Continuing education policies of the professions : an analysis and description of content

Abstract

This study was designed to analyze and describe the policies established by professional associations and licensing boards to direct and regulate continuing professional education. Fifty-three professional groups, representing eighteen professions, were surveyed. Data were requested from the national association, Texas state association, and Texas licensing board of each profession involved in the study. Responses were received from 96.2 percent of the organizations surveyed, and all eighteen of the professions were represented. Professional groups were asked to submit copies of continuing education policies established by their organizations, or in lieu of existing documents, to answer policy-related questions included in the survey instruments. Data indicated that 53 percent of the professional groups participating in the survey had developed written continuing education policies. For the purpose of this study, twenty-six printed policy documents and twenty-two responses to policy-related questions were examined by means of content analysis. First, the content analysis involved examining a sample of policy documents in order to formulate appropriate content categories. This procedure was followed by a quantitative analysis of each document and questionnaire response. The frequency of occurrence of material related to the identified categories was recorded. Additionally, the qualitative content of each category was examined for direction of content. Based upon the results of data analysis, a model was constructed to describe continuing education policies. The model is divided into two domains: that of professional groups and of providers of continuing education programs. It can be observed from the model that continuing education policies are based upon certain beliefs held by the groups responsible for their origin. From their beliefs, organizations develop goals which they hope to achieve through the continuous education of their memberships. Subsequently, continuing education standards, and often mechanisms to foster participation, are established. Professional groups communicate their standards to program providers and then evaluate institutions and/or individual programs to determine if they meet specified criteria related to such areas as methods, program evaluation, faculty, administration, program objectives, budget, curriculum, facilities, needs analysis, publicity and admission.