Why: This essay assignment requires you to use the critical thinking standards you learned
about this entire semester. As such it meets six of the learning objectives for PHR 100
Reasoning: (1) identify and summarize the qualities, attitudes, and goals of the critical thinker;
(2) identify, analyze, and evaluate arguments occurring in natural language; (3) demonstrate
knowledge of the principles of good reasoning; (4) detect and identify faulty and fallacious
reasoning; (5) locate, evaluate, and use effectively information from a variety of relevant
sources; (6) produce good arguments, using clear, logical, and concise language, both in
speaking and in writing.
How: You will write an essay in 4 pages, using good standards of critical thinking to evaluate
sources of scientific or medical information on the internet. Here is what is required in your
paper:
1. Find one internet site or article that you consider to be highly reliable in a scientific or
medical field or profession. You MUST explain WHY it is highly reliable using some of
the standards for evaluating experts and science discussed in chapters 7 – 8 and with
reference to the previous chapters as well. Are the experts actually experts in that
subfield? Do they have the right accredited university training? Etc …
2. Find one internet site or article that you consider to be highly unreliable. You MUST
explain WHY it is unreliable using the standards for evaluating experts and science
discussed in chapters 7 – 8 and by appeal to the standards of good reasoning from
earlier chapters—are they fallacies, are there biases on the site, fake news? What
critical thinking standards do they violate?
3. Your essay MUST be well-written, free of grammatical typos and spelling errors. You
must include both internet sources in a List of Works Cited. It should be standard sized
12-point font, double-spaced with normal 1-inch margins without extra spacing between
paragraphs. I also expect you to quote and cite from chapter 7, chapter 8 and at least
one other chapter.
4. You must NOT plagiarize your essay. Plagiarized essays will receive a 0 grade, with
potential for an F in the course and letter sent to Bergen’s Dean of Student Conduct. Do
your own work, think for yourself.
Your Grade: I will grade you on the following scale:
● Proper use of textbook critical thinking standards on the reliable websites: 10 – 40 points
● Proper use of textbook critical thinking standards on the unreliable websites: 10 – 40
points
● Clear effective writing that avoids grammatical and spelling errors: 10 – 20 points.
Given this scale, you can receive a minimum of 30 points and a maximum of 100 points.
Your score corresponds to a letter grade as described in the syllabus.
Concerns about your writing? Go to the writing center, make an online appointment to
meet with a writing tutor and show that tutor your essay AND this assignment sheet.
Write the essay early, edit it frequently.
