Bard High School Early College – PHIL 103: Introduction to Critical Thinking(Previously SST243

Mar 2026 · 2nd Semester

In this class you will examine the elements of critical thinkingoutside of the confines of a particular discipline. This distilmentallows us to focus on the structure of thinking instead of just asubject's content or various, competing truth claims. Practicallyspeaking, this means that you will gain the ability to identify andevaluate arguments, evaluating deductive arguments in terms ofvalidity and evaluating inductive arguments in terms of strength.You will also learn about errors in reasoning, how to identify them,and how to avoid them. Recognizing and evaluating arguments arecrucial steps to making informed decisions and navigating the socialworld with a sense of agency and responsibility.