About Vincent Ryan Ruggiero
Vincent
Ryan Ruggiero, Professor Emeritus, State University of New York at Delhi,
is recognized internationally as a pioneer in the movement to make the
teaching of thinking a central emphasis in education.
A graduate of Siena College and the College of St. Rose, Professor Ruggiero was a social case worker and an industrial engineer before beginning his teaching career. During his four years as an engineer, he performed time and motion studies; devised improvements in methods, equipment, and layout; and conducted standard cost plan analyses. This experience produced his unique perspective on creative and critical thinking, a perspective grounded not merely in cognitive theory but also in practical application.
Professor Ruggiero is the author of twenty books, several educational television programs, and over seventy-five articles. His innovative textbooks have helped to set the standard for thinking instruction for many years.
The Elements of Rhetoric (1971) made reasoning central to rhetoric, thereby helping to overcome a limitation that had existed since the sixteenth century.
Thinking Critically About Ethical Issues, first published in 1973 and now in a sixth edition, applied critical thinking strategies to the subject of ethics.
Beyond Feelings: A Guide for Critical Thinking, first published in 1975 and now in a seventh edition, was a response to the emphasis on emotion as a substitute for thought; it also was one of the first texts to focus on improving one's own thinking as well as finding fallacies in other people's thinking.
The Art of Thinking, first published in 1984 and now in a seventh edition, was one of the first texts to combine creative thinking and critical thinking into a single strategy for solving problems and resolving issues.
Becoming a Critical Thinker, first published in 1989 and now in a fourth edition, was the first "student success" book on critical thinking.
Other education books by Professor Ruggiero include Teaching Thinking Across the Curriculum, Changing Attitudes, and the companion book, Thinking Critically About Attitudes.
Professor Ruggiero has also written several trade books, including Warning: Nonsense Is Destroying America, The Practice of Loving Kindness, and Making Your Mind Matter. Publisher's Weekly said of Warning: "Ruggiero supports his thesis with immense research, sound critical thought and a clear understanding of both contemporary culture trends and the history of ideas." And professor/author David Myers described Loving Kindness as "a captivating, uplifting, inspiring guide to a more loving and fulfilling life."
Professor Ruggiero's latest book is Making Your Mind Matter: Strategies for Practical Intelligence (Rowman & Littlefield, 2003). Written for the general public as well as for students, it is the first book to identify three dimensions of thinking-reflective, creative, and critical-and to combine them into a single approach to problem solving, issue analysis, and decision making: the W.I.S.E. approach (Wonder, Investigate, Speculate, Evaluate).
