Art of Thinking

People move through life accepting what authority figures, books, or media present as true. Educational systems rarely teach rigorous questioning of the knowledge on offer, and unexamined assumptions quietly shape what one perceives, thinks, and does. Five hundred years ago, Europeans believed the earth was flat; for common people and scientists alike, this was not a belief to be questioned but an accepted fact. The history of knowledge is full of such constraints.

This course develops the skill of critical and scientific thinking: examining presuppositions, reasoning from evidence, and building habits of rigorous inquiry. Students learn to identify implicit beliefs, investigate assumptions, and respond to complex problems with greater clarity and intellectual honesty.

This course has two main parts that examine the fundamentals of human thinking that are encapsulated in the processes of reflection, interpretation, knowing, imagination, and analysis.

Part 1: Foundations of Thinking
Part 2: Future Minds.

Each part of the course examines certain questions in relation to the broader question of thinking. For example, what is the relationship between thinking and knowing? What is memory and how is it different to remembering? What is language? The course proceeds based on interaction and dialogue, urging students and teachers alike to embark on exciting and yet also challenging reflections on the layers of unexamined assumptions we have about how we experience ourselves and the world around us.

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Upon successful completion of this course, participants will attain the following skills and competencies:

• Discernment of Cognitive Processes: Develop the ability to discern and understand the intricacies of thinking processes
• Critical Thinking Proficiency: Acquire a heightened capacity for critical thinking, enabling the evaluation and analysis of information with depth and precision
• Scientific Reasoning Competence: Cultivate the skills necessary for scientific reasoning, emphasizing evidence-based approaches and methodologies
• Cogent Reasoning and Argumentation: Develop the capability to articulate and defend arguments with clarity and persuasiveness, fostering effective communication of ideas in a logical and coherent manner

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[This course will have relative grading]