Thinking Master’s courses

Section	Content
Module description	In the process of learning anything, we not only acquire new knowledge, but also inevitably reshape ourselves, our thinking, our worldview, attitudes, goals, and values. In this module, there are a range of courses that will turn the learning process into a conscious and exciting exploration. All of the module’s courses can be divided into three groups: general development of thinking skills and analysis of scientific methods: Critical Thinking in Practice (in Russian), Thinking and Scientific Rationality (in Russian), Critical Thinking Skills, Scientific Reasoning and its Relevance for Society; development of problem thinking skills and analysis of ethical problems of modern technoscience: Ethics in Science and Technology (in Russian), Ethics in Artificial Intelligence (for students of Machine Learning Engineering) (in Russian); development of thinking skills based on the analysis of modern phenomena that shape our everyday experience and habitual thinking patterns: Critical Theory of Modern Society (in Russian), Key Questions in Modern Social Thinking (in Russian), Visual Forms of Thinking (in Russian), Computer Games and Media Theory (in Russian), Critical Theory of the Modern Human: Trans-, Post-, and Antihumanism (in Russian). All Thinking courses are module-based, meaning that they will be studied within 16 calendar days. You will be able to attend the courses in the first or second semester. See the descriptions of specific courses for more details.
Language	Russian and English Recommended level of English proficiency is at least B2 (according to the international CEFR scale). This is important for your successful completion of the course.
Контакты	E-mail: think@itmo.ru Address: Kronverksky Pr. 49, room 2323

Ethics in Artificial Intelligence (in Russian)

More information you can find here Этика в сфере искусственного интеллекта

Daria Chirva

Visual Forms of Thinking (in Russian)

More information you can find here Визуальные формы мышления и кинематограф

Teachers:

Ilya Verkhoglyadov

Maria Gribova

Olga Davydova

Ksenia Kapelchuk

Ivan Petrin

Artem Radeev

Computer Games and Methods of Critical Analysis of Technologies (in Russian)

More information you can find here Компьютерные игры и методы критического анализа технологий

Teachers:

Alexander Lenkevich

Alina Latypova

Critical Thinking in Practice (in Russian)

More information you can find here Критическое мышление в практической деятельности

Teachers:

Yury Nechitailov

Olga Shapiro

Ksenia Kapelchuk

Critical Thinking Skills (Offline course)

What is the course about?
Can we teach somebody to think critically if we just tell him or her how to do it? One can hardly believe it, that is why during this course practical skills in critical thinking are obtained through the process of learning, doing, reading and writing.

Learning format:

self-paced asynchronously online in Moodle
five online meetings on Zoom
workbook for self-practive
course chat in Telegram
group work in Telegram small groups chats

Key questions covered by the course are:

How is our thinking organized?
How our thinking changes in digital epoch?
What is cognitive distortion, and why do people tend to believe in conspiracy theories?
How do we know something?
How do we invent new ideas?
How do we estimate others’ ideas and our own?
When a decision is an ethical one?
How to construct a solid argument?
How to recognize manipulative argumentation?

The design of the course implies a big amount of independent work. You will develop skills of argumentation, learn how to spot cognitive disruptions, fakes and logical mistakes, see what is taken for granted in a text or a media piece, cultivate creative and metaphorical thinking. During the course you will use private writing, group discussions, AI-based practices, debating and other tools to enhance your thinking, figure out your own thinking patterns and start dealing with the world in a broader context, sometimes from unexpected perspectives. The course is based on specific unconvetional tasks so you are expected to engage consciously.

How you will get your grade?
Points are earned during the course which include exercises in Moodle, working collaboratively in small groups in Telegram, providing a number of commentaries in collaborative google docs. The final exam implies two tasks: one theoretical and one practical (analyzing argumentation). You can choose either one of two questions or both.

Olga Davydova

PhD in Cultural Studies, junior professor at Smolny College (Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Saint-Petersburg State University) and ITMO University. Teaches academic writing at Skolkovo. Writes articles on cinema and photography.

Critical Theory of Modern Society (in Russian)

More information you can find here Критическая теория современного общества

Teachers: