Adult Learning: Implications for Teaching in Social Work Education

Summary The new Diploma in Social Work (DipSW) requires practice teachersand academic tutors to foster student empowerment while at thesame time ensuring practice competence. A model for achievingthese aims is that of adult learning. This paper traces thedevelopment of adult learning research and offers suggestionsfor effective teaching methods. It argues that the principlesof adult learning could provide a unified framework for professionaltraining and that, moreover, this educational approach couldbe used to benefit social work practice itself.     

实用专业主义:广州市家庭综合服务中心社会工作者“专业能力”的界定及其逻辑

本研究的目的是找出中国社会工作者专业能力体系及其背后的判定逻辑。本研究运用“模糊德尔菲法”的设计,让广东省高校教育界和实务界的专家参考英格兰、美国和中国香港地区的专业能力,选择其中他们认为对广州市家庭综合服务中心社会工作者重要的指标。结果显示,共有价值伦理、理论知识和实务技巧等3个层面,合计24项能力指标被纳入本地的能力体系。经过分析这些专家判定逻辑,本研究还发现该能力体系存在“实用专业主义”的倾向,包括“犬儒思想”“去政治化”和“技术化”等特征。     

Practitioner Competence in Social Work

Practitioner competence is becoming an increasingly important priority within the social work profession. A skill training program designed to promote practice competence was developed to examine problematic situations for social workers. Previous training programs have emphasized basic skills but have not attempted to teach skills in specific problematic situations. This pilot training program was evaluated using a time-series design replicated across four subjects. Results show that students made gains on all measures after the introduction of the training. These results suggest that social work students can enhance their practice skills and competence through training of this nature.     

The Limits of Competence in Social Work: The Assessment of Marginal Students in Social Work Education

Summary Out of a population of 208 final year social work students,a sample is gathered of those whose fieldwork gave rise to commentby tutors. A further sample of 35 deemed to be ‘at risk’is identified, and the process by which all but four obtainedtheir Certificate of Qualification in Social Work is carefullymonitored. Among topics discussed are the need to define theprocess of assessment more clearly, the weakness of so-calledtheoretical foundations in social work practice, the risk ofmisunderstanding between fieldwork teachers (supervisors) andcourse tutors regarding their respective responsibility forjudging competence in practice, and the desirability of requiringstudents to demonstrate competence rather than expecting coursesto prove incompetence.     

Coping with Trauma-Related Dissociation by Boon,S., Steele,K., & Van Der Hart,O.

An innovative classroom laboratory program on social work practice with groups is presented. The program was developed by the author and conducted as a major part of an undergraduate social work practice course. The general objective of the program was to develop basic competence in group leadership for the beginning social work student. The program was conducted and evaluated with about 40 undergraduate students. The results are reported in the paper. In general, student response to the program was very positive and enthusiastic. While the program was conducted with undergraduates, it cnn be used at the graduare level as well, particularly with students who have had little prior social work education or experience.     

External supervision for social workers in another socio-political context: a qualitative study in Shenzhen,China

External supervision of local social workers has become a common practice in Shenzhen, China as the development of social work as a profession reaches break-neck pace and when the shortage of experienced social work supervisors also becomes acute. Hence, many supervisors have been recruited externally from Hong Kong to fill the gap. However, for external supervisors working in another socio-political context they will need an awareness and sensitivity of cultural issues, and cultural dynamics in supervision. Based on a qualitative study conducted in Shenzhen of 16 in-depth interviews with supervisors and supervisees in eight supervisory dyads, as well as a focus group meeting with three external supervisors from Hong Kong, this study finds that the institutional hierarchy, ruling culture and traditional Confucian values which place great importance of harmony, reciprocal relationships with others, effective self-control and respect for hierarchy have impacted the day-to-day practice as well as the interactions between social workers and their external supervisors in Shenzhen. The implications of this study is that in achieving successful supervisory practice the further development of intercultural competence is one of the key directions for professionalising social work in the Chinese Mainland.     

改革开放30年以来中国医务社会工作的历史回顾、现状与前瞻

(接2012年第5期)五、中国社会福利时代与医务社会工作发展前景2010年是中国社会政策、社会立法、社会管理、社会服务、社会建设与社会福利元年,标志中国总体性社会福利制度,包括国家福利、儿童福利、家庭福利、妇女福利、残障福利、老年人福利、军人福利、社区福利和社会化福利时代来临,以改善民生为重点的社会建设和中国特色社会福利制     

The Monitoring of Co-Active Learning in Social Groupwork

Various ways of monitoring different levels of experiential learning for social groupwork practice are explored in this pilot study. A systematic means for monitoring and evaluating the learning experience is presented. The responses of one social work class (N=60) show increased comfort in all four aspects of the learning experience except in application to group situations in which students did not have direct experience. Synchronizing the learning in all aspects is therefore important. The concept of "coactive learning" is presented to guide the teaching for social groupwork practice, and the monitoring of the learning. Some limitations and further implications of the approach are discussed.     

An Unfinished Reflexive Journey: Social Work Students' Reflection on their Placement Experiences

The fieldwork placement is recognized as one of the major componentsof social work education and a major determinant of its quality.A key aspect of the learning process in the fieldwork placementis the exposition of practice encounters to the students’critical reflection. Given the importance of the process of‘reflection’ or ‘reflective learning’,a qualitative study based on the reflective logs of social workstudents was conducted to explore the meaning of social workfield education and the learning experiences of social workstudents during their placement. The study findings revealedthat disturbing events experienced by students in their fieldworkwere a catalyst to their reflective process. Meanwhile, theirundue concern with knowledge and skills application within acircumscribed knowledge frame suggests the dominant influenceof scientism and competence-based practice in social work, inwhich learning outcomes and instrumental and technical reasoningare highly emphasized. Discovery of ‘self’ was alsothe major premise in the students’ reflection logs, inwhich a majority of them took their prevailing self-identityas a constant state to be verified in interaction with othersin the fieldwork placement. Reflexivity is manifested in askingfundamental questions about assumptions generated by formaland practice theories; it addresses the multiple interrelationsbetween power and knowledge, and acknowledges the inclusionof self in the process of knowledge creation in social workpractice. Its realization in social work education requiresthe social work educators’ reflexive examination of thedynamics that influence the construction of curriculum, whichin turn construct our prospective social workers.     

Teaching Group Work in the BSW Generalist Social Work Curriculum: Core Content

In this article, nine considerations associated with social work practice with groups are identified and discussed. These range from the importance of mutual aid and the role of the group leader to multicultural competence and practice skills needed in the beginning, middle, and ending phases of group work. Group work is only one of four modalities that must be taught in the undergraduate practice sequence. Therefore, the nine considerations represent the essential content on group work for the generalist practice curriculum. The author assumes that this content can be presented in a 7-week time frame. In a companion article, the author presents teaching strategies and techniques that assist the instructor in conveying the principles for practice discussed in the present article.     

Evaluating a Scale to Measure Student Competencies in Macro Social Work Practice

ABSTRACT

This article outlines the development of an evaluation tool for measuring student competency in macrolevel social work practice. Researchers followed a multistage process that incorporated the wisdom of experienced field instructors in identifying key competencies for practice, ranking performance levels in each competency, and evaluating the reliability and validity of the scale. The resulting Macro Practice-Based Evaluation tool includes six skill domains (learning and growth; behavior and relationships; leadership; critical thinking, analysis, planning, and implementation; professional communication; and values and ethics), each of which has five levels of student competence ranging from unsuitable for practice to exemplary. Evaluation in an experimental setting, by comparing student evaluations on the new tool and previous tools, demonstrated promising reliability and validity. Implications for social work education and future research in actual practice environments are discussed.     

Psychosocial and relationship-based theories for child and family social work: political philosophy, psychology and welfare practice

Psychosocial perspectives on children’s development are allied to theories that recognize the ‘self’ as essentially a social entity. The quality of relationships that children experience in their social environment have a profound effect on their socio-emotional development, personality formation and social competence. To this extent, psychosocial theories of children’s development and wellbeing can provide child and family social workers with a powerful framework within which to analyse, assess and practise. However, it is also recognized that the character of child welfare practices and policies are influenced by prevailing political climates. A simple dichotomy is described between political philosophies of the right and left; libertarianism and communitarianism; individual freedom and collective action. It is argued that the present swing to libertarian individualism has brought about major changes in the policy and practice of much child and family social work, including a preference for theories that emphasize people’s psychological independence, rationality and personal responsibility. In such a climate, child and family social work becomes more legalistic, orientated towards principles of justice rather than welfare, and towards rights and responsibilities rather than personal relationships and social competence. Psychosocial developmental theories, with their emphasis on the importance of social relationships and the emotional interconnectedness of people in community, fare less well under the rigours of psychological individualism and free-market economics. The paper concludes that if children’s psychosocial development and competence are a product of their social history, practices that psychologically ‘disembed’ people from their relationship environment are unable to consider children’s needs within a coherent, well-grounded theoretical framework. If child and family social work is premised on helping children develop social understanding and emotional wellbeing, theory and practice are best served by taking a psychosocial perspective.     

On the Value and Meaning of Trauma-Informed Practice: Honoring Safety,Complexity, and Relationship

ABSTRACT

In social work, as in other mental health fields, there has been a surge of literature regarding trauma-informed practice. Even so, the value and meaning of being a trauma-informed practitioner still call for further explication and analysis, especially in the realm of clinical social work practice. Approaching and engaging traumatized clients with a trauma-informed lens carry profound implications in the assessment, diagnostic, and intervention stages of treatment, and these implications warrant further unpacking. Additionally, it is critical to explore, through real-world case examples, the significance of working with a trauma-informed lens. This article develops a stage-based, relational definition of trauma-informed practice and argues that trauma-informed practice prioritizes client complexity, social context, and the therapeutic relationship throughout the assessment, diagnostic, and treatment process. In addition, it prioritizes the nuanced experiences and needs of the client, in particular the need for safety, above specific treatment modalities. In this way, it has vital importance to the field of social work. The significance of being trauma informed is considered at all stages of treatment and will be illuminated through practice examples and a longer clinical vignette.     

A revisit of ‘moral and character education’ subject in junior-high school in China

Moral education is a practice to promote the moral competence of adolescents, particularly in nurturing their moral judgement and moral behaviour. In China, under the rapid development of social work practice at schools, moral education could serve as a collaborative point between teachers, school counsellors, social workers and policymakers to promote the moral, holistic and healthy development of students. However, moral education is not as yet widely and systematically evaluated? particularly the details of relevant policy, curriculum, textbooks, teaching and learning approach, examination and evaluation. This paper takes an initiative to conduct a comprehensive literature review and theoretical discussion on the subject ‘Moral and Character Education’ (Sixiangpinde思想品德) which is a mandatory moral education subject for Grade 7–9 students in junior high schools in China. It also provides reflections and suggestions on how the subject and moral education could be promoted under the contexts of promotion of adolescent holistic development and involvement of social work practice.     

Class-competent social work: a preliminary definition

The article seeks to present a theoretical framework for defining class-competence in social work practice. Social work has made significant progress in enhancing practice competence with respect to contextual factors that transcend social class such as gender, culture, race and ethnicity. But this positive development in overcoming the rigid view, which framed class as the sole explanation of diversity, has obscured the current impact of social class differences in social work practice. This article takes a critical look at the historical approach of the profession to class issues, extends the boundaries of the social class concept beyond its narrow economic dimensions, discusses the relevance of addressing class issues in light of current challenges in social work practice and, lastly, proposes a preliminary definition of class-competent social work practice.     

The client as learner and the clinician as teacher: Working with an educational lens

This article highlights the social worker's role as educator and how that role relates to clinical practice. The educational component of practice is not grounded in a substantial theoretical, research, or practice literature, and yet teaching is a nascent role for most clinicians. For the most part, the educational aspects of clinical practice have languished, at least from a theoretical perspective, in the shadow of therapy. In this paper we advocate for developing and articulating the clinician/teacher role in order to support effective use of the learning relationship as a dynamic and necessary means for assisting clients in managing life transitions, developmental challenges, and adversity. We propose the use of an educational lens derived from the fields of education, developmental psychology, and cognitive science, to provide perspective from which the client is viewed as learner, and the client‐work relationship is seen as an educational transaction. We highlight the transformative power of educational transactions that we think are as significant as primary caregiving, and also provide a working definition of education as it is used in clinical teaching‐learning relationships. And finally, we elaborate on the range of purposes education may serve in social work practice.     

互动式课堂教学在社会工作专业中的应用探索

社会工作专业教育的核心是实践教学,除社会实践和专业实习外,在课堂教学中也需要注重培养学生的实务能力。采用多种形式的互动式课堂教学方法,注重学生在课堂中的参与学习,充分发挥学生在学习过程中的主动性和积极性,有助于在课堂教学中提高学生的专业知识水平和实务能力。     

国内社会工作专业实践教学引入服务学习的思考

目前国内社会工作专业实践教学面临着独特的本土化处境,在国外及我国港台地区适用的社会工作专业学生到社会工作专业机构参加实践的教学模式在国内基本上无法照搬使用。由于我国社会工作的发展属教育先导型,国内社会工作实践教学与服务学习具有高度的契合性,可引入服务学习,增强实践教学实效,为此需要创造相应的条件。     

Dip.S.W. Students and Anti-Discriminatory Practice: Questions of Learning Outcomes and Assessment

Correspondence to Elizabeth L. Sullivan, School of Health and Community Studies, De Montfort University, Kents Hill, Milton Keynes MK7 6HP, UK. E-mail: esulliva{at}dmu.ac.uk Summary There is great public interest in issues of discrimination andprejudice and, while this interest leads to changes in publicand professional behaviour and sometimes to legislative changes,it is not at all apparent that these changes achieve the statedintention, which is to eliminate negative and oppressive discrimination.It is argued that current methods of education for anti-discriminatorypractice, while successful in terms of imparting understandingand competence in relation to structural and societal issuessuch as racism, power and inequality, may be less successfulat the individual level of personal attitudes. An argument isput forward which suggests that anti-discriminatory practice(ADP) education may sometimes result in hidden or unrecognized,unmeasured, and possibly unwanted learning outcomes. This isdiscussed in relation to social work education, and two possibleunforeseen outcomes are proposed: first, the individual mayshift the focus of prejudice from one subject to another, secondly,the individual may unrealistically interpret their attitudesas anti-discriminatory, despite evidence to the contrary. Inaddition, it is suggested that social workers may hold conflictingdiscriminatory attitudes towards a single subject, dependingon whether they see themselves, at that time, as an individualor as a professional.     

Synthesizing Research and Practice: Using the Action Research Approach in Health Care Settings

The traditional dichotomy between research and practice invariably results in having to make difficult choices between the two, or trying to balance them in some way in order to keep both academic and corporate 'sponsors' happy. The real challenge is not so much balancing the two as achieving a closer fusion and synthesis between them. The action research model offers one such way forward in this regard, being better placed than either the 'applied research' model or the 'consultancy' model to realize the synergies and complementarities between research and practice. Action research is a mutual learning process within which people work together to discover what the issues are, why they exist, and how they might be addressed. Over time there is a blurring of the traditional roles of practitioner and researcher, the former becoming 'researching practitioners', the latter 'practising researchers'. The different phases of the action research model are illustrated using data from NHS case studies and relevant literature. Although the focus is upon how an organizational anthropologist would use the model, the suggestion is that it commends itself to a much broader constituency of social scientists and qualitative researchers working in the social and public policy arenas, and hence merits further investigation by all of these.