Phil 109

Introduction to Critical Thinking
PHIL 109
Spring 2021
Instructor: John Stigall

Virtual Office Hours: by appointment anytime between 9am and 3:30pm on weekdays
Email: john.stigall@morgan.edu
Textbook
The Art of Reasoning, 5th Edition, David Kelley
Course Description
The aim of this course is to equip students with the tools needed to identify, construct, and
evaluate arguments. This course is about the language of arguments, the difference between
arguments intended to guarantee their conclusions and arguments intended to show that their
conclusions are probable given the premises, reconstructing arguments from ordinary language,
and evaluating arguments. By the end of this course, students should be able to not only evaluate
arguments that are presented to them, but also be able to effectively construct their own
arguments.
Assignments
Online Assignments (40% of Grade)
Assignments are due 11:59pm at the end of the week
3 Exams (30% of grade)
Exams are timed, open book, open note, and due at the end of the week
2 Essays + 1 Discussion Assignment (30% of grade)
Late essays carry a 5-point penalty for each day late
Course Schedule
Week 1: Introducing Arguments
Feb 1-Feb 5
Week 2: Language and Reasoning
Feb 8-Feb 12
Feb 15-Feb 19
Feb 22-Feb 26
Week 5: Practice Week
Mar 1-Mar 5
Mar 1: Wellness and Reading Day
Week 6: Review and Exam
Mar 8-Mar 12
Mar 12 11:59pm – Exam 1 Due
Mar 12 11:59pm – Essay 1 Due
Week 7: Deductive Arguments
Mar 15-Mar 19
Mar 22-Mar 26
Mar 29-Apr 2
Apr 1: Wellness and Reading Day
Apr 5-Apr 9
Apr 9: Wellness and Reading Day
Week 11: Review
Apr 12-Apr 16
Apr 16 11:59pm – Exam 2 Due
Apr 16 11:59pm – Essay 2 Due
Week 12: Inductive Arguments
Apr 19-Apr 23
Week 13: Inductive Arguments
Apr 26-Apr 30
May 3-May 7
Week 15: Review
May 10- May 14
May 14 11:59pm – Exam 3 Due
May 14 11:59pm – Discussion Assignment Due
Grading Scale
90+ A
80-89 B
70-79 C
60-69 D
0-59 F
Policy on Incompletes:
INCOMPLETES MAY ONLY BE GRANTED TO STUDENTS WHO HAVE COMPLETED AT

LEAST 75% OF A GIVEN COURSE’S CONTENT AND HAVE A PASSING AVERAGE AT THE
TIME OF THE REQUEST.
Students with Disabilities

Morgan State University is committed to providing barrier-free education to disabled
individuals and is actively working to bring its facilities and programs into full compliance
with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Prospective students, as well as students
who are currently enrolled and have exceptional learning/physical disabilities, are urged to
contact the Counseling Center before registering for classes. Special assistance will be given
to students with specific needs such as special registration, reader services, specialized
equipment, note-takers, sign language interpreters or other arrangements to aid in
removing or circumventing architectural, social or procedural barriers.
SERVICES FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

The Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) provides and coordinates services
to students with disabilities. The SSD program is designed to help ensure that students with
disabilities have equal access to University programs and to help provide an environment in
which they can be successful while enrolled at Morgan.
Morgan State University is committed to providing barrier-free education to individuals
with disabilities and actively works to have its facilities and programs in full compliance
with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Action of 1973. Prospective or currently enrolled
students who have learning, mental or physical disabilities should contact the SSD
Coordinator before registering for classes. Accommodations, which may include special
registration, reader services, specialized equipment, note takers, sign language
interpreters, or other arrangements to aid in removing or circumventing architectural,
social, or procedural barriers, may be available to assist students with disabilities.
Academic Honesty
The viability of any community depends upon the members adhering to certain values. In
particular with academic communities, academic honesty is an imperative. Any breech of
this imperative carries rather severe penalties. Any student who plagiarizes, copies, or
otherwise passes the ideas of another off as his/her own will suffer the following
punishment(s): failure on the assignment with no opportunity to make up the assignment
and notification of the Dean of the student’s academic unit and the Vice President for
Academic Affairs or failure of the course with recommendation to the Vice President for
Academic Affairs that the student be dismissed from the University. This policy is written
under the assumption that you have fulfilled the first requirement of the course,
which is to watch the tutorials on plagiarism posted on Blackboard.
CLA Policy on Academic Dishonesty
• Because ours is a community of scholars, the College of Liberal Arts regards
academic dishonesty as a serious offense. Academic dishonesty (plagiarism) is an
act in which a student claims the work of another (without authorization,
attribution, or citation) as his/her own. This includes and is not limited to written,
oral, videotape, audiotape, photograph, or website sources. It is, in fact, a form of
stealing.
• A student may not use a direct quote, a paraphrase of another’s idea, or substantive
ideas without providing credit for the source of information. Plagiarism even
extends to submitting the same paper or portions of a paper previously written for
two different assignments.
• If an instructor suspects a student of plagiarizing, the instructor may discuss his
concerns with the student first because often plagiarism results from carelessness.
The student is then advised or reminded of strategies that safeguard against
plagiarism.
• If the plagiarism is substantial, the instructor may fail the student, or report the case
to the Chair of the Department. In consultation with the Chair of the Department, the
instructor may elect to refer the incident to the Departmental Student Faculty
Adjudication Committee.
6. Other Relevant Sanctions. In addition to the penalties described above, other sanctions
may be imposed, such as, but not limited to, restitution, campus or community service,
special projects, and special educational requirements.
III. ACADEMIC APPEAL PROCESS
The academic appeals process shall apply to any dispute concerning a student’s academic
standing at the University including, but not limited to, disputes over grades as well as
allegations of academic dishonesty.
The academic appeal process requires that
(1) Students be given adequate notice of any offense of academic dishonesty with which
they are charged; and
(2) That students be given an opportunity to be heard by the Dean (or the Dean’s
designee) of the college or school in which the offense is alleged to have occurred.
The Deans have the authority to set dispute resolution and appeal procedures for their
respective academic divisions provided that any penalty imposed by (or approved by) the
Dean shall be based on evidence collected and recorded by the faculty, the Chairperson,
and/or the Dean. Students who feel that they have been treated unfairly in the award of a
grade or in the imposition of a penalty for committing an act of academic dishonesty have a
right to use the academic appeal process at the University. A student shall first address the
matter of the academic dishonesty, the grade, and/or any other academic penalty or issue
with the faculty member who accused the student and/or assigned the grade and/or
imposed or initiated the penalty. Second, if the dispute is not resolved in conversations)
with the faculty member, the student shall next address the matter with the Chairperson of
the department in which the course is taught. The Chairperson shall investigate the matter
thoroughly; make a record of the relevant evidence; and make a determination about the
appropriateness of the accusation, the grade, or the penalty imposed on the student. The
Dean of the school or college in which the student’s major is located shall be notified of the
academic dishonesty and of the proposed penalty by the Dean of the school or college in
which the academic dishonesty occurred. Finally, if the matter is still in dispute following
the investigation and determination by the Chairperson, the student has a right to appeal to
the Dean (or the Dean’s designee) of the school or college in which the dispute arose. In
matters where the student is suspended, expelled, or where the student’s degree or
certification is revoked, students may request a right to a final appeal by writing to
the Vice President for Academic Affairs.

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Phil 109

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Introduction to Critical Thinking

Instructor: John Stigall

INCOMPLETES MAY ONLY BE GRANTED TO STUDENTS WHO HAVE COMPLETED AT

Students with Disabilities

SERVICES FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

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