Certificate in Formal Reasoning

About this programme

Planned outage: Beginning Nov. 1, you will not be able to access the USask admission application and event registration system for up to six days. Learn more . The Certificate in Formal Reasoning provides you with an interdisciplinary introduction to the abstract laws of thought through the study of logic, critical thinking, and axiomatic mathematics. The valid deduction and clear communication skills emphasized in this training are universally valuable; sharpening your reasoning and argumentation abilities will allow you to more effectively pursue your intellectual passions, whatever they may be. You will study critical thinking and learn to analyze both everyday and technical arguments for faults and fallacies. You will study symbolic logic and become proficient in the art of valid deduction. You will study important abstract mathematical structures - including sets, fields, and vector spaces - and explore their properties and applications, gaining an understanding of and appreciation for proofs and axiomatic systems. This course is an introduction to principles of logic and reasoning. It is designed to develop skills in critical thinking, including the analysis, evaluation, and development of arguments. The course will cover topics in informal logic, deductive logic, and inductive logic, which may include argument analysis, fallacies, categorical logic, natural deduction, causality, Bayesian probability theory, and scientific reasoning. This course provides an introduction to techniques and communication in abstract mathematics. It explores the notion of proof and in