Foundations in Critical Thinking

In this course, you build foundational English skills for academic and professional thinking by working with vocabulary, reading, video, and structured note-taking. You begin by getting acquainted with strategies that support effective learning, including using academic vocabulary in context, organizing information, and engaging with reading and video content through structured approaches. You practice taking organized notes, using symbols and abbreviations, and recognizing lecture cues so you can capture information more effectively. You then apply these skills to art-related content, where you focus on identifying main ideas, secondary ideas, and supporting details in written and visual materials. Through readings, videos, comprehension checks, skill practice, discussion prompts, synthesis quizzes, and evaluation activities, you strengthen your ability to understand content, discuss artistic expression, and communicate your ideas clearly.