Chapter 6. Critical Thinking and a Short Academic Paragraph

Chapter 6. Critical Thinking and a Short Academic Paragraph

Critical thinking in this course is not “being negative.” It is stating a claim, giving a reason, and saying what would count against the claim. Academic writing is that thinking made visible in sentences a stranger can follow.

Claim, reason, limit

A claim is the sentence you want the reader to accept. A reason is the evidence or logic that supports it. A limit is the boundary: when the claim does not hold. Example claim: “A 25-minute start reduces procrastination for a working student.” Reason: “The task is small enough to begin.” Limit: “It does not replace a weekly calendar if the course has eight chapters.” A paragraph that has only a claim is an opinion. A paragraph that has claim, reason, and limit is an argument.

Notes you can study from

Divide a note page into three bands. The right band is the cue: a question. The main band is the note in your words. The bottom band, written later the same day, is a three-line summary with the book closed. Before the exam, cover the main band and answer the cue questions. This is slower than highlighting and it is the method that shows you what you do not yet know.

Shape of a short essay

Open with the claim. Use one paragraph per reason. End by restating the claim and the limit, not by adding a new topic. For a business example, do not tell the whole history of a company. Use the example only to test the claim. If you cite a source, use the author-year habit from Chapter 5. If you have no source, say that the point comes from the course chapter so the reader knows the scope.

A finished miniature

Claim: students should judge a source before they cite it. Reason: an unsigned sales page can use the right keywords and still be written to sell. Limit: the same page may be cited as an example of a vendor’s claim if it is labeled that way. That miniature is one paragraph of critical writing. The exam will ask you to recognize this shape, not to submit a three-page paper.

Self-check

1. What is missing from a paragraph that only says “online class is better”? Answer: A reason and a limit. The sentence is only a claim.
2. When do you write the bottom summary of your notes? Answer: Later the same day, with the chapter closed.
3. What belongs in the last sentences of a short essay? Answer: The claim again and its limit, not a brand-new topic.