Element of Logic and Critical Thinking
THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG HKU SPACE Community College Associate Degree Programmes 2011-12 Course Document Course Title: Elements of Logic and Critical Thinking
Course Code: C H C P 8 8 8 3 1 2 3 2 5 0 0 0 0 0
Aims and Objective 1. 2. 3. To introduce you to different formal logical systems. These logical systems can shed light on the structure of ordinary languages and can help distinguishing good reasoning from bad ones. Methods of evaluating reasoning within these systems will also be introduced. To introduce you to other types of critical thinking, including analysis of the meaning of a sentence, recognition of fallacies in daily language, and inductive reasoning. To develop your ability to apply the above knowledge in other subjects and in everyday life.
Intended Learning Outcomes of the Course On completion of the module, students should be able to ILO1. Evaluate formal logical arguments ILO2. Prove logical validity and invalidity with precise logical rules ILO3. Judge the correct application of formal logical methods in daily reasoning ILO4. Evaluate the fallacies of extended argument Syllabus 1. Introduction (I) Relation between inference, arguments, and logic Deductive arguments and inductive arguments Evaluation of these two types of arguments 2. Introduction (II) Structure of an argument Structure of extended argument 3. Categorical Logic (I) Structure of a categorical proposition Types of categorical propositions Traditional square of opposition and other direct inference Existential import of a proposition Venn diagram for categorical propositions 4. Categorical Logic (II) Structure of a standard categorical syllogism Relation between the structure of syllogisms and their validity Venn diagram for categorical syllogisms Translating ordinary language statements into categorical form
The conversion of non-standard syllogisms to standard syllogisms 5. Propositional Logic (I) Logical operators and their truth-table definitions Translations of
Course Code: C H C P 8 8 8 3 1 2 3 2 5 0 0 0 0 0
Aims and Objective 1. 2. 3. To introduce you to different formal logical systems. These logical systems can shed light on the structure of ordinary languages and can help distinguishing good reasoning from bad ones. Methods of evaluating reasoning within these systems will also be introduced. To introduce you to other types of critical thinking, including analysis of the meaning of a sentence, recognition of fallacies in daily language, and inductive reasoning. To develop your ability to apply the above knowledge in other subjects and in everyday life.
Intended Learning Outcomes of the Course On completion of the module, students should be able to ILO1. Evaluate formal logical arguments ILO2. Prove logical validity and invalidity with precise logical rules ILO3. Judge the correct application of formal logical methods in daily reasoning ILO4. Evaluate the fallacies of extended argument Syllabus 1. Introduction (I) Relation between inference, arguments, and logic Deductive arguments and inductive arguments Evaluation of these two types of arguments 2. Introduction (II) Structure of an argument Structure of extended argument 3. Categorical Logic (I) Structure of a categorical proposition Types of categorical propositions Traditional square of opposition and other direct inference Existential import of a proposition Venn diagram for categorical propositions 4. Categorical Logic (II) Structure of a standard categorical syllogism Relation between the structure of syllogisms and their validity Venn diagram for categorical syllogisms Translating ordinary language statements into categorical form
The conversion of non-standard syllogisms to standard syllogisms 5. Propositional Logic (I) Logical operators and their truth-table definitions Translations of