PGTD6002
10 units
6000 level
Course handbook
Description
This course is organised around a process of transformational learning which supports students to become independent and autonomous critical thinkers. It is premised on the idea that critical thinking is more than a set of skills. Critical thinking involves the cultivation of a critical dialogue between one's life experiences and the diverse theoretical traditions that have sought to give answers to the questions of what it is to know and think critically, how we develop criticality, and how we situate the thinking-subject.
Availability
Not currently offered.
This Course was last offered in Trimester 1 - 2022.
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of the course students will be able to:
1. Demonstrate capacity to compare, contrast and evaluate a diverse range of theoretical understandings and practises of critical thinking.
2. Demonstrate autonomous and independent critical thinking in relation to a diverse range of texts, including through practices of critical reflexivity, deep listening and dialogical engagement.
3. Demonstrate appreciation of how to develop collaborative learning and knowledge production practices that are inclusive and attentive to questions of difference and diversity.
Content
The course begins with an introduction to the ‘ABC’ of critical thinking. It then moves to a critical evaluation of mainstream understandings of critical thinking through exploration of a diverse range of theories, including feminism, post-structuralism, decolonial theory and critical indigenous theory. It organises this critical evaluation through an exploration of how the theories differently understand a range of concepts that are key to critical thinking such as textuality and text, literacy and translation, theory and theorising, author and audience, polemic and dialogue, and reflexivity and listening.
Assessment items
Essay: Essay in relation to a key concept in critical thinking
Quiz: Quiz
Case Study / Problem Based Learning: Case-Study Project
Course outline
Course outline not yet available.
The University of Newcastle acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands within our footprint areas: Awabakal, Darkinjung, Biripai, Worimi, Wonnarua, and Eora Nations. We also pay respect to the wisdom of our Elders past and present.