January 24

The Keys to the Kingdom
There's one advantage to taking this class online--one, I think, that's greater than all the others. You see, we learned from the first trial run of this class. We learned that usually student learning takes place through what happens in the classroom, but that that's not as possible when we do this class online. So, what's needed for online sudents is more support. Well, really, what's needed are some secrets.

I guess I always try and break down the process of expos for my students, but you all are getting that and thensome. You'll be getting the "keys to the kingdom," which is to say that I mean to explain every aspect of this class is nearly mind-numbing detail. No secrets, no mysteries, no questions answered with questions. Instead, you get it all. And right here is when and where it starts.

There's No There, There
One of the first things you need to know about expos is that it is what we like to call a "contentless" course. What we mean by that is that you're not here to learn Pollan or Drucker or anyone else we'll be reading. That's not the point. Instead, all the readings we'll cover are only "stuff" that we can work worth, material we can use for the real goal of this class.

And that goal is critical thinking. Let's face it, in the "real world," you won't ever be asked to write a paper on this or that essay, but you will be expected to make rational decisions, resolve difficult problems, seek innovative solutions, evalute competing alternatives. That's what we're really here to learn: the process of critical thinking.

Go check out the Gradatorium some time. If you look through the grading criteria and the explanation of the criteria you find there, you'll see that at the heart of your success in 101 is critical thinking. Now, we have all sorts of terms to help us talk about this critical thinking, and these are terms I will be introductin you to throughout this semester. For example, we're going to learn about "project," and "action horizon," and "textual reference," and "connection." But keep in mind that behind all these things is critical thinking.

So, let's get into it. The first thing we need to think about when thinking about critical thinking, is the problem.

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