What is critical thinking?

Critical thinking is a buzzword that often gets thrown around, but what does it actually mean?

Our interpertation is that critical thinking is about yourself. It’s about having the tools to systematically “interrogate” an idea to make an informed judgment on that idea, and that judgment, in turn, influences your beliefs, and then your actions. Because of this, the act of critical thinking is also an act of creating yourself.

Critical thinking is directed both outward and inward.

"Thinking about one's thinking in a manner designed to organize and clarify, raise the efficiency of, and recognize errors and biases in one's own thinking. Critical thinking is not 'hard' thinking nor is it directed at solving problems (other than 'improving' one's own thinking). Critical thinking is inward-directed with the intent of maximizing the rationality of the thinker. One does not use critical thinking to solve problems—one uses critical thinking to improve one's process of thinking."

-(Carmichael, Kirby; letter to Olivetti, Laguna Salada Union School District, May 1997.)

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