Five simple strategies to sharpen your critical thinking | BBC Ideas

Is the sky really blue? That might seem obvious. But sometimes things are more nuanced and complicated than you think. Here are five strategies to boost your critical thinking skills.
Animated by Ana Stefaniak. Made in partnership with The Open University.
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#bbcideas #criticalthinking #trainyourbrain

[@bbcideas]

Are you watching this video whilst doing other things? Here's what goes on in our brains when we're multitasking and why (mostly) multitasking doesn't work 👉kzbin.info/www/bejne/qn7Mqq2rhJakg9U

[@neology81]

The BBC teaching critical thinking! Oh the irony!

[@lithiumgaurd]

What do you mean?

[@Showmetheevidence-]

😂😂

[@jr5389]

👌😂😂😂 That’s what my Caveman Brain 🧠 Said as SOON as I saw 👀 bBc …..🤪Beam me up Scotty 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿😎

[@fikrutsegaye2803]

U r not critically thinking 😅

[@sarahsmithpsychic1492]

😂😂😂

[@hiromimaeda1526]

1.Beware of confirmation bias -much more likely to accept information that we already know -actively prepared to change your mind 2.Embrace nuance and complexity -something that seems self-evident can be more nuanced than you think 3.Practice intellectual humility -try to understand other person perspectives 4.Check your sources -lookout of ulterior motive/vested interest 5.Avoid fallacies -straw man fallacy,ad hominem fallacy

[@remispillstea]

Ty! This summary is pretty helpful. :D

[@anigrapixravi]

Thanks

[@M15TER_Turtlee]

Bro you saved my life, I hope you get a free happy meal

[@sereneanna4040]

@@M15TER_Turtlee 🤣

[@sereneanna4040]

Tks for e effort

[@matthewleitch1]

This video seems to have been liked and appreciated by many people. Perhaps more BBC staff involved in news reporting should watch it.

[@alexanderkane3960]

Science itself dulls critical thinking. Have you ever considered that?? We are supposed to believe that they have all the answers? Think about what peer review means. Only a few selected people can prove or disprove any theories or scientific findings! Confirmation bias at its best right there 😂

[@letsfight9472]

Your journalists need this the most.

[@boyeliza]

😁🤌👍

[@Fanny_Snuffle]

And Channel Four.

[@cathahleipar1052]

and your comment is a great example of ad hominem attack

[@TheTimeweaver]

I find this ironic coming from the BBC.

[@n.a.larson9161]

You've identified your bias against the BBC. Now what?

[@curiouslyunruffled]

This is indeed a valuable, brilliantly-articulated compilation on how to promote critical thinking. I truly appreciate this channel's range of content! :)

[@bbcideas]

Thanks very much 😊 we're so glad you're enjoying our films!

[@khalsa7474]

@@bbcideas same here , keep posting

[@curiouslyunruffled]

@CanUDraw Thank you and yes, I try to. :)

[@SuccessAttractionMindset]

This video perfectly breaks down complex ideas into simple, digestible strategies. I especially loved the part about intellectual empathy and avoiding fallacies. So relevant in today’s world! 👏

[@MrFossil367ab45gfyth]

Nice, we need critical thinking, especially in today's world. Here are a few more steps: 1. Be tolerant. 2. Consider the feelings of others and yourself. 3. Ask questions. 4. Be skeptical, yet be open-minded. 5. Understand others' views, even if you don't agree. 6. Do research. 7. Don't jump to conclusions. 8. Always be curious.

[@mstarr4812]

Why should we be all tolerant and fuzzy? Many bad times in history needed a stronger approach- I think misinformed online perceptions are often dangerous, need confronting, big time.

[@AzirSu]

Yes, that's great admonition and education for us to learn and remember. Sometimes, we need to be a little bit serious and decisive for getting better.@@mstarr4812

[@AzirSu]

but sometimes we also need to be tolerant, esp. when the things have ambiguous and extremely complex characteristics or aspects.😃@@mstarr4812

[@Zett76]

What does „be tolerant“ mean? It‘s far too unspecific.

[@ellisholmes5423]

Friend, you are a friend :)

[@arghyachakraborty]

Wow! Such clear explanations. Thank you for everything. ❤️ [PS ~ I just made some notes from this video to share with my students.]

[@ilqrd.6608]

BBC would do right remembering their own lessons here….

[@prasadbakare392]

not understood , it was fast

[@VasanthKumar-bf9je]

Same here

[@alienonion4636]

One thing I do that has served me well is when listening, reading, watching a video is when finding myself biased more than a bit is to reread as if I'd never heard of the subject before, as if I have no opinion about it. Most times I do find that if I have the desire to persue the topic to learn as much as I can or at least as many different opinions that I can find whatever opinion I did have prior to this changes.

[@cosmiccapers6260]

Oh boy, The BBC news could take .e lessons or two from this video when reporting to the nation!!!

[@live_monkey2485]

I was just thinking this. The BBC's very 'selective' reporting... their interviewers could learn a lot from this too.

[@TheSoulBlossom]

haha so true!

[@OfficialSonOfRock]

Critical thinking is good - especially when applied to the modern narrative of sensitive topics.

[@clydecessna737]

This is hysterical coming from the BBC who's entire raison d'etre was to fuzzy the thinking of the British people.

[@markchapman3811]

Thanks, it is a great video. However, I would like to see a summary part in the final part of the video, it would be better to remember main points again shortly.

[@mellow-jello]

Use the art of thinking clearly. Be skeptical. Have it read aloud. Respect the source. Dialogue is more valuable than essays.

[@JebadiaSmith]

Why use critical thinking when all the advice KZbin seems to give is to "Stop over thinking".. I'm getting mixed messages here...

[@amosus4716]

i like the munkis

[@oppertunist-trader]

This is garbeg. Trust me if you don't follow this, you will have better critical thinking. Critical thinking is all about having a better reason for your believes? So always ask questions and varify if the argument and conclusion is valid and rught or not.

[@simone222]

A much needed skill esp. in these times. Thank you, as always, BBC Ideas. Your videos are very useful and brilliant.

[@TheSoulBlossom]

and you got a heart because you agreed with their views! Haha!

[@Cat_in_Spacetime]

@@TheSoulBlossom man of culture

[@judysalem-ht2gw]

00:34 Strategies to navigate through and avoid falling out with people 01:08 Confirmation bias affects our ability to process information. 01:42 Be prepared to change your mind 02:16 Critical thinking involves being open to new perspectives 02:50 Practicing intellectual empathy leads to more productive outcomes. 03:24 Knowing the source of information is crucial for critical thinking. 03:58 Avoid straw man and ad hominem fallacies in critical thinking. 04:30 Critical thinking leads to a more curious, educated, and harmonious society.

[@dmitriydkoshelk9179]

You guys are truly awesome. Have a good day!

[@dmitriydkoshelk9179]

I would advice to combine somehow this product with BBC English Learning and provide some vocabulary explanations. This can seriously boost your audience. I am getting a lot of good information from your videos, as well as brushing up my English.

[@bbcideas]

We're glad to hear that you're brushing up on your English as well as learning something new from our videos. And who knows, perhaps in the future we'll be able to collaborate on a project with our colleagues from BBC Learning English 👍

[@kepspark3362]

What!? Critical thinking is way more fun in my case at least. I enjoy learning how i was wrong this whole time so that I get to actually improve.

[@shruthiswaminathan2907]

Best video ever. Such thoughtful animations and sound effects - that add to/ clarify/ deepen the message quite beautifully. The content is presented in a succinct and straightforward manner. Kudos.

[@bbcideas]

Thank you Shruthi for such a great feedback! 😊

[@dustyk103]

“Sealioning?” Don’t you mean trolling? Critical thinking requires knowledge of a subject that most people lack. Believing you know science because sometimes tells you they’re a scientist often leads to failure. Beware more of liars. They are far more prevalent than you think.

[@muhammadsaraqa]

Her: What color is the sky? My brain: ay mi amor ay mi amor

[@emmajk7433]

I really needed to watch this. Thank you!

[@OfficialSonOfRock]

The best, and most important information is banned.

[@Cat_in_Spacetime]

Hard to control The Subconscious and Emotions. Or is it? (Vsauce music starts playing in the background)

[@johnrun712]

Don't watch the bbc or other media will help.

[@gizmomac1520]

Came here because of toxic social media. You encourage people to be skeptical and ask questions, but they think that you want them to treat you nicely. No, its called facing the facts. No emotions or feelings. And they dont want to question. Aye

[@MirlitronOne]

"The colour blue has a short wavelength, meaning it scatters more than other colours [TRUE] making it more visible to the human eye [NONSENSE]." Strategy five - AVOID FALLACIES.

[@TheSoulBlossom]

Hearting comments which only say nice things about this video. Good job BBC ideas!

[@iamluckyjames_]

This is a very helpful guide on been able to think critically. Thank you very much for sharing and I'll put these five tips to such as I live my day-to-day life.

[@thevoiceasian]

Brilliant by all means. However I wonder why such critical thinking is not applied in British War reporting. Unfortunate amount of information biased is evident. Sadly people will start to loose faith on such media outlets on the long run.

[@DBlockn05]

I learned most of this when I took philosophy in college...I wish more people took philosophy, it's way deeper than most of us believe it is.

[@SilentReports]

Thanks, but critically thinking your very last statement re critical thinking skills lead to understanding. Or maybe they increase the vicious responses by your opponent to match your skills of telling them so.

[@johnsmith-ht3sy]

I sharpened my critical thinking by no longer watching the toxic BBC and cancelled my license.

[@kenmakazome1140]

Wdym?

[@kennethduryea1478]

Lucky you. Here in Germany we can't cancel the license, even if we never watch ARD or ZDF.

[@genekendrick679]

😂😂

[@easilydistracted1397]

The license fee for the BBC is an absolute bargain. Toxic - I think not.

[@johnsmith-ht3sy]

@@easilydistracted1397 Only BBC staff think that, grifter job.

[@ChieuTran-s7s]

Improving critical thinking is much more vital. I should take tong time to develop this skill. I should have the view from several angles may save me from troubles. Many times in my life, the situation is not look like my images, I often give some wrong solutions.

[@NeilMalthus]

Surely, they missed the most obvious and most important tip? Ask questions - lots of them, all in some way related to the thing on your mind. Try to find correct answers / honest opinions.

[@saidielhoussaine8007]

Stop media Clean yr subconscious mind Eat healthy Meditate Motivate yr self Humour Exercice

[@kathleensmith644]

Learn how to spell ‘YOUR’.

[@dimitrovajunkie]

Isn't the claim at the end that critical thinking will lead to a "more curious, educated, and harmonious society" itself an unproven claim that should be questioned and tested? Okay, being open-minded could equate with curiosity and perhaps critical thinking will help with that, but this appears to be something to be taken on faith and not provable by any standards of epistemological validity such as a priori or a posteriori reasoning. I suppose curious in the interest of finding out whether or not a particular argument is sound and valid might be plausible, but this seems rather limited. I don't see how it will lead to a broader form of curiosity. Claim #2--"more educated." Ah, the formal education appeal. I've met plenty of so-called "educated" people who more often than not used their education to support whatever argument they were trying to make. In other words, the outcome had been pre-determined. They knew all the words to say, what postures to take, and how to frame their argument to make it appear above reproach. Their prejudices and assumptions were very much below obvious notice. Educated in a minor sense of being more knowledgeable seems a safer claim to make, although the stakes seem rather low. We need to define what we mean by educated and to determine if this is something that is even testable. And lastly, a harmonious society. This one I have the hardest time agreeing with. It seems to assume that just by adopting a more critical approach to life's problems, the end result will be humanity being miraculously absolved of human self-interest and all the baser passions that whether we like it or not tend to rule our existence, and that our biological programming will somehow be overcome. So could the problems in Ukraine and Gaza have been avoided if both sides had been critical thinkers? Seems naive. In fact, I would venture to say that those in power might actually be hostile to critical thinking if it went against their objectives. This is why the intellectual class is so often under duress in totalitarian states. Harmonious indeed.

[@R.A.A.]

4:10 The excessive use of pop art in this video turn it to an LSD trip 🤑

[@armandoguajardo4789]

We need this more on our society

[@yeobo]

be actively prepared to change your mind, beware of confirmation bias something that seems normal can be more nuanced than you think, think of things you know in a broader or more intricate aspect have intellectual empathy, try to understand where another is coming from check your sources ! basics of scientifically methodology

[@Do_not_at_me_bro]

Discernment > critical thinking

[@curtiscarpenter9881]

I think the hard easy effect is something to overcome.

[@themaverick437]

Great Voice ☺️💞

[@lannyplans]

A few distinctions and examples that explains little about critical thinking.

[@TRayTV]

You're wrong. Everybody's wrong, about almost everything, even if only a little. That's just the nature of knowledge. You can only ever hope to be less wrong. But if you're not intentionally seeking your own misunderstanding, your own misguided beliefs, especially those so dearly held, not only are you unlikely to become less wrong it is highly likely you will become more wrong.

[@rohanmajumder8063]

BBC ideas have seriously made my grey cells actually think deep😌..Thank you❤️

[@YvetteDonner]

Misinformation 😁 You can't be this and that, That's impossible!!!

[@atharvagadekar4960]

It really helps in improving my thinking. Thanks for this video

[@stefannikola]

Oprah Winfrey and Barack Hussein Obama need to work on #3.

[@thegovtdoesntcareaboutyou]

Bbc teaches how to critically think😭😭🤣

[@sebastiansantana2447]

Quien mas esta aqui por la clase de HUMA? xD

[@joshuaduca5527]

this maybe a hard way to me to do critical thinking at the beginning you can't solve when your not reading a book and not doing to evaluting the problem math first at all you need all process to your goals read some books and dont lost your hope like note talking reading articles and practicing at math sessions i also do this i got only few right answer but you know im not really good at math 😅😆

[@bailey_y]

What else could be better than the collab of BBC and OU? Do have s'more collab Videos??

[@Runnifier]

The cartoons are extremely distracting. TED videos are equally horrendous.

[@aarone9000]

Once upon a time gradeschool children were taught this; But I guess it didnt bode well for the republicans; so like sooooo many books nowdays; it was eliminated/ banned! And this is a far more useful and benificil thing to learn then algabra!

[@croutardsparrow]

Hello my dear friend! thank you for the cool video! keep filming! I'll wait for new videos

[@carloscornejo7743]

Apply the principles taught here to Global Warming hysteria especially principles 1, 4 and 5 and you will be surprised by the truth.

[@amyj.4992]

It's very important to know where your information comes from for sure and the way the data is presented

[@amyj.4992]

Once you get emotional in your debate, you argument is no longer merit. Learned that on debate team in highschool

[@Uswesi1527]

The most dangerous element of critical thinking is “ The Source of Information “

[@arthurwieczorek4894]

You want to improve your critical thinking skills? Do this simple thing. When you find some statement to think about---reverse it. Restate it in its opposite form. When you first heard that statement you immediately had an intuition about its truth and meaning. When you restate it in its opposite ( in one of its opposites ), you now have a second intuition about that statement.

[@gwarlow]

Now, after watching this BBC video, go and watch the BBC News… compare and contrast!

[@joshuaduca5527]

the important is i can answer the question without understanding the following

[@dd.oliver]

These are great for academia, but not for social life. You should give up on some of them to have a successful social life with your uncle.

[@grantbartley483]

Study logical fallacies. Begging the question is another super common one.

[@Salty0]

No point in being a critical thinker, if the objective is to be tolerate and to keep harmony. That's the job of a politician.

[@gordonokumu1337]

There is so much background noise/music to this video thats just bothering my ability to listen

[@TheAramian]

Skeptically interesting 🤔🧐

[@ericgan7024]

The idiotic British politicians should read this BBC video. Don’t lies to the World

[@hermionegardener3796]

I have never heard the term "sea lioning" perhaps you mean "trolling"?

[@angelina8811]

Fantastic video, thanks!

[@bradchristy5002]

Intellectual empathy certainly a key nicely done

[@apoorvayaduvanshi1226]

An amazing video production!!😍

[@TheSoulBlossom]

And you got a heart because you said something nice to them!

[@apoorvayaduvanshi1226]

@@TheSoulBlossom I appreciate what you said, thank you. I felt that something done so incredibly shouldn't go unappreciated. Take care Marcin, my best wishes.

[@Dismythed]

One of the better videos about improving critical thinking. Your points were all correct, but there are whole lists of biases and fallacies that people should familiarize themselves with. Mentioning a single bias and a few popular fallacies is the bare minimum. In all, I give this an A. It is useful and properly informative.

[@user-zb8hc2im4e]

i'm 14 Tf i doing Here

[@kashifabdullah5453]

So educating. Thank you for this.

[@ameliac7338]

Graphics are hilarious!

[@wonderlandhannah8]

Thanks 😊 it was just grand!!!

[@johnransom1146]

We took critical thinking or logic in grade 13 English. There’s so many more fallacies. Sunk cost fallacy is great for looking at whether to keep a car going. It’s a fallacy to think “I’ve got this much invested in this old car, what’s another repair?” Well, possibly not worth it.

[@anxiousbaddie444]

i love this channel so much

[@clawmango7824]

i just wasted 4 minutes 50 seconds hearing stuff I already heard presidents, teachers, principals lecture kids about in 100 different programs

[@davidsmits2378]

Although in general teachers do a fantastic job, let's think critically and ask the question: how can you be 100% sure that what the teacher teaches you is well meant? The ultimate proof would be if he/she teaches you to think critically and also invites you to think critically about what he/she is teaching you! It is arguably the most friendly and well meant thing that a teacher can do.

[@puddintame7794]

Groupthink is the only way, For a progressive to spend the day, The experts agree, Like a devotee, And in the echo chamber stay.

[@MayankPrasad111]

Ironically its comming from bbc.

[@GregH12345]

Critical thinking ia another term for basic knowledge. Your eternal life is what's critical and people are so self absorbed, they have mo idea there's a God that created them who is willing to save their lives if they worship and follow Him. Or is an eternal heat your thing? If your into the weeping and gnashing of teeth, stay self absorbed. But if love is what you crave, Jesus is the answer for you.

[@alexsidney4796]

Has anyone at the BBC seen this ?

[@ceefar10]

Could someone in the beeb turn back time to December 2019 and show this video to Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak please

[@youwillseemeinothercomment5873]

Thanks for this video Now i can understand BBC's biased propagandas more accurately ❤

[@rajendrakhanvilkar9362]

Great video

[@TheSoulBlossom]

And you got a heart for expressing a view that they like! :)

[@MohdAadilMalik-sj5kd]

If a person already intelligent he is already know these things conciously or sub-conciously which you taught in this video and if a person doesn't have critical thinking this video is gonna support one's fool logic.

[@KudoShinichii1412]

amazing that this was made by BBC, it's like a magician telling the audiance about his tricks before making them amazing stuff

[@johnstopford9633]

Interesting video a few problems, that is mainstream media like BBC is highly questionable when it comes to credibility. Most intelligent individual's would highly question anything coming from Mainstream media or other external sources.