How To Teach a Healthy Dose of Skepticism?

c0d3h4x0r writes "It's no accident that 'whatcouldpossiblygowrong' is one of the most common tags applied by this community to stories about proposed ideas or laws. The ability to spot and predict faults is a big part of what makes a great engineer. It starts with having a healthy skepticism about the world, which leads to actual critical thinking. Many books and courses teach critical thinking skills, but what is the best way to encourage and teach someone to maintain a healthy dose of skepticism? Is it even a teachable skill, or is it just an innate part of the geek personality?"

Comments

Step 1

[seanellis]

Subscribe to the "The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe" podcast.

Re:Fail a lot?

[SputnikPanic]

Oh, and I would recommend reading 'Why People Believe Weird Things' by Michael Shermer. The Demon-Haunted World by Carl Sagan is another good one.

Carl Sagan

[GreggBz]

The best book I ever read on this subject is here.

This book gives you a deep fundamental understanding of science and the scientific method. The chapters focus on debunking a variety of outrageous pseudoscience. Ideas from UFOs to conspiracy theories to the Lost City of Atlantis are swept away by convincing arguments. Once you read enough of this, the higher meaning presents itself. Don't let the nonsense comfort you falsely. Be skeptical and trust in science. It is the most reliable methodology for getting to the truth.

Few books really changed my outlook in life. This is one of them. Read the reviews at Amazon. You will see I'm not alone. For me, in this crazy world, science really has become a candle in the dark.

Here be Dragons - video on critical thinking

[somegeekynick]

This was posted at the BadAstronomy.com blog a couple of days ago.

[Sceptic] Brian Dunning has put together a video on how to think critically. Itâ(TM)s called Here Be Dragons, and itâ(TM)s a pretty good primer into how to think. Itâ(TM)s about 40 minutes long, and free to use (with some caveats; see the site). I think this would do well in a classroom. Any teachers out there? I know itâ(TM)s too late for most school sessions, but you can download the movie (and a high-res version too) and keep it handy for the next year. http://www.badastronomy.com/bablog/2008/06/11/here-be-dragons/

it's all about the sources

[pm_rat_poison]

Provide a lot of sources. Always teach both sides of the argument. Prefer primary sources than commented material and leave critical analysis to yourself / your students.
Spend sometime understanding the argumentative process and teach / learn how to identify bad arguments. http://www.nizkor.org/features/fallacies/
I only know one thing: That I know nothing. (brought to you by Socrates
You have two ears and one mouth. Listen twice, speak once
The basic meaning is to teach / learn that no matter how much you know and you've studied, you should always treat yourself as if you know nothing. In a sense, you always do.

Re:Fail a lot?

[TakeyMcTaker]

While we're listing books, I have to add 'The God Delusion' by Richard Dawkins.

I have to admit, I was leaning already, but this book is really the best call to arms to Agnostics, to become full-fledged Atheists, that I have read so far. He does things like establish why all God theories are either statistically improbable in the absurd, or just useless circular logic. He establishes why other far-fetched theories, like intelligent life in other parts of the Universe, are statistically probable, especially in comparison. Even if you don't like the way he writes, it's full of references to other great books, writers, and ideas -- he liberally references other great writers like Douglas Adams and Carl Sagan. In general, Richard Dawkins offers a unique and interesting view of history, and the bibliography makes a great reading list, no matter which way your religious leanings sway.

Re:Since you brought up religion ...

[Coryoth]

Perhaps someday we can figure out why (or if) prayer works -- is it quantum mechanics? What if it turned out that thinking positive thoughts about someone affected their life even if you never told them or interacted with them? (That's spooky action at a distance. :-) Well there have been a few double blind studies on the effectiveness of prayer in medical cases. The results were that prayer made no difference whatsoever (I seem to recall there was a very slight (not statistically significant) bias for patients who had people praying for them, and knew people were praying for them, to do worse). So how does prayer work? Currently all the evidence we have says that it doesn't.

How old?

[mollog]

Wow, that must have been ages ago. How old are you?

I'm 55. I went to elementary school in NYC and its northern suburbs.