Becoming a Critical Thinker: A User Friendly Manual (4th Edition)

This book trains students to distinguish high-quality, well-supported arguments from arguments with little or no evidence to support them. It develops the skills required to effectively evaluate the many claims facing them as citizens, learners, consumers, and human beings, and also to be effective advocates for their beliefs. Chapter topics include the foundations of arguments, reality and value assumptions and ethics, inductive arguments and generalizations, reasoning errors, the power of language, media literacy, fairmindedness, and persuasive speaking. For critical thinkers who want to be discerning about the messages they read or hear; make decisions based on careful consideration of both facts and values; be alert to distortion in reporting and advertising; and, defend their own viewpoints.

Sherry Diestler has written a straightforward text to train students to distinguish well-supported arguments from ineffectual arguments with little or no evidence to support them. She develops students' skills required to effectively evaluate the many claims facing them, from classic sources as well as contemporary print and broadcast media, as citizens, learners, consumers, and human beings, and also to be effective advocates for their beliefs through both writing and public speaking.

• Combines basic principles of logic, rhetoric, and argumentation
• Provides extensive contemporary, multicultural issues for students from a variety of disciplines and subject areas
• Covers decision-making and the Toulmin model of argumentation
• Teaches students the fundamentals of persuasive speaking
• Includes end-of-chapter writing and speaking exercises