Week 4

This week's lecture was about becoming familiar with some of the best skills one can get, these are Critical Thinking, Presentation and Public Speaking skills. In addition, there was the usual tutorial conversation after the main lecture part. This weeks tutorial was called “Psyching you out” but more on that later.

Critical Thinking (also known as Reflective Thinking) is a process where a person uses his Thinking Skills and takes a step “backward” and then judges the issue at hand in an objective and rational manner. The use of this skill can be extremely useful in many situations (not only academic-based ones mind you).

So in order to understand Critical Thinking, first one must become familiar with the Thinking Skills that are used. There are six such skills:

• Gaining Relevant Information: Its the basis of Critical Thinking since it is about recall certain facts, ideas or phenomena. To simplify it even more is all about answering questions like “Who ?, What ?, Where ?”
• Understanding: Is a term/skill without a specific definition, however it can be summarized as the ability to describe, compare, contrast and explain.
• Applying Knowledge and Understanding: This thinking skill is about the reconstruction of certain facts that are now understood, so that they can be used to reach meaningful conclusions.
• Analyzing: is about taking a specific fact or situation and breaking it down to its constituent parts.
• Synthesizing: Involves putting together individual components after the analyzing part and recreating it whole. Original thoughts can be developed during this stage.
• Evaluating: The last of the six skills, is about reaching a conclusion after synthesizing stage. Results in the ability to judge, appraise and decide.

Also, in the critical thinking area there is the quality of data which has to do with words that may not fit in the academic environment and also words that may be perceived differently from person to person.

There was also asked from us to write down the meaning of four words, respect, fear, arrogance and confidence. I found it quite interesting since I personally consider these words to be some of the reasons that shape a human mind.

The second part of the lecture was about Presentation and Public Speaking Skills. Public Speaking has to do with standing in front of an audience and trying to present your message to them in a way that you'll try to make them understand of what you want to say and also to be in the time limit that you most probably have.

I haven't ever considered public speaking and presentation as skills that can be learned, since when I was doing presentations back in the day when I was working in a Financial company, these two seemed more like a natural ability than a skill to be developed.

Finally about the article named “Psyching you out” as mentioned above. This article had to do with some tests that may a candidate have to complete in order to have the chance to take the job. The first is the aptitude tests: These kind of tests are more related to something like a test that we had to fill in school and is in relation to numeracy, and some other simple questions. The second is the personality questionnaires: These questionnaires have different questions that will have to do with how well you may be able to handle some situations, work with other people and basically it has to do with showing what you really are.

G.