Merriam-Webster defines “critical thinking” as:
“the act or practice of thinking critically (as by applying reason and questioning assumptions) in order to solve problems, evaluate information, discern biases, etc.”
There’s a lot packed into that definition. Let’s break it down:
- Applying reason;
- Questioning assumptions;
- Evaluating information;
- Discerning biases.
I’m Kenn (a.k.a. “Kennuminati,” founder of this site. I’m human (not but choice, but no one asked my preferences prior to my birth) and like everyone else, there are things that annoy me about the world we all share. Sometimes I feel the urge to write about them. I could do that, but what really would that accomplish? It might make some people cheer and some others angry – and I’ve heard that when people are pissed off on the Internet, someone’s making money – but would it change anything?
Professionally, I’ve spent my life in the Information Technology field and I’m very familiar with the debugging process. I like getting to the root cause of things, and when I think about the things that annoy me most, I feel like a lack of critical thinking played a big part in those things becoming actual “things”. So I decided if I was going to spend time writing on the Internet, I’d try to avoid the symptoms and focus on a possible cure.
Critical thinking isn’t really taught in schools. Based on my experience, schools give you teachers and books (authority figures) and expect you to a) accept the information they feed you and b) memorize it. School uniforms, school colors, school spirit… you’re expected to show up, “fit in,” and follow the rules. American schools weren’t invented to produce critical thinkers who might grow up and challenge the status quo; they exist to train us to sit down, shut up, and work for “the man” (i.e. the wealthy).
To further complicate things, we live in a world where we’re flooded with information and there simply isn’t time to verify every claim independently.
Ergo, we all have to pick our battles. I picked mine to be fought right here, writing things that will hopefully inspire thoughts and ideas among my readers.