Fall 2014 Tuesday and Thursday, 4:40 – 6:00 PM
Instructor Dr. Christopher Buckels
Office
Office
Hours
Soc Sci 1235
Wednesday 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Location Giedt 1003
E-mail cbuckels@ucdavis.edu
Sections:
Sections: A01
A02
A03
A04
A05
A06
Wellman 209
Wellman 209
Wellman 107
Wellman 107
Giedt 1007
Giedt 1007
Wednesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Thursday
Tuesday
Tuesday
6:10 – 7:00 PM
7:10 – 8:00 PM
6:10 – 7:00 PM
7:10 – 8:00 PM
6:10 – 7:00 PM
7:10 – 8:00 PM
Description:
This class will emphasize the development of various critical thinking skills, e.g., identifying the structure of arguments, evaluating arguments, detecting fallacies, and constructing arguments.
One of the ways we will do this is by practicing argumentation extensively in class, especially in groups. Special emphasis will be placed on writing argumentative essays.
Goals:
1. To be able to critically examine claims encountered in academia and everyday life, including one’s own pre-existing beliefs.
2. To be able to compose effective arguments, both written and oral.
Required Materials:
Morrow & Weston, A Workbook for Arguments: A Complete Course in Critical Thinking (Hackett
2011). ISBN: 978-1-60384-549-6 i>clicker device (available in the UC Davis Bookstore) OR compatible smart device with i>clicker go app and subscription (starting at $9.99 for one term)
Work Load:
To succeed in a college level course, you should expect to do two hours of work outside of class for every hour we spend in class. Critical thinking skills require practice, and the workbook supplies plenty of practice problems with model answers to help you get that practice. Using your critical thinking skills in response to different problems in different contexts will improve them, so I recommend doing all the problems with model answers while you do the reading, even if some problems seem similar or redundant. I am happy to review any problematic exercises in class.
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Assigned Work:
Participation: Participation will be measured in lectures by the use of clickers and in sections by your TA. This includes participating in group debates in sections Dec. 9, 10, & 11.
Quizzes: These short quizzes may be completed in-class with clickers (these will only be announced in-class), or outside of class on Smartsite (and also announced on Smartsite).
Outline: An outline of your first paper is due on Smartsite by 4:00 PM on Tuesday, October 28. See pages 190-192 and 440-441 for tips for writing your outline.
1 st Paper: Your first paper is due on Smartsite by 8:00 PM on Friday, Nov. 7. It should be approximately 1000 words long (no more than 1200). Preferred formatting: 12 point Times New
Roman font, double spaced, 1 inch margins. You should bring a rough draft of your paper to your sections the week of November 3 rd for peer work-shopping. See Chapter 8 and pages 444-445 for paper writing tips. Topics and a rubric will be distributed in class and on Smartsite by Oct. 21.
2nd Paper: Your second paper is due on Smartsite by 4:00 PM on Tuesday, Dec. 2. It should be approximately 1000 words long (no more than 1200). Preferred formatting: 12 point Times New
Roman font, double space, 1 inch margins. Topics will be distributed in-class and on Smartsite by
Nov. 20.
Oral Presentation: Each student will write a 5 minute presentation and present it to their group
December 4. A script of the presentation must be submitted on Smartsite by 4:00 PM on Dec. 4.
Final Exam: Our final exam is at 8:00 AM on Monday, Dec. 15. Details will be given in-class.
Grading Policy:
Final grades will be calculated according to the following percentages (see above for grading criteria for particular assignments). Any assignment handed in late (without prior permission) will be reduced by one full grade (A to B, B+ to C+) for each 24 hour period after the time it is due
(e.g., if it is one hour late, it will receive one grade reduction. If it is 49 hours late, it will receive 3 grade reductions).
15% Participation
10% Quizzes
5% Outline
25% 1 st paper
25% 2 nd paper
5% Oral Presentation
15% Final exam
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Deadlines:
October 28 by 4:00 PM:
November 4, 5, & 6:
November 7 by 8:00 PM:
December 2 by 4:00 PM:
December 4 by 4:00 PM:
Outline of 1 st paper (submit on Smartsite)
Peer work-shopping of your first paper (bring a copy to sections)
1 st paper (submit on Smartsite)
2 nd paper (submit on Smartsite)
Script of your 5 minute oral presentation (submit on Smartsite)
December 15 at 8:00 AM: Final Exam
Email Policy:
I will do my best to answer emails within 24 hours during normal school days, and (in accord with
UC Davis email policy) I expect the same courtesy in return. Emails should be properly addressed and signed with the student’s first and last names. The subject line of each email should indicate that it is related to our class, PHI 5: Critical Reasoning. Please compose emails with the same care as you would written assignments and/or professional letters. Please also check this syllabus before emailing me—your question might already be answered here!
Academic Honesty:
Cheating or plagiarism will be taken very seriously and will result in (first offense) a zero for the assignment and (second offense) a failing grade for the course. Suspicions of plagiarism will be reported to Student Judicial Affairs (SJA). Note that paraphrasing a source without citing it is plagiarism. Please ask me or your TA if you have any questions.
Classroom Etiquette:
You should arrive to lecture and sections on time and prepared to participate (i.e., all assigned reading/viewing completed). During class, please minimize distractions, such as cell phone noises
& texting, browsing the web/Facebook, and packing up and/or leaving early.
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Course Schedule:
The following schedule may be revised during the course of the session. I will let you know in class and on Smartsite about any scheduling changes.
Class Date Topic
Required Reading*/Writing (Due
Date)
10/2/14 Introduction
10/7/14
10/9/14
10/14/14
The Examined Life
The Scope of Logic
Deductive Arguments
Plato’s Apology (on Smartsite);
Syllabus quiz on Smartsite http://www.ditext.com/salmon/1.html
(also on Smartsite) xvii-37
10/16/14 Deductive Arguments 124-155
10/21/14
10/23/14
Application: Animal Rights & Food
Application: Animal Rights & Food
156-170; Extra readings on Smartsite
171-181; Extra readings on Smartsite
10/28/14
10/30/14
11/4/14
Inductive Arguments: Generalizations
Inductive: Arguments by Analogy
Inductive: Arguments about Causes
38-71 & 182-189;
72-86 & 190-200
106-23 & 201-203 outline due
11/6/14 Application: Animal Rights & Food 87-105; 1 st paper due 11/7/14
11/11/14
11/13/14
VETERANS’ DAY
Fallacies
N/A
222-241
11/18/14
11/20/14
Fallacies
Application: Politics & Editorials
On Smartsite
On Smartsite
11/25/14
11/27/14
Application: Politics & Editorials
THANKSGIVING BREAK
On Smartsite
N/A
12/2/14 Application: the University 204-216; 2 nd Paper due
12/4/14 Application: the University 217-221; Oral arguments due
12/9/14 Application: Philosophy On Smartsite
12/11/14 Application: Philosophy On Smartsite
* All page numbers refer to A Workbook for Arguments
If you have any questions about anything in the syllabus, please ask me. Now you should go on
Smartsite to take the Syllabus quiz (it must be completed before class on Oct. 7), which can be found in the “Tests and Quizzes” section of our Smartsite page.
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