Strategic Thinking and
Reading
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
 Critical
thinking the ability to
discipline and control thinking so
that you can process information
more easily
 MIND
an acronym that stands for
the components of the critical
thinking process : M (Material), I
(Inquiry), N (iNtrospection), D
(Decision)
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
M : Materials

The expression “it takes two to tango” is much like
critical thinking which a dance depends on two
participants. One partner, concepts, and the other
partner is information, consists of details that
change from issue to issue. Without information,
concepts only shadow dance; they have no meaning.
Information, then, interacts with concepts to make
your thinking an intricate and beautiful tango.

When two partners perform together consistently,
discerning who’s leading and who’s following is often
difficult. This same difficulty holds true with the
interdependent thinking partners of concepts and
information. Knowing the definitions of concepts and
information is one thing; telling the difference
between them in practice is another.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
For example, what concepts do you associate with the
word college? To identify them, you first ask yourself,
“What aspects of college remain the same, no matter
what schools I consider?” The answer probably
includes students, faculty, residence halls,
classrooms, books, notebooks, tuition, fees, and so
forth.
 These are the concepts of college. The details that
describe a particular college ( e.g. Professor Barnes,
Ingram Hall, Introductory Spanish, $ 1095 per
semester). If you transferred to another school, the
information would change; the concepts however,
would remain the same.
 Identifying concepts and information is essential to
the thinking process. To paraphrase Lord Bryon, “On
with the dance, let your concepts and information be
unconfined!”

BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
I : Inquiry

A popular supermarket tabloid uses the slogan “Inquiring
minds want to know.” Why? The writers know that people
want the scoop on a story-what happened and why.

Tabloid headlines often arouse your assumptions about the
people or events in the story. These assumptions affect
your points of view and play a role in your setting a
purpose for reading.

The questions at issue you ask about the tabloid’s article
result in your achieving purpose. These same factors come
into play when you read a textbook or think about subject
matter. Understanding the role in your thinking process
makes you a more critical thinker.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
Assumptions and Points of View
Mary Storm of Brooklyn, New York, wrote a humorous story
called “A Dog Named Sex”, which ran in Ann Landers column on
August 22,1994. in this story, the narrator describes several
ways in which his dog’s name, Sex, resulted in confusion.
 For example, when he went to get the dog a license, he said “I
want a license for Sex.” The clerk replied that she wanted the
same thing. He told the clerk that he had Sex since he was
nine years old, and the clerk said, “You must have been quite a
kid!”
 When he took the dog on his honeymoon, he told the manager
that Sex kept him awake at night, and the manager said he
had the same problem.
 After a number of similar experiences, the narrator said that
Sex ran away from home one evening, and he spent several
hours looking for him. When a cop asked him what he was
doing on the streets at four o’clock in the morning, he said that
he was looking for Sex. The narrator concluded his story by
saying that his court case was coming up next Friday.

BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
The humor of the preceding story depends on both
assumptions and points of view embedded in the
concept of sex. Assumptions are the beliefs and
expectations you take for granted about situations,
people, places, and so forth.
 They come from actual or vicarious background
experiences ( or from both). Identifying your
assumptions helps you analyze your interpretation
of a situation.
 Your point of view is your perspective-the position
from which you view or evaluate things.
 Just as an astronaut’s view of Earth from a space
shuttle differs from your view of Earth from your
window, your particular perspective affects how you
see things.

BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

Gender, ethnicity, educational background, personal
experience and other concepts affect a person’s point of
view. For example, a Hispanic male who graduated from
Harvard ten years ago probably has a different point of
view of the university experience than a Hispanic female
high school student who is applying for admission to
Harvard this year. Recognizing point of view helps why
you, or someone else holds a particular opinion about an
issue.

In the story of a dog named Sex, the people the narrator
met assumed that the word sex referred to something
other than a dog. The narrator assumed that people
understood he was talking about a dog when he talked
about Sex. These differing assumptions and perspectives
resulted in a variety of misunderstandings
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
Purpose and Question

The phrase “One if by land, two if by sea” from
Longfellow’s epic poem “The Midnight Ride of Paul
Revere” refers to a signal which would tell Paul
Revere whether the British would be marching
over land or coming by sea to fight the American
colonists. In this book, Punctured Poems, Richard
Armour changes Longfellow’s words to say “One if
by land, two if by sea…Now what do I do? He
signals three.” Armour’s pun indicates what Revere
might have thought had the signal not been one of
the two he expected. Questions, then, affect
purpose, and purpose plays a role in questioning.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

To help you understand the definitions of the terms,
consider the following example. While reading the
newspaper, you turn to the sports page and begin to read
an article about your favorite professional basketball
team. Your purpose is to know what happened at the
game. The primary question at issue for you might be
“Did they win?” Your roommate, who heard the score on
the radio, enters the room and reads over your shoulder
to answer the question. “Who scored the winning
basket?” Two people can have the same purpose but a
slightly different question at issue.

To think or read critically, you need a reason. What you
want to know about the topic or what you need to know
to satisfy your goal results in question(s) at issue. When
you read or think critically, you need to clarify or refine
your purpose by identifying a problem you need to solve
or a question you want to answer.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
N : Introspection

The word introspection comes from the Latin word
introspectus, meaning “to look inward.” In critical
thinking, introspections means using what you already
know to think about and process new materials under
consideration. This combination of old and new
knowledge results in inferences and interpretations.

The process of referring involves using information of
occurrences to make predictions about the present or
future or guesses about the past. Making accurate
predictions or educated guesses often poses problems,
because people who get identical information about a
topic do not necessarily view or interpret the
information in the same way. As a result, people can
make completely different predictions using the same
information. You form guesses and inferences by
interpreting the information at hand in light of your
background knowledge, assumptions and point of view.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
Differing inferences and interpretations using the
same information resulted in the tragic death of a
Japanese exchange student in Baton Rouge,
Louisiana, in October 1992. Invited to a Halloween
costume party, the student and his American friend
attempted to find the home where the party was
being held. By mistake, they went to the wrong
address in a neighborhood that had recently
experienced several burglaries.
 Since the home owners had answered the knock
were frightened of burglars, the man at the house at
the house came to the door with a gun. As the
exchange student moved toward him saying, “We’re
here for the party,” the man yelled “Freeze!” The
student, new to the United States and unfamiliar
with the expression, continued to advance.

BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea


The man inferred only someone who intended
harm would continue to move toward him. The
man also inferred that since the intruder failed
to “freeze”, he intended to rob the home. Acting
on his incorrect inferences, the man shot the
student, fatally wounding him.
The student failed to infer that he was at risk,
because burglary and homicide are not societal
problems in Japan and, therefore interpret the
command of “freeze” as a warning statement.
The home owner used his own perspective and
recent information about neighborhood
burglaries to interpret the actions of the student
as threatening. Ironically, the nonthreatening
student was at risk, while the threatening home
owner was not.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
D : Decision

You gathered the information you need. You identified your
purpose and questions. You analyzed your interpretation
and inferences. Now it’s time to make a decision. In the
words of the American proverb, it’s time to fish or cut bait!

Since all critical thinking is done for a purpose, it must come
to an end in a decision concerning the situation or solution
to the question at issue. In a way, the decision often brings
you full circle in your thinking. You may reach some decision
about the question at issue, but that decision might be to
examine another question or gather more information
before reaching a question. Decisions do not have to require
action. A student who critically examines possible majors as
a freshman may not reach a conclusion on the perfect
major. Instead, that student may eliminate certain majors
and begin the thinking process again as new courses and
information become available.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

In some cases, two people begin with the same purpose and
question and use the same information, but their individual
points of view, assumptions, and inferences lead them to
different decisions. For example, rational people armed with
the same information about the death penalty often come to
separate and different conclusions.

Whenever you reach conclusions, implications, or
consequences, follow. Conclusions and implications/
consequences are analogous to causes and effects. They
form chain reactions, that is a conclusion sets into motion a
series of possible outcomes (implications) and specific
outcomes (consequences).

For example, the implications of living in an apartment
rather than at home or in a residence hall might include the
need for transportation to and from your institution, as well
as the cost of utilities, monthly bills, and cooking for
yourself.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

Problems occur when conclusions are reached with little or
no consideration of logical implications and consequences.
Perhaps you rent an apartment within walking distance from
the campus because you don’t own a car. You expect to use
a public bus for transportation to and from shopping.

After you move into your apartment, you discover that your
city has no transit system. The consequence of your action
is that you are left depending of on others for transportation
to and from a supermarket and other stores. Thus, reaching
a conclusion or solving a problem requires careful
consideration of the implications and consequences of each
available alternative before making a final decision.

Reconsider the newspaper report of the basketball game.
You had a purpose (to locate information) and a question at
issue (who won the game?). After reading the article, you
found the information that answered your question. You
might make inferences, but you need not make a decision
based on your original question. In other words, you were
thinking, but it was not necessary for you to think critically.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

Fortunately, the outcomes of most decision can be
rethought. Even decisions that appear monumental can
be altered.

For example, perhaps you decided to live off campus
because it offered you more privacy and independence,
and a change from living at home or on campus.
However, you discovered your expenses were greater, you
hated walking to campus in bad weather, you didn’t like
to cook yourself, and you got lonely. At this point, you
might feel compelled to stick to your decision. But why? If
you made a decision that isn’t working, what’s a better
choice : being miserable or rethinking the situation and
making another decision?

The notion of assessing and rethinking is, for some
people, a new idea because they think that once you
decide, you stick with that decision no matter what.
Assessing a decision gives you the power and freedom to
change your mind, your situation, and your life.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
Concepts : Mental Systems for
Organizing and Storing Information
The Concept of Concepts

You might think of concepts as interconnected
and organized systems of information. For
instance, each concept organizes typical
information and examples that relate to it (e.g.,
dogs have four legs. Dogs bark. A Dalmatian is
a dog.). It also contains specific , unusual
example s ( A basenji is a breed of dog that
yelps but cannot bark.)
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

A concept includes functions. (Some dogs are pets.
Some dogs, such as Seeing Eyes dogs, work. Some
dogs bite.) and integrates these functions to create
rules for future use (Use care when approaching a
dog to see if it is friendly or if it bites.)

A concept reminds you of your feelings about the
information (I like dogs. I am afraid of dogs). It
even differentiates between real and false uses of
the label that identifies the concept (A hot dog is not
a dog.) Thus, a concept is a mental system
characterized by categories such as definition,
important and relevant characteristics, standard
examples or uses (or both), special or nonstandard
examples or uses (or both), and related domains.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
Concept Development
Your ability to create concepts began at birth. Even
before you understood the meanings of words, you
understood the meanings of concept-hot, cold,
hungry, uncomfortable, loud, soft. As you grew, you
learned words or images for the concepts.
Unconsciously, but continually, you refined and
added to your understanding of these concepts (for
example, hot day differs from hot stove).
 You continue this updating all your life as you gather
and use information. So, for some concepts, you
have well developed systems of understanding. For
others, your system may be less complete. How do
concepts originate? They develop from background
knowledge, which forms from memories of actual or
vicarious experiences.

BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

According to British author Edward de Bono, a memory is what
remains when something happens and does not completely
unhappen. You store some experiences as specific memories.
Specific memories include such data as the name of your first
grade teacher, your address, and what your family looks like.

You store other experiences generally rather than exactly.
Similar or repetitive information is forgotten. For example,
when you see a stray dog on the street, you do not sure that
exact memory. Unless the dog’s behavior is atypical (if it tries
to bite you, for instance), you organize that memory as part of
your overall concept of a dog (e.g. they have four legs; they
bark; they are pets).

Conceptualizing dog (or anything else) helps you group or
categorize experiences so that every new experience doesn’t
surprise you. Although you sometimes develop concepts
through direct experience, you also develop them through
vicarious experiences (e.g., reading about dogs that are
trained to find drugs.)
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

Concepts provide ways to process and think about new
information. For example, repeated and organized
experiences contribute to your ability to make
assumptions. In addition, concepts from models of past
experience which help you make predictions, or
inferences, about current situations.

Failure to consider the important and relevant attributes
of a concept sometimes contributes to poor decision
making. For example, consider how concepts help you
think about a decision to join a campus organization. No
matter what the organization, you consider the same
factors: membership qualifications, responsibilities, time
commitment, financial obligations, demographic
composition, future benefits and so on.

Each course you study also contains relevant concepts.
For example the subject if history includes concepts such
as people, time, law, countries and so on.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
Universal Concept versus Personal Concepts
I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I
am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.
Quote from the 60’s
Although concept formation is a personal and
individualized process, some concepts (e.g., rich)
lack universal agreement about meaning. For a
child, the concept of rich might be five dollars. For
multimillionaire Bill Gates the concept of rich would
be much different. Thus, personalized meanings can
result in communication failure in reading.
 Other concepts, however, such as cube, ten, and
pregnant, have precise and definite meanings that
do not vary. Using these universal concepts
facilitates communication and understanding.
Without them you may think you understand what is
being said, only to find out that what was said
wasn’t what was meant.

BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
Although universal concepts develop in much the
same way as personal concepts, the latter are
products of your culture and point of view, whereas
the former arise from the world at large.
 In clearing up communication misconceptions that
arise from either personal or universal concepts, you
first identify which key concepts and ideas are
relevant to the topics that you read about, think
about, or discuss. Then you examine the concepts to
identify those that might be ambiguous to you or
others.
 Once you do so, you consider how others define any
concepts that seem vague. You do this by talking
with others or checking reference books.

BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
The Purpose Of Newspeak

The purpose of newspeak was not only to provide a
medium of expression for the world-view and mental habits
proper to the devotees of Ingsoc [English Socialism], but to
make all other modes of thought impossible.

It was intended that when newspeak had been adopted
once and for all and Oldspeak forgotten, a heretical
thought-that is, a thought diverging from the principles of
Ingsoc-should literally be unthinkable, at least so far as
thought is dependent on words.

Its vocabulary was so constructed as to give exact and
often very subtle expression to every meaning that a Party
member could properly wish to express, while excluding all
other meanings and also the possibility of arriving at them
by indirect methods.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

This was done partly by the invention of new words, but chiefly by
eliminating undesirable words and by stripping such words as
remained of unorthodox meanings, and so far as possible of all
secondary meanings whatever. To give a simple example.

The word free still existed in Newspeak, but it could only be used in
such statements as “This dog is free from lice” or “This field is free
from weeds.” it could not be used in its old sense of “politically free”
or “intellectually free,” since political and intellectual freedom no
longer existed even as concepts, and were therefore of necessity
nameless….

A person growing up with Newspeak as his sole language would no
more know that equal had once had the secondary meaning of
“politically equal,” or that free had once meant “intellectually free,”
than, for instance, a person who had never heard of chess would be
aware of secondary meanings attaching to queen and rook. There
would be many crimes and errors which it would be beyond his power
to commit, simply because they were nameless and therefore
unimaginable.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
Information Source of Concepts

According to the Oxford Companion to the English
Language (McArthur 1992), information is a
commodity that can be shared or retained; pure or
altered; bought, sold, or given away; or allowed to
disappear or saved for future use. Information
comes from reading, seeing and listening, as well as
experiencing life. Thus, information-in a variety if
ways-is the source of the concepts you develop.

How can you best use information? As Samuel
Johnson said in 1775, “Knowledge is of two kinds.
We know a subject ourselves or we know we can
find information on it.”
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

If you know a subject, (meaning that you possess
breadth and depth of concepts about the subject),
locating information is not a problem.

If you don’t know a subject, you must locate the
information that will help you gain knowledge.

However, locating information is the easy part. Once
you find that information, it does not become yours
until you analyze its content, examining its structure,
and considering its source. What you make of the
information you collect is what you use to expand old
concepts and create new ones.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea
Context

Ideally, precise understanding of universal concepts
precedes clear understanding of text and situations.
Unfortunately, many words differ in meaning
depending on the situation. Or context, in which you
find them. The courses you take and the experiences
you have form contexts for words you encounter. Each
different subject, job, location, or activity involves its
own set of words that apply to it.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea

Each set consists of three kinds of words. General
vocabulary words, such as pencil, and contemporary,
apply to a variety of contexts and maintain consistent
meanings in most cases.

Technical vocabulary words, such as electron, amino
acid, and photosynthesis, consist of terms specific to a
particular subject. Specialized vocabulary words, such
as set, discipline, and cell, are general vocabulary
words that also have precise meanings in subject
areas.
BBI 3420 PJJ 2009/10 Dr Shameem Rafik-Galea