PHIL 252 is designed to improve a student's ability to analyse and evaluate the kinds of arguments and theories commonly met with in everyday life. The course also helps students improve their own arguments and presentations by showing them how to draw sound conclusions from available evidence and how to construct well-reasoned cases to support these conclusions.
Although the course focuses on the informal logic of everyday language, it includes some training in elementary formal logic. Students are taught how to apply fundamental rules and standards of logical reasoning to the sorts of arguments encountered in newspapers, magazines and other media, and university-level textbooks in most fields.
Outline
Unit 1: Introduction: The Language of Argumentation
Unit 2: Analyzing Arguments: Content and Structure
Unit 3: Evaluating Arguments: Validity, Soundness, and Problems of Interpretation
Unit 4: Syllogistic Reasoning
Unit 5: Common Fallacies of Reasoning
Unit 6: Nondeductive Arguments
Unit 7: The Use and Misuse of Statistics
Unit 8: Explanations and Empirical Theories
Unit 9: Conceptual Theories and Definitions
Unit 10: Writing a Short Critical Essay
Evaluation
To receive credit you must complete and submit all of the assignments and write the final exam. You must achieve an overall grade of at least D (50 percent) for the course. Your final grade in the course will be based on the marks achieved for the following activities.
Activity
Weight
Assignment 1
20%
Assignment 2
25%
Critical Essay
25%
Final Exam
30%
Total
100%
The final examination for this course must be requested in advance and written under the supervision of an AU-approved exam invigilator. Invigilators include either ProctorU or an approved in-person invigilation centre that can accommodate online exams. Students are responsible for payment of any invigilation fees. Information on exam request deadlines, invigilators, and other exam-related questions, can be found at the Exams and grades section of the Calendar.
To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University’s online Calendar.
Materials
Cederblom, Jerry, and David W. Paulsen. Critical Reasoning: Understanding and Criticizing Arguments and Theories. 7th ed. Boston, MA: Wadsworth, 2012. (PDF) (PDF)
Other Materials
Students will access all other course materials online.
Challenge for credit
Overview
The challenge for credit process allows you to demonstrate that you have acquired a command of the general subject matter, knowledge, intellectual and/or other skills that would normally be found in a university-level course.
Full information about challenge for credit can be found in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Evaluation
To receive credit for the PHIL 252 challenge registration, you must complete the two parts of the challenge exam and achieve a grade of at least D (50 percent) on both parts.
Athabasca University reserves the right to amend course outlines occasionally and without notice. Courses offered by other delivery methods may vary from their individualized study counterparts.