Critical Thinking Across the Disciplines
February 15, 2007
Five minutes into the seminar, I already had learned something that I could incorporate into my ENG 101 class: Monty Python’s argument clinic.
In previous conversations, when Dr. Huston and I have talked about pedagogy, he has mentioned how he would use this sketch in his classes. I remembered the clip as not being particularly funny and did not investigate it. However, watching it during the seminar, I realized it has great potential. I still don’t think the clip is particularly funny and cannot appreciate the appeal it has to so many people, but it will be great to show in class because it demonstrates what an argument is not while explaining what an argument is.
As Dr. Huston explained, “Arguments are not just disagreements. An argument is a group of statements.” The Monty Python clip demonstrates this concept far more effectively than any lecture could. Later this semester, when my students begin to study argument, I believe that they will enjoy watching—and learning from—Monty Python.
Dr. Huston also showed us The Philosopher’s Magazine Online which has critical thinking games that students can play. I plan to investigate this web site later.
Dr. Huston and Professor Ditouras also shared an article from Inside Higher Education that concerned critical thinking and research bias that worked well. Part of why this essay seemed especially meaningful is that in ENG 102, we have been talking about credibility of sources.
Professor Ditouras’ material on Critical Pedagogy reinforced my own bias that this is the direction we should move in our classrooms. As she explained,
Critical pedagogy takes as a central concern the issue of power in the teaching and learning context. It focuses on how and in whose interests knowledge is produced and “passed on.”
I liked the fact that Professor Ditouras talked about “tokenism” in bringing in ethnic, minority, and other types of issues. One of her examples of how this can happen is in a course on feminist literature where all of the women studied are white; that is until the last unit when the class reads a novel by a black feminist. The message can easily become “First we read the important materials then we will tack on a minority author.”
One thing that especially impressed me about her presentation is that she rooted it in what is happening at Schoolcraft College through various programs such as the International Institute and Service Learning, as well as in individual instructor classrooms.
Professor Ditouras gave a good idea to promote critical thinking that I can adapt to my history classes. She had her students write a review of the text book that could be posted at Amazon.com. I have considered having students do a book review in history, but have been hesitant. However, saying that the review should be appropriate for Amazon gives a real world context for it. And publication should add interest to the assignment.
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