5a Read with an open mind and a critical eye.

As you read arguments and enter into academic or public policy debates, keep an open mind about opposing viewpoints. Be curious about and open to the wide range of positions in the arguments you are reading. Examine an author’s assumptions (ideas the author accepts as true), assess the evidence, and weigh the conclusions. Reading with an open mind means

• Reading carefully. Read to understand an author’s argument and point of view. Ask questions: What is the author’s thesis? What evidence does the author use to support the thesis?
• Reading skeptically. Read to test the strengths and weaknesses of an author’s argument. Ask questions: Are any of the author’s assumptions or conclusions problematic? Is the author’s evidence persuasive and sufficient? How does the author handle opposing views?
• Reading evaluatively. Read to judge the usefulness and significance of an author’s argument. Put the argument to the “So what?” test: Why does the thesis matter? Why does it need to be argued?

Recognizing logical fallacies

When you evaluate an argument, look closely at the reasoning behind it. Some arguments use unreasonable argumentative tactics known as logical fallacies.

Hasty generalization is a conclusion based on insufficient or unrepresentative evidence.

In a single year, scores on standardized tests in California’s public schools rose by ten points. Therefore, more children than ever are succeeding in America’s public school systems.

Stereotypes are hasty generalizations about a group.

All politicians are corrupt.

Children are always curious.

False analogy is a comparison that points out a similarity between two things that are unrelated.

If we can send a spacecraft to Mars, we should be able to find a cure for the common cold.

Post hoc fallacy assumes that because one event follows another, the first is the cause of the second.

Since Governor Cho took office, unemployment of minorities in the state has decreased by 7 percent. Governor Cho should be applauded for reducing unemployment among minorities.

Either/or fallacy oversimplifies an argument by suggesting that there are only two alternatives when in fact there are more.

Our current war against drugs has not worked. Either we should legalize drugs or we should turn the drug war over to our armed forces and let them fight it.