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Critical Thinking and the Library: Articles

Learn more about how the library plays a role in developing critical thinking skills.

Databases for Articles

Why First is Not Always Best...

BECAUSE THE QUICKEST ANSWER ISN’T ALWAYS THE BEST ANSWER. Libraries Transform

When we don’t know the answer to a question, our first instinct is often to search online for a quick solution. But the internet contains countless sources of conflicting information, much of which is outdated or incorrect, since there is no governing body patrolling content.* Visiting a library offers you a vast range of resources, tools and the support you need to find your answer: librarians are trained to locate reliable facts based on authoritative evidence.**

*Jaworski, Susan, and Roberta (Robin) Sullivan. “Google’s Evolution Leads to Library Revolution.” Journal of Educational Technology Systems 39, no. 2 (December 2010): 107–18. doi:10.2190/ET.39.2.b.
**The Institute of Museum and Library Services. “Public Libraries in the United States Fiscal Year 2015.”

Journalists Investigate Claims

Investigating the story of a prominent Chinese dissident accused of being a con artist

Read or listen to this story about an example of how journalism sometimes works: a team investigates one story, one narrative, and if they keep an open mind and dig into the facts, they discover the real story is entirely different.

Asking Good Questions

"The way we introduce college students to research fails to encourage the ethical practice of open-ended curiosity so desperately needed in today’s complex information environment."

Read "Principled Uncertainty: Why Learning to Ask Good Questions Matters More than Finding Answers" by Barbara Fister to learn more.

forest trees marked with question marks

Photo by Evan Dennis on Unsplash

BECAUSE THERE’S A STORY BEHIND EVERY HEADLINE.

BECAUSE THERE’S A STORY BEHIND EVERY HEADLINE. Libraries Transform

Libraries are key places to learn from the past and discover the greater context around current issues. Libraries house vast collections of primary sources and historical artifacts, from books to oral histories. In our ever-changing digital world, libraries can connect community members with online archiving services such as Internet Archive and perma.cc, which allow anyone to explore the history of the web. Understanding context is a crucial part of critical thinking, and libraries can help.*

*Banks, Marcus. “Ten Reasons Libraries Are Still Better Than the Internet.” American Libraries, 2017

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