I view my own practice as an apprenticeship without end, knowing that I will never arrive at a place where I will be wholly satisfied with my contribution to effective therapeutic conversations. To date, there has not been one occasion on which I could say that I wouldn’t change some aspect of my contribution to a therapeutic conversation if I had the opportunity to start over again. This acknowledgement is not to negatively judge or devalue my part in these conversations, and it does not subtract from the enjoyment that I experience in them. Rather, it is about maintaining a reflective perspective on what I do as a therapist.

Michael White, p. 7. Maps of Narrative Practice

When a practitioner becomes a researcher into his own practice, he engages in a continuing process of self-education. When practice is a repetitive administration of techniques to the same kinds of problems, the practitioner may look to leisure as a source of relief, or to early retirement; but when he functions as a researcher-in-practice, the practice itself is a source of renewal. The recognition of discovery, with its resulting uncertainty, can become a source of discovery rather than an occasion for self-defense.

Donald Schon, 1983,The Reflective Practitioner: How professional think in action, p 299

“It was … helpful for me to be reminded that it is okay to slow down and take a moment to figure out what and how we want to ask something. I think all too often I forget this and am left trying to listen and formulate questions at the same time, which doesn't always work so well.  It takes some of the pressure off of the need to ‘get it right.’” Foresta, a social work student.

APPRENTICING TO A CRAFT

"Success is boring. Success is proving that you can do something that you already know you can do. Failure is how we learn."
 - John Carroll, "Watching a Daughter Fly By" From the series, This I Believe. National Public Radio, October 9, 2006. Original recording can be accessed here.

Apprenticeship

Apprenticeship refers to a system for training a new generation of skilled practitioners in an art, trade, or craft. Becoming an apprentice typically involves a combination of on-the-job training and related classroom instruction where people learn the practical and theoretical aspects of a skilled occupation. Apprenticing to collaborative inquiry is a more informal process. Together we embrace a lifelong commitment to continually sharpen our practices.

We attribute Donald Schon, in The Reflective Practitioner: How professional think in action for identifying different kinds of competencies for a practitioner who seeks to reveal uncertainties and share control with clients, and showing precisely how professionals can become researchers in their own practice. When given the chance, students often speak about the self-doubt and self-consciousness that can make them feel nervous about jumping into practice. Teachers can feel a similar intimidation by the responsibility to train students in interviewing skills, and in comparing themselves to their mentors. On this website, we strive to create a space for trial-and-error learning for reflective practitioners.

It was … helpful for me to be reminded that it is okay to slow down and take a moment to figure out what and how we want to ask something. I think all too often I forget this and am left trying to listen and formulate questions at the same time, which doesn't always work so well. It takes some of the pressure off of the need to "get it right." Foresta, a social work student.

- Sax, P. (2008)

Becoming Reflective Practitioners

Many of us - teachers and students - have discovered that we better understand and integrate a concept when we apply it to the living of their own lives. We offer this space for teaching and learning practices that hone skills for practitioners-in- training. Do you have a favorite exercise or teaching story to share? If so, please consider joining the conversation on the Inquiry and Reflection page of this website. Soon we aim to post some of these exercises here.