Light’s examination of status seeking helped illuminate the
stakes involved in the drive for professionalism discussed in articles by
Savage and Faber. I have no familiarity with the work The Status Seekers mentioned by Light, but the phrase “status
seeking” has always held negative connotations in my mind. Light’s claim that “The
existence, intensity, and importance of the psychological and emotion-laden
urge for social status cannot be brushed under the rug” seems to hold to this
negative connotation at first glance. However, the author’s subsequent discussion
and claim that it is a serious effort which involves “professional esprit” and personal satisfaction. I am
in agreement that these things do matter and status in the eyes of general
society can contribute to them. The combination of esprit, satisfaction, and
status lead – I would claim – to the elevation of the quality of work one does.
This is not a connection I was making when reading previous articles. The drive
for and achievement of professionalization of a field can improve the quality
of work done and improve the happiness and satisfaction of its practitioners.
Malone’s examination of the “first wave” of professionalization
of Technical Writing also helped me better understand the article by Savage. By
attaching a specific “narrative” of actual working professionals to Technical
Writing’s development of professional organizations, ethical standards,
certification, and accreditation of academic programs, I could again better
understand the stakes of the movement.
The articles by Light, Malone, and Faber all demonstrate to
me the enormity of the task of professionalization in general. This task for
Technical Writing seems even more enormous when considering the project of
collecting a body of knowledge for the field as discussed by Malone (and Dr.
Bridgeford in a recent post).
These issues of professionalization are relevant to the
educational context in which I am currently working. I began working in Adult
Basic Education (ABE) because I was attracted to serving a more diverse and
underserved population than I was in teaching high school. In my time working
in ABE, my past teaching experience has been valuable, but it has not been sufficient
on its own. ABE is a field with its own theoretical foundations, and I have had
to do a lot of research to refine my practices for the student population that
I now serve. It is a still burgeoning profession with organizations like COABE leading
the growth of the profession in some of the same ways Technical Writing grew as
outlined by Malone.
I agree the readings for this course outline the "enormity of the task of professionalization" and have provided the background to help me see the value of the process. The standards associated with the professionalization of technical writing, developed by leaders in the field, have proven worthy of notice. The successful outcomes-- respect and success in academia and the business sector-- are deserved.
ReplyDeleteYour own experience with ABE made me wonder about the challenges of considering it a profession distinct from education as we commonly define it. That, in and of itself poses one issue. The difficulty to define a field when most of the population likely isn't aware of it. While this arguably shouldn't be a barrier to professionalization, it can make acceptance difficult. I wonder if you get similar responses when you explain what your job is as I do when I say I'm a technical writer. To most people, they're partly recognizable ("education" and "writing"), but with unfamiliar elements that must be explained.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting how you discuss the possible negative connotations of seeking status. We are socially conditioned to see it as taboo to seek a higher social status than other people (or in this case, other professions). I was actually a little surprised that Light talked about the subject so candidly! But now that I think about it, I come to a similar conclusion as you did. It seems only natural to want recognition for one's talents, especially when one spends years developing an expertise.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting how you discuss the possible negative connotations of seeking status. We are socially conditioned to see it as taboo to seek a higher social status than other people (or in this case, other professions). I was actually a little surprised that Light talked about the subject so candidly! But now that I think about it, I come to a similar conclusion as you did. It seems only natural to want recognition for one's talents, especially when one spends years developing an expertise.
ReplyDelete