Critical Thinking Errors In Reasoning

Errors in Reasoning

In this assignment, you will select one of the claims listed below. Using what you know about the topic, describe at least four claims that might commonly be made that display some of the errors in reasoning covered in this module’s readings. You may have to do a bit of research to find popular positions on these topics.

For example, if the claim is: Children should not be allowed to play violent video games.

Then four common claims about the subject might be:

1. Children have always played violent games and they turned out okay.

2. Dr. Dre says that violent video games are okay.

3. Everybody knows that violent video games don’t cause problems.

4. Many countries banned violent video games and they have higher crime rates than we do.

And the errors they represent might be:

1. Children have always played violent games and they turned out okay (appeal to tradition and false analogy).

2. Dr. Dre says that violent video games are okay (argument by mistaken authority).

3. Everybody knows that violent video games don’t cause problems (appeal to common belief).

4. Many countries banned violent video games and they have higher crime rates than we do (post hoc ergo propter hoc).

Because

1. Any sentence that talks about how we have always done something as a way to justify doing it is an appeal to tradition.

2. The claim looks like it comes from an authority, but Dr. Dre is a musician, not a doctor.

3. Any claim that says that everyone knows something as a way to justify doing it is an appeal to common belief.

4. Showing that two things happened (that video games are accepted and crime is up) does not prove that the two things are related or that the first caused the second; this is called post hoc ergo propter hoc, which means after this, so because of this.

Select one of these topics. Using what you know about the topic and additional research you conduct, describe at least four claims that might commonly be made that display some of the errors in reasoning covered in this module’s readings.

1. Should people under 18 be subjected to legal curfews or restricted driving privileges?

2. Should libraries be required to install filtering software or otherwise censor the materials that they provide?

3. Should insurance companies be required to pay for breast reconstruction, birth control pills, or Viagra?

4. Should the use of camera phones be banned in gymnasiums or other locations?

Write your 600-word response in the Microsoft Word document format.

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS

Discussion Questions (DQ)

• Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
• Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
• One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
• I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.

Weekly Participation

• Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
• In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
• Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
• Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.

APA Format and Writing Quality

• Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
• Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
• I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.

Use of Direct Quotes

• I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly.
• As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
• It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.

LopesWrite Policy

• For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
• Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
• Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
• Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.

Late Policy

• The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
• Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
• If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
• I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
• As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.

Communication

• Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me: 
  • Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
  • Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.

Critical Thinking Errors In Reasoning

Critical Thinking Errors In Reasoning