PHIL 110: Critical Thinking and Composition
Section 1 (22255) – MWF 0900-0950 am – M 245
Section 2 (22256) – MWF 1100-1150 am – M 261
COURSE SYLLABUS (SPRING 2013)
Instructor : H. V. Reyes
Office: AL 427 E-mail: hreyes@mail.sdsu.edu
Voice Mail: (619) 594-8839 Office Hours: MWF 8:00 – 8:50am; 12:00-12:50pm
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Phil 110: Critical Thinking and Composition is an introduction to critical thinking and writing with emphasis on: evaluation and development of correct reasoning and effective style and organization in argumentative writing; correct deductive and inductive reasoning; fallacies; critical appraisal of evidence; construction of rebuttal and counter-arguments
COURSE OBJECTIVES: Since this course is aimed at helping students to develop two areas of competence ( critical thinking and composition ), the following essential capacities are to be addressed:

Students must come to understand how arguments [whether in the specific works of various philosophers, journal articles, or newspaper/magazine articles] are constructed and evaluated ( SD General Catalog ) .

Students must become familiar with the various ways scholars whether
[philosophers, thinkers, or authors] theorize; and be able to apply different theoretical models [or frameworks] to real-world conditions ( SD General
Catalog ) .

Students must recognize the value of engaging diverse and opposing principles, perspectives, and people to achieve political, intellectual, artistic, and social ends ( SD General Catalog ) .

As students become familiar with various concepts involved in critical thinking, they must able to apply [the said concepts] to multiple phenomena and [ be able to] identify the relevance of such concepts across traditional boundaries ( SD
General Catalog ) .
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
To further enhance the critical thinking skills of the students, they must understand the general function of writing, speaking and thinking within the context of the university at large rather than within specific disciplines (SD
General Catalog).
LEARNING OUTCOMES: At the end of the semester, students will able

To recognize the logical structure of statements and arguments [i.e., construct, analyze and communicate arguments] SD General Catalog) .

To differentiate between valid and invalid deductive arguments; sound and unsound deductive arguments; and craft well-reasoned arguments for specific audience (SD General Catalog).

To understand and apply criteria for distinguishing strong inductive argument from weak inductive argument; cogent from uncogent inductive argument

To recognize common logical and rhetorical fallacies when they occur, and avoid them in the construction of arguments

To construct arguments in which principles of sound reasoning are properly applied

To read and analyze a variety of texts commonly encountered in academic setting (SD General Catalog, 2010).

To assess the relative strength of arguments and supporting evidence ( SD
General Catalog) as contained in the various assigned readings

To write papers about these readings that not only evaluate arguments and fallacies but also show college level writing skills
CLASSROOM ETIQUETTE: Use of laptop/tablet in class is allowed ONLY for the purpose of accessing the electronic text and/or the APLIA website and for note-taking.
Students will lose this privilege if they use their laptop/tablet for other than those specified activities. Students should also refrain from any activity/behavior that may be disturbing to other students who are making the effort to be attentive. Let us show
RESPECT FOR EACH OTHER by coming to class on time, not sleeping during class, not letting our cell phone to ring as class is going one, and by being actively engaged in whatever is going on in class.
DISABLED STUDENT SERVICES:
FYI#1: Any students with special needs due to documented medical condition should avail themselves of the resources of the Disabled Student Services
Office, Calpulli Center, Rm 301 (619-594-6473). Students who have concerns that might prevent them from otherwise doing well in this course should discuss this with the instructor so that proper arrangement may be made to accommodate their conditions.
FYI#2: Students must inform instructor within the first two weeks of class of any planned absences on account of religious observances.
REQUIRED TEXT(S): Hurley, A Concise Introduction to Logic, 11 th ed. (with APLIA
Access Code), 2012, Wadsworth, Cengage Learning
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Handouts (to be distributed in class) for the 3 papers that are to be submitted as part of the requirements of this course.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
1.
ATTENDANCE & CLASS WORKS – Attend each class on time. Unnecessary absences and tardiness have drastic negative effect in your understanding of the materials covered in class and in your performance in the exams. Participate actively in class work. To be able to do the class work, you will need your textbook, so bring it to class every class meeting.
NOTE: THERE IS NO
MAKEUP FOR CLASS WORK
2.
QUIZZES – These are scheduled exams based on each chapter completed in the course. These exams are application exams (i.e., these are intended to show your ability to apply the key concepts and principles discussed in that particular chapter).
3.
COMPLETION OF AL ASSIGNMENTS on the APLIA Website - Handout will be provided to access the APLIA website. NOTE: These assignments have
DUE DATES and are GRADED. If you missed the due date, there is NO
EXTENSION of due dates. FAILURE to complete the assignments on its due will result in an automatic ZERO grade for that assignment.
4.
3 PAPERS - Since this course fulfills a general writing requirement , students will be required to write 3 papers based on a critical reading and analysis of 3 assigned philosophical texts. In general the paper will be assessed for the quality of writing (that is, style, clarity, grammar, spelling, organization and strength of argumentation); however, a more specific guideline for each of these papers will be provided in the form of handouts.
5.
FINAL EXAM – Just like the major exams, the final exam is an application exam, intended to show your ability to apply the key concepts and principles covered in chapters 5, 6 and 7 (time permitting).
NOTE: I encourage you to aspire for excellence in your work. I encourage and recognize your hard work, diligence, and genuine effort to do well in class. To reward such commendable qualities, I provide you with an opportunity to be exempted from the final exam. A student will be exempted from the final exam if he/she meets the following 2 conditions: your pre-final grade is at least 90% and you have NO (repeat, NO) absences.
GRADING POLICY: Your final grade will be based on the following distribution of points:

50% - Average grade of ALL QUIZZES
 10% - Average Score of all assignments on the APLIA Website and
CLASS WORKS

20% - Average grade of the 3 PAPERS

20% - Final Exam
100 – Final Grade
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Letter grade will be determined based on the following scale:
96-100 ---------- A 76-79 ---------- C+
90-95 ------------ A- 73-75 ---------- C
86-89 ------------ B+ 70-72 ---------- C-
83-85 ------------ B
80-82 ------------ B-
66-69 ---------- D+
60-65 ---------- D
NOTE: Anything below 60% is an “F”
COURSE OUTLINE:
1/18 (F): Introduction: Get acquainted, discuss class syllabus, class requirements, etc.
1/21 (M) – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – NO CLASS
1/23 (W): Discuss 1.1 - Arguments, premises, conclusions
1/25 (F): Discuss 1.2 – Recognizing arguments
1/28 (M): Discuss 1.3 – Deductive arguments
1/30 (W): Discuss 1.3 – Deductive arguments
2/1(F): Discuss the 1 st reading handout in preparation for the 1 st paper
2/4 (M): Discuss 1.3 – Inductive arguments
2/6 (W): Discuss 1.4 – Validity, Soundness, Strength and Cogency
2/8 (F): Continue discussion of the 1 st reading handout
2/11 (M): Discuss 1.6 – Extended Arguments
2/13 (W): QUIZ #1
2/15 (F): Continue discussion of the 1 st reading handout
2/18 (M): Discuss 3.1 – Fallacies in general; 3.2 – Fallacies of relevance
2/20 (W): Discuss 3.2 – Fallacies of Relevance
2/22 (F): Paper # 1 DUE; Discuss 3.3 – Fallacies of Weak Induction
2/25 (M): Discuss 3.3 – Fallacies of Weak Induction
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2/27 (W): Discuss 3.4 – Fallacies of Presumption
3/1 (F): Discuss the 2 nd reading handout in preparation for Paper #2
3/4 (M): Discuss 3.4 – Fallacies of Ambiguity, and Grammatical Analogy
3/6 (W): QUIZ #2
3/8 (F): Continue discussion of the 2 nd reading handout
3/11 (M): Discuss 4.1 – 4.2 – Components of Categorical Propositions
3/13 (W) : Discuss 4.3 – Modern Square of Opposition
3/15 (F): Discuss 4.4 – Conversion and Obversion
3/18 (M): Discuss 4.4 – Contraposition; Discuss 5.4 – Traditional Square of Opposition
3/20 (W): Discuss 4.5 – Traditional Square of Opposition
3/22 (F): Discuss 4.6 – Venn Diagram and Traditional Square of Opposition
3/25 (M): Discuss 4.7 – Translating Ordinary Language Statements into Categorical
Propositions
3/27 (W): QUIZ #3
3/29 (F): PAPER #2 DUE; Discuss 5.1 – Categorical Syllogisms (Mood and Figure)
SPRING RECESS (4/1- 4/5) – NO CLASS
4/8 (M): Discuss 5.2 – Venn Diagram
4/10 (W): Discuss 5.3 – Rules for Categorical syllogisms and Fallacies
4/12 (F): Discuss the 3 rd reading handout in preparation for Paper #3
4/15 (M): Discuss 5.4 – Reducing the Number of Terms and Discuss 5.5 – Ordinary
Language Arguments
4/17 (W): Discuss 5.6 – Enthymemes
4/19 (F): Continue to discuss the 3 rd reading handout
4/22 (M): Discuss 5.7 - Sorites
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4/24 (W): QUIZ #5
4/26 (F): PAPER #3 DUE; Discuss 6.1 – Symbols and Translations
4/29 (M)): Discuss 6.2 – Truth Functions
5/1 (W): Discuss 6.3 – Truth Tables for Arguments
5/3 (F): Discuss 6.4 – Truth Tables for Arguments
5/6 (M): Discuss 6.5 – Indirect Truth Tables
5/8 (W): Last day of regular class; Distribute pre-final grade; Review for final exam
FINAL EXAM SCHEDULE:
For Section 1 (0900 am class) – MONDAY, MAY 13 (8:00am – 10:00 am)
For Section 2 (1100 am class) – MONDAY, MAY 13 (10:30am - 12:30pm)
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