LOG 271
LOGIC AND CRITICAL THINKING
Fall Module A: September 24, 2012 – November 2, 2012
Credit Hours: 4 Quarter Hours
Course Length: 6 weeks
Days: Monday-Thursday
Hours: 10:00 a.m. -12:50 a.m.
Room: 304 - Annex
Instructor: Michelle Riggs
[email protected]
Text:
Boss. 2012. Think: Critical Thinking and Logic Skills for Everyday Life, 2nd Edition.
McGraw-Hill.
This syllabus is subject to change in order to meet the needs of all students, and
consequently, assist the school in producing employable students.
Revised September 2012
LOG 271
2
PREREQUISITES: None
COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course is designed to teach the practical application of skills
necessary to analyze a problem, determine the solutions and options available, and weigh the
pros and cons of each to reach a workable solution.
REFERENCE MATERIALS: Printed Media, Resource Center, Public Library, Internet
COURSE OBJECTIVES: Upon completion of this course, the students will be able to:
 Identify and analyze why critical thinking skills are important
 Discuss how verbal and nonverbal language components affect critical thinking
 Recognize knowledge limitations including cognitive and perceptual and social errors and
biases
 Identify and evaluate fallacies
 Describe and evaluate the components of various types of arguments
 Analyze how marketing, advertising, and mass media influence our perspectives
COURSE OUTLINE:
Week Learning Objective(s),
Topic(s)
Week Ch 1 Critical Thinking: Why
1
It’s Important
Ch 2 Reason and Emotion
 Recognize the
characteristics of a skilled
critical thinker
 Explain the benefits of good
critical thinking
 Identify many of the
common barriers to critical
thinking
 Look at the role of reason
in critical thinking
 Explore ways in which
gender, race, and age
influence our style of
reasoning and critical
thinking
 Examine how reason and
emotion work together
 Consider the relationship
between faith and reason
and the role of critical
thinking in discussions of
religious beliefs
*In-class Assignments/Outof-class
Assignments/
Tests/Quizzes
Out-of-class Assignments
1. Read and Outline Chapter 1
2. Exercise 1-1(Questions 1 and
3); Exercise 1-2 (Question 2).
3. Exercise 1-3 (Questions 4, 7
and 8).
4. Exercise 1-4 (Questions 2, 5
and 10).
5. Life Plan (pg. 14)
6. Read and Outline Chapter 2
7. Exercise 2-1 (Questions 2 and
7); Exercise 2-2 (Question 8);
Exercise 2-4 (Questions 3 and
7).
In-class Assignments
 Introduction to Course
 Syllabus Overview
 Thinking Outside the Box (pg.
10)
 Analyzing Images (pg. 17)
 Chapter 1 Quiz
 Thinking Outside the Box (pg.
45)
 Analyzing Images (Thinking
Outside the Box (pg. 54)
 Chapter 2 Quiz
Completion
Time for
Outside
Assignments
1. 3 hrs
2. 1.5 hrs
3. 1.5 hrs
4. 1.5 hrs
5. 0.5 hrs
6. 3 hrs
7. 2 hrs
13 hrs week 1
LOG 271
Week Learning Objective(s),
Topic(s)
Week Ch 3 Language and
2
Communication
Ch 4 Knowledge, Evidence,
and Errors in Thinking
 Define what we mean by
language and discuss its
relation to culture
 Look at communication
styles and how sex and
culture may influence them
 Look at ways in which
language and rhetoric can
be used to manipulate
people
 Learn about the nature and
limitations of human
knowledge
 Study different types of
cognitive/perceptual errors,
including self-serving biases
Week Ch 4 Knowledge, Evidence,
3
and Errors in Thinking
Ch 5 Informal Fallacies
 Learn how social
expectations and group
pressure can lead to
erroneous thinking
 Define fallacy
 Practice recognizing
fallacies in everyday
arguments and
conversations
 Discuss strategies for
avoiding fallacies
*In-class Assignments/OutCompletion
of-class
Time for
Assignments/
Outside
Tests/Quizzes
Assignments
Out-of-class Assignments
1. 3 hrs
1. Read and Outline Chapter 3.
2. 2 hrs
2. Exercise 3-1 (Question 1a,
3. 2 hrs
1g, 1j and Question 4);
4. 3 hrs
Exercise 3-2 (Questions 1, 2,
5. 3 hrs
4a, 4d, 4g, 4j and Question 7) 6. 2 hrs
3. Exercise 3-3 (Questions 1a,
1d, 1g, 1j, 1m, 1p, and
15 hrs week 2
Question 3a, 3d and 3g).
4. Exercise 3-4 (Questions 2, 7
and 8) and Exercise 3.5
(Questions 1a, 1d, 2a, 2d, 2h,
2k, 2n and Question 3).
5. Read and Outline Chapter 4
6. Exercise 4-1 (Question 1 and
2); 4-2 (Question 6).
In-class Assignments
 Analyzing Images (pg. 67)
 Critical Thinking in Action (pg.
79)
 Chapter 3 Quiz
 Analyzing Images (pg. 109)
 Critical Thinking in Action (pg.
115)
Out-of-class Assignments
1. 1 hrs
1. Review Chapters 4.
2. 3 hrs
2. Exercise 4-3 (Questions 1, 2
3. 3 hrs
and 7) and 4-4 (Questions 1,
4. 2 hrs
2, 5 and 6).
5. 3 hrs
3. Read and Outline Chapter 5
6. 2 hrs
4. Exercises 5-1 (Question 1);
Exercise 5-2 (Questions 1a,
14 hrs week 3
1d, 1g, 1j, 1m and 1p).
5. Exercise 5-3 (Questions 1a,
1d, 1g, 1j, 1m, 1p, 1s, 1v and
1y); Exercise 5-4 (Questions
1a, 1d, 1g, 1m, 1p, 1s, 1v
and Question 4); Exercise 5-5
(Question 1)
In-class Assignments
 Chapter 4 Quiz
 Critical Thinking in Action (pg.
138)
 Analyzing Images (pg. 140)
3
LOG 271
Week Learning Objective(s),
Topic(s)
Week Ch 6 Recognizing,
4
Analyzing, and
Constructing Arguments
(Pages 165 – 173, 182 –
190)
Ch 9 Ethics and Moral
Decision Making (Pages
271 – 277, 294 – 296)
 Discover how to recognize
the parts of an argument,
including the premise, the
conclusion, and premise
and conclusion indicators
 Construct your own
arguments
 Explore the basics of
evaluating arguments
 Learn about the role of
conscience and moral
sentiments in moral
decision making
 Learn how to recognize and
construct moral arguments
 Apply strategies for
resolving moral dilemmas
Week Ch 7 Inductive Arguments
5
Ch 8 Deductive Arguments
(Pages 237 – 246)
 Learn how to identify
inductive arguments, and to
distinguish between
inductive and deductive
arguments.
 Identify the characteristics
*In-class Assignments/Outof-class
Assignments/
Tests/Quizzes
 Analyzing Images (pg. 142)
 Analyzing Images (pg. 153)
 Chapter 5 Quiz
Out-of-class Assignments
1. Read and Outline Chapter 6.
2. Exercise 6-1 (Questions 1a,
1g, 2a, 2d and 2g); Exercise
6-2 (Questions 3a, 3d, 3g, 3j,
3m, 4a, 4d, 4g, 4j, 6a, 6d,
6g, 6j and 6m); Exercise 6-3
(Questions 1a, 1d, 1g, and
1j).
3. Critical Thinking Issue (pg.
194-198): read each article
and answer all review
questions that follow.
4. Read and Outline Chapter 9.
5. Exercise 9-1 (Questions 5 and
6); Exercise 9-5 (Questions
1a, 1d, 1g, 1j, 3a, 3d, 3g and
3j)
6. Critical Thinking Issue (pg.
300-307): read each article
and answer all review
questions that follow.
In-class Assignments
 Thinking Outside the Box (pg.
169)
 Analyzing Images (pg. 171)
 Chapter 6 Quiz
 Analyzing Images (pg. 274)
 Self-Evaluation Questionnaire
(pg. 276)
 Chapter 9 Quiz
Out-of-class Assignments
1. Read and Outline Chapter 7
2. Exercise 7-1 (Questions 2a,
2d, 2g and 2j); Exercise 7-2
(1a, 1d, 1g, 1j, 3a, 3d, 3g, 3j
and 3m)
3. Exercise 7-3 (Questions 1a,
1g, 1j, 3d, 3g, 3j, 3m and
Questions 4); Exercise 7-4
(1a, 1d, 1g, 2a, 2d, 2g, 2j
Completion
Time for
Outside
Assignments
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
2
3
2
2
2
2
hrs
hrs
hrs
hrs
hrs
hrs
13 hrs week 4
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
4
2
2
2
2
hrs
hrs
hrs
hr
hr
12 hrs week 5
4
LOG 271
Week Learning Objective(s),
Topic(s)
of an inductive argument
 Identify the essential
attributes of a deductive
argument
 Distinguish between
validity, invalidity, and
soundness in a deductive
argument
 Learn how to recognize and
evaluate arguments by
elimination, mathematical
arguments, and argument
from definition
Week Ch 10 Marketing and
6
Advertising
Ch 11 Mass Media
 Examine marketing
research and strategies
 Consider the impact of
marketing and advertising
on the consumer
 Examine the use of
fallacious reasoning and
rhetorical devices in
advertising
 Develop skills for critically
evaluating news coverage
in the media.
 Examine the impact of the
Internet on our lives
 Cultivate strategies for
analyzing media images
*In-class Assignments/Outof-class
Assignments/
Tests/Quizzes
and 2m).
4. Read and Outline Chapter 8.
5. Exercise 8-1 (Questions 1, 4a
and 4d); Exercise 8-2
(Questions 1a, 1d, 1g, 1j, 1m
and 1p).
6. IRP
7. CRA: the student will
participate in the CRA and
complete a 1 page typed
summary of the activity.
In-class Assignments
 Thinking Outside the Box (pg.
208)
 Critical Thinking in Action (pg.
223)
 Chapter 7 Quiz
 Thinking Outside the Box (pg.
242)
 Critical Thinking in Action (pg.
245)
 Chapter 8 Quiz
Out-of-class Assignments
1. Read and Chapter 10 Outline.
2. Exercise 10-1 (Question 4);
Exercise 10-2 (Questions 4
and 5); Exercise 10-3
(Questions 4 and 5); Exercise
10-4 (1a, 1d, 1g, 1h, 1j, 1m,
1p, 3 and 4)
3. Read and Outline Chapter 11.
4. Exercise 11-1 (Question 1);
Exercise 11-2 (Questions 1, 2
and 5); Exercise 11-3
(Question 2a, 2d and 2g).
5. Exercise 11-4 (Questions 1, 2,
5 and 6); Exercise 11-5
(Question 2).
In-class Assignments
 Analyzing Images (pg. 321)
 Chapter 10 Quiz
 Analyzing Images (pg. 347)
Completion
Time for
Outside
Assignments
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
3 hrs
2 hrs
3 hrs
3 hrs
2 hrs
13 hrs week 6
Cumulative 80
hrs.
5
LOG 271
Week Learning Objective(s),
Topic(s)
*In-class Assignments/Outof-class
Assignments/
Tests/Quizzes
 Chapter 11 Quiz
 Review for Comprehensive
Final Exam.
 Comprehensive Final Exam
(Chapters 1-11)
6
Completion
Time for
Outside
Assignments
*The Department of Education requires one hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a
minimum of two hours of out- of class student work each week for ten to twelve weeks for one
quarter hour of credit.
TEACHING METHODS: This class will facilitate learning through a variety of methods
including but not limited to: cooperative learning, presentation, and direct instruction, various in
class and out of class assignments, worksheets, quizzes, examinations, projected based
learning, discussion, dialog journals, multimedia instruction, guest speakers, peer tutoring, and
demonstration.
ASSIGNMENTS, QUIZZES, ASSESSMENTS, AND/OR EXERCISES: IMPORTANT: The
instructor reserves the right to assign or modify exercise, quizzes, and/or evaluations at his/her
discretion. Assignments and modification will only be done with due notice to the students.
GRADING SYSTEM:
GRADE
NUMERICAL
EVALUATION
EQUIVALENT
A
90 – 100%
Excellent
B
80 – 89%
Good
C
70 – 79%
Average
D
60 – 69%
Poor
F
Below 60%
Failure
WF
Withdrawal-Failure
W
Withdrawal
I
Incomplete
TR
Transfer
CBE
Credit by Examination
NA
Not Attempted
* Not used to calculate Grade Point Average
QUALITY POINTS PER
QUARTER HOUR
4
3
2
1
0
0
*
*
*
*
*
GRADING EVALUATION: Your grade will be calculated as follows:
Category
Description
Assignments (In Class & Out Homework, In class Assignments,
of Class)
Quizzes, Chapter Exercises
CRA
Community Resource
Participation
20 pts awarded daily
Participation exercises (points vary)
Percentage
20%
5%
20%
LOG 271
Tests
IRP
Final Exam
Total
Chapter Tests
Informational Retrieval Project (1)
Final Exam (Cumulative)
7
30%
10%
15%
100%
Instructor requirements for this class are contained in the following sections. Each
student is responsible for following the requirements listed in the syllabus and
found in the school’s official catalog.
COURSE/CAMPUS REQUIREMENTS, POLICIES, AND PROCEDURES
ATTENDANCE: Class attendance is extremely important. Attendance records are normally
given considerable weight by prospective employers during the hiring process. A poor
attendance record will seriously damage a graduate’s employment prospects. In addition,
students are cautioned that in most courses, if a student misses classes, he/she will fall behind
very quickly and will have to put forth a great deal of effort to get caught up. Once a student
gets behind it is very difficult to catch up as the class continues to move forward.
CELL PHONE USE: Cell phones must be set to silent/vibrate. They must be stored out of sight.
As a courtesy to others, please excuse yourself QUIETLY to exit and answer when you reach
the hall and close the door. Failure to do the above will cause class disruption for which you
may lose part of your daily participation points. Since cell phones have been used to text exam
questions/answers, cell phone use of any type (including calculator functions for math) are
prohibited during assessments.
FOOD AND DRINKS IN THE CLASSROOM ARE ABSOLUTELY PROHIBITED!
Students who desire to bring meals to school may do so, however, food and or drinks may be
consumed only in the student lounge. This is a building requirement and is strictly enforced.
ACADEMIC DISHONESTY: Cheating will not be tolerated. If you cheat on and exam or
classroom work you will receive an “F” for that assignment or exam. While some assignments
may be discussed among you the final product must be your own.
ADVISING SERVICES: Students which are in need of academic advising for issues involving
grades, classes, scheduling, academic progress, conflicts, etc., or personal issues revolving
around transportation difficulties, professional services referrals, drug and alcohol abuse, family
crisis, etc., the Academic Dean is the designated person to approach regarding these matters.
Students in need of assistance should feel free to contact the Academic Dean at any time
during the term.
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES: Students are expected to be courteous to staff, faculty, and
fellow students and to conduct themselves in a manner appropriate for a school setting. In
addition, threatening, abusive, harassing, disruptive or intimidating conduct is strictly
prohibited. Failure to meet these standards of conduct will result in disciplinary actions
including possible termination from school.
Since it is the goal of this institution to train students for entry level jobs in office occupations,
students are expected to dress in a manner appropriate for a business office. Students not
dressed properly may be dismissed from classes for the day and be marked absent or otherwise
LOG 271
8
penalized. Students are to be respectful of the speaker, be prepared for class, and be engaged
in the learning process.
FINAL EXAM POLICY: All students are required to sit for the final exam.
Instructor requirements for this class are contained in the following sections. Each
student is responsible for following the requirements listed in the syllabus and
found in the school’s official catalog.
INSTRUCTOR SPECIFIC COURSE REQUIREMENTS, POLICIES, AND PROCEDURES
INSTRUCTOR’S CLASSROOM POLICIES: Students are expected to follow all WVJC policies
found in the WVJC catalog. Moreover, students are expected to be prepared for class each day.
Being prepared means reading the chapter we are to cover BEFORE coming to class. I will not
read everything in class. I will hit the highpoints, but the tests will cover everything in the
chapter. Furthermore, students are expected to be attentive in class, not cause disruptions and
be respectful when interacting with the instructor and fellow students. Inappropriate language
will not be tolerated, nor will hate speech, name calling or any attempt to belittle, degrade or
otherwise demean the instructor or fellow students. Such behavior will be dealt with decisively
and to the detriment of the offending party. While the instructor actively encourages the free
exchange of ideas, this exchange will take place in a respectful manner befitting an institution
of higher learning.
All campus requirements will be followed in this classroom. Please remember no eating and/or
drinking in class. Please remember to keep cell phones on vibrate and out of sight. If you must
take a call please take it out in the hallway, please do not answer it in the classroom. If these
rules are broken, participation points will be deducted for the day. Homework is due at the
beginning of class or when collected by the instructor. If it is not turned in at that time, you
will be deducted 10%.
PARTICIPATION: Participation in classroom discussion includes answering questions, asking
questions, offering opinions and so forth. Students are encouraged to participate freely; wrong
answers are not penalized as long as the student has demonstrated a good faith effort. Points
are awarded for participating in class discussions and completing daily work. Points will also be
earned by completing the assigned tasks for the chapter or section that is being covered.
Repeat offenders of classroom policies and the chronically tardy will be subject to other
penalties, at the instructor’s discretion. Doing homework during class time will also result in a
loss of participation points.
MAKE UP WORK: Students will be given a fair opportunity to make-up any work they might
miss due to an absence, but is their responsibility to ascertain what was missed by contacting
the instructor immediately upon returning to class. Any assignments previously given or which
were announced prior to the student’s absence, including those listed in the syllabus, are due
the day the student returns. The student will have two (2) days, including the date he or she
returns to class, to make-up any missed assignments, providing enough time remains in the
module. Should enough time not remain, the length of time allowed to make-up the work will
be reduced accordingly. If work is not made up within the specified period of time, the grade
will be recorded as a permanent “0”. In class assignments and exercises may not be made up
and, if missed, will result in a “0.”
LOG 271
9
Special conditions or circumstances may warrant special considerations. Therefore, the student
is ALWAYS encouraged to communicate with the instructor.
MAKE UP TESTS/QUIZZES: Since I may be unavailable to offer a make-up assessment
during your available time, make-up assessments will be placed with the resource center
librarian to administer on my behalf. Check with resource center staff to see if your make-up
assessment is available. If not, you must contact me within the time frame to schedule a
make-up assessment. A student who misses the designated assessment day is required to
complete the make-up assessment within two class days, counting the day the student returns.
Assessments not made up by the two day deadline, unless other arrangements have been
made with the instructor ahead of time, will result in the assessment grade being recorded as a
permanent zero.
INFORMATIONAL RETRIEVAL PROJECT (IRP): A student is continually confronted with
the necessity of utilizing library skills and applications. Although the primary purpose of this
course is to instruct the student concerning concepts, theories, definitions and application, the
ability to utilize and apply library skills is considered. In an effort to enhance the educational
programs at West Virginia Junior College, each instructor is required to utilize at least one
informational retrieval exercise for each class.
NOTE: This is an OUT OF CLASS project.
IRP DETAILS: The informational retrieval project for LOG 271 will be a 20 question research
project which will require the student to make use of the WVJC-Bridgeport Resource Center and
the Internet. The questions will be distributed at the beginning of week 4 and will be due
Monday of week 5. Late IRPs are not accepted and will be given a “0” if not turned in on time.
COMMUNITY RESOURCE ASSIGNMENT (CRA): At the time of the community resource,
students will be required to complete either a written response about some aspect of the
presentation and/or participate in an activity utilizing the information presented. Detailed
information about the assignment will be provided when the community resource has been
confirmed.
TUTORING: Free tutoring is available and students are encouraged to participate. Tutoring
rooms are open during lunchtime and one-on-one tutoring is available by appointment. See the
bulletin board by the student lounge for information and forms.
BOOK RETURN PROCEDURES: At the end of any given course, all books are to be returned
to the instructor. No books should be taken to the resource center to be returned.
COPYRIGHT COMPLIANCE POLICY
It is the policy of WVJC to comply with all copyright laws. All faculty, staff, and students are
expected to be aware of and follow these requirements. General information on copyright law is
provided below. For further information, refer to www.copyright.gov.
Any member of the campus community practicing unauthorized use or distribution of
copyrighted material will be subject to sanctions by the college up to dismissal from school or
termination of employment. Individuals would also be subject to Federal criminal offenses for
copyright
law
violations.
For
a
full
list
of
these
offenses,
visit:
http://www.copyright.gov/(title17/92)chap5.html.
LOG 271
10
COPYRIGHT DEFINED
According to the U.S. Copyright Office of the Library of Congress, copyright is a form of
protection provided by the laws of the United States (Title 17/92) to the authors of “original
works of authorship.” Copyrightable works include the following categories: Literary works,
Musical works, including any accompanying words, Dramatic works, including any
accompanying music, Pantomimes and choreographic works, Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural
works, Motion pictures and other audiovisual works, Sound recordings, Architectural works, and
Computer programs. It is best to assume that anything published after 1920 is protected by
copyright, even if it does not contain the copyright notice. The Library of Congress Copyright
Office Circular 22 explains how to determine the copyright status of a work, when in doubt.
PUBLIC DOMAIN
Older materials or U.S. Government publications are considered to lie in the public domain and
may not be subject to copyright restrictions. This material may be used without permission, but
the original source should still be credited.
COPYRIGHT SYMBOL
The absence of a copyright symbol © does not indicate that material is without copyright
restrictions. Most nations follow the Berne copyright convention recognizing works created
after April 1, 1989 to be protected whether or not a copyright notice is present.
FAIR USE
The Fair Use Doctrine allows certain materials to be used for nonprofit, educational purposes
without fees or permission and balances the exclusive protection of copyright law. The 1976
Copyright Act put forth these criteria to determine fair use: purpose and character of the use,
nature of the work, amount used and effect of the use on the work’s potential market value.
PEER TO PEER FILE SHARING
A recent amendment to the Higher Education act of 1965 requires colleges to have a plan to
combat the illegal downloading of music, videos and other copyrighted works (otherwise known
as Peer to Peer File Sharing, or P2P) on college campus networks. West Virginia Junior College
takes this responsibility seriously. Campus computers will be monitored closely to address
copyright violations related to illegal downloads. Each computer user at the college should
understand what material is illegal or legal and what sites are authorized distributors of
copyrighted material. For example, popular sites such as iTunes, Rhapsody, Amazon, etc. have
downloads available for a fee. Any unauthorized or illegal downloads by any member of the
campus community will be subject to the institutional sanctions as well as federal copyright
criminal offenses as mentioned above.