There is an authenticity present in the decision to listen to enter a discourse prepared to keep one's mind open and listen without judgement. When we get to be a certain age, we know a few things, yet when speaking to youth who think they know best-- it is often hard to withhold judgement even after listening you realize the person is making a mistake and when the person is not hearing you. 

What do you do in these circumstances? 

We really do not know what a person thinks until they can state it. I guess this excludes those among us who can read minds, but even so, until the person says what is on her or his mind, the perspective is not certain. 

We all have a point of view on a given topic and often each point of few is perfect from the context we see it whether this is historically or the proximate position where we stand in relationship to it. Are we a participant or a bystander? How do we know what we know if true? Did someone we trust tell us or is it trending on Facebook or Twitter or Instagram? 

World View Assignment or Freewrite

Today is Langston Hughes Birthday.
 Born in 1902, his poem, "

Let American Be America Again," addresses issues still unresolved today. As you listen to James Earl Jones read the poem, think about another poet and another poem, an inaugral poem: "The Hill We Climb," Amanda Gorman, March 7, 1998, delivered Jan. 20, 2021. 

I propose the two poems are in conversation with one another. What do you think? Of course, Gorman is aware of Hughes's work. I wonder about her creative process, as I do about his. What was he thinking? What was she thinking? What personal and social and political circumstances influenced their choice of words, visual language and imagery?

What if Langston Hughes was present at the Inaugural Address last month. What would he say to Amanda? What would she say to him? Use their poetic language, lines you were drawn to to create such a dialogue.  

Syllabus for Critical Thinking@ LIAT Winter-Spring 2021

Dates: Monday, Feb. 1-May 3, 2021, 8:15-9:45 p.m.
Location: Online in Zoom
Teacher: Professor Wanda Sabir

Course Description:

Critical thinking looks at the relationship between language and logic, introduces rhetoric or persuasive writing and tools students can use to evaluate information based on facts, perceptions, assumptions, evidence, reasons, inferences, judgments, induction, deduction and conclusions. Vocabulary is introduced so that students have the proper tools to discuss faulty thinking or flaws in the reasoning process and name the more common fallacies.

This level composition assumes competency in prose writing and reading ability so that more attention can be devoted to ideas rather than to grammar and mechanics. Students who will most likely succeed in this course if said student is familiar with essay writing and academic research. These topics covered in first year college level English often referred to as Freshman Comp.

We will look at the role of language and semantics in critical thinking, social communications and propaganda. Students will also look at the fundamentals of problem solving, including considering and evaluating alternative solutions and perspectives. We will write a series of four (4) arguments – 2-4 page essays which are on one topic or theme, yet utilizes a variety of argumentative styles. The final essay will on a current issue of the student’s choice in an argumentative form of the student’s choosing.

Each of the core assignments will use one argument sytle: Rogerian, Definition, Aristotelian and Toulmin.  For the fifth essay, students have an opportunity to write about a topic that interests them in whatever argument style they chose. Students will also complete a number of exercises from our text: Writing Logically, Thinking Critically (Eighth Edition) by Sheila Cooper and Rosemary Patton. We will also use The Miniature Guide to Critical Thinking: Concepts and Tools (Eighth Edition) by Rowman & Littlefield (links to an enternal site) which looks at the genre philosophically as a practice, for class warm-ups, discussion and some homework.

Course Rationale:

Everyone thinks, yet how many of us takes the time to access why she or he hold such information as true? What does it mean to withhold judgement? Can a person hold multiple truths at the same time? How can a person love her or his enemy? When we think about ideas and how our world view affects our thinking we can then act with moral deliberation. I do not think any of us is unbiased. It is hard to take oneself out of any discourse; however, we can cultivate empathy. Thinking can determine our actions. If we act without thinking, harm is possible. Some harm is irreversible. Critical thinking gives persons a set of tools applicable to all circumstances and with these tools we can be better human beings and better citizens and better neighbors.

Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)

Apply tools of understand inferences to community, workplace and family situations.

Evaluate materials/data in terms of accuracy as well as relevance to home and workplace situations.

Identify logical fallacies in communication.

Conduct research identifying relevant and accurate materials from a variety of sources, including databases, professional publications, and other applicable materials.

Identify personal bias and other filters in order to evaluate community, family and professional materials objectively. 

Required Texts and materials:

Cooper, Sheila and Rosemary Patton. Writing Logically, Thinking Critically. Eighth Edition. New York: Longman, 2015.

Elder, Linda and Richard Paul. The Miniature Guide to Critical Thinking: Concepts and Tools. Eighth Edition. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield, 2020. 

Grading Policy and evaluation procedures

Credit hours: 3 units

Grading scale: Standard Letter Grades (A, B, C, D, F). Pass/Fail (Speak to Dean). Incomplete (this teacher does not generally give Incomplete grade, so plan to attend and do the work.

Requirements and Assignment

Written Arguments (30%), textbook assignments and other readings, etc. (25%); the research process: reflections, participation with peers, preparation, presentations, thoughtful reflection – (25%), the course portfolio (15%); final exam (15%).

Classroom policies

Attendance policy

Attend all the Zoom sessions. There are no make-up assignments for missed in-class assignments.

Absences

Plan to attend all the class sessions, if an unavoidable class is to be missed, let the teacher know in advance and we might be able to record the class to watch at an office hour before the next meeting. We could also ask one of your classmates to take notes and share with you outside of class before the next meeting.

Any work completed in class, cannot be made up.

Tardiness

 Be on time. The class will be open about 15 minutes before starting just in case a student wants to pop in early with a question.


 Late Work and make up assignments

You have about a week to get all assignments in, this includes peer responses. Everyone will have to respond to 2-3 classmates on all assignments. We will use an unpublished blog to post assignments.

If a student needs more time on an assignment, do not wait until it is due. Each assignment builds on previous work.  The brick you skip is the one keeping the structure from falling. All assignments are to be typed, 12-pt. font, double-spaced lines, indentations on paragraphs, 1-inch margins around the written work typical MLA format for an academic essay.  Perfect MLA.

MLA Sample Paper (Links to an external site). Again look at the headings in the margin and bookmark those you might need often such as Cite your source automatically in MLA., For a refresher, see MLA Overview and Workshop (Links to an external site.)

Late assignments (1-2) are accepted if notified in advance; however, with penalty. Late assignments are not allowed revision unless (to pass the assignment or exercise). The grade is a C.  If this is habitual, that is, more than twice or consecutively, we will have to talk. If you’d like an A in the course, turn your assignments in on time.

Academic Honesty

The goal of this syllabus is to be student centered; however, the institution requires that I give a statement regarding academic honesty, which means that students submit original work and do not borrow or take another person's intellectual property without giving attribution or credit.

Why not? Your work is your intellectual property whether or not it is copyrighted is beside the point. Sometimes researchers, especially novices, forget where their information was found. You get 1 pass on this; however, if you intentionally take authorship of another thinker’s work, this is unacceptable (you will earn a failing grade) and such behavior can ruin your reputation perhaps forever.  Remember “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”? See CoolSchools (links to an external site) version of this classic.

Be careful in the research process; make sure you know where the information is obtained.  A name for such intentional dishonesty is plagiarism.  See Purdue OWL for a discussion on plagiarism (links to an external site) and how to avoid it.


Technology Policy

Cell phones as phones: All cell phones are expected to be silenced or on vibrate in class.  Any use of cell phone for texting should be discrete and unobtrusive to the learning experience of other classmates. If a student needs to excuse herself or himself from class, you can drop a private message in the chat to the teacher. However, if a student is noticed inattentive, the student will be marked absent, so when you are in class this means both mind and body, not just body.

Cell phones as recording devices: At no point should a phone be used to capture the class via audio or video without prior consent of students and teacher. The sensitive nature of class discussions requires trust, sensitivity and freedom of expression which can be compromised when a recording device is used. If a student wants to record a class, prior conversation with the professor is necessary.

Zoom Class Policy

Students taking this class for credit are required to use a computer camera  revealing your face during class sessions. The use of virtual backgrounds are acceptable. To be excused from this requirement, you must get clearance from the teacher.

It is important to be respectful of all students and their viewpoints, especially when the opinions expressed are at variance with your own, that is, you disagree. We are not monolithic and differing opinions and views are encouraged.

Course Calendar (subject to change or adjustment)
Week 1 Thinking and Writing—A Critical Connection. What is a Critical Thinker? (WLTC pp. 1-22)
Review essay writing, MLA, Academic Writing Style and Formatting (WLTC p. 191)

Week 2 – Critical Societies (The Miniature Guide to Critical Thinking: Chapter 7-8)

Week 3 Critical Thought (WLTC) Chapter 2 pp. 22-49

Week 4 The Structure of Argument (WLTC) p. 50

Week 5  Written Argument (WLTC) p. 70

Week 6 The Language of Argument – Definition (WLTC) p. 94; MGCT Chapter 10 & 11

Week 7 Midterm essay. Aristotelian Argumentation; Fallacious Arguments (WLTC) p. 122

Week 8  Deductive and Inductive Reasoning (WLTC) p. 148

Week 9 Toulmin Argument

Week 10 Wrapping Up- Questions. MGCT Chapter 12 & 13

Week 11 Final Argument poster presentation

Week 12 Final Exam essay due in class for discussion; plus teaching demonstration.

How to study for this course

Do not skip the readings in either textbook. Read with a pencil in your hand. Writing Logically, Thinking Critically (WLTC) has a summary at the end of each chapter and a glossary of key terms. Read this first. As you then read the chapter from the beginning to the end, note concepts you are not aware of. There are exercises throughout each chapter, complete the Writing Assignments (WA); on the exercises, complete at least half if you understand the concept.

How to be successful in this course

Ask questions in class if you do not understand the readings or lecture. You can use the icons and raise your hand and drop questions into the chat.

All essays will be due in class. We will also do as much planning for these essays in class as we can. Students will be assigned to groups beginning Week 1-2. Students will be asked to form a discussion group in an online discussion platform or list-serve to stay in touch.


 Computer literacy

If there are technology challenges, plan to meet with me outside class to work through problems. All work is to be typed and submitted electronically. Video and photos of assignments are also acceptable when access is a challenge.  You can write in the textbook where possible. Let me know early in the class so that we can locate resources and or peer support.


More on Goals and Objectives
 
This intention of this course is to offer an invigorating discourse or dialogue for those students who love a challenge and approach the writing task eager, prepared and ready for what the course requires: English language fluency in writing and reading; a certain comfort and ease with the language; confidence and skillful application of literary skills associated with academic writing, plus familiarity, if not mastery, of the rhetorical styles used in argumentation, exposition and narration.

We will be evaluating what we know and how we came to know what we know, a field called epistemology or the study of knowledge. Granted, the perspective is western culture which eliminates the values of the majority populations, so-called underdeveloped or undeveloped countries or cultures. Let us not fall into typical superiority traps. Try to maintain a mental elasticity and a willingness to let go of concepts which not only limit your growth as an intelligent being, but put you at a distinct disadvantage as a species.

This is a highly charged and potentially revolutionary process - critical thinking. The process of evaluating all that you swallowed without chewing up to now is possibly even dangerous. This is one of the problems with bigotry; it is easier to go with tradition than toss it, and create a new, more just, alternative protocol.

Disclaimer: I noticed in rereading the text the language in certain examples is not always socially relevant or politically conscious (WLTC p. 6) considering the authors are at San Francisco State University; however, that’s my assumption. Overall, the authors do a pretty good job in presenting the topic concisely and with humor.

 

Audience

The hope is that when you leave the course, you will be a stronger writer than when you arrived, have a better grasp of what is meant by rhetoric or the art of persuasion.  We will be honest with one another. Grades are not necessarily a complete assessment of one’s work; grades do not take into consideration the effort or time spent, only whether or not students can demonstrate mastery of a skill – in this case: essay writing. Grades are an approximation, arbitrary at best, no matter how many safeguards one tries to put in place to avoid such ambiguity. Suffice it to say, your portfolio will illustrate your competence. It will represent your progress, your success or failure this semester in meeting your goal.

Jot down briefly what your goals are this semester. List them in order of importance.

1.

 

2.

 

3.

 

4.

 

5.

First Assignment due Wed., Feb. 3-Sunday, Feb. 7

Email a note to me about yourself via professorwandasposse@gmail.com: Share: where you were born, who you are responsible for, what languages you speak/write, your strengths, what you bring to the class, what you'd like to leave with and what if anything I need to know to facilitate your success. 

Before completing the assignment read one of these two articles on the topic: https://academicpositions.com/career-advice/how-to-email-a-professor

or https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/email_etiquette.html