Professional Development in the Contemporary Educational Context: Encouraging Practice Wisdom

Abstract

Preparing social work students to be effective practitioners is a complex and challenging task undertaken in a dynamic environment both in terms of the field of social work and the higher education sector. There have been recommendations that self knowledge, empirical knowledge, theoretical knowledge and procedural knowledge are the keys to high standards of social work practice. This paper suggests that the concept of practice wisdom is a useful focus for integrating these different aspects of informed practice and for focusing educational programmes for social work. As practice wisdom is more about process than possessed characteristics then there are important motivational and value-based considerations in developing wise practitioners. This discussion considers motivational and personal narrative aspects of practice wisdom so that it can be integrated into social work teaching.

Keywords:

• Adult Learning
• Fitness to Practise
• Pedagogies
• Reflection
• Skills Teaching
• Practice Wisdom
• Phronesis

Acknowledgement

This paper develops ideas about Social Work practice and education some of which formed part of presentations by Lester Thompson at the 2005 and 2006 internal Queensland University of Technology, Social Change in the 21 Century conference at Carseldine, Australia.

Notes

^[1] After Kneebone et al. (2005, pp. 580, 585) and Choon-Huat Koh et al. (2008, p. 34).

^[2] Background knowledge.

^[3] ‘Self-efficacy is a subjective phenomenon in that people can possess a high degree of talent or skill, but not see themselves as able to apply their capabilities consistently or across a variety of situations’ (Petrovich, 2004, p. 429).