This text is a guide to critical thinking and composition courses. It covers just the basics of critical thinking using an acronym called TCDR (Topic, Class, Description, Relevance). The text grounds the student in the basics of the technique and uses exercises to drive lessons home. It also shows students how to use critical thinking across the curriculum. In addition, the new Part Three covers critical thinking in relation to using new computer technology. This book can be used as a main text or a supplement.

Besides using textbook excerpts to learn to apply the TCDR (topic- class-description-relevance) critical thinking strategy, this edition adds a new section on "learning from your computer." Includes exercises with an answer key. Field-tested on some 2,000 students of all college levels. No date is given for the first edition. Walter is with Oakland Community College.
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Dr. Timothy L. Walter received his Ph.D. in educational psychology from the University of Michigan. He is Dean of Academic and Student Services at Oakland Community College in Farmington Hills, Michigan. He has served as Director of the Academic Center for Excellence at the University of Illinois in Chicago, Vice President for Student Development at the University of Tulsa, Program Director of the Reading and Learning Skills Center at the University of Michigan, and a faculty member in the Division of Kinesiology at the University of Michigan. Dr. Walter has co-authored several highly successful texts including STUDENT SUCCESS: HOW TO SUCCEED IN COLLEGE AND STILL HAVE TIME FOR YOUR FRIENDS (8th ed.), STUDENT SUCCESS STRATEGIES, THE ADULT LEARNERS GUIDE TO COLLEGE SUCCESS (2nd ed.), and THE STUDENT STUDY GUIDE FOR UNDERSTANDING HUMAN BEHAVIOR by James V. McConnell (8th ed.).The late Dr. Glenn Knudsvig received his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in educational psychology. As a full Professor in the Department of Classical Studies at The University of Michigan, he pioneered research and instructional programs in high school and undergraduate Latin. He was President of The American Classic League. He published widely in the areas of undergraduate liberal arts education, instruction design, and training.Dr. Donald E.P. Smith is a Professor Emeritus at The University of Michigan where he was on the faculty of the School of Education for better than 35 years. He served as Director of the University of Michigan Reading and Learning Skills Center from 1951-1968. He was the senior author on several editions of Learning to Learn, a classic work in the field of learning and critical thinking. He authored numerous books and research articles in reading, education, and psychology including Child Management, Classroom Management, and the Michigan Language Program. He served a senior editor in college publishing. Dr. Smith is considered by many people in the field to be the father of the "learning to learn" movement in American higher education.

Preface. Part One: A BASIC STRATEGY FOR LEARNING AND THINKING SMART: THE TCDR STRATEGY. Exercise A: Introduction to TCDR. Exercise B: Identifying Topic and Class. Exercise C: Categorizing Information. Exercise D: Finding TCDR in Textbooks Across the Curriculum. Textbook Passages and Practices. Part Two: MAKING THE TCDR STRATEGY WORK FOR YOU. Exercise Set A: Developing and Evaluating Your Answers. Improving Your Thinking By Getting Feedback. More Points for You to Evaluate. Where Do You Go From Here? Using Your Own Textbooks. Your Next Challenge. Learning From Another Person's Input. Exercise Set B: Another Strategy for Improving Thinking. Evaluating Your Own Answers. Getting a Second Opinion. More Points For You To Evaluate. Your Next Challenge. Your Five Questions and Answers. It's Time To Move On. Reading Excerpt. Answer Key. Part Three: LEARNING FROM YOUR COMPUTER. Learning From Your Computer Need Not Be a Problem. Simulating a Computer Learning Experience. Principles of Success. How to Use Your Computer To Find Questions and to Develop Answers. The Missing Link: What Do Good Questions and Answers Look Like? Using TCDR. Learning From Professional Journals. Learning From Books of Fiction and Nonfiction. The Psychology Behind Learning to Learn.