A mixed-method exploratory study of interprofessional education in social work at historically Black colleges and universities: A faculty perspective

ABSTRACT

A mixed-method approach was used to capture social work faculty experiences in integrating interprofessional education (IPE) in the social work curriculum at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). Questions measured attitudes, needs, preparation, and readiness of HBCU faculty to participate in preprofessional and graduate IPE courses. Both quantitative and qualitative analyses were used. The 23 participants indicated that there was strong interest and endorsement for participation in IPE as an educational tool to improve interdisciplinary team work and social care outcomes. However, faculty had limited previous involvement with IPE courses. Many partners were identified for IPE courses with almost all endorsing alcohol and substance abuse counseling, mental health counseling, public health, early childhood education, nursing, rehabilitation counseling, school of divinity, and school of psychology. The following IPE teaching methods were endorsed by almost all of the faculty: seminars, IPE common tools, case analysis, collaborative assessment, role playing, and experiential activities. Qualitative analysis of the open-ended questions yielded five themes: designing/evaluating IPE programs, embedding IPE courses in the social work curriculum, facilitating trust among faculty, removing negative IPE stereotypes, and IPE courses sustainability. The study contributes vital information about an important group of stakeholders whose participation in IPE, heretofore not mentioned in the IPE literature, needs to be integrated. We recommend that the IPE higher education community work with HBCUs to implement IPE.     

Social work and interprofessional education: integration,intersectionality, and institutional leadership

Over the last decade healthcare policies and practices in the US have placed significant emphasis on healthcare integration, mental health parity, and implementation of team-based practice models to improve quality, safety, and affordability of service. With these incentives in mind, schools of social work have joined with national and international health education organizations to reduce disciplinary silos and increase shared learning opportunities across professions and programs. The social work profession has long supported collaborative practice however, students are rarely paired with others in the classroom or intentionally taught about counterparts’ roles and expertise. Social work leaders are also responsible for addressing the intersectionality between collaborative competencies and sociocultural factors. The 2015 EPAS and 2016 Core Competencies for Interprofessional Collaborative Practice create multi-level opportunities for social work educators to provide Interprofessional Education (IPE) innovation and leadership across common curricula and educational settings. The authors examine historic challenges to integrating IPE in social work curricula, provide three examples of IPE/social work initiatives in higher education, describe the intersectionality of the EPAS and the IPEC competencies, and identify institutional benefits associated with the integration of IPE in schools of social work culture and curriculum.     

Strategies for enhancing online teaching in social work education

ABSTRACT

In response to the growing importance of online education in social work education, this article describes the context of online teaching and learning in social work education. Online teaching and learning are further discussed in the context of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). We emphasize the importance and need for trained faculty to teach in an online environment, particularly in HBCUs; offer an example of how the University of the District of Columbia, an HBCU, prepares its faculty to teach online; and conclude with specific strategies for online teaching and social work faculty. Finally, we provide recommendations for social work education.     

An empirical assessment of writing and research proficiency in HBCU social work students

ABSTRACT

Lack of proficiency in writing and research among social work students has increasingly concerned social work educators and practitioners. Given the significance of written communication with clients and emphasis on evidence-based practice in the field of social work, it is critical to assess students’ competence in both writing and research. However, deficit-based approaches to assessing writing and research competence have disadvantaged students at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). This pilot study aims to assess writing and research proficiency of HBCU master’s of social work (MSW) students through empirical analysis of their capstone papers and surveys from educators to provide implications for developing a writing and research manual for social work programs at HBCUs. Ten capstone papers were randomly selected and qualitatively analyzed; nine faculty and one field supervisor completed the survey, and their respondents were analyzed using cross-case analysis. Analyses of the capstone papers identified two themes for writing and research domains, respectively: (1) weakness in developing statements and lack of knowledge of writing style and (2) plagiarism and lack of understanding of research structure. Moreover, analyses of the surveys revealed four themes regarding assessment of writing and research skills among students struggling with basic writing mechanics, indicating that HBCU MSW students may have potential and capacity for learning, as evidenced by their ideas and critical thinking skills. These findings suggest both teaching- and research-oriented programs could employ the proposed writing and research assessment manual, as well as a writing and research lab/center for improving writing and research skills among their students.     

Emancipatory engagement: An urban womanist social work pedagogy

ABSTRACT

Standing on the hope of the initial social work course from 1914 at Morgan College, this article provides insight into the significant learning outcomes of contemporary students in advanced social work practice with urban African American families. This research introduces the conceptual framework of urban womanist social work pedagogy as an inclusive practice-informed knowledge produced through the rituals, traditions, values, culture, and resilience of historically disenfranchised communities. Urban womanist social work teaching methods honor truth telling from the ones who have lived there. Urban womanist social work affirms transformative-centered research, teaching, and scholarship produced through institutions such as historically black colleges and universities (HBCU’s). The students’ reflective narratives reveal a process of transformation, centered in the freedom standpoint, which includes recognizing the location and context of their individual and collective identity as African Americans in the profession of social work. Urban womanist social work pedagogy cumulatively equips our students with intergenerational knowledge that inform their assessment of critical issues in Baltimore’s African American communities.     

Social work doctoral education in the United States: examining the past,preparing for the future

The relevance of doctoral education is being questioned across a wide spectrum of disciplines, and social work is no exception. An examination of the history of social work education in the United States provides a backdrop to the current challenges in doctoral education in the field. The historical role of research and teaching in social work education, the structure of doctoral social work education in the United States including the Ph.D. vs. the DSW, and the growth of doctoral programs are all examined. Current issues explored include: the interdisciplinary nature of practice; increased institutional focus on funded research; support for underrepresented doctoral students; and the need for doctoral students to be trained in pedagogy. Suggestions on how to address these issues are provided in order to enhance social work’s mission of teaching, research and service.     

Preparing Social Work Students to Practice in Diverse Communities through Difficult Digital Dialogues

This study discusses the qualitative lessons learned from a joint social work difficult dialogue education project undertaken by students from a historically Black college and university (HBCU) and those from a predominantly White institution (PWI). The assignment utilized critical pedagogy as a guiding theory to facilitate difficult dialogues about diversity, privilege, and difference through social media and technology. Qualitative data analyzed from the project points to the usefulness and challenges of using social media and technology in facilitating difficult dialogues as well as the need to train students more purposely in the effective use of social media and technology during their education in order to prepare them for practice.     

Spirituality and social work practice at historically Black colleges and universities

ABSTRACT

In 2011 the Council on Social Work Education Religion and Spirituality Work Group was organized “to promote social workers’ knowledge, values, and skills for ethical and effective practice that takes into account the diverse expressions of religion and spirituality among clients and their communities.” In this article we discuss how the mission, charters, and goals of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) addressed the domains of religion and spirituality from their inception. More specifically, the focus of this discussion is the epistemology of spirituality and religion at HBCUs from historical and contemporary perspectives. Content on the exploration of the related themes, religion and spirituality, as manifested in the curriculum, cultural milieu, and social environment of HBCUs will be described. Additionally, we document the role and influence of the African American community, church, and political insurgency. These forces, coupled with the inability or unwillingness of established social service agencies and other social institutions to address issues of inequality and marginalization of African Americans, influenced the essence of the content offered in HBCU schools of social work. Spirituality, advocacy for material aid, and critical race theory are themes that were prevalent in HBCUs curriculum. Finally we show that this “unique HBCU curriculum” was brought about primarily by environmental factors such as racism, segregation, and financial uncertainty, leading to what Du Bois referred to as a double-consciousness.     

Exploring Professional Stereotypes and Learning for Inter-professional Practice: An Example from UK Qualifying Level Social Work Education

This paper explores the concept of stereotyping from UK social work students' and educators' perspectives. It discusses findings from an exploration of inter-professional practice with two cohorts of final year social work students in a UK university. The authors adapted a questionnaire to initiate discussion about inter-professional working with BA and MA students participating in a specialist child and family social work module. This paper analyses students' responses to the questionnaire and explores wider issues relating to professional stereotyping and identity, discussing the usefulness of these concepts for social work education and collaborative practice. Results suggest that student social workers held both positive and negative assumptions about specific occupations/professions (such as medicine), and that these acted as a mirror or tool for reflecting back their own views of social work identity/ies. We argue that this pedagogic exercise in identifying stereotypical assumptions about ‘others’ may encourage the building of a positive sense of ‘own’ professional identity. We further suggest that students should be encouraged to construct a core social work identity that is dynamic and responsive to changing contexts.     

A partnership forged: BSW students and service learning at a historically Black college and university (HBCU) serving urban communities

ABSTRACT

Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have a long-standing history of engaging the African-American community. In most instances, these institutions are located in predominantly African-American communities. This article intends to offer a discussion of a pedagogical approach used at an HBCU, located in a large mid-Atlantic city. The purpose of this macro-assignment was an effort designed to prepare BSW students for macro-practice with communities through participation in service-learning projects that involved community engagement with urban communities. Outcomes reflect that students have a vested interest in working with underserved communities, which exemplifies the School of Social Work’s mission; said mission is to fully prepare urban social work leaders who are committed to the alleviation of human suffering, social justice, and the improvement of the quality of life for diverse urban populations.     

Learning to be interprofessional through the use of reflective portfolios?

Learning portfolios are used extensively in health and social care. There is evidence of their value as a tool to consolidate learning although limited information is available regarding their use in social work education. This study explores the use of a portfolio to encourage social work students to reflect on their interprofessional learning (IPL). The portfolio offers a means of demonstrating professionalism concerning knowledge, skills and attitudes in the context of collaborative practice. The findings of this research suggest that qualifying students were largely capable of reflecting on their development of interprofessional competence after attending specific IPL events, which were part of a wider programme. Social work students found reflective writing difficult, although this improved over time. In particular students struggled to write about skills and attitudes. Students perceived the portfolio to be a good way to assess their progress and believed this helped them to engage with their learning and make meaning through reflection and analysis. They appreciated that IPL and feedback from their assessments had advanced their abilities for self-analysis; despite needing help with reflective writing, they felt better prepared for ongoing use of reflection in their professional development, and in ‘working together’.     

Meeting the Unique Needs of Grandparent-Headed Families Using a Community-University Interdisciplinary Model

An interdisciplinary initiative engaging graduate students and faculty from education, social work, and physics was developed to address the unique needs of grandparent-headed families. The goal of this qualitative study was to deepen the current knowledge base about the challenges and benefits of using an interdisciplinary, collaborative community-university model to meet the unique needs of grandparent-headed families. Findings are discussed in terms of literature relevant to advancing grandparent-headed families’ educational progress and health with an emphasis on the interprofessional collaborative process.     

The role of social work field education programmes in the transmission of developmental social work knowledge in Southern and East Africa

This paper reports on the findings of a study on the role of social work field education programmes in the transmission of developmental social work knowledge in Southern and East Africa. It highlights the challenges in locating developmental social work placements and the creativity shown by social work educators in addressing these challenges and improving learning opportunities for social work students. Both academics and students were found to be committed to developmental social work, within a willing practice environment hampered by knowledge, capacity and resource constraints. Social work education was found to be playing a transformative role through the teaching of a developmental social work curriculum and the creation of collaborative developmental social work learning experiences. Social work educators trained and supported agency supervisors in developmental social work, while students served as conduits, modelling developmental social work practice. What has yet to be determined in future research is the students’ perspective of this developmental educational environment.     

Finding common ground: how superdiversity is unsettling social work education

For social work education in the Netherlands, the rapid transition towards superdiversity means that its capacity to adapt to this new reality and to adjust to diverse students’ backgrounds is fiercely challenged. The key aim of this article is to discuss how social work educators are dealing with the unsettling challenges of increasing diversity, based on the research outcomes of an explorative study amongst Turkish–Dutch and Moroccan–Dutch female professionals. Two different groups of educators were asked to comment on the outcomes of this study. One of the dilemmas for educators is to determine what can be considered supportive and inclusive and as reducing inequality in education. The authors used two key theoretical concepts, ‘superdiversity’ and ‘the capability approach’. These theoretical perspectives were used to deconstruct the rather massive concepts of diversity and social justice, by emphasising contextual approaches. Both perspectives stress the urgent need to involve students as ‘active agents of change’, by building a social work community to stimulate and facilitate an on-going dialogue. To successfully fulfil a pivotal role in the upward mobility or emancipation of ethnic minority students, social work education needs to be adjusted to accommodate diverse student groups.     

Faculty mentoring: Applying ecological theory to practice at historically Black colleges or universities

ABSTRACT

This article examines student mentoring at historically Black colleges or universities (HBCUs) through the lens of ecological theory. By examining the person’s human behavior on a micro level and the HBCU on a macro level, the researchers will examine faculty mentoring as a positive influence that assists students in advancing their educational pursuits. Specifically, this article examines how the faculty mentor assists students with navigating the various outer and inner forces that may impede more functional behaviors as they transition to graduate school. This information is important in helping to codify and promote the unique role that HBCU faculty and administrators play in the lives of their students from a student perspective. This article will help to demonstrate why the HBCU experience is not only valued, but necessary in higher education.     

Field education in crisis: experiences of field education coordinators in Canada

Significant multi-layered challenges with delivering quality practicum experiences to social work students have led field education coordinators to release a joint statement that social work field education in Canada is in a state of crisis. This article presents the results of a two-year mixed methods study that sought to investigate and describe the challenges in order to enhance understanding of the crisis from the perspective of Canadian social work field education coordinators. The results indicate that social work education programs in Canada face four key challenges in regard to field education that can be further divided into two sections: (a) the social work practice field and (b) social work field education administration. The two key challenges associated with the social work practice field are: (a) social work practice contexts and realities and (b) practicum shortages and saturation. The two key challenges associated with social work field education administration are: (a) practicum procurement and field instructor recruitment and retention; and (b) expectations and workloads of field education coordinators. To address these challenges, collaborative development of a multi-level strategy aimed at moving beyond the current state of crisis toward a sustainable model of social work field education in Canada is recommended.     

Research‐based teacher education for multicultural contexts

Graduate programs in education face the challenge of preparing teachers and specialists in education to work with English Language Learners (ELLs). Programs must be culturally responsive, while at the same time respecting state and federal standards for scientifically based practice according to best evidence. The focus of the present study is a graduate program in education that sought to prepare graduate students to address the needs of ELL students. Among the articulated goals of the program grant were that teachers enrolled would be able to: (1) use effective English for Speakers of Other Languages and bilingual educational strategies and methods; (2) use findings from testing, assessment and research functionally; and (3) promote multilingualism, and, in a broader sense, respect and equitable treatment of the heritages of home languages. The extent to which graduates of the master’s program who were working as teachers and administrators at the time of the study were able to make culturally competent connections with ELL students and to establish a repertoire of scientific evidence, based on research findings that they could then use to support their teaching theory and practice, is discussed. Findings reflecting the responses of 57 graduates of the program were as follows: (a) the training provided by the master’s program was rated as more useful than the in‐service provided by the state because its emphasis on research allowed graduates to judge the merits of proposed educational reforms and to clarify their own pedagogy; (b) the ability to cite research reports enabled graduates to be heard by colleagues and to depoliticize discussions regarding curricular reforms; (c) in developing their ‘communities of practice’, graduates made connections with others who had been trained in the use of scientific research in education. The study illustrates how a graduate education program focused on transformation and the encouragement of home language use can prepare teachers to work effectively in a political context of ‘evidence‐based practice’.     

Diverse students and literacy in social work education: pedagogies for a new tertiary landscape

In the Western policy landscape, students from diverse cultural, linguistic, economic and other backgrounds are increasingly represented in an expanded tertiary education system. Structural and technological changes have challenged traditional pedagogies designed for more elite cohorts, and shifted the boundaries of textual practices in both universities and professional worlds. In spite of these momentous trends, university literacies often remain tacit and inaccessible to those new to them, and pedagogies rarely explicitly engage with the complexities of these shifting boundaries. University students unfamiliar with these tacit literacies can become marginalised and ultimately struggle with the literacy demands of their academic and professional worlds. This is problematic in social work education, as professional practice demands complex written and oral communication, with potentially significant social and legal repercussions. This paper reports on pedagogies initiated by action research in a Bachelor of Social Work programme in an Australian University. Pedagogies were introduced to make elite codes explicit, use students’ literacies as assets for learning and encourage ‘code switching’ between literacy practices to resist colonising into more powerful literacies. Students’ capacities in academic and professional literacies were significantly enhanced by these practices, and their cultural inheritances valorised, encouraging their contribution to the social work discipline.     

Assessing the Development of Cultural Proficiency Among Upper-Level Social Work Students

Graduate social work pedagogy is challenging to diverse faculty and students who work with diverse clients, often in international practice. We discuss the development, outcomes, and assessment of an assignment designed to stimulate students’ research on proverbs as cultural resources for practice and to promote attainment of six competencies related to diversity and social justice of the Council on Social Work Education’s Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards. We used procedures from grounded theory and Atlas.ti to analyze 40 student papers. More than 70% of papers reflected students’ mastery of three competencies, suggesting the assignment was insufficient to ensure attainment of all six competencies and signaling errors in the structure of the assignment and in the rubric. Ensuring students’ achievement of the competencies requires careful design and assessment of assignments and deliberate, structured assessment of the assignment outcomes.