1 Why is critical thinking the opposite of dogma?
1) Dogma allows one to engage with the world in an ethical and politically conscious manner,
whereas critical reasoning does not.
2) Critical reasoning allows one to engage with the world in such a way as to ensure that one
can easily accept i...
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1 PLS2601 Critical Reasoning
PLS2601 EXAM PREPARATION – Assignments and Exams
This document is an easy to read compilation of past UNISA Assignment and Exam Questions and
Answers
Answers are motivated by a combination of:
• Page references to the prescribed textbook
• Short summaries and/or content regarding the relevant topic(s) in question. (Incorrect options are
also marked where applicable, in order to identify and disregard red-herring alternatives)
Assignments covered are:
• Assignment 01 for Semester 1 2018
• Assignment 02 for Semester 1 2018
• Assignment 01 for Semester 2 2018
• Assignment 02 for Semester 2 2018
Exams covered are:
• May-June 2016
• October-November 2016
• May-June 2017
• October-November 2017
Self-assessment Questions and answers
Please note: This document is an additional tool for exam preparation. The Stuvia-user that compiled
and uploaded this document takes no responsibility for incorrect answers. Students must ensure
that they study the prescribed material and understand the content.
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2 PLS2601 Critical Reasoning
Assignment 01: Unique number: 696240
1 Why is critical thinking the opposite of dogma?
1) Dogma allows one to engage with the world in an ethical and politically conscious manner,
whereas critical reasoning does not.
2) Critical reasoning allows one to engage with the world in such a way as to ensure that one
can easily accept ideas, whereas dogma does not.
3) Critical reasoning enables one to conceptualise, question, and evaluate ideas, whereas
dogma does not.
4) Dogma allows one to critically engage with the world whereas critical reasoning does not.
Answer: 3
Refer: Feedback on assignment
Reasoning: Option 1 is not correct. It states that dogma allows one to be an ethically and
politically conscious interlocutor. However, dogma often does exactly the opposite. Dogma is
defined as ‘information that is embraced without the intervention of active thought or criticism’
(Van den Berg 2009:4). Dogma often prohibits one from being ethically and politically conscious,
precisely because it asks one to be uncritical. Option 2 is also incorrect. Critical reasoning often
has the consequence of making it harder to accept ideas, as opposed to making it easier. Option 4
makes the strange claim that dogma helps us to confuse other people. Even though dogmatic
principles may be strange to those who hold opposing views, claiming that dogmatic beliefs
enable us to confuse others is neither the aim, nor the intention of dogma. Option 3 rightly
differentiates between dogma and critical thinking with the latter enabling one to conceptualise,
question and evaluate ideas (Van den Berg 2009:4).
2 Which of the following sentences best summarises critical thinking?
1) Critical thinking is about embracing information without the intervention of active thought
or criticism.
2) Critical thinking is the ability to participate in a debate and ensure that fallacies are always
believed.
3) Critical thinking is the ability to engage in independent thought and reflect on one’s own
biases.
4) Critical thinking necessitates an acceptance of all given information in order to ease our daily
life.
Answer: 3
Refer: Feedback on assignment
Reasoning: The first option states that critical reasoning is about accepting information without
thought – this is the exact opposite of critical thinking, so option 1 is definitely not the right
answer. Option 2 states that critical thinking is about ensuring fallacies are always believed – once
again, this is not the aim of critical reasoning. In fact, one of the goals is to expose fallacies. Option
4 states roughly the same idea as option 1, which is the acceptance of all given information
without much interrogation. This leaves us with option 3, which rightly says that critical thinking is
about engaging in independent thought and reflecting on one’s biases.
3 Which of the following terms is not a critical reasoning competency?
1) Thinking for yourself
2) Informed reasoning
3) Critical self-reflection
4) Accepting positions
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3 PLS2601 Critical Reasoning
Answer: 4
Refer: Feedback on assignment
Reasoning: The answer to this question is found on page 9 of your study guide. It states clearly
that there are three critical reasoning competencies, namely, thinking for yourself, informed
reasoning and critical self-reflection (Van den Berg 2009:9). As such, the fourth option is the odd
one out, and is the right answer to the question ‘which term is not a critical reasoning
competency?’ In addition, accepting positions is definitely not a critical reasoning competency.
4 Which of the following best illustrates that a preconceived idea can be a barrier to critical thinking?
1) Assuming that people with tattoos make bad employees.
2) Assuming that people who wear suits and carry briefcases may be businesspeople.
3) Assuming that the person standing behind the counter works at the shop.
4) Assuming that people who arrive at the sports club with sneakers and active wear may
engage in physical activity.
Answer: 1
Refer: Feedback on assignment
Reasoning: According to Van den Berg (2009:20), preconceived ideas ‘are ideas that decively
influence our thinking, but which we have not critical reflected upon’. The question asks you to
think of ways in which preconceived ideas can be a barrier to critical thinking. We employ
preconceived ideas daily, and often, rightly so. However, there are cases in which preconceived
ideas can be a bad thing. The four options given are all instances of preconceived ideas, but it was
your task to identify which one was a barrier to critical reasoning. Options 2, 3 and 4 all
preconceived ideas, but do not seem to be a barrier in any significant way – people with
briefcases are often businesspeople, people behind the counter are usually employees, and
people at the sports club with sneakers and active wear are usually there to play sport. Option 1
differs from these preconceived ideas, insofar as there is a moral judgment attached to the
assumption – people with tattoos make bad employees. As such, this option presents a barrier to
critical thinking, as it is making an unwarranted value judgement.
5 Which term is not an example of an obstacle to clear reasoning in critical thought?
1) Labelling
2) Stereotypes
3) Social conditioning
4) Inductive thinking
Answer: 4
Refer: Feedback on assignment
Reasoning: Generally speaking, there are two types of obstacles to clear thinking. The first is
preconceived ideas, and the second is fallacies. In this case, you can see that the three different
type of preconceived ideas are listed, namely social conditioning (option 3), labelling (option 1)
and stereotypes (option 2) (Van den Berg 2009:21-29). This means that option 4 is the odd one
out, and the correct answer. However, in addition to employing a process of elimination to
establish the right answer, we can also look at the definition of induction. Induction is when ‘the
conclusion is subject to probability, even if the premises are assumed true’ (Van den Berg
2009:102). Induction is thus a type of argument, and not an obstacle to clear thinking. This
confirms that the correct answer in this case is option 4.
6 In many cases, labelling helps one focus on a particular feature of a person or group of people.
However, in other cases, labelling can be an obstacle to clear thinking. Which of these provide an
example of a label that is not an obstacle to clear thinking?
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