Introduction

Abstract

Professional schools have some common goals, such as developing an identity as a professional person and encouraging lifelong learning. Yet they vary greatly in their characteristics and purposes. Educating professionals requires formal education. Yet, emphasizing formal and informal learning becomes essential with the rise of specialization and technology. Learning in the profession is best understood as a process embedded in social relationships and social practices, and other professionals, clients, learners, patients, and citizens participate in these relationships and practices over time and across settings.