"Becoming" a Professional: an Interdisciplinary Analysis of Professional Learning (Lifelong Learning Book Series, 16)

'Becoming' is used in this interdisciplinary work as an emergent, iterative concept of professional identity formation. The conceptual framework of 'becoming', as well as the arguments in the book are intended to encourage professionals--and those engaged in their education--to reflect on what it means to be a 'professional' in the twenty-first century, an era dominated by the discourses of globalisation, 'new mangerialism', multiculturalism and deprofessionalisation. We live in a world where not only scholars, but also a better educated client base informed by technological innovations, have issued unprecedented challenges to the traditional professional ideal. The once paradigmatic identity of the superiority of the Anglo-American professional, grounded in an exclusive knowledge-base and an altruistic 'public-service' principle, are no longer tenable. The book will generate dialogue about the nature of professionalism through a multidisciplinary lens in chapters on medicine, nursing and teaching and in reference to social work, the clergy and engineering. Here, becoming a professional is a lifelong, extended process that constructs an individual's professional identity through formal education, workplace interactions and popular culture. It advocates the 'ongoing' modality of developing a professional self throughout one's professional life. What emerges from this work is a concept of becoming a professional that is quite different from the isolated, rugged, individualistic approach to traditional professional practice as represented in popular culture. It is a book for the reflective professional This book is founded on the idea that ‘becoming’ is the most useful defining concept for a new ‘professional’ class whose members understand that development in their working lives is an open-ended, lifelong process of refinement and learning. In a world where being a ‘professional’ is an increasingly indistinct notion and where better education and technology are challenging ‘professional’ norms, it is imperative that we no longer think in terms of an exclusive, ‘Anglo-American’, knowledge-rich class of workers. Exploring the implications of this insight for professions including nursing, teaching, social work, engineering and the clergy, this volume aims to encourage informed debate on what it means to be a ‘professional’ in this globalised 21st century. The book argues that ‘becoming’ a professional is a lifelong process in which individual professional identities are constructed through formal education, workplace interactions and popular culture. The book advocates the ‘ongoingness’ of developing a professional self throughout one’s professional life. What emerges is a concept of becoming a professional different from the isolated, rugged, individualistic approach to traditional professional practice as represented in popular culture. It is a book for the reflective professional. This book is founded on the idea that becoming is the most useful defining concept for a new professional class whose members understand that development in their working lives is an open-ended, lifelong process of refinement and learning. In a world where being a professional is an increasingly indistinct notion and where better education and technology are challenging professional norms, it is imperative that we no longer think in terms of an exclusive, Anglo-American, knowledge-rich class of workers. Exploring the implications of this insight for professions including nursing, teaching, social work, engineering and the clergy, this volume aims to encourage informed debate on what it means to be a professional in this globalised 21 st century. The book argues that becoming a professional is a lifelong process in which individual professional identities are constructed through formal education, workplace interactions and popular culture. The book advocates the ongoingness of developing a professional self throughout ones professional life. What emerges is a concept of becoming a professional different from the isolated, rugged, individualistic approach to traditional professional practice as represented in popular culture. It is a book for the reflective professional. “Becoming” a Professional 4 Editorial by Series Editors 8 Contents 10 Introduction 12 Chapter 1: `Becoming' a Professional 23 Chapter 2: Becoming As an Appropriate Metaphor for Understanding Professional Learning 43 Chapter 3: Learning to Be – At Work 67 Chapter 4: Higher Education and Becoming a Professional 87 Chapter 5: Becoming Authentic Professionals: Learning for Authenticity 104 Chapter 6: White Coats, Handmaidens and Warrior Chiefs: The Role of Filmic Representations in Becoming a Professional 118 Chapter 7: Becoming a Medical Professional 137 Chapter 8: Professional Practice and Doctoral Education: Becoming a Researcher 160 Chapter 9: Becoming a Professional Doctor 177 Chapter 10: Becoming a Professional Nurse 200 Chapter 11: Teacher Professional Becoming: A Practice-Based, Actor-Network Theory Perspective 223 Chapter 12: And the Conclusion for Now Is ...? 249 Biographies 251 Index 256 Front Matter....Pages i-x Introduction....Pages 1-11 ‘Becoming’ a Professional....Pages 13-32 Becoming As an Appropriate Metaphor for Understanding Professional Learning....Pages 33-56 Learning to Be – At Work....Pages 57-76 Higher Education and Becoming a Professional....Pages 77-93 Becoming Authentic Professionals: Learning for Authenticity....Pages 95-108 White Coats, Handmaidens and Warrior Chiefs: The Role of Filmic Representations in Becoming a Professional....Pages 109-127 Becoming a Medical Professional....Pages 129-151 Professional Practice and Doctoral Education: Becoming a Researcher....Pages 153-169 Becoming a Professional Doctor....Pages 171-193 Becoming a Professional Nurse....Pages 195-217 Teacher Professional Becoming: A Practice-Based, Actor-Network Theory Perspective....Pages 219-244 And the Conclusion for Now Is ...?....Pages 245-246 Back Matter....Pages 247-261 In a world where being a 'professional' is an increasingly indistinct notion under siege from scholars and educated laypeople, this interdisciplinary volume advocates the metaphor of 'becoming' as an lifelong process of forming one's professional identity.