Does Practice Make Perfect?

Abstract

We tested an underlying assumption of social work field education, that more frequent practice of professional skills is associated with better student outcomes. One hundred eighty-eight students from four social work programs rated their skills and satisfaction and answered questions about frequency of practicing professional skills in field practicum. In addition, we had performance evaluations by their field instructors for 120 students. More frequent practice of nearly all 38 skills was associated with greater satisfaction with field education and greater self-evaluation of performance. Frequency of practicing about one-third of the skills was also associated with field instructors' evaluations of students. The results support the usefulness of repeatedly practicing skills in field education.     

Becoming a Field Instructor

Abstract

This paper, based on a qualitative study of 19 MSW field instructors immediately following their first year supervising graduate social work students, investigates their supervisory experiences and developmental processes through their own perspectives. This experience presented field instructors with unique challenges and opportunities to grow through analysis and reflection on their own practice, deeper self-awareness, working through and integrating their own student experiences, and appreciating their own competence and value. A supervision and parenting analogy and the theme of the student as selfobject, which emerged from the interviews, are described. Supervision of interns, a key experience which may deepen the development of the professional self of clinicians, should be encouraged and supported.     

Ranking Desirable Field Instructor Characteristics: Viewing Student Preferences in Context with Field and Class Experience

Although research on what students consider desirable in field instructors is extensive, little of it focuses on the relative weight students assign to each of their preferences or the context within which student preferences emerge. This article reports the survey findings from a case study that asked BSW graduates to rank the desirable characteristics of field instructors, and then provides supporting interview data that describe their experiences with the six most highly rated items. The social worker scale received the highest mean compared with the teacher and person scales, respectively. Specifically, “availability” ranked highest followed by four items on the social worker scale. In aggregate, the data suggest that students expect their instructors to be role models and learn much about professional behavior by observing it negatively enacted. Implications for research and field education are discussed.     

Self-Disclosure of Sexual Orientation in Social Work Field Education: Field Instructor and Lesbian and Gay Student Perspectives

ABSTRACT

In-depth interviews were conducted with lesbian and gay recent MSW graduates (n = 6) and experienced field instructors (n = 8) to explore sexual orientation–related challenges in social work field education. Data were analyzed using techniques from grounded theory and NVivo qualitative software. Self-disclosure emerged as a central theme in the establishment of a positive learning environment for lesbian and gay students in field education, including the benefits of student self-disclosure to learning, the responsibility of the field instructor, and the role of the agency context. Schools of social work may benefit from training and sensitizing field instructors to develop competence in providing educational experiences for LGBT students.     

Social Work Students' Treatment Termination as a Temporary Role Exit

Abstract

The end-of-year treatment terminations of social work student trainees are usually discussed as forced terminations, similar to those of professional therapists. This paper discusses them from the perspective of Ebaugh's (1988) role exit theory, which defines role exit as the departure from any role that is central to one's self-identity. This paper argues that in addition to being forced terminations, the end-of-year treatment terminations of student trainees are also temporary role exits. As such, they undermine the trainees' as yet undeveloped sense of professional identity and leave them susceptive to a “vacuum experience,” in which, suspended between a past role that they no longer possess and a future that is still unknown, they feel fear, anxiety, and a sense of being neither here nor there. This article offers suggestions for reducing the detrimental impact of the temporary role exit.     

Burnout in Social Work Field Instructors

Striving to respond to clients' pressing social needs while simultaneously providing solid educational experiences for students leaves many field instructors vulnerable to burnout. Rather than viewing burnout as an individual ailment, this article focuses on the organizational demands that produce role overload in the field instructor. Preventive responses emphasize the importance of replenishing energy, clarifying role expectations, and negotiating realistic responsibilities. Efforts which the university-based fieldwork liaison can take to reduce burnout in fieldwork instructors include careful assessment when recruiting field instructors, problem exploration, clarification, and advocacy with ongoing field instructors, and providing ample opportunities for field instructors to acquire new learning.     

Supplementary Educational Model (SEM) in Social Work Education for Health Care Settings

ABSTRACT

A supplementary educational model (SEM) was developed and evaluated in order to expand educational opportunities for social work students, to enable a professional interaction for field instructors and to connect the academia teachers to the field. The study highlights the importance of SEM to update the current academic curricula to meet the ongoing changes and challenges in health care settings. One hundred thirty-seven B.A. students and 58 field instructors employed in health care settings participated in the project. Results indicated that 90% of the participants rated the knowledge contributions of the study days and study day satisfaction positively. The results suggest that SEM has potential as a tool to complement traditional field instruction programs.     

Between professional values and the social valuation of patients: The fluctuating economy of pre-hospital emergency work

A number of authors have shown how medical decisions are influenced by social values; others have minimized the putative influence of values and have argued that medical decisions are predominantly constrained by the organization of medical work. Based on fieldwork in France and the USA observing pre-hospital resuscitations, we seek to resolve these views by showing that while judgments about the social value of a patient do influence professional decisions, so do judgments about the work that must be accomplished to manage a case. Pre-hospital emergency work has many facets that are variably valued by different professionals at different moments of an emergency's trajectory. These values compete with each other in what we call a “fluctuating economy”. This article analyses the role of social, technical, medical or surgical, heroic, and competence values in the course of pre-hospital emergency work. We show how these values may conflict or align with each other, forcing professionals to constantly establish priorities during an emergency trajectory.     

Expedience Over Education:

Field instructors provide a major contribution in preparing students for a professional role. Faced with the competing demands of practice and education, and little time for either, the field instructor must find ways to manage this instructional endeavour. This study investigated the teaching methods and content field instructors used and found that they (n=29) used teaching methods for expedience and chose content focused on getting the job done, rather than selecting methods and content for educative purposes. One implication of this research suggests that providing field instructors with learning theories and techniques may assist them in becoming more effective educators.     

Using integrated arts programming to facilitate social and emotional learning in young children with social cognition challenges

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this article is to describe a school-based, integrated arts programme designed to facilitate social and emotional learning (SEL) in young children with social cognitive challenges, and to report on student outcomes. Students received weekly arts instruction over the course of one academic semester as part of their social studies curriculum. SEL instruction was infused throughout. Authors conducted an exploratory study of outcomes using a mixed methods design. We quantified behavioural outcomes for 16 focus students at baseline and again at the end of the programme using a behavioural checklist and several social skills measures. We also gathered qualitative data, specifically end-of-programme interviews with 27 key stakeholders (i.e. instructors and parents). Findings indicated that students made significant gains based on the checklist and social skills measures. Qualitative data indicated that instructors used arts programming to facilitate student growth across all five of CASEL’s SEL domains: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making.     

Role conflicts in nursing and allied health: a comparison of professional and organizational commitment

Role compatibility and conflict between organizational and professional commitment for nurses, high school teachers, college faculty, and social workers have been the focus of several studies over the past two decades. The typical view has been that the professional employee must choose between the profession and the employing organization, since the values of each conflict. Primarily, studies have shown a basic incompatibility between professionals and organizations: the professional is seen as responding to authority based on expertise, while the organization is characterized by authority based on hierarchical position. Since a study of this type has not been conducted in allied health specifically, the purpose of this study was to examine whether bureaucratic and professional role concepts conflict with the allied health professional. Recent graduates and graduates with two years of employment experience representing nursing and four allied health disciplines at one institution were surveyed. Results of the study indicated that the respondents were able to maintain a high degree of professional commitment without perceiving undue conflict from the demands of the organization. Based on the findings, allied health educators are encouraged to examine the curriculum to ensure graduates are prepared for the realities of employment as well as committed to their respective professions.     

Sexual Relationships with Educators

Abstract

This study of sexually oriented relationships between educators/field instructors and their students/supervisees was conceptualized to add to existing knowledge of the incidence and impact on master of social work students of sexually intimate relationships, sexual advances, and first-hand knowledge of such relationships. The present study gathers data from male and female subjects regarding sexual contact experiences with educators/field instructors during masters-level training and reports both the extent and perceptions of the impact of such relationships both at the time of the contact and at present. For comparative purposes, random samples were used from two national professional organizations both comprised of primarily masters-level practitioners. Most similar previous studies within mental-health professions have focused exclusively on doctoral-level experiences and female subjects.     

The viability of the concept of a primary health care team: a view from the medical humanities

To question the viability of the concept of a primary health care team implies at least the possibility that something about the nature of primary care, and about the nature of giving care in teams, places the two in conflict. In fact, a number of interesting and provocative questions concerning primary health care teams are in the areas of ethics and professional values. Primary care is inherently a 'moral notion', and when the concept of the health care team is yoked to that of primary care, the team takes on the normative coloration of primary care. This occurs at two levels. At a societal and professional level, the concept of a primary health care team depends on extra-professional values (e.g. a society's understanding of the requirements of social justice, funding priorities for health services, or the perceived worth of particular patient populations), and professional values such as autonomy and authority. At the level of face-to-face clinical encounters, questions arise as to a team's ability to maintain interpersonal and moral accountability to patients and society. Future research on the functioning of health care teams should focus more on these normative issues, rather than on the bureaucratic and logistical dimensions of team care that currently predominate in the professional literature.     

Developing professional values: perceptions of francophone occupational therapists in Quebec,Canada

Objective Recent literature shows growing interest in the values displayed by occupational therapists. Yet, none of these writings has so far examined the factors that contribute to the development of occupational therapists’ professional values. These factors are important, since values play a pivotal role in forging professional identity, which in the case of some occupational therapists remains somewhat ambiguous. This article proposes possible answers to the following question: What do Quebec Francophone occupational therapists perceive as the building blocks of their professional values? Methods Using a phenomenological qualitative method, the subjective experience of occupational therapists in Quebec, Canada was examined. Twenty-six occupational therapists took part in the study. Results As intended, their professional experience was varied. According to the participants, four factors contributed significantly to their professional values: professional experience, university training, personal experience, and professional development. However, fewer than 50% of the participants cited six other factors (workplace, family upbringing, personal development, personality and abilities, professional normative framework, and sociocultural background). Conclusions Most of these results are consistent with those documented in existing works. They point to the relevance of discussing professional values during university training and continuing professional development, as well as encouraging occupational therapists to become exemplars for their colleagues and interns. This study constitutes an initial step in understanding how occupational therapists’ axiological identity is formed.     

The Heart of Social Work: Best Practitioners Rise to Challenges in Field Instruction

ABSTRACT

Field, as the “signature pedagogy,” is the heart of social work education. However, field education has encountered challenges both in academia and in agencies that serve as field placements. This study explores the ways in which best practitioners in field instruction—10 field instructors who won the Heart of Social Work Award through the Council on Social Work Education—are rising to the challenges of supervising social work interns. These include (a) teaching a wide variety of skills of assessment and intervention, (b) balancing the teaching of these skills with the encouragement of reflection, (c) teaching interns to connect theory and practice, (d) developing an integrative model of supervision, (e) applying research to practice, (f) showing appropriate support to interns, and (g) upholding the mission of field education in the face of fiscal retrenchment and pressures for accountability. Findings of the study show that field instructors are responding with impressive energy and creativity to these challenges and also suggest the need for greater collaboration between field instructors and schools of social work.     

Student Satisfaction with Field Placement

Students' perceptions of their field placements rarely are taken into account in the literature on field practicum and supervision. This survey of MSW students at a southern university examines factors associated with student satisfaction with field agency, field instructor, and field learning. The survey covers student and agency characteristics, learning goals and structure, supervision, and school-agency linkages. Students associated the quality of supervision and relevance of learning most highly with satisfaction in their placement experiences. Being treated as a professional in the agency, school-agency linkages, student characteristics, and amount of time engaged in specific social work activities were found not to be major factors in student satisfaction with field work.