Critical Thinking Process Test

Development & Technical Report

In the late 1980s, a major paradigm shift occurred in higher education in the United States. The focus of education changed from curriculum content to curriculum outcome with an emphasis on teaching students to think critically (Rane-Szostak & Robertson, 1996). Congress established in the "Goal 2000: Educate America Act [that . . .] the proportion of college graduates who demonstrate an advanced ability to think critically, communicate effectively, and solve problems will increase substantially" (United States Department of Education, 1990). By 1993, critical thinking was a vital outcome of core curricula in colleges and universities (Facione, 1995).

In 1990, a cross disciplinary panel "The Delphi Project", commissioned by the American Philosophical Association, presented a consensus definition of critical thinking skills and dispositions. The construct, endorsed by many disciplines, presents critical thinking as a multi-dimensional, cognitive process (Pless & Clayton, 1993). There is no standard definition for critical thinking because each discipline has defined this abstract concept to reflect explicit values of that discipline (Kramer, 1993). Noted nursing theorist, Rosemarie Parse, summarized: "There are many definitions of it [critical thinking] in the literature and each reflects the personal world view of the author" (Parse, 1996, page 139).

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