CRITICAL THINKING - scienceinquirer - Wikispaces

CRITICAL
THINKING
“You can teach a student a lesson for a day;
but if you can teach him to learn by creating
curiosity, he will continue the learning
process as long as he lives.”
-Clay P. Bedford
Suzanne Becker
Gage Middle School
Winter, 2008
Table of Contents
Cover Story 1
Calendar of Events 2
More Information 3
Resources 4
Other Opportunities 5
Michael Horton
Coordinator, Science
mhorton@rcoe.us
951-826-6729
It is impossible to teach students everything they will need to know for their future.
First, every student’s future is different. Second, most students know not what their
future holds. Third, there is not enough time. There is a video on YouTube produced by
college students with a quote that says, “When I graduate I will probably have a job that
doesn’t exist today. (showing scantron) Filling this out won’t help me get there.” 1
In a perfect world, students would be given a basic foundation in each of the sciences as
well as critical thinking skills to handle new information that they will encounter in the
future. Steven Schafersman contends that math and science are the perfect place to teach
critical thinking but we fail to do so, “Because science in the United States is often
poorly taught as a fact-based discipline rather than as a way of knowing or method of
discovery.” So, how can teachers weave more critical thinking skills into the science
curriculum?
The first method for encouraging critical thinking is embedded in Schafersman’s quote.
It is to allow students to discover and inquire in the classroom, on homework, and on
projects. A science fair project is clearly one of the best ways to encourage critical
thinking. Inquiry activities as well as open-ended projects and competitions also bolster
critical thinking.
The second way is to teach scientific thinking. Teaching students to judge the reliability
of a source of information and value reliable data over anecdote and conjecture will help
them avoid misinformation and scams. Students need to understand controls and
variables, placebo effects, manipulation of statistics, and sample size issues to be able to
judge the reliability and validity of information.
The third method is to increase the open-endedness of the science classroom. Open
ended questions during lecture, on homework, in projects, and on exams will help
improve critical thinking. Student debates over topics such as cloning, EMFs, whether
Pluto is a planet or not, whether centrifugal force exists or not, kelp harvesting, recycling
newspaper, if astronauts are “weightless,” or if “natural” products are better than
“chemical” products can all be debated.
To be critical thinkers, students also need to know ways in which they can be tricked or
fooled. Understanding basic logical fallacies will help in this area. Logical fallacies are
discussed more on page 3.
I cannot do justice to teaching critical thinking in just one page. But if science teachers
were to put these suggestions into practice, our students would leave school with a
healthy mixture of knowledge and ability to learn new things. By increasing the amount
of discovery and inquiry, teaching scientific thinking, increasing open-endedness, and
pointing out logical fallacies, teachers will help students become lifelong learners.

Page 2
PLC in Science Day 3 will teach about the philosophy, the process, and the content of a Professional Learning Community; how to
establish a PLC at the site; and how PLCs can be used specifically by science teachers to improve student achievement.
Date: January 24, 2008 at Patriot High School
District Science Leadership Network Meeting will support conversations amongst science leaders about data, research in science
education, legislative updates, changes in testing and accountability, best practices, and what is working in other districts. DSLN
meets approximately quarterly following the CISC Science Subcommittee meetings.
Date: January 17, 2008
Review the 4 th and 5 th Grade Science Standards will provide hands-on activities to review 4 th grade standards and do a last
minute push on 5 th grade standards before April. Science materials, a resource CD, and reproducible activities will be provided.
February 5 th and 12 th : See registration flyer at the end of the newsletter.
IASTA Meetings: Become a member of the Inland Area Science Teachers Association and have dinner with colleagues
approximately monthly to discuss interesting topics. Many dinner meetings are at interesting science-related locations. Email
info@iasta.org to join.
Dates: January 31, West Randall Elem.; February 28, SB County Office; March 20, SB County Museum; April 24, CSUSB;
May 15, Western Center for Archaeology; June 5, Living Desert
Guest Lecture Series: Free guest lectures on a variety of topics are offered monthly at the San Bernardino County Museum.
Lectures are generally the 4 th Wednesday of the month at 7:30 pm. Every 1 st Sunday of the month offers free admission to the
museum as well.
January 23- Elizabeth Cochran, Faults in the Mojave February 27- Mark Allen, Archaeological research in the Western Mojave
March 26- Daphne Fairbairn, Sexual dimorphism in the animal kingdom
JPL Lecture Series: Each month, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory has a guest lecturer. The lecture is repeated the following day at
Pasadena City College. Topics last year included, “Predicting Climate Change” and “Looking for Earth in Other Places.” 2008
events are not yet available.
Visit http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/events/lectures.cfm for information when it becomes available.
Riverside Astronomical Society: RAS has several events each month from lectures to star parties and to telescope building and
optical astronomy. Locations for these meetings vary and dates depend on the phase of the moon. They also perform assemblies
and star parties for schools and after school activities.
Visit http://www.rivastro.org/ for more information
Riverside Metropolitan Museum: RMM has programs for students, teachers, and adults in science, art, and nature.
Visit http://www.riversideca.gov/museum/ for more information
Western Center for Archaeology and Paleontology: The Western Center is a museum featuring fossils unearthed in Hemet during
the construction of the Diamond Valley Reservoir. The museum is open to the public and has several events for students, college
students, and the public each month including Discovery Labs and after-school programs.
Visit http://www.westerncentermuseum.org/ for more information
If you would like to have an event included in a future newsletter, email it 4 weeks prior to the release of
that issue [Summer (June), Fall (October), Winter (January), Spring (April)] to mhorton@rcoe.us.
This calendar of events is not a complete list. Many events are not RCOE events and RCOE cannot verify their content.

More Information
Logical Fallacies
Page 3
A logical fallacy is an invalid argument. Logical fallacies can be broken down into categories. There are numerous categories of
logical fallacies and I will describe some of the more common ones here.
Argument From Authority- This logical fallacy is where the only evidence that the person making the argument presents is that
someone famous or powerful also supports their idea. This is a common technique used in TV commercials. Fitness products often
use fake doctors to present their unsubstantiated claim hoping that this “authority” will convince people that their product works.
There comes a point when there are enough authorities that this fallacy does not apply anymore. For example, there are so many
qualified scientists supporting global warming that quoting “the vast majority of scientists” is not an argument from authority.
Confusing Correlation With Causation- This logical fallacy is one in which the proponent does not see the difference between
correlation and causation. Two things can be correlated without one causing the other. One hilarious website demonstrates this
fallacy perfectly with a graph showing that since the number of pirates began to dwindle since the 1800s, average global
temperature has increased. Therefore, dwindling pirate numbers must be causing global warming.
Post hoc ergo propter hoc- This fallacy assumes that because one thing happened after another that the first must have caused the
second. An example is the argument that vaccines cause autism. Proponents argue that because their child “became autistic” after
receiving vaccines, that the vaccines must have caused the autism. Scientific studies have shown that clear signs of autism
coincidentally show up at about the same age that vaccines are given (see correlation/causation fallacy) and that more subtle signs
existed before the vaccines. Studies have also demonstrated that since thimerosal use in vaccines has been discontinued, the
number of autism cases has remained steady. Unfortunately, the definition of autism changed at the same time so there are studies
that contradict this argument and say that the numbers have increased. Using the old definition, they have not.
Ad-hominem- This fallacy, sometimes called an ad-hominem attack, is one that says that an argument cannot be true because the
proponent has personality flaws or has been wrong before. Some venerations of this fallacy are, “You can’t believe UFO
proponents because they’re all crazy” or “You can’t believe skeptics because they are closed-minded.”
“Poisoning the Well”- This fallacy is used to argue against one thing by connecting it so something else that is seen as negative.
An example is a satirical website makes the point that “Dihydrogen monoxide” (water) is used in nuclear power plants, and
terrorist communes, is found in tumors, and is consumed by 100% of serial killers, therefore, it should be banned.
Argument From Personal Incredulity- This fallacy boils down to “I cannot believe that this could be true, therefore it cannot be
true.” I am often guilty of this fallacy when dealing with topics related to quantum physics. I cannot believe that the universe
could be made of tiny strings or that most of the universe is made of invisible dark matter, therefore these theories cannot be true
to me. Evolution deniers are guilty of this when they say “I cannot believe that complex creatures could evolve from simple
creatures, therefore evolution is untrue.”
“Straw Man”- A straw man argument is when a proponent claims that their opponent said something or believes something that
they don’t really believe and then smash that simple argument, the “straw man.” Sometimes, the proponent simplifies their
opponent’s view so much that it becomes a straw man. UFO proponents may say that scientists don’t believe in aliens because
they have not seen them with their own eyes. All scientists believe in things they cannot see with their own eyes. I believe in red
blood cells, electrons, black holes, and armadillos but I have not seen any of them.
“False Premise”- This is when the premise upon which the proponent’s argument is based is not correct. Some argue that we
should not irradiate food because it makes the food radioactive which is not healthy for us. Irradiating food does not make the
food radioactive so the premise is false and any arguments based upon that premise are useless.
Analyzing arguments for logical fallacies is a very powerful practice to improve scientific thinking and improve the ability to
debate logically. Satirical websites are great practice in this. Even better is analyzing our own arguments for logical fallacies.

Resources
Page 4
1 YouTube video, A Vision of Students Today, referenced in cover article:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o&eurl=http://mediatedcultures.net/ksudigg/?cat=9
High-quality version at http://www.mediafire.com/?3xbhmdmsfmd (100 Mb)
General information about logical fallacies and arguments:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logical_fallacy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fallacies
http://www.logicalfallacies.info/
http://leo.stcloudstate.edu/acadwrite/logic.html
http://www.theskepticsguide.org/logicalfallacies.asp
http://www.onegoodmove.org/fallacy/toc.htm
Satirical science websites with lots of (tongue-in-cheek) logical fallacies:
Save The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus: http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/
Ban Dihydrogen Monoxide: http://www.dhmo.org/
The Hazards of Solar Energy: http://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek/solar.htm
Fake biographies of historical explorers: http://www.allaboutexplorers.com/explorers/
Discovery of a dinosaur saddle: http://www.avantnews.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=126
Ideal Scientific Equipment Company: http://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek/ideal/ideal.htm
Aliens Announce Completion of Human Research Program:
http://www.avantnews.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=326
Most Studies Find Nothing, Study Finds:
http://www.avantnews.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=253
Teaching critical thinking and research on how people learn:
“What We Know About How People Learn”, California Journal of Science Education
http://cascience.org/csta/pub_learnjournal.asp
“Teaching Critical Thinking: Some Lessons from Cognitive Science”
http://www.philosophy.unimelb.edu.au/reason/papers/Teaching_CT_Lessons.pdf
“An Introduction to Critical Thinking”
http://www.freeinquiry.com/critical-thinking.html

Page 5
High-Speed Videos
I have the ability to record video at 250 frames per second and play it back at 1 frame per second. This
effectively slows video down 250 times. I would like to make videos for teachers to use in classrooms. If
you have suggestions for videos, email them to me at mhorton@rcoe.us. If you have items to send to be
used in the video, just send them to RCOE through the district mail to Instructional Support Services,
Attn: Mike Horton
I have some sample videos on the website at http://scienceinquirer.wikispaces.com/movies. I can put
rulers and/or grids in the background for quantitative analyses of the videos. At 250 frames per second,
the camera can capture water balloons bouncing, low frequency vibrations, toys, rocket launches, etc.
Thanks to Dave Susuras at Vista Del Lago High School, I will soon have new videos including an
exploding hydrogen balloon, a Whoosh Bottle, and an inertia demonstration involving a balloon popping.
Toy Ball Bouncing
Gauss Rifle Firing
Website Update
The Science Inquirer website continues to grow and improve. Each section has a discussion area where you can
comment and make suggestions. If you haven’t visited in a while, here is what you can find:
- Archives of Past Science Inquirer Newsletters http://scienceinquirer.wikispaces.com
- Science Misconception Podcast (30+ available) http://scienceinquirer.wikispaces.com/misconception
- Free Stuff for Science Teachers (Over 200 resources!)
http://scienceinquirer.wikispaces.com/misconception
- Super Slow Motion Videos (5 Available, more to come) http://scienceinquirer.wikispaces.com/videos
- Digital Microscope Pictures (12 Available, more to come) http://scienceinquirer.wikispaces.com/Microscope
- CSTA Presentation PowerPoints and White Papers http://scienceinquirer.wikispaces.com/csta

Inland Science and Engineering Fair
Judge/Volunteer Information Sheet
April 15, 2008
(Please Print)
Riverside
Inyo Mono San Bernardino
Name
Mailing Address
City, Zip Code
Home Phone
Cell Phone
Work Phone
I will join you for lunch
District/Site I have been a judge times.
E-mail Address
I will judge and/or volunteer to help as needed during the following events on Tuesday, April 15, 2008:
(We encourage you to judge more than one division if possible.)
8:30 a.m. – 12:00 noon, Judge Junior Division (Grades 6-8) Set-Up
12:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m., Judge Senior Division (Grades 9-12) Clean-Up
8:30 a.m. – 12:00 noon, Judge Elementary Division (Grades 4 and 5)
and/or
1:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m., Judge Elementary Division (Grades 4 and 5)
I am most qualified to judge in the following categories: (Check as many boxes as appropriate)
Elementary: (Elementary judging time: 8:30 a.m. – 12 noon or 1:00 – 3:30 p.m.)
1. Behavior Sciences 2. Biology Animals 3. Biology/Other
Kingdoms
5. Consumer Science 6. Earth Sciences 7. Environmental
Education
9. Physics
4. Chemistry
8. Math
Junior/Senior: (Junior division judging time: 8:30 a.m. – 12 noon; Senior division judging time: 12:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.)
1. Aerodynamics/
Hydrodynamics
2. Applied Mechanics/
Structures and
Mechanics/Manufacturing
5. Chemistry 6. Earth Sciences/
Planetary Sciences/
Physical Environments
9. Environmental Science
(Jr. Division only)
3. Behavioral
Sciences
7. Electricity
and
Electronics
10. Mammalian Biology 11. Materials
Science
(Jr. Division only)
4. Biochemistry/
Molecular Biology
8. Environmental
Engineering
12. Mathematics &
Software
13. Microbiology 14. Pharmacology/
Toxicology
15. Physics and
Astronomy
16. Plant Biology
17. Social Sciences
(Jr. Division only)
Other/Comments:
Please mail or fax this form to:
18. Structural Capability and
Strength of Materials
(Jr. Division only)
19. Zoology
Tracey Rivas, Programs and Student Activities Facilitator
Riverside County Office of Education
P.O. Box 868
Riverside, CA 92502-0868 (951) 826-6570; FAX (951) 826-6954

Last Minute Review of 4 th and 5 th Grade Science Standards
With Hands-on Activities to Improve Student Performance
This hands-on workshop will cover key science standards in 4 th and 5 th grade that will have the biggest payoff on state tests.
Participants will receive resources such as reproducible activities, materials (rocks, minerals, magnets, bulbs etc.), a CD full of
resources, and background information to review these standards with students. If your students need to review 4 th grade
standards or get one more exposure to 5 th grade standards, then this is the workshop for you.
During both days, researched-based hands-on experiments with simple materials will be used to enhance teaching the standards
clearly, which are focused and directly address the key standards. Participants will also receive materials that cannot be
purchased in your local community to perform these activities in the classroom. Inquiry, safety, and integrating science with
core subjects will be discussed.
Who Should Attend?
Event Information
\
4 th and 5 th grade teachers, Science
Specialists/ Staff Developers, Directors of
Curriculum, Assistant Superintendents,
and Assessment Coordinators
Presenter(s)
Rick Hall, Coordinator
San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools
Michael Horton, Coordinator
Riverside County Office of Education
Jodye Selco, CEEMAST Professor
Cal Poly Pomona
Questions?
Rasamee Jaycox, 909-386-2611
rasamee_jaycox@sbcss.k12.ca.us
Date: February 5, 2008 (Day 1)
February 12, 2008 (Day 2)
Time:
8:30 am – 3 pm registration begins at 8:00 am
Location: Norman F. Feldheym Central Library
555 West 6 th Street
San Bernardino
* Extra parking available at the SBCSS office at 601
North E Street, San Bernardino
This facility is handicapped accessible.
Cost:
$250.00 (includes CD, printed materials, and supplies
for classroom)
Snacks and lunch are included both days (Please
specify dietary restrictions when registering online)
Limit: 100
Register Online: http://sbcss.k12.ca.us/events
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Last Minute Review of 4 th & 5 th Grade Standards, February 5 th and 12 th 2008
Name:
Title:
District:
School:
Phone: ( ) Fax: [ ]
Email:
Payment: P.O. # Check #:
Make check or purchase order payable to: San Bernardino County Superintendent of
Schools
*Please note “Rick Hall” in the body of purchase order
Registration Deadline: January 23, 2008- No refunds after the deadline date.
Return to:
SBCSS, Curriculum & Instruction
Attn: Rick Hall
601 North E Street
San Bernardino CA 92410-3093
Fax: [909] 386-2667
Meal preference: (check one)
ο Vegetarian
ο Regular
If registering online, please specify
dietary restrictions.
Map of location and confirmation will be sent when registration and proof of payment are received. If you do not receive
written confirmation by January 23, 2008, please contact Rasamee Jaycox at 909-386-2611 or
rasamee_jaycox@sbcss.k12.ca.us

Let’s Get WET!
FREE California Project WET Workshop
FREE K-12 Teacher Workshop sponsored by Western Municipal Water District and
California Regional Environmental Education Community (CREEC)/Region 10. Hands-on
teacher-friendly water education classroom materials that meet state curriculum standards.
Continuing Education Units. Limited enrollment. Pre-registration required, see form below or
register online at http://www.wmwd.com/ProjectWET. Feel free to share this information with
other colleagues that may be interested.
Who Should Attend?
All educators, public and private.
Presenter(s)
Monique Navarrette/
Western Municipal Water District
Kathy Havert/CREEC/Region 10
Questions?
Monique Navarrette (951) 789-5038
Mnavarrette@wmwd.com
Kathy Havert at (909) 386-2797
Kathy_Havert@sbcss.k12.ca.us
Event Information
Date: Saturday, March 22, 2008
Time: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Location: Western Municipal Water
District/ Landscapes Southern
California Style SM
450 E. Alessandro Boulevard
Riverside, 92508
Cost: FREE
Deadline: Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Formal educators eligible for Continuing Education Units!
Register Online:
http://www.wmwd.com/ProjectWET
..............................................................................................
Let’s Get WET!
Name:
Title:
District:
School:
Phone: ( ) Fax: [ ]
Email:
Registration Deadline: Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Return to: Western Municipal Water District
Attn: Monique Navarrette/Education Programs
450 E. Alessandro Blvd.
Riverside, CA. 92508
Fax: [951] 780-3837
Map of location and confirmation will be sent when registration is received. If you do not receive written confirmation by
March 17, 2008, please contact Monique Navarrette at (951) 789-5038 or Mnavarrette@wmwd.com.