TEXT: There is no text to buy. We will be using OERs
posted to Moodle.
THIS IS AN ADULT LEARNING SPACE: Expect to come into
contact with ideas with which you disagree and to have your
beliefs challenged. Students will be treated as mature,
responsible adults, capable of engaging in adult conversations
which may touch on topics such as race, sex, gender, sexual
orientation, sexual relations, cultural differences, politics
and religion.
It is a prerequisite of this course that you
possess, or be willing to develop, the ability to discuss
controversial issues in a calm, rational and respectful
manner.
TRIGGER WARNING: This class uses examples of
real arguments made by real people about real subjects people
care about.
Quotes, slogans, memes, protest signage and
video clips used in this class may contain words and images
which you find provocative, offensive, vulgar, shocking or
insulting to groups or individuals with which you identify
or who you hold in high esteem. If you have
difficulty handling such material, you may want to
consider taking another course. For help with
post-traumatic stress or emotional fragility, please
visit the Counseling
& Career Center. The purpose of
these examples is not to provoke but to give you practice
dispassionately analyzing actual arguments people actually
make in the public square. The use of an argument should in no
way be interpreted as an endorsement of its conclusion nor of
the person making it. These arguments are merely grist for our
critical thinking mill. Using real life examples will help you
to understand and guard against non-rational means of
persuasion, identify common fallacies and recognize sound
arguments, even when they are dressed up in polarizing or
incendiary rhetoric.
USE OF HUMOR: The instructor frequently employs humor
to lighten the mood as well as to illustrate points, add color
and make learning fun. This should in no way be interpreted as
disparaging any individual or group. Students will always be
treated with the utmost respect.
CONCERNS: If, at any time, you have a concern,
grievance or complaint about the course, please speak with me
about it directly. I want this class to be a positive learning
experience for you. You have my personal guarantee that this
will have no bearing on your grade. Because the class uses
objective testing in
Instructional
Testing Services (with a record of scores on the
server), you have an additional protection. Addressing such
concerns early, honestly and directly will result in a better
outcome for both of us.
REQUIREMENTS
FORUM POSTS
|
Due before Sunday 11:55pm each week |
10% of grade
|
FIRST MIDTERM EXAM |
Begins: Thursday, July 12 at
9am
Ends: Thursday, July 19 at 5pm
|
30% of
grade |
SECOND MIDTERM EXAM
|
Begins: Thursday, July 26 at
9am
Ends: Thursday, August 2 at 5pm
|
30% of grade
|
EXTRA CREDIT
EXAM
|
Begins:
Monday, August 6 at 9am
Ends: Thursday, August 9 at 5pm
|
Replaces
First or Second Midterm,
whichever is lower, otherwise no effect. |
FINAL EXAM |
Begins:
Monday, August 13 at 9am
Ends: Thursday,
August 16 at 5pm |
30% of grade |
COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course is aimed
at developing practical reasoning skills. Students
will learn to analyze and evaluate arguments, detect
fallacies, distinguish science from pseudo-science,
recognize media bias, and better understand methods of
deception employed by advertisers, political
organizations and others. A central goal of this
course is to develop an attitude of fair-mindedness
and intellectual honesty while learning to avoid the
pitfalls of defensiveness and rationalization.
COURSE OBJECTIVES: The
objectives are this course are for students to (1) be
able to identify, analyze and evaluate arguments,
including being able to recognize hidden assumptions
and implied conclusions (2) be able to identify
various kinds of valid and strong arguments and to
distinguish them from formal and informal fallacies
(3) develop an awareness of various kinds of
psychological bias that can cloud clear thinking and
to develop effective strategies for overcoming it (4)
develop an awareness of social, cultural and
institutional bias and to develop strategies for
correcting for its influence (5) be able to guard
against non-rational means of persuasion such as slick
sales techniques, rhetoric and propaganda (6) be able
to apply critical thinking skills in different
contexts, e.g. advertising, science, religion, ethics,
politics (7) understand and appreciate the value of
rationality and objectivity.
EXAMS: You will have a
window of several days during which you must take each exam,
including the final, in
Instructional
Testing Services, (located in CEN 311 on the Main
Campus),
Cottage
Grove Center,
Florence
Center, or with an approved proctor (see Proctored
Testing below).
Exams cannot be taken at home. Opening
and closing times of exams are listed in the table above and
may also be seen by clicking on the exam name in the main
course view. Hours for the
Instructional Testing
Services may be found at
https://www.lanecc.edu/its/hours.
You must arrive one hour
before closing. You will need an official photo
I.D., such as a state-issued driver's license, state-issued
I.D. card, student I.D. card, passport or "green card."
Unfortunately,
LCC bus passes no longer qualify as valid
photo I.D. You will need to know your L Number and
myLane PIN to log into the test. If there is more than one
exam open or you've been granted an extension to take an exam
late, make sure to tell the testing personnel which exam you
would like to take so they don't give you the wrong one by
mistake. If English is your second language, dictionaries will
be on hand for you to use. If your native language isn't a
common one, please contact
Instructional Testing
Services ahead of time to make sure they have your
language. Unfortunately, you are not allowed to use your own
paper or electronic dictionary.
The exam format will be multiple choice and true/false
questions. During the exam you may use a 3 x 5 note card (both
sides) or a piece of paper measured with a ruler and cut to
the same size. The final will
not be comprehensive.
Once
you take your exam, you'll immediately receive your score as
well as be able to see the questions you missed along with the
correct answers. Please give yourself time to review the exam
right after you take it, as
you will not be able to
review your exam from home. Reviewing your exam
will be especially helpful to you if you plan on taking the
Extra Credit Exam, which will cover the same material. If you
wish to review your exam at a later date, you will have to
come by office hours or message me for an appointment. A curve
may included which will add to your score. Your adjusted score
can be viewed by clicking on "Grades" from the Navigation tab
in Moodle.
Instructional
Testing Services (and everything else) will be
closed Wednesday, July 4 (Independence Day).
EXTRA CREDIT EXAM: There is an optional Extra
Credit Exam, based on the material from the First and Second
Midterm Exams open during Week 7. It will replace the lowest
of your First or Second Midterm Exam scores. If it is lower
than either, it will have no effect. In order for it to count,
you have to take both midterms.
It is not a substitute for
taking either midterm or the final exam.
MAKE-UP EXAM POLICY:
Since you will have at least a week to take each exam, you
will be expected to meet the deadline, however, you may
contact the instructor
before
the deadline via Moodle messaging or in person to
request an extension without penalty. Please include the date
by which you would like to take the exam in your message.
The Final Exam must be completed by
THURSDAY 5PM of
Eigth Week. Since
Instructional
Testing Services on the main campus closes Thursday at
5pm and is closed Saturday,
EXTENSIONS ARE NOT POSSIBLE.
If you miss the final due to a sudden emergency, contact me
via Moodle message right away for options.
PROCTORED TESTING FOR REMOTE STUDENTS: See
http://www.lanecc.edu/laneonline/test-proctoring
for details on proctoring if you are taking the course from
out of the greater Eugene area. If you need help locating a
proctor, try Consortium of College Testing Centers at
http://www.ncta-testing.org/cctc.
A per test fee is usually required, though fees will vary by
institution.
FORUM POSTS: The
purpose of the forum assignment is to allow you the
opportunity to interpret, evaluate and apply what you have
learned, and to discuss the merits and implications of class
concepts and theories with your classmates. Every Monday a new
forum prompt will be posted for you to reply to. To receive
credit, you must make one reply which substantially and
directly addresses the a question or topic in the prompt and
displays a familiarity with the reading, i.e. your post must
be distinguishable from someone who hasn't done any of the
reading, looks at the prompt and "gives their opinion."
Plagiarism,
which includes but is not limited to copying and pasting
from websites, will result a penalty of one letter grade on
the first offense (the equivalent of a zero on all
forum posts)
and an F in the class on a second offense.
If you do the readings, you should have no trouble responding
to the prompt in a way that is sufficient for credit without
looking at any other sources. Postings will be graded on a
credit/no-credit basis and are due
before Sunday 11:55pm at the end of each week.
Late posts will not receive
credit. Set a weekly reminder in your Google or other
online calendar (while you’re at it, you might want to put in
the exam dates and grade option/drop deadline, too). An extra
credit forum will be available in Week Ten to make up for one
missed post. Students are also expected to read every post.
Pay special
attention to replies from the instructor.
PENALTIES FOR CHEATING: Students caught cheating will
be given an
F in the course.
GRADING:
Exams may be curved upward, based on the distribution of
scores. This is done by adding a certain amount of points to
every student score. At the end of the term, the class will
be graded on the following absolute scale:
A+ 97% -100% |
A 93% - 96%
|
A- 90% - 92% |
B+ 87% - 89% |
B 83% - 86% |
B- 80% - 82% |
C+ 77% - 79% |
C 73% - 76% |
C- 70% - 72% |
D+ 67% - 69% |
D 63% - 66% |
D- 60% - 62% |
|
F 0% - 59% |
|
AVAILABILITY
OF THE INSTRUCTOR: I am available by Moodle
messaging or in-person office visits. We can also set up an
appointment to talk on the phone or via a conferencing app
like Skype. If you are having difficulties with the
class, please
contact me as soon as possible; I am here
to help. If you performed poorly on your first exam,
please come by office hours or make an appointment to see me
to see what we can do to improve your next exam score and
your score on the Extra Credit Exam, which will replace your
lowest midterm. I am also available to discuss any issue in
the class which has piqued your intellectual curiosity, or
which you find interesting or important that may be outside
of the realm of assignments and testing.
CLUB, CREDIT AND WORK STUDY OPPORTUNITIES: I am the
faculty advisor for Young Americans
for Liberty, a locally controlled, independent student
club dedicated to individual rights, limited government,
personal responsibility and the principles of reason,
freedom, tolerance and compassion. For more information,
check out YAL
on OrgSync and click the Join button to be updated on
club activities. If you're interested in doing an internship
through Cooperative Education (Political Science) to earn 2
or 3 credits helping out with the club, send me a Moodle
message. Also, if you have Federal Work Study, I could use a
new Philosophy assistant to help with some research and
clerical work. I also have a few students interested in
resurrecting the inactive Philosophy Club or starting a new
one. Message or talk to me after class if you'd like to be
involved.
COURSE OUTLINE
WEEK 1: Truth and Knowledge. What is Critical Thinking and
Why Is It Important?
WEEK 2: The Ethics of Belief. Arguments, Premises and
Conclusions. Inductive and Deductive Arguments. Validity and
Soundness. Valid and Invalid Arguments. Strong and Weak
Arguments.
WEEK 3: Logical Operators. Basic Valid Arguments. Basic
Formal Fallacies.
First Midterm opens Thursday 9am (based on Weeks 1 through
3)
WEEK 4: The Limits of Formal Logic, Inductive Arguments,
Argument by Analogy, Informal Fallacies.
First Midterm closes Thursday 5pm
WEEK 5 More Informal Fallacies
Second Midterm opens Thursday 9am (based on Weeks 4 and 5).
WEEK 6: Thinking Critically About Advertising and Science
Second Midterm Exam closes Thursday 7pm
WEEK 7: Thinking Critically About Religion and Ethics
Extra Credit Exam opens Monday 9am (based on Weeks 1 through
5)
WEEK 8
Thinking Critically About the Academy, News and Politics
Take Final Exam in the Computer Testing Lab by Thursday
5pm (based on Weeks 6 through 8)
TECHNOLOGY USE: This course requires you to
use (but not necessarily own) a computer, tablet or smart
phone. The syllabus, syllabus quiz, Powerpoint slides,
practice questions, and grading information are all
distributed via Moodle.
Campus labs are staffed with people who can help you if you
are new to computing devices or have difficulty using them.
Visit the Student
Help Desk (SHeD) website at https://www.lanecc.edu/learningcommons/student-help-desk,
call them at 463-3333 or visit them in the 2nd floor of the
Center Building, Learning Commons, Library, Room 221B.
Campus computer labs and hours may be found at https://www.lanecc.edu/it/computerlabs.