Thinking for Yourself
Your text is the only one that doesn't scare students away. Most try to cover too much, no visuals, small print, snobbish, elitist. Students have to feel this knowledge is not a mystery. Also they can get overwhelmed if burdened with too many world problems. Humor is good in this text and hope. I like your text because it emphasizes examining your own thinking instead of only pointing out holes in the thinking of others."I like the current edition because of its mix of readings; it balances old and new, liberal and conservative, works of interest to younger and older students. The author is also brave in discussing real political issues."I like this text because it sees students capable of learning, validates their learning. I like the grounding in observations skills, working with real subjects and with photos, the way in which they are shown that they can see more than they thought at the beginning. They learn that they can correct their own judgments, and that their own opinion can change. They learn that what is there is much more there than they had thought going in. They learn that critical thinking is a way of creating, not just a matter of putting down things you don't like.