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The Critical Edge:
Thinking and Researching in a Virtual Society
First Edition
by Emily Thiroux
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Preface to the Instructor
The World Wide Web has created a considerable change in society's ability to access information. However, effective use of the Internet has not kept up with technological advances. While many new books address specifically how to utilize the Internet and the World Wide Web, most fail to take into account that we are in transition. Most academic research is still being done in conventional libraries, but students gaining access to the Web need a reference to help them use both new and traditional methods to create research projects. They also need to know that just about anyone can post a flashy Web page, and because of this, critical evaluation skills are vital to determine the validity of information on the page as well as its bias.
Studies show that students learn best when they construct meaning based on their experience. Spending hours lost in the Web does not ensure learning; students who learn evaluation and Web researching skills will truly have the necessary tools to do their best writing. The Critical Edge provides the student with help in that transition.
Each chapter of this book can be considered an individual module, so the instructor has great flexibility in planning a course. Some instructors will want to start with the Hypertext chapter; the chapters can be used in any order. The recursiveness of the writing process is reflected in the way the same processes are discussed in different chapters as they relate to the subject of each chapter. For instance, prewriting techniques are used in different ways to discover topics to write about and to prepare for drafting an essay, so they are covered in both sections of the book. Suggestions for possible course plans are located on the Web site for The Critical Edge.
The Critical Edge was created to be used in a variety of classroom settings. While other texts focus on using the World Wide Web and the Internet, this text offers a synthesis of how to use the best and most appropriate methods of thinking, researching, and writing in both the traditional and technological environments. The book can easily be used in a traditional classroom where the students are encouraged to work on computers on their own time outside of class. The Critical Edge also works well in a writing class based in a computer classroom or in an online writing class. Higher education in America is gearing more and more toward the use of technology wherever possible. The combination of writing, researching, and critical thinking is the ideal area to segue into the Information Age using the technology available.
I would like to thank the following reviewers for their insight and comments in the development of this book: Maria Dinchak, Glendale Community College; Jane Tainow Feder, New York City Technical College; Judith E. Funston, SUNY Potsdam; Kevin Griffith, Capital University; Gary Hatch, Brigham Young University; Will Hochman, University of Southern Colorado; Margaret-Rose Marek, Texas Christian University; Teddie McFerrin, Collin County Community College; and Jenni D. Runte, Cardinal Stritch College.
This book would not have been possible without the generosity of Joe Thornton. His technical expertise, vast knowledge, and endless wealth of resources were crucial to the development of the book. Thanks also to Christy Fleetwood-Morgan and Mark Hosman for their contributions, and to my colleagues Mary J. Allen and Solomon Iyasere for their encouragement. I also appreciate the help and support of Abigale Auffant, Jason Thiroux-Ragle, and especially Jacques Thiroux, my favorite ethicist, who contributed significantly to the material on critical thinking in Chapter 3.
Introduction
Researching used to mean endless hours of going through drawers in card catalogs at the library, where you may or may not have been able to find the information you needed. Then you had to deal with lugging heavy books home-and library fines when you couldn't plow through all those pages fast enough. The World Wide Web changed all that, creating a new way for you to access information. We are in a transition phase in which we still rely on books and other print sources for much information, but more is becoming available on the World Wide Web every hour. A student today must learn not only how to use the Web but also how to use all the advanced computerized searches available in libraries. Using The Critical Edge will help you throughout your higher education.
The World Wide Web can be mesmerizing, an easy place to spend a few hours. You need to know, though, that everything there isn't true or valid. Web pages look good, but remember that just about anyone can post anything they wish. Because of this, you need to develop your critical evaluation skills to determine the validity of the sources you discover as well as their biases. The Critical Edge will help you develop these skills. You also need to learn to use the rich resources available through your campus libraries. They offer online searching and CD-ROM databases that as yet are not available on the Web and aren't likely to be in the near future.
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