b. 1927
Robert H. Ennis is an American philosopher of education best known for his foundational work in critical thinking theory. His 1962 paper 'A Concept of Critical Thinking' helped establish critical thinking as a serious area of philosophical inquiry, and his subsequent debates with John McPeck over the generalizability of thinking skills shaped the field for decades. He is associated with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Developed one of the earliest and most influential analytic definitions of critical thinking (1962)
Defended the existence of general, subject-neutral critical thinking skills against McPeck's domain-specificity thesis
Co-created the Cornell Critical Thinking Tests, widely used in educational assessment
Authored 'Critical Thinking' (1996), a comprehensive framework used in education
Shaped curriculum standards for critical thinking in K-12 and higher education