À propos de ce cours
4.7
890 ratings
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244 reviews
How to Understand Arguments Think Again: How to Reason and Argue Reasoning is important. This series of four short courses will teach you how to do it well. You will learn simple but vital rules to follow in thinking about any topic at all and common and tempting mistakes to avoid in reasoning. We will discuss how to identify, analyze, and evaluate arguments by other people (including politicians, used car salesmen, and teachers) and how to construct arguments of your own in order to help you decide what to believe or what to do. These skills will be useful in dealing with whatever matters most to you. Courses at a Glance: All four courses in this series are offered through sessions which run every four weeks. We suggest sticking to the weekly schedule to the best of your ability. If for whatever reason you fall behind, feel free to re-enroll in the next session.We also suggest that you start each course close to the beginning of a month in order to increase the number of peers in the discussion forums who are working on the same material as you are. While each course can be taken independently, we suggest you take the four courses in order. Course 1 - Think Again I: How to Understand Arguments Course 2 - Think Again II: How to Reason Deductively Course 3 - Think Again III: How to Reason Inductively Course 4 - Think Again IV: How to Avoid Fallacies About This Course in the Series: When is someone giving an argument instead of just yelling? Which parts of what they say contribute to the argument? Why are they arguing instead of fighting? What are arguments made of? What forms do they take? Think Again: How to Understand Arguments will answer these questions a more. In this course, you will learn what an argument is. The definition of argument will enable students to identify when speakers are giving arguments and when they are not. Next, we will learn how to break an argument into its essential parts, how to put them in order to reveal their connections, and how to fill in gaps in an argument. By the end of this course, students will be better able to understand and appreciate arguments that they and other people present. Suggested Readings: Students who want more detailed explanations or additional exercises or who want to explore these topics in more depth should consult Understanding Arguments: An Introduction to Informal Logic, Ninth Edition, Concise, Chapters 1-5, by Walter Sinnott-Armstrong and Robert Fogelin. Course Format: Each week will be divided into multiple video segments that can be viewed separately or in groups. There will be short ungraded quizzes after each segment (to check comprehension) and a longer graded quiz at the end of the course....
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Beginner Level

Niveau débutant

Clock

Recommandé : 5 hours/week

Approx. 13 heures pour terminer
Comment Dots

English

Sous-titres : English, Chinese (Simplified), Italian, Portuguese (Brazilian), German, Spanish, Romanian

Compétences que vous acquerrez

EvaluationLanguageInterpretationLinguistics
Globe

Cours en ligne à 100 %

Commencez dès maintenant et apprenez aux horaires qui vous conviennent.
Calendar

Dates limites flexibles

Réinitialisez les dates limites selon votre disponibilité.
Beginner Level

Niveau débutant

Clock

Recommandé : 5 hours/week

Approx. 13 heures pour terminer
Comment Dots

English

Sous-titres : English, Chinese (Simplified), Italian, Portuguese (Brazilian), German, Spanish, Romanian

Programme du cours : ce que vous apprendrez dans ce cours

1

Section
Clock
15 minutes pour terminer

Welcome to the Course

Welcome to Think Again: How to Understand Arguments. This course is the first in a series of four courses jointly titled Think Again: How to Reason and Argue. We are excited that you are taking this course, and we hope that you will stick around for all four courses in the series, because there is a great deal of important material to learn. In the series as a whole, you will learn how to analyze and evaluate arguments and how to avoid common mistakes in reasoning. These important skills will be useful to you in deciding what to believe and what to do in all areas of your life. We will also have plenty of fun. The first part of this course introduces the series and the course. It also clarifies some peculiarities you may find with this course. We encourage you to watch the "Introduction to the Course" video first as it will help you learn more from the materials that come later. ...
Reading
1 vidéo (Total 5 min), 1 lecture
Video1 vidéo
Introduction to the Course4 min
Reading1 lecture
Course Logistics (Start Here)10 min
Clock
5 heures pour terminer

How to Spot an Argument

CONTENT: In this week's material we will teach you how to identify arguments as opposed to abuse . We will define what an argument is, distinguish various purposes for which arguments are given (including persuasion, justification, and explanation), and discuss the material out of which arguments are made (language). The last three lectures this week are optional, but they are recommended for advanced students. LEARNING OUTCOMES: By the end of this week’s material, you will be able to :<ul> <li>define what an argument is</li><li>pull arguments out of larger texts</li><li>distinguish various purposes of arguments</li></ul></p><p><b>OPTIONAL READING</b>: If you want more examples or more detailed discussions of these topics, we recommend <em>Understanding Arguments, Ninth Edition</em>, Chapters 1-2.</p> ...
Reading
10 vidéos (Total 101 min), 10 quiz
Video10 vidéos
Why Arguments Matter7 min
What Is an Argument?7 min
What are Arguments Used For? Justification5 min
Strong Arguments Don't Always Persuade Everyone8 min
What Else are Arguments Used For? Explanation13 min
What are Arguments Made Of? Language14 min
Meaning9 min
Linguistic Acts7 min
Speech Acts9 min
Conversational Acts17 min
Quiz10 exercices pour s'entraîner
Why Arguments Matter6 min
What Is an Argument?20 min
What are Arguments Used For? Justification8 min
Strong Arguments Don't Always Persuade Everyone10 min
What Else are Arguments Used For? Explanation16 min
What are Arguments Made Of? Language8 min
Meaning12 min
Linguistic Acts8 min
Speech Acts24 min
Conversational Acts18 min

2

Section
Clock
5 heures pour terminer

How to Untangle an Argument

<p><b>CONTENT</b>: This week’s material will focus on the special language in which arguments are formulated. We will investigate the functions of particular words, including premise and conclusion markers plus assuring, guarding, discounting, and evaluative terms. Identifying these words will enable students to separate arguments from the irrelevant verbiage that surrounds it and then to break the argument into parts and to identify what each part of an argument is doing. The lectures end with a detailed example that uses these tools to closely analyze an op-ed from a newspaper. <p><b>LEARNING OUTCOMES</b>: By the end of this week’s material, you will be able to:<ul> <li>understand three levels of meaning</li> <li>identify argument markers</li></ul><p><b>OPTIONAL READING</b>: If you want more examples or more detailed discussions of these topics, we recommend <em>Understanding Arguments, Ninth Edition</em>, Chapters 3-4. </p>...
Reading
10 vidéos (Total 130 min), 9 quiz
Video10 vidéos
Argument Markers12 min
Standard Form3 min
A Problem for Arguments12 min
Assuring14 min
Guarding8 min
Discounting10 min
Evaluation17 min
Close Analysis (Part I)20 min
Close Analysis (Part II)13 min
More Close Analysis17 min
Quiz9 exercices pour s'entraîner
Argument Markers22 min
Standard Form12 min
A Problem for Arguments4 min
Assuring10 min
Guarding10 min
Discounting10 min
Evaluation14 min
Close Analysis (Part II)20 min
More Close Analysis20 min

3

Section
Clock
5 heures pour terminer

How to Reconstruct an Argument

<p><b>CONTENT</b>: This week’s material will teach you how to organize the parts of an argument in order to show how they fit into a structure of reasoning. The goal is to make the argument look as good as possible so that you can learn from it. We work through the main steps of reconstruction, including putting the premises and conclusion into a standard form, clarifying the premises and breaking them into parts, arranging the argument into stages or sub-arguments, adding suppressed premises where needed to make the argument valid, and assessing the argument for soundness. The lectures begin by defining the crucial notions of validity, soundness, and standard form. You will also learn to diagram alternative argument structures, including linear, branching, and joint structures. <p><b>LEARNING OUTCOMES</b>: By the end of this week’s material, you will be able to:<ul> <li>label assuring, guarding, discounting, and evaluative terms</li> <li>determine whether an argument is valid or sound</li> <li>complete arguments by adding suppressed premises</li> <li>reconstruct arguments by and series of arguments</li> <li>classify argument structures</li></ul><p><b>OPTIONAL READING</b>: If you want more examples or more detailed discussions of these topics, we recommend <em>Understanding Arguments, Ninth Edition</em>, Chapter 5. ...
Reading
11 vidéos (Total 150 min), 9 quiz
Video11 vidéos
Validity26 min
Soundness4 min
Get Down to Basics21 min
Sharpen Edges17 min
Organize Parts14 min
A Student Example: A Debate About Smartphones in Class11 min
Fill in Gaps22 min
Conclude2 min
An Example of Reconstruction (Part I)9 min
An Example of Reconstruction (Part II)9 min
An Example of Reconstruction (Part III)10 min
Quiz9 exercices pour s'entraîner
Validity22 min
Soundness (Part I)8 min
Soundness (Part II)6 min
Get Down to Basics14 min
Sharpen Edges10 min
Organize Parts16 min
Fill in Gaps10 min
Conclude6 min
An Example of Reconstruction8 min

4

Section
Clock
1 heure pour terminer

Catch-Up and Final Quiz

<p>This week gives you time to catch up and review, because we realize that the previous weeks include a great deal of challenging material. It will also be provide enough time to take the final quiz as often as you want, with different questions each time. </p><p>We explain the answers in each exam so that you can learn more and do better when you try the exam again. You may take the quiz as many times as you want in order to learn more and do better, with different questions each time. You will be able to retake the quiz three times every eight hours. You might not need to take more than one version of the exam if you do well enough on your first try. That is up to you. However many versions you take, we hope that all of the exams will provide additional learning experiences. </p>...
Reading
1 quiz
Quiz1 exercice pour s'entraîner
Final Quiz min
4.7
Briefcase

83%

a bénéficié d'un avantage concret dans sa carrière grâce à ce cours

Meilleurs avis

par FY•Jul 6th 2018

I found this course very challenging as I find critical thinking very difficult. However this course was extremely rewarding and I will be taking the other three modules in the Think Again series.

par RH•Feb 16th 2017

This is a very very engaging and applicable course, and is truly presented with 10/10 efficacy! I couldn't be more sincere and adamant in my recommendation, no matter who you are or what you do.

Enseignants

Dr. Walter Sinnott-Armstrong

Professor
Philosophy

Dr. Ram Neta

Professor
Philosophy

À propos de Duke University

Duke University has about 13,000 undergraduate and graduate students and a world-class faculty helping to expand the frontiers of knowledge. The university has a strong commitment to applying knowledge in service to society, both near its North Carolina campus and around the world....

Foire Aux Questions

  • Once you enroll for a Certificate, you’ll have access to all videos, quizzes, and programming assignments (if applicable). Peer review assignments can only be submitted and reviewed once your session has begun. If you choose to explore the course without purchasing, you may not be able to access certain assignments.

  • When you purchase a Certificate you get access to all course materials, including graded assignments. Upon completing the course, your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.

  • How to respond if someone says that you would have to be a fool to disagree with them.

  • 
“I'd like to thank both professors for the course. It was fun, instructive, and I loved the input from people from all over the world, with their different views and backgrounds.”



    “Somewhere in the first couple weeks of the course, I was ruminating over some concept or perhaps over one of the homework exercises and suddenly it occurred to me, "'Is this what thinking is?" Just to clarify, I come from a thinking family and have thought a lot about various concepts and issues throughout my life and career...but somehow I realized that, even though I seemed to be thinking all the time, I hadn't been doing this type of thinking for quite some time...so, thanks!”

    “The rapport between Dr. Sinott-Armstrong and Dr. Neta and their senses of humor made the lectures engaging and enjoyable. Their passion for the subject was apparent and they were patient and thorough in their explanations.”



  • No. Completion of a Coursera course does not earn you academic credit from Duke; therefore, Duke is not able to provide you with a university transcript. However, your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile.

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