The first five lessons in CoRT 2 deal with five common thinking operations. Each of these is made the subject of deliberate attention so that students can use them in an organised manner: asking specific questions and looking for specific answers. The next five lessons deal with the overall organisation of thinking so that it can be used in a deliberate and productive manner. The intention is to treat thinking as an organised operation rather than a discursive ramble in which one thing leads to another. Some of the lessons in the second half refer to processes learned in CoRT 1 (BREADTH) but the lessons can still be used even if CoRT 1 has not been taught, by omitting references to it.
Foreword
Model Lesson Sequence
Lesson Notes - How to Run the Lessons
Standard Lesson Format
Lesson 1: RECOGNISE. The deliberate effort to identify a situation in order to make it easier to understand or to deal with.
Lesson 2: ANALYSE. Two types of analysis. Deliberate dividing up of a situation in order to think about it more effectively.
Lesson 3: COMPARE. Using comparison in order to understand a situation. Examining points of similarity and difference in offered comparisons.
Lesson 4: SELECT. The deliberate effort to find something that fulfills the requirements. Selecting from different possibilities
Lesson 5: FIND OTHER WAYS. The deliberate effort to find alternative ways of looking at things.
Teacher's Notes, Student's Notes (A), Student's Notes (B)
Lesson 6: START. The practical business of starting to think about something. What is the first thing to do?
Lesson 7: ORGANISE. The practical business of organising the way a situation is to be tackled.
Lesson 8: FOCUS. Looking at different aspects of a situation, especially being clear as to what aspect is under consideration at the moment.
Lesson 9: CONSOLIDATE. What has been achieved so far? Drawing together and being clear about what has been done and what has been left out.
Lesson 10: CONCLUDE. Arriving at a definite conclusion, even if that declares that no definite conclusion is possible.
