Critical Thinking Evaluation

EVALUATION CHECKLIST

 The evaluation sheet I have created is a tool I will use to help me determine how strong or week a critical thinker my participant is. The checklist is based on a scale from 1 to 5, 1 being the weakest and 5 being the strongest.

1. Does the participant strive to understand the issue as much as possible? 3

2. The person is not fearful to find the truth of the issue no matter how complex the issue is. 5

3. Does the participant make judgments based on evidence and reason rather than personal preference and feeling? 4

4. Does the participant focus on the issue rather than the people involved arguing the issue? 5

5. Does the participant make a judgment after hearing all perspectives of the issue? 3

6. Does the participant use multiple sources to obtain information? 4

7. Does the participant avoid pretending that he knows more than he actually does? 4

8. Does the participant regard controversial topics as exciting challenges? 4

9. Does the participant practice restraint, thinking before reacting and controlling emotion? 4

10. Were other views analyzed and/or accepted? 4

Overall Score: 40/50

CONCLUSION

Since the beginning of the semester when MO1C entered my life, new windows of critical thinking have been opened. Many of the principles I was already familiar with, some not as much. More so than just knowing what to do and what not to do, I think it is most important to be aware of yourself and your position in the argument. I believe keeping and open mind to be one of the most important factors in thinking critically, and if you take a second to step out of the situation and look at your position as an outsider, then you will be able to evaluate yourself to see what you should be doing differently if anything at all. Critical thinking is a skill that I believe can lead to many great things. Just think of how the world would change if every person, when facing a tough situation actually took the time to analyze, evaluate, understand to the highest possibility, rationalize and THEN put forward their judgment; the world would be a different place. Even for those who are familiar with the principles of critical thinking, I feel it to be much easier said than done. Overcoming feelings and maintaining control of yourself is not an easy task, that’s why I feel self-awareness to be a complete necessity for critical thinking. Just because you know how to do something, doesn’t mean you always do it the way you know you should.