A New Direction For The First Year Experience: Community Of Practice Based On Critical Thinking

The first year of college has always presented challenges to both students and institutions, and these challenges are demonstrated by assigning new developmental tasks in the field of learners' academic learning and social development. Therefore to provide a consistent environment helping freshmen successfully complete these transition tasks is one of priorities of an institution.Many first year experience programs in America and in China give us rich resources to construct such campus environment. However, the paradigm of the U.S.'s the first year experience is the learning paradigm rather than the praxis paradigm and development paradigm, the identity of freshman is the learner studying systematic knowledge rather than the practiser completing developmental tasks and transforming reality.It is based on the praxis paradigm and the development paradigm, five principles for the first year experience are advocated and a new program is developed. These five principles are positive development-centered, active engagement by immediate success, autonomy and empowerment, Collegiality and holistic quality management; this new program is the community of practice based on critical thinking, a practical approach, first year seminar based on critical thinking using the "LOVE" model, is also introduced. As a new first year experience program, community of practice based on critical thinking provides freshmen with an adaptable and transformative college experience, producing one sort of core competence of college education.