Introduction
Social work practice is a broad area, which requires the professional application of social work principles, techniques, and values for various purposes that include counseling and psychotherapy for individuals, families, and groups. The aim is to empower people to obtain services, participate in legislative processes, and/or help communities to improve social and health services. However, for these activities to be successful, the exercise of public work needs a clear understanding and information of individual improvement and performance, financial, collective and cultural association, and the interface between these elements. Social work profession is very important since it enhances human capacity to solve various complex social problems to create a just and humane society. The cornerstone of social work practice lies in its focus on strengths rather than weakness of individuals, families, and communities. It provides creative solutions to complex social problems.
The teaching of social work practice is an important area of social work profession that has attracted a lot of research and commentary from different researchers and social workers. The main questions revolve around how to teach social work practice to social work students and professionals to ensure that the knowledge acquired in class can be best translated into practice in the field. Despite the many suggestions concerning the topic, it continues to remain open for more research, theories, and models that seek to ensure that social work practice is taught in the best way possible. Factors such as the practical nature of the area and its hands-on dealing with individuals, groups, families, and community members means that ‘knowing’ the concepts, theories, and models of social work practice is not enough. Instead, it requires the capacity to transfer the ‘knowing’ into ‘doing’ to guarantee that people who are being helped get the best outcomes possible. According to Swain (2007), the key features of best practice in social work include communication, inclusiveness, empathy, empowering people and linking them to relevant services, and an integrated and professional approach to the practice. How can one then teach students to know and apply these key features of social work practice? As the paper reveals, many theories have been established to answer this question. Besides, the study presents the findings of different researchers who have confirmed the effectiveness of the pedagogy, although there is a room for better ways to be adopted to teach this subject area.
Theory
Social work is not a recent practice in the society. Different well known approaches have been put forward to teach social work practice. The teaching of social work practice requires theoretical and practical lessons and content to link the two to make certain that students can carry out their social work activities in the best way possible. Firstly, according to Swain (2007), small group teaching and active involvement of students is a researched and proven method of teaching work practice that ensures that students get excellent practice knowledge. Small group teaching and active student involvement in such groups ensure that students and beginning practitioners are well prepared for social work practice through mentoring and socialization. The use of the small group teaching approach is acknowledged for its ability to foster practice knowledge, ethical standards, and professional values that are required in the profession and the practice of social work. However, for best results of small group teaching, active involvement of all students is required.
Indeed, the reason for the small group setting is to ensure maximum participation and involvement in the activities of the group in learning social work practice. In social work practice teaching and learning, it is important to incorporate educational and social functions whilst ensuring that students are actively involved to a considerable degree in both functions. In small group teaching, the main learning processes include “framing and reframing, crossing boundaries, experimenting, and integrating perspectives” (Swain, 2007, p. 470). Concisely, small group teaching has been proven to help students understand the application of the class work learning into practice whilst fostering their interpersonal communication and socialization skills among other skills that are important in social work practice. Due to its known benefits, small group teaching and active involvement of students are a widely used method of teaching social work practice across the world.
Another well-known teaching approach to social work practice is the use of student-centered, collaborative, and participative practice teaching model. In this model, the focus is on the importance of partnership between students and teachers in social work practice learning. According to Tsien and Ming-Sum (2007), the way a social work student is taught and/or socialized determines the quality of service he/she will provide as a professional practitioner. Consequently, in the teaching of social work practice, it is important for students to acquire interpersonal skills, gain competence in undertaking general tasks, and obtain common roles of professional practice. Further, it is important for students to have pride in their profession and identity as social workers and develop an awareness of the behaviors that promote or hinder the achievement of the aims of their profession and practice (Tsien & Ming-Sum, 2007). This approach in teaching of social work practice has been applied for a long time.
Today, it remains very relevant. It helps in the successful achievement of practice teaching goals of integrating theories and practice. Some of the approaches under this model include the learner approach, development restorative approach, the role systems approach, educational approach, articulative approach, and aptitude-based approach (Tsien & Ming-Sum, 2007d). All these approaches are important in ensuring that the teaching of social work practice achieves the goals of linking class work knowledge and skills to practical decision-making in the actual undertaking of the profession in the field. In this model, the relationship between the student and the teacher is of paramount importance to the personal growth and learning of the student (Nelsen, 2006). There must be trust from the start of the teaching between the teacher and the student for maximum transfer of knowledge. When trust is achieved, it allows teachers to go beyond their directive roles in class to participative duties where students can easily observe and learn attitudes, skills, and behaviors as directed by the practice teachers. Therefore, using the approach is highly recommended for the teaching of social work practice.
The above approaches of teaching of social work practice are widely used in the teaching of social work across the world. However, with the dynamism that is characteristic of the society, which the profession seeks to serve, the field of social work is ever changing and so is the teaching of social work practice. Many areas in the teaching of social work practice have not been well exhausted. Hence, more research is required to shed more light (Knight, 2001). For instance, it is still not well known whether the various teaching social work practice approaches are as effective as many theorists want social work professionals to believe. In other words, does practice teaching improve the effectiveness of actual practice of the social work? As such, there is a need for more research to be carried to determine the effectiveness of the theories, models, and approaches that are used in the teaching of social work practice. According to Clare (2007), there is the need to adopt evidence-based teaching approaches and models to ensure that the transition from class to practice is improved for the maximum effectiveness of social work in addressing different issues that face the society.
According to McCusker (2013), social work education must transform students’ by challenging them to reframe their knowledge and assumptions and consequently prepare them to work in challenging situations that are evident in the society. In better terms, social work education must adequately prepare students to work with oppressed groups in the society and develop emancipatory practice (Trigwell, 2006). Consequently, it is important for teachers of social work practice to make sure that the approaches and concepts they use in class assist students to achieve this important transformation in knowledge for what awaits them in their profession. Different salient and pedagogic theories, concepts, and approaches have been adopted to guide the process of teaching social work practice that this paper will discuss.
The firstly, transformative learning theory is a widely used theory in the teaching of social work practice. According to Walmsley and Birkbeck (2006), transformative learning theory describes the process of altering a person’s way of thinking and undertaking. A person is aware and consciously engages in the changes that are taking place. Taylor (2007) specifies that such a change is however not easy since people’s way of thinking is influenced by different factors, including culture, belief, and values. People reject any new ideas that do not fit in their already established mental frames. The theory posits that unless individuals are aware of these ‘frames’ and seek to change them, they are likely to sustain their old habits of mind and assumptions, which limit their ability to question knowledge claims and in turn limit the ability to develop new behaviors or professional practices (Moon, 2004). The theory is important since it guides teachers to ensure that they design content and activities that do not only impart knowledge on students but also ensure that they can transfer the knowledge into practice. According to Orme and Shemmings (2010), the theory enables students to develop understanding and skills that are necessary for accepting the uncertainties in social work. Further, by transforming their way of thinking, it allows students and practitioners to make better decisions that are not constrained by the assumptions concerning prejudices about the people they serve.
Secondly, an important theory that is highly applied in the teaching of social work practice is the constructivism theory. Constructivism theory is a learning conjecture that explains how people learn and acquire knowledge. According to the theory, people learn and attain information, skills, and their meaning through their day-to-day life experiences. Although the constructivism is not a specific pedagogy, it has been expounded by different theorists, including Piaget whose interpretation of the theory has been adopted widely in the formal education system in the United States and across the world. In the teaching of social work practice, the theory is often referred to as constructive developmental pedagogy (CDP) (McCusker, 2013).
Under the theory, key principles emerge. Firstly, learning only takes place when a learner constricts meaning of the experiences in daily life. In other words, a lot of knowledge out there is independent of the learner. It can only become useful and meaningful when constructed by a learner in the process of learning (Fook, 2007). Light, Cox, and Calkins (2009) put it that learning is not understanding the ‘true’ nature of things or how they a perceived. Rather, learning is a personal and social construction of meaning from many explanations. In the teaching of social work practice, constructivism has a wide application. It forms a central tenet in guiding students to ‘construct’ ideas and skills that are important in the practice of their profession (Biggs, 2003). Therefore, the teaching of social work practice requires approaches that guide students to construct the right meanings of the knowledge they acquire in class in addition to how they can convert the knowledge into practice.
To apply the theory of constructivism, key principles of learning have to be applied. Firstly, learning is considered a vigorous course where students use sensory participation to create sense from it. Consequently, active learner participation is important in the social work practice learning (Ferguson, Lavalette, & Whitmore, 2005). In addition, construction of meaning happens in the mind. As such, while hands-on experience, experimentation, and case studies are important in learning social work practice, it is important for teachers to provide activities that engage the mind using what Moon (2004) calls reflective activity. Another important principle of learning is that education involves language. Hence, in teaching of social work practice, it is important for teachers to ensure that language barriers do not hinder the communication process in learning and teaching. Such an approach ensures that teachers can present ideas and knowledge in a manner that will lead to the construction of the intended meaning (Tsien & Ming-Sum, 2007). Further, learning is a social activity that is strongly upholds connection with other people. In social work, this principle is highly applicable. It requires teachers of social work practice to encourage conversations and interactions with others as an integral part of acquiring knowledge.
Another principle of learning is the recognition that learning is contextual. In this case, learning occurs in relation to what is already known, existing beliefs, prejudices, and fears. Consequently, in the teaching of social work practice, it is important to incorporate examples and case studies that are relevant to the student’s context to guide the process of changing knowledge to practice. In addition, it is important to recognize that teaching takes time (Walmsley & Birkbeck, 2006). This principle is very important since it guides teachers of social work practice to guide students in a systematic process in constructing knowledge and skills that are important in real-life application of social work profession (Ferguson et al., 2005). In essence, learning is never instantaneous. It calls for the re-examination of thoughts, interacting with them, and utilizing them to ensure that practice knowledge is acquired. Lastly, motivation is a very important principle of learning in social work.
Thirdly, a major approach to the teaching of social practice is the use of critical reflection. The approach draws from both transformative theory and constructive developmental pedagogy where it offers a wide range of ways of translating ideas and principles into practice. According to McCusker (2013), critical reflection provides teachers of social work practice the means of learning to student’s experiences. In addition, through a verbal critical reflection in-group setting, the approach provides an opportunity for students to construct a mutual meaning (Light et al., 2009). Concisely, the approach supports the achievement of the full potential of transformative and constructivism theories of learning that have been discussed in details in this paper.
Fourthly, facilitative and responsive teaching is another important plan to the teaching the subject of public labor. According to Light et al., (2009), this approach complements the other approaches and theories. The approach is relevant to the teaching of social work practice since it emphasizes the role of relationships in providing empathy and warmth that are necessary for the learning process. As students learn new ideas, there is likelihood for them to feel threatened by having their values, ideas, and actions revealed for scrutiny and challenge (Ferguson et al., 2005). As such, facilitative and responsive teaching can eliminate such fears by fostering participation in class through open-ended questions, responding with empathy, and/or using humor, thereby validating the students’ ability to know as dictated by the constructivism developmental pedagogy (Doel & Shardlow, 2005). In the development of responsiveness, Ferguson et al. (2005) point out that the concept of personhood is very important. In this process, the teacher uses autobiographical examples to illustrate the intended points. As advocated by transformative learning theory, responsiveness allows the teacher to illustrate and point out knowledge, belief, and behavioral areas that are being challenged in the process of learning.
Lastly, constructive alignment is an important approach to the teaching of social work practice. The approach is important in ensuring that once transformation in knowledge and skills has been achieved, the students’ ability to use the achieved knowledge is enhanced. According to Clare (2007), the approach is based on the notion that learning, teaching, and assessment activities and environment must be linked and designed to provide a pathway for students to meet their learning expectations. The approach not only enhances the students’ transformation but also is in line with constructivism since it emphasizes transitional culture in the learning process (Biggs, 2003). Consequently, it is important for teaching to use the approach to ensure that knowledge and skills that are imparted using other approaches are put into use.
The above theories and approaches are not self-sufficient. They are supposed to be applied together throughout the teaching process in social work process. Teachers are expected to borrow the important tenets of each theory and approaches that are appropriate to each class context to ensure maximum transfer of knowledge from theory to practice. By applying these approaches, the difference between ‘knowing’ and ‘doing’ is likely to be minimized to ensure that social work students are able to effectively apply their knowledge in their future engagement in the actual practice of their profession.
Research on the Pedagogy of Social Work Practice
A rich literature by different theorists and scholars supports the theories and approaches of teaching social work practice. The support exists in the form of case studies and detailed studies that have been carried to support the validity of the theories and approaches in guiding the teaching process for teachers and learning by social work students.
Firstly, transformative learning theory is one of the most researched theories of learning. Introduced by Jack Mezirow in 1978, the theory has been used widely to explain how people learn (Hothersall & Bolger, 2010). The theory is majorly regarded as adult learning theory since it is based on the notion that learning is a process of using prior knowledge and interpretation to construe a new or revised meaning of one’s experiences to guide his or her future action (Berger, 2002). With time, the theory has grown from Mezirow’s perspective to include other concepts such as positionality, emancipatory learning, spirituality, and neurobiology, which are viewed as important factors of transformation in learning.
Starting with the construct “perception revolution”, research has suggested that it is an enduring and irreversible process (Mumm, 2006). Further, research by Berger (2002) has also found a link between action and perspective transformation where an unremitting action or practice lead to lifelong changes in behavior and ways of thinking. Once new perspectives or ways of thinking have been achieved, acting on the new perspectives is the key to gaining and sustaining new knowledge and skills. According to Knight (2001), it is important for educators, and in this case social work teachers, to provide learners within and outside the classroom opportunities to act on new knowledge insights in the transformative learning process. Without experiences to act and test new knowledge and perspective, Muller and Burkhard (2009) assert that it is almost impossible to achieve full transformation.
A research carried out by Biggs (2003) found that classroom activities such as discussion groups, practice by doing and teaching others, or immediate use of the acquired knowledge led to the retainance of knowledge at more than 50%, as opposed to lecture and reading whose rate of knowledge retainance was 10% and 20% respectively. In the teaching of social work, it is therefore important to include classroom and outside classroom activities that have been shown to lead to higher retainance of knowledge. Other important aspects of transformative learning that have been heavily researched include critical reflection, which signifies the deep questioning of the existing knowledge frames and consequently the ability to accept new knowledge and skills.
Secondly, research on constructivism learning theory supports the ability to guide teachers and educators in framing their teaching practices to ensure that students are able to learn and transform their knowledge into practice. The constructivist teaching draws from the tenets of constructivist learning theory, which refers to a theoretical framework that holds that learning builds upon the existing knowledge in a student (Muller & Burkhard, 2009). The theory assumes that knowledge is more successful when the student is vigorously engaged in classroom activities, contrary to getting knowledge submissively. A lot of research has been carried out on this theory where the focus has been on teaching methods that form a guided discovery where the teachers avoid most direct instructions.
It recommends teachers to guide the student through activities and questions that foster discovery, discussion, appreciation, and verbalization of new knowledge (Doel & Shardlow, 2005). Different theorists such as Jean Piaget and John Dewey who have researched child development and education have been greatly inspired by constructivist-learning theory. Ferguson et al. (2005) have suggested various constructivist-teaching strategies that are best suited in social work classroom setting. They point out that in a constructivist learning setting, students must be aggressively engaged while the processes must be shared and learner-focused. In addition, the classroom environment must be democratic where students are given an opportunity to air their views on different areas of studying. Lastly, the teacher is required to facilitate the learning process by encouraging students to be responsive and autonomous.
Many teachers and scholars have adopted constructivism as a practice due to its simple and easy-to-understand approaches to teaching. According to Clare (2007), constructivist-learning theory has proliferated in literature on teaching and teacher education. This view signifies its popularity as an approach to learning and teaching. For instance, it has been heavily adopted by “social constructivists” who have heavily relied on Vygotsky’s interpretation of constructivism as an approach to social transformation. Swain (2007) points out another important contribution to the constructivism approach to teaching. He discusses common elements of constructivist pedagogy as “imperatives” as opposed to specific practices.
According to the study, the imperatives include purposeful group dialogue, student-centeredness, differentiated modes of learning, development of learners’ awareness of meta-cognition, and the creation of opportunities for learners to change their understandings. In traditional classroom assessment, learning is based on testing where the student has to produce the right answers (Hothersall & Bolger, 2010). However, in a constructivist learning process, the process of gaining knowledge is as important as passing the test. In this case, appraisal includes examination of the learner, his or her vocation, perspectives, and investigation. In the classroom setting, Tsien and Ming-Sum (2007) assert that oral discussions, mind mapping, hands-on activities, and pre-testing are proven strategies that support the relevance of constructivist approach to learning and in extension, the teaching of social work practice.
Many researchers use critical reflection as an approach that performs a supporting role to transformative and constructivist learning theories. According to Fook (2007), critical reflection is based on ideas of Kolb who emphasized the importance of learning experience in 1984. Further, a growing body of evidence exists to support the importance of critical reflection in facilitating transformative learning. For instance, a review of the existing literature by McCusker (2013) found that critical reflection and discourse with trusted parties are essential for the success of transformative learning. Further, the existing literature provides numerous ways of using critical reflection as an important part of learning. For example, a study by Walmsley and Birkbeck (2006) found that narrative writing, which is an approach in critical reflection, had a very high potential for enabling social work students to understand their values. Another study by Baldwin (2004) found that verbal critical reflection is very important in the teaching of social work practice since it allows students to make sense of complex social work practice dilemmas and to find satisfactory courses of action. Consequently, critical reflection is an important approach to the teaching of social work practice. It allows learners to transfer knowledge to practice.
On the other approaches of teaching social work practice, there exists a considerable research to support the methods. Firstly, Hothersall and Bolger (2010) support the effectiveness of facilitative and responsive teaching. They point out the through facilitation, the method allows teachers to understand learners’ understanding of various concepts, thereby responding with the appropriately. The approach sets the platform where the teachers want to know how students are learning. Researchers also support the constructivist alignment, which ensures that changes that are achieved through learning, teaching, and assessment strategies are reinforced. Concisely, the overwhelming literature that exists supports the use of the suggested approaches to the teaching of social work practice. Therefore, it is highly recommended for social work teachers to utilize the tenets of the theories and approaches to ensure that learners can effective transfer classroom knowledge to practice.
Innovation
The teaching profession is experiencing many changes where long established learning and teaching methods are increasingly being phased and replaced by others, which are touted to be more effective. The teaching of social work is among the areas that have experienced increased scrutiny in the recent past. Many scholars are questioning the effectiveness of the existing teaching approaches in guiding students in learning the practice of social work. Consequently, there is a need to find new innovative ways that will strengthen the approaches of teaching of social work practice. This section suggests innovative ways that can be adopted by social work teachers in the classroom to ensure that students can easily link classroom knowledge to practice.
The practice of social work is very important since it provides important critical services to the society such as counseling and psychotherapy for individuals, families, and groups. Further, it also involves helping people to obtain services, participate in legislative processes, and/or help communities to improve social and health services. It is therefore important to ensure that the social workers are well prepared since there is no room for mistakes.
The first innovative method of teaching of social work practice is through close partnership with service providers and users. In this approach, the institution can collaborate with various social work service providers, thereby providing an opportunity for students to volunteer or observe as other experienced social workers carry on their duties. Further, partnership with social work providers will provide an opportunity for students to meet service users. Such partnerships can be important in giving an opportunity for students to practice their skills by providing supporting services as volunteers to the service providers during selected sessions of service delivery. Such an approach can be important in giving hands-on experience, which according to Clare (2007) is a very effective way of ensuring that students reinforce the knowledge they have acquired from classroom activities.
In addition, the introduction of the “survivor program” can be important in fostering knowledge into practice among social work students. In this program, through partnership with social work service providers, previous users of social work services (survivors) will have an opportunity of meeting students and sharing their stories based on how they are addressed by social workers. Such a program will be in line with transformative and constructionist-learning theories since it will help students to transform their knowledge and construct meaning by linking classroom knowledge to the cases as narrated by the survivors.
In the world of digital age, it is counterproductive to ignore the potential that technology presents to teachers to guide students in social work practice. Technology has a comprehensive approach in education. Hence, it can also be incorporated into the social work classroom for better outcomes. For instance, using interactive videos and presentations, teachers of social work practice can bring forward relevant cases and scenarios that relate to the content that is taught in the classroom. In this approach, the internet offers a wide range of relevant video contents that can be adopted for social work. Teachers should go the extra mile to ensure that the content is availed in for classroom use. By discussing the cases that are provided in the videos and presentations, students can have better transformation in knowledge. Hence, they can stand a chance to construct meanings that are relevant to the course. Such discussions should be done in groups or in class-sessions where students can present their interpretations that can further open more classroom discussions. The use of social media is also another important approach that can be achieved using technology. Through such platforms, students, teachers, and practitioners can interact in online discussions that focus on pertinent issues of social work practice. As social media platform offers a virtual platform for meeting and discussion, its potential is enormous and hence highly recommended as an innovative teaching platform for social work practice.
In the recent times, many colleges and universities have neglected content delivery and ignored other important aspects of education. For instance, although the classroom environment is a well-known aspect of the success of teaching, it is no longer appreciated. Classes are crowded while the sheer number of students whom teachers have to teach overwhelms them (teachers). As such, one of the innovative ways of successfully teaching social work practice is by providing an empowering, lively, and appropriate classroom environment where students and teachers are free from factors that can impede learning and teaching in the classroom. For instance, since social work is all about empowering the society, it is important for the concepts to be extended to the classroom environment. Empowerment should involve respect, validation, ownership, and choice. Through empowerment in the classroom, it becomes an important model through which students can acquire empowerment principles that are necessary for practice. The nature of social work also involves dealing with diverse groups of people and hence the importance of diversity lessons in the class. According to Biggs (2003), understanding and respecting diversity is important in a successful social work practice. Consequently, teachers should include diversity lessons to increase intercultural or intergroup tolerance, as it is important in social work practice. Diversity should be weaved into all classes and activities to ensure maximum achievement of outcomes for the learner.
Lastly, it is important for teachers to ensure that they use creative ways of achieving the requirements of the curriculum at all times. According to Fook (2007), while teachers do not determine the curriculum content, they are important in its successful delivery. Firstly, teachers must accept that students are adults and hence the concepts of transformative and constructivist learning can be applied successfully in the learning process. The teachers are therefore highly encouraged to use real life experiences to link classroom content to practice. Activities such as role-plays, demonstrations, and rehearsals must be encouraged at all times. It is important to know that learners have experiences as members of the society that they can easily relate to and hence the practicality of linking such experiences to classroom activities. While such approaches are encouraged, it is important for teachers to retain their professional helping relationship and respect to guide the process of acquiring knowledge. Without such professional relationship, the line between a student and a teacher can be easily blurred and consequently become a hindrance to the acquisition of knowledge. In addition, teachers must include the use of different assessment that incorporate both practice and classroom knowledge to ensure that students are well prepared for their practice in real life professional engagement.
Evaluation
To gauge whether the aforementioned teaching approaches are effective, evaluation is an important aspect. Evaluation of teaching and the effectiveness of teaching approaches allows an educator to know whether his/her approaches have the impact that is expected on students. Further, it gives an opportunity for teachers to adjust their teaching in areas that show weaknesses. Besides, it emphasizes areas where they are achieving the set expectations. Several approaches are advisable in the evaluation of the effectiveness of teaching in a social work program as discussed below.
The first method of evaluation is through student evaluation and feedback. In this method, information that relates to the effectiveness of teaching is obtained from students in different ways. For instance, important feedback can be obtained easily using assessments, learner conference, key informant interviews, and reports. According to Ferguson et al. (2005), student feedback and evaluation form a key component in quality enhancement frameworks for universities across the world. Such approaches are used to offer collective substantiation that is important in employee endorsement, in-house and outdoor excellence declaration coverage, audition, and honor among other important areas of quality enhancement. In the assessment of the training of public work program, getting response can be official or casual and prearranged or amorphous. Teachers can use such feedback to find ways of enhancing their teaching approaches for maximum outcomes for the student.
Classroom observation is another method of evaluation that is widely used in assessment of teaching effectiveness. In the teaching of social work practice, classroom evaluation can be carried out by the university administrators or departmental heads. In addition, peers and colleagues can do observation. The obtained feedback can be used to restructure areas of weakness as identified in the teaching approaches.
Another evaluation process is the use of self-observation, self-assessment, and critical reflection. In this approach, the key consideration is that without a reflective and critical approach to one’s own practice, other evaluation methods are useless. Teachers must occasionally reflect on theory teaching approaches based on their own assessments, formative feedback, and the evaluation that is obtained from students (Walmsley & Birkbeck, 2006). This self-observation or assessment can also involve the use of reporting tools such as surveys, instructional logs, or interviews that require teachers to report on what they are doing in the classroom.
Lastly, classroom assessments on students form an important part of evaluating the effectiveness of the teaching approaches. Teachers must pay attention to the performance of students on various assessment tasks and tests that are in line with the requirements of the curriculum (Hothersall & Bolger, 2010). The information that is obtained from such assessments should consequently inform the refining of curriculum, develop better teaching skills, diagnose problem areas, and/or provide evidence for effective teaching.
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