Critical thinking is the ability to think and analyze clearly and rationally regarding the questions raised to assess both the meaning and the significance of claims and arguments (Doyle., 2019). In this way, it enables an individual to have self-evaluation and to make a reasonable judgment.
The class was at 9 am but I went out at 8.20 am. At that time, I was afraid of being late. I was considering what kind of public transports, either bus, train or taxi that I should take. As it takes a distance to walk to the MTR and bus station, I decided to take a taxi to school in hopes of attending school on time. Unexpectedly, I was still late for about 10 minutes at last. In the following, the reasoning strategies that I have used to make the decision in choosing a taxi to school will be discussed. They are compare and contrast, and intuition. Reflection towards the case will also be used for evaluation afterward. The first one will be compare and contrast.
Comparing and contrasting is the process of looking at similarities and differences in order to reveal important characteristics among things that are being compared or contrasted (Rao et al., 2006). Taxi, bus, and MTR in the case are categorized into public transports that I can take to school. However, there are five items in total that are being compared, they are cost, speed, time limits, comfort and direct to the destination. Taking a taxi surpassed the others regarding speed, time limits, comfort and can be direct access to the destination, except the cost is the most expensive. Regarding the speed and time limits, although the bus and MTR can run at a moderate speed, they will stop in every station which may take up the time to school. Besides, taking the bus and MTR cannot reach the destination, the school, directly. When getting off the bus and train, I still need to walk a distance to school. Although the distance I get off from the bus stop is comparatively shorter than the MTR, taking a taxi can be direct access to school. Considering the rush hour, I decided to take a taxi to school regarding speed, time limits, comfort and can be direct to the destination.
The second will be intuition. It is the act of knowing the problem or situation without having to rely explicitly upon analytic reasoning to do so (Cholle., 2011). At that time, I was in a rush, and I thought that there was no other traffic faster than taking a taxi to school. Therefore, I decided to take a taxi to school, hoping that I could attend the class on time. Lastly will be the reflection for evaluating the decision-making. It enables an individual to learn from the experience and to make an improvement next time. In the case, I did not think comprehensively and in details regarding the time phase. At that time, I only focused on the way that I could get earlier to the school by thinking about what kind of public transports was the best choice, instead of considering the time phase at that moment. Yet, it was at a peak hour while I was going to school. Many vehicles are driving on the road during peak hour and traffic congestion is easy to happen. Also, traffic accidents can happen suddenly that it will take up a time to school unexpectedly. Undoubtedly, taking a taxi to school is faster and convenient than other traffic, followed by the bus. However, in regard to the time during a peak hour, it may not be the best in choosing such an option. Although taking MTR will stop in every station and it cannot reach the destination directly, it does not have traffic congestion and arrives at the station on time unless lines are conked out. The risk of taking time up, therefore, can be reduced. Additionally, the cost of taking the MTR is much less expensive than taking a taxi. This helps save the money cost.