ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author applies the well-known practice concept— conscious use of self—to assess his own development as a teacher. With humor and insight, including those of other colleagues, he discusses the role of style in teaching and the different perspectives teacher and students bring to the educational experience. Building on the work of Virginia Robinson, Bertha Reynolds, John Dewey, Carl Rogers, and Gordon Hamilton, William Rosenthal hypothesizes four action levels of use of self in the development of the social work practitioner. The first two levels are represented by the practical actor and the theoretic actor. The third level involves action in which the person is a self-conscious or aware agent of his or her own behavior. Finally, the fourth level is achieved when the actor is aware of him- or herself as agent, and is able to own and maintain awareness of self and professional self, making conscious use of the latter.
