Book Reviews

Issue 30(1)

 

Educating integrated professionals: Theory and practice on preparation for the professoriate. (2008). Carol L. Colbeck, KerryAnn O’Meara & Ann E. Austin. San Francisco: Wiley Productions, Inc. (Jossey-Bass), 128pp. $29, (paperback). ISBN #978-0-470-29540-3.

 

 

Review by: Jennifer A. Kinslow

Advisor, Counseling & Advising Center

Monroe Community College ( Rochester , NY )

 

Educating integrated professionals: Theory and practice on preparation for the professoriate is a collection of articles in the journal, New Directions for Teaching and Learning . Through theory and strategies, this volume focuses on educating future faculty to incorporate all aspects of their professional lives to foster connections between their research, teaching, and service.

 

This collection would be an excellent resource for doctoral students as they prepare for a teaching career in higher education, specifically those seeking careers in research-based universities. Chapter 3 discusses “Embedding Community Engagement in the Socialization and Preparation of Future Faculty” and highlights the four phases of a doctoral program. It also provides ideas in which one can incorporate programs such as service learning and community based research projects, in daily teaching and interaction with students.

 

Faculty mentors and advisory committee members can benefit from learning identity theory (Chapter 1) and socialization theory (Chapter 3) of doctoral students. As the number of faculty retirements increase, the preparation of graduate students for the modern professoriate must be rethought so that the next generation of faculty members will be able to integrate their roles and serve as leaders within their disciplines and institutions (p. 17). In addition, research shows that many doctoral students are not adequately prepared to handle the full range of roles that are part of academic work (p. 69). Therefore, doctoral programs need to offer opportunities for mentoring, networking, reflecting on observations, and training of administrative responsibilities on the college campus. To better provide these opportunities, academic departments can utilize the models described in Chapter 6, “The Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning,” and Chapter 7, the “Carnegie Initiative on the Doctorate.”

 

Although this text would be useful for many faculty, administrators, and doctoral students, it is not as fitting for those preparing to teach at the community college level. As a member of a community college, it is understood that community service, engagement in academic and student service initiatives, including academic advising, are integral parts of a faculty member’s position at a community college and expected upon hiring.

 

This volume from the New Directions for Teaching and Learning series discusses how doctoral programs and their faculty can create contexts that encourage students to develop and integrate their professional identities of researcher, teacher, and engaged public scholar (p. 14) and to consider the value of teaching both inside and outside of the classroom. Further discussion on faculty engagement can also be found on the National Center for the Study of University Engagement’s publication directory: http://ncsue.msu.edu/publications/scholarly.aspx .