V1. Introduction to Critical Reasoning

4 key parts of a Critical Reasoning Argument

• Background Info

• Evidence (Premises)

• Assumptions

• Conclusions

In CR, an author’s conclusion is always a statement of opinion. True or False?

True. Whenever an author sets forth a conclusion, the author is presenting what he or she believes to be true.

The conclusion of a CR argument is always introduced by a keyword such as “therefore”, “clearly”, etc. True or False?

False. Not every conclusion is preceded by a conclusion keyword, though many are.

Evidence in CR passages is considered fact that cannot be disputed. True or false?

True. In CR, the evidence (premises) In support of argument’s conclusion is considered fact, not an opinion.

Assumption

An unstated piece of information that must be true if the logic of an argument is to work.

Connects the evidence to the conclusion

“A few” means what in CR?

Not many, but more than one.

“Some” means what In CR?

More than one, and possibly all.

”Many” means what In CR?

A large number of, but not necessarily most

Most means what in CR?

More than 50%. Synonymous with “a majority”

A minority means what in CR?

Less than 50 percent

Several means what in CR?

Three or more, but not many

Always means what in CR?

In all cases. Or, “on all occasions”.

Uniquely means what in CR?

“In a way that makes something or someone the only one"."

Exclusively means what in CR?

“Only”

What's a logical implication?

What we would expect to result from a set of facts or conditions, i.e., the “then” part of an if/then statement.

ex. If it is easier to get to a store, then more people will shop there.

Pre-thinking the correct answer reduces the time it takes to answer a CR question. True or false?

False. It wastes time and makes us prone to falling for trap choices.

Skipping words in CR questions can increase the time we spend per question. True or False?

True. When we skip words, we may miss the information needed to choose an answer and thus add time to our work.

CR answer choices that introduce new information should not be automatically eliminated. True or False?

True. Many correct answers to CR questions bring in new information should (except in inference questions)

On average, how much time should we spend on each CR question on test day?

1.45 to 2 minutes.

Selecting answer choices that match wording in the passages is a reliable way to get CR questions correct. True or False?

False. Critical Reasoning is not a word-matching game. Often, correct answers do not match passage wording.

The conclusion of a CR argument is always found at the end of the passage. True or False?

In most cases, that’s true. However, in some cases, the conclusion is in the middle or at the beginning of the passage.

A majority means what in CR?

More than 50 percent. (Synonymous with most)

Solely means what in CR?

Only

At least one means what in CR?

One or more

We should stop reading CR answer choices as soon as we find one that appears to be correct. True or False?

False. Even if we think we found the correct answer, it’s best to go through all five choices before choosing one. There might be one better suited.

We should always eliminate CR answer choices that use extreme words such as “all”, “never”, etc. True or False?

False. “Extreme choices” are not always wrong. To correctly answer CR questions, we must use logic, not play the odds.