Examining the Term “Scholar-Practitioner”

The term “scholar-practitioner” connotes an image of a student practicing their future craft as they study their discipline (Distefano, Rudestam, & Silverman, 2004). While this presumption is close, it does not convey the dedication demanded by the method.  The scholar-practitioner identifies someone who, through practicing their discipline, not only improves their own understanding of their field but utilizes learning and experience to develop or modify—and share—best practices within their field.  This is a step above a research scholar as actual application of practices are performed. The definitions of scholar and practitioner seem distinct and definite; however, to fully benefit as each, scholars should incorporate practice and practitioners should incorporate continuing studies.

A scholar, defined as one highly educated or trained in a profession, is able to benefit significantly by incorporating hands-on experience with their training. A practitioner-scholar is one means by which an individual studying a field such as medicine or psychiatry engages in a program of study which focuses on clinical practice.  Patient interaction with oversight by established mentors provides these scholars the ability to home their training with real-world experiences.  Similarly, the scholar-practitioner focuses on continued incorporation of study and clinical work to develop or modify prior best practices within their fields. The ultimate benefit from this method is that, while the scholar benefits from continuous improvement, the sharing of that information with other practitioners within that field provides greater overall improvements as interpretations and conclusions are examined from different viewpoints.  Finally, a practitioner is considered an established professional primarily finished with their studies and engaged in the hands-on practice of their field.

As a current scholar, my studies and extra-curricular activities define my current status as a scholar-practitioner. To achieve true scholar-practitioner status, however, my intent is to apply to a graduate-level university offering a scholar-practitioner program. 

Reference

Distefano, A., Rudestam, K. E., & Silverman, R. J. (2004). Encyclopedia of Distributed Learning. Sage Publications.