A deepening crisis of confidence in the professions

pp. 3-10

in: Gloria Dall'Alba, Learning to be professionals, Berlin, Springer, 2009

Abstract

The purpose of this monograph is to re-think current approaches to professional education programmes and the learning that occurs therein. Two arguments for rethinking professional education are elaborated below. The first is that the contemporary context of professional practice has changed markedly; in particular, change is occurring at an intensified pace and there are increasing challenges to previously accepted frameworks for interpreting our world. The second argument is that a deepening crisis of confidence in the professions continues to spill over into professional education, signalling the inadequacy of current professional education programmes. Taken together, these arguments point to a pressing need to question the assumptions on which preparation for professional practice has conventionally been based.