Critical Thinking

Critical thinking allows an individual to question things, to see things from different perspectives. It means not accepting what may seem to be true at face-value but to come up with the many different possibilities or reasons for why events take place, why people are who they are, or why things seem what they seem. For example, one may assume that if something is missing, the person who seems more likely to steal things is automatically guilty. If one was thinking critically, he or she would think of all of the possibilities that may have taken place, rather than assuming that only one person is responsible. Critical thinking gives a person a chance to enhance his or her way of approaching problems with different solutions. The concept can apply to a broad range of things such as using it to solve math problems or using it to write a 10-page history paper. For many people, critical thinking comes naturally-they do it without even thinking about doing it. It involves looking at situations, people, and things from different view points instead of using one's own opinion as fact.