Theory competency for MPA-educated practitioners
By: McSwite, O. C
.
Material type: 
ArticlePublisher: malden, MA : Blackwell Publishers, jan./feb.2001Public Administration Review: PAR 61, 1, p. 111-115Abstract: In this issue, Cynthia McSwain and Orion White, writing under the nom de plume O.C. McSwite, address the issue of theory in MPA education. This is an important aspect of the larger theorypractice question in public administration, especially given the large number of MPA students who are mid-career managers rather than pre-service students. McSwite's position is that theoretical competency does not consist of specific content, such as theories of the budgeting process; rather, it is a frame of mind that helps practitioners "know what kind of situation they are in." While McSwite's path to this conclusion is unique, it is also consistent with the approach taken in Donald Schon's The Reflective Practitioner. Both McSwite and Schon recognize how basic to good practice is this ability to size up situations in a systematic and useful way. As always, readers are invited to comment either directly to the authors or to the associate editor.
In this issue, Cynthia McSwain and Orion White, writing under the nom de plume O.C. McSwite, address the issue of theory in MPA education. This is an important aspect of the larger theorypractice question in public administration, especially given the large number of MPA students who are mid-career managers rather than pre-service students. McSwite's position is that theoretical competency does not consist of specific content, such as theories of the budgeting process; rather, it is a frame of mind that helps practitioners "know what kind of situation they are in." While McSwite's path to this conclusion is unique, it is also consistent with the approach taken in Donald Schon's The Reflective Practitioner. Both McSwite and Schon recognize how basic to good practice is this ability to size up situations in a systematic and useful way. As always, readers are invited to comment either directly to the authors or to the associate editor.
Public Administration Review PAR
Jan./Feb. 2001 Volume 61 Number 1
Click on an image to view it in the image viewer
There are no comments for this item.