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Van Snyder's avatar

Critical thinking needs to be taught everywhere, not only in K-12 science programs. I learned to spot things like straw man arguments, proof by reference to authority, proof by intimidation, proof by vigorous handwaving... in debate lessons in English and Social Studies classes, back when Pasadena CA schools were among the best (1961-1964).

I attended the same schools that all the black (and Japanese) kids attended. I had classes in physics, chemistry, two years of calculus, and three years of Russian. I could have chosen from six language classes: Latin, French, German, Spanish, Russian, and Mandarin Chinese. The all-white school across town offered trigonometry and two languages, so it was obviously a superior school and the system had to be demolished because the black kids were getting an inferior education. My alma mater almost lost accreditation recently. Now Pasadena schools are near the bottom of mediocre California, thanks to a busing lawsuit (Spangler v. Board of Education, brought by the parents of a student at the all-white school) and the system having been run by a Federal judge (Manuel Real) for twelve years

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Terry Oldberg's avatar

The need for critical thinking skills arises in making inferences about the outcomes of the events of the future for the physical system that is being modelled. Aristotle's three Laws of Thought provide a sound basis for making these inferences under complete information for a deductive conclusion to be reached by the argument made by a model of this system but not to making these inferences under incomplete information. In the latter case, Aristotle's Laws are replaced by the rule that the induced generalization represents all of the available information but no more.

Terry Oldberg

Engineer/Scientist/Public Policy Researcher

Los Altos Hills, Calfifornia, USA

terry_oldberg@yahoo.com

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