ABC's of Critical Thinking
One of the objectives of this class is to
help you begin to see the world in a different way; to take a closer look at
things you see every day. You'll be looking at familiar things, but in a
different way; with a different purpose, also known as "reframing."
Reframing allows us to consciously decide to take a different perspective on
an event in order to arrive at a new meaning for the experience.
In 'Open to Change' (MCB Publications,
1981), Vincent Nolan explains it this way:
"Reframing means
looking at a familiar phenomenon from a new angle. Any situation
can be looked at in a wide variety of different frameworks, and
each one is capable of throwing a new light on the subject...the
ability and willingness to set aside the conventional framework
(temporarily) is one of the key skills of invention and
discovery... these pigeon holes into which we classify things and
situations, events and people, are themselves arbitrary and
artificial: convenient and useful for some purposes - but one, not
the only way to view the world. The pigeon holes can be suspended
(temporarily) and new ones brought to bear, without cost and with
profit.
There is another
important dimension to reframing. Once we accept that the same
thing can be viewed in many different ways, all of them
potentially useful, it is no longer necessary to impose our view
of things on other people, we can accept theirs as alternative
viewpoints, valid for themselves, and potentially enriching our
understanding of the situation."
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What we'll discover as we move through this semester is that we all see
things in a different way depending on our background, socialization, peer
groups, and interests. As critical thinkers, we should try to expand our horizons and
interests as well as welcome new learning experiences.
Toward that end, your assignment this week,
and your first group project, is to take your camera out and find
images of the ABC's in the world around you. The structure of a bridge may
contain the letter "H" for example, while the handle on a drawer may be
shaped like the letter "C."
Requirements:
- Images must be capital letters
- You may move objects as they are
to get a better shot, but you may not alter them in any other way - that
is, you may not break branches off a tree to make an "F" or affix bell
peppers to a carrot to make a "B." See images below for more detail.
- For each image you submit you must provide the
following information
- The letter you've photographed
(hopefully, this will be obvious, but just in case!) and a brief
description of the photo (see example table
below)
- Where and when the photo was taken
- Who took the photo (your name)
- Burn your images to a
CD and bring them to class. You will email your chart separately (do
not put your images in the chart! You must submit images separately from
the chart). Please be sure to include your
last name on your image files: Wolf-A, Wolf-B, Wolf-C, etc.
- The best examples of each letter will be
posted to the Student Projects website
Example Table -
please
alphabetize your list. Do not put your images into the table - just
provide a
description of them.
image |
location
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date |
photographer |
E - against
black background |
my front
porch |
1-15-05 |
Dr. Wolf |
W - crook
of a tree |
at a
friend's house |
1-15-05 |
Dr. Wolf |
Y - stick
against grass |
my back
yard |
1-15-05 |
Dr. Wolf |
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Example Images
Acceptable |
Unacceptable |
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This fern looked to me
like the letter E, but it was so delicate I moved it to a solid color
background so it would show up better in the picture. |
This image is
unacceptable for our project because it was arranged by me to look like
the letter B. Use things as you find them to represent the alphabet. |
Acceptable |
Unacceptable |
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It's ok to
crop, rotate, flip, or lighten any of your pictures. However, for
this exercise, don't use advanced imaging features like neon coloring,
embossing, negatives, or sepia tones. |
Make sure the
ABC letter is in the foreground; "reframe" your shot, "narrow the field"
so the picture clearly shows what you want it to show. |
Acceptable |
Unacceptable |
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Even though
the background is a little busy, it's still clear that the letter
represented is a "W." It would have looked better to crop this picture
to get the car out of the background and make the "W" a little easier to
see. |
The "W" on a
pair of Wrangler jeans, like the "M" of the McDonald's arches is not
acceptable. Using man-made materials is fine, as long as they don't
intentionally represent a letter of the alphabet. |
NOTE: Please remember that the plagiarism policy
applies to images, too. Snatching images off the Internet will not fulfill
the requirements for this assignment, and if discovered will result in a
semester grade of "F" - see conduct policy for details.
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