Educating the Deliberate Professional ― Preparing for Future Practices

This book takes a fresh look at professional practice andprofessional education. In times of increased managerialism of academicteaching and a focus on graduate learning outcomes, it discusses possibilitiesto teach and learn otherwise. A deliberate professional is someone whoconsciously, thoughtfully and courageously makes choices about how to act andbe in the practice world. A pedagogy of deliberateness is introduced thatfocuses on developing the following four characteristics of professionals: (1)deliberating on the complexity of practice and workplace cultures andenvironments; (2) understanding what is probable, possible and impossible inrelation to existing and changing practices; (3) taking a deliberate stance inpositioning oneself in practice as well as in making technical decisions; and(4) being aware of and responsible for the consequences of actions taken oractions not taken in relation to the ‘doing’, ‘saying’, ‘knowing’ and‘relating’ in practice.
Educating the deliberate professional is a comprehensivevolume that carves out and explores a framework for a pedagogy ofdeliberateness that goes beyond educating reflective and deliberativepractitioners. As a whole, this book argues for the importance of educatingdeliberate professionals, because, in the current higher education climate,there is a need to reconcile critique (thinking), participation (doing) andmoral responsibility (relating to others) in professional practice andprofessional education.