This unit assists students to develop skills in argument analysis and development, language analysis (e.g. evaluating the use of analogies), the identification of fallacies, critical thinking and the preparation of critical summaries and analyses of academic texts. These logical and critical thinking skills are basic to tertiary education, and are required for any academic study in the humanities. The unit also introduces and trains students in key academic skills such as paraphrasing, appropriate referencing and using library resources to develop a bibliography for a particular topic.
Unit code: AP8001C
Unit status: Approved (Major revision)
Points: 24.0
Unit level: Postgraduate Foundational
Unit discipline: Philosophy
Proposing College: Catholic Theological College
Show when this unit is running| 1. | Identify and explain the main semantic, rhetorical and logical fallacies studied in the unit |
| 2. | Recognise, analyse and evaluate the formal structure of simple arguments |
| 3. | Plan and compose academic prose in accord with the University of Divinity style guide (or its successor document) that contains a critical analysis of the arguments of both simple and complex academic texts, and assess them in terms of the semantic and rhetorical fallacies studied in the unit |
| 4. | Plan and compose academic prose in accord with the University of Divinity style guide (or its successor document howsoever named) that contains a critical analysis of a piece of academic prose, identifying its presuppositions and conclusions |
| 5. | Propose revisions to an academic text that would improve the quality of its argument and bring it into accord with good academic writing practice and the University of Divinity style guide |
| 6. | Reflect critically on a piece of prose using the academic and critical thinking skills taught in the unit in a critical, rigorous, sustained and self-directed manner |
Lectures, seminars, tutorials. When taught online asynchronously, the tutorial/seminar component may be replaced by guided reading exercises.
| Type | Description | Word count | Weight (%) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Variant 1 | ||||||||
| Report | 4 précis/essay planning exercises given on one week and due the next week on 4 weeks throughout semester, as chosen at start of semester by lecturer and published in the unit guide - 400 words each (1600 words total) |
1600 | 25.0 | |||||
| Short Answer Tests | 3 x logic exercises completed in class - equivalent of 500 words per exercise (1500 words total) |
1500 | 25.0 | |||||
| Essay | 1 x 1500-word essay |
1500 | 25.0 | |||||
| Written Examination | 1 x 1.5-hour written examination (1500 words) |
1500 | 25.0 | |||||
Variant 2 | ||||||||
| Report | 4 précis/essay planning exercises given on one week and due the next week on 4 weeks throughout semester, as chosen at start of semester by lecturer and published in the unit guide - 400 words each (1600 words total) |
1600 | 25.0 | |||||
| Short Answer Tests | 3 x logic exercises provided throughout semester and due the next week on a schedule determined at start of semester and published in the unit guide - equivalent of 500 words per exercise (1500 words total) |
1500 | 25.0 | |||||
| Essay | 1 x 1500-word essay |
1500 | 25.0 | |||||
| Report | Logical and critical thinking exercises (1500 words) |
1500 | 25.0 | |||||
Unit approved for the University of Divinity by Prof Albert Haddad on 28 Jul, 2025
Unit record last updated: 2025-07-28 08:35:57 +1000