The main characteristics of the critical thinker are their abilities to formulate, evaluate, conclude, think and communicate. It seeks to analyze all the aspects from which knowledge is formulated, based on the so-called truth criteria.
Starting from this idea, the thinker sets out to use knowledge and intelligence to successfully reach really correct conclusions on a topic.
The critical thinker will not be the individual who opposes all the established precepts. On the contrary, it invites to question the affirmations that seem without logical arguments or that may seem doubtful, in order to reach the truth through knowledge.
The critical thinker needs a series of capacities to be able to elaborate his arguments. These have nothing to do with intellectual skills. Rather, it is a willingness to think in an orderly, clear, precise and comprehensive way, so that you can get only the relevant information from all the data that is presented to you.
The critical thinker must understand that all reasoning has a purpose and is formulated from a perspective. To carry out a healthy criticism exercise, you must then formulate, evaluate, conclude, think and communicate your ideas.
Main characteristics of the critical thinker
1- Ability to formulate
A critical thinker must be able to refute a possible false argument through the formulation of fundamental questions and problems, to analyze the case clearly and precisely.
2- Ability to evaluate
The critical thinker must be able to evaluate the most important of the information obtained in their formulations, using abstract ideas that help them reach a first scenario of possible conclusions that are assertive.
3- Ability to conclude
The critical thinker must be able to test his criteria using standards that are relevant to the subject in question, reaching successful ideas within determined standards.
To make your conclusions, you must justify your point using evidential and conceptual considerations, in order to understand the criteria on which they were based.
These conclusions must be inserted within the universal intellectual standards. They must be clear in the form of expression and exact in their structure.
They must also be accurate, because they must conform to knowledge. And they must be relevant and relevant to your environment.
The conclusions must be profound, since it is the requirement of that level of analysis. In addition, they must be broad to respond to the length of the approach, and they must be logical.
4- Ability to think
The thinker must insert his conclusions within the alternative systems of thought, being open to the possible assumptions or implications that may arise and keeping his arguments open to new evaluations.
5- Communicative ability
The critical thinker will be a creator of solutions to problems or questions based on their questions.
For this reason, it must effectively communicate its arguments, so that the new precepts can be accepted as true and are disseminated.
6- Interpretive ability
The critical thinker must have an open mind to put aside preconceptions or prejudices that hinder a reality. You must be able to interpret, objectively, each context in order to carry out the most accurate evaluations.
7- Creative ability
In certain poorly defined situations and outside of knowledge, it is necessary to work the imagination and be creative to detect patterns that help us interpret the information. It is about going one step ahead and proposing solutions that are out of the ordinary or already formulated.
8- Resolving capacity
Once all the information has been processed and valid conclusions have been drawn, simply communicating a solution is not enough. It is necessary to implement the necessary procedure to make the solution to the problem a reality and for it to be applied effectively.
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- Kabalen, D. (2013). Analysis and critical thinking for verbal expression. Retrieved on December 13, 2017 from: books.google.co
- Critical thinking. Retrieved on December 13, 2017 from: es.wikipedia.org