The Unfinished Business of Critical Thinking

The concept of critical thinking has found its way into course descriptions,textbook titles, and even college mission statements. Yet far from being satis?ed with these successes, scholars in the ?eld believe that much un?nished business remains: critical thinking has not found its way into many classrooms. This volumepresents blueprints to professional development plans that focus on a solution to the problem with best practices from colleges that have already begun to implement such plans, and methods for assessing programs that emerge from them. Finally, the volume connects the teaching of critical thinking to the Learning College, an idea developed by Terry O’Banion, president of the League for Innovation in the Community College, that calls on institutions to place learning ?rst by offering multiple options for learning and documenting that students demonstrate improved learning. This is the 130th volume of New Directions for Community Colleges, the quarterly report series from Jossey-Bass.