Critical & Creative Thinking — Degree Requirements

The Master of Arts Program

Thirty graduate credits are required for completion of the MA degree:

Foundation courses: A sequence of two core courses, CRCRTH 601 and 602 (Critical Thinking and Creative Thinking), to be taken at the beginning of the program (6 credits).

Two advanced core courses in the philosophy and the psychology of thinking, PHIL 501 and Psych L550/CRCRTH L651, to be taken as soon as possible after CRCRTH 601 and 602 (6 credits).

Electives: Three electives within a specialty area, chosen from offerings in CCT or, with permission of the CCT Graduate Program Director, from other academic programs and departments (9 credits).

By petition to the CCT Graduate Program Director, up to two upper-level undergraduate courses may be counted toward this requirement.

The program offers four specialty areas:

• Literature and Arts
• Mathematics, Science, and Technology, including subspecialties in:
  Science in Society
  Environment, Science, and Society
• Moral Education and Ethical Issues
• Workplace and Organizational Change

Additional areas of specialization may be constructed in consultation with the CCT Graduate Program Director. These areas may involve interdisciplinary cooperation with other graduate programs on campus, such as Instructional Design, Special Education, Educational Administration, and Dispute Resolution.

Pre-Capstone Experience:

A practicum course (CRCRTH 698) and an evaluation seminar (CRCRTH 693), in which critical and creative thinking interventions are developed, implemented, evaluated, and modified (6 credits).

Capstone:

A supervised capstone experience composed of either a synthesis project or a thesis (3 credits):

1. The Synthesis Project: Students choosing this capstone experience enroll in CRCRTH 694: Synthesis of Theory and Practice, a seminar through which participants review and reflect on the integration into their professional lives of critical and creative thinking skills and strategies. It offers each participant the opportunity to demonstrate mastery of competencies and skills appropriate and relevant to his/her discipline. For each student, this demonstration has two parts: a written essay and an oral presentation.
   
   The synthesis project essay follows the Office of Graduate Studies Guidelines for the Preparation of Theses & Dissertations and is expected to incorporate an appropriate theoretical framework and references to relevant scholarly work in its field. The 30- to 60-minute oral presentation is given before members of the CCT faculty. Both the essay and the oral presentation are evaluated by at least two members of the CCT faculty.    
2. The Thesis: Students choosing this capstone experience enroll in CRCRTH 699: Thesis Research. The thesis provides an opportunity for the student to integrate and synthesize the knowledge and skills gained in the program into a significant work. Details about different options for the thesis are available from the Program Coordinator.