Building a Predominantly Web-Based Course from Face-to-Face and Interactive Video Pilots: Administrative Skills for Social Work Practice

Over generations, social workers have borrowed theories from sociology. However, sociologists have generally avoided borrowing theory from social work. By beginning with social work practice wisdom, we can unfold the complex elements organizing social work practice and by extension ethnographic research. Complexity and resulting uncertainty are antidotes for theoretical purity. Practice as grounded in life, that of client’s and social workers is inherently “dirty”, i.e., messy, disorganized, confusing, unfolding, and uncertain. Understandings and practices are accomplished in a connection of self to a profession, agency/organization, mandate and purpose, and ethical orientation, in interaction with colleagues and clients. Social workers take sides as they are grounded in an ethic of care. The challenge of developing an ethical practice in the face of difference, disagreement, disjunction, and conflict lead social workers to bracket, and hence reflect on the putative coherence of a “life world.” Face-to-face work with individuals rather than being a liability provides a source of knowledge and wisdom to inform social science generally.

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Development and Evaluation of an Innovative Web-based Training, Learning, and Sharing (i-TLS) Platform for Social Workers: Hong Kong Jockey Club SMART Family-Link Project (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.32894 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Michelle Man Tung Suen ◽

Agnes Yuen Kwan Lai ◽

Man Ping Wang ◽

Sai Yin Ho ◽

Tai Hing Lam

Keyword(s):

Hong Kong ◽

Social Work ◽

Social Workers ◽

Work Practice ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Family Services ◽

Web Based ◽

Ict Use ◽

Learning Platform ◽

Jockey Club

BACKGROUND Information and communication technology (ICT) use may enhance social work practice and continuous professional development. Under the Hong Kong Jockey Club SMART Family-Link project, we developed an innovative web-based training, learning, and sharing (i-TLS) platform to support ICT and other learning needs of Hong Kong social workers in family services. OBJECTIVE We developed i-TLS with 3 major components (i-Training, i-Learning, and i-Sharing) and assessed the acceptability and impact on facilitating ICT use in family services. METHODS We described i-TLS development based on a 4-phase model from platform design, development, implementation to maintenance. We evaluated i-TLS via platform database, Google Analytics, a self-administered survey, and individual phone interviews 1 year after launching. RESULTS i-TLS was launched to 26 Integrated Family Service Centers (IFSCs) and Integrated Services Centers (ISCs) operated by 12 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) on 1 July 2019. The outbreak of COVID-19 started in December 2019 limited face-to-face services, which catalyzed the urgent needs of digital transformation in social work practice. By 31 July 2020, 313 social workers (23 supervisors, 290 frontline workers) had registered with i-TLS. The platform database showed 79.6% (249/313) users accessed i-TLS at least once in the last 28 days, with on average 3.2 platform visits per day viewing 4.8 pages per visit. i-Training provided 41 training mini-modules in applying ICT to family services from counseling, program design, implementation to evaluation. Of 730 enrolments in total, 70.0% (511/730) completed the mini-modules and were awarded digital mini-certificates. i-Learning provided 112 items of learning resources centered around ICT use and family services and had nearly 4000 page views recorded from Google Analytics. i-Sharing had a total of 25 discussion threads with 59 posts. 53.7% (168/313) users completed the 1-year evaluation survey, including 12 who participated in the phone interviews. The mean i-TLS satisfaction score (out of 10) increased from light (4.99) to occasional (6.15) and frequent (6.31) users. Frequent users showed higher scores (out of 10) than light users for an increase in knowledge (5.84 versus 4.09; P<.001), self-efficacy (5.23 versus 3.96; P=.02), and knowledge application (6.46 versus 1.91; P<.001). From the phone interviews, users reported increased ICT use in family services, despite some practical barriers. i-TLS was perceived as an acceptable and supportive tool for learning and practice in family services, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. CONCLUSIONS We have first reported the development and evaluation of a newly developed web-based learning platform (i-TLS) for social workers in family services. The results provided preliminary evidence of using i-TLS to support social workers’ continuous learning and ICT-enhanced services. Accessibility to self-directed and collaborative learning is essential for optimizing social workers’ learning. Further research on enhancing web-based platforms is needed to expand participation and capacity building of social workers and other related professionals. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04034420; https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04034420

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Digital social work: Conceptualising a hybrid anticipatory practice

Qualitative Social Work ◽

10.1177/14733250211003647 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 147332502110036

Author(s):

Sarah Pink ◽

Harry Ferguson ◽

Laura Kelly

Keyword(s):

Social Work ◽

Social Workers ◽

Digital Media ◽

Child Protection ◽

Work Practice ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Service Users ◽

Face To Face ◽

Policy Responses ◽

New Concepts

While the use of digital media and technologies has impacted social work for several years, the Covid-19 pandemic and need for physical distancing dramatically accelerated the systematic use of video calls and other digital practices to interact with service users. This article draws from our research into child protection to show how digital social work was used during the pandemic, critically analyse the policy responses, and make new concepts drawn from digital and design anthropology available to the profession to help it make sense of these developments. While policy responses downgraded digital practices to at best a last resort, we argue that the digital is now an inevitable and necessary element of social work practice, which must be understood as a hybrid practice that integrates digital practices such as video calls and face-to-face interactions. Moving forward, hybrid digital social work should be a future-ready element of practice, designed to accommodate uncertainties as they arise and sensitive to the improvisatory practice of social workers.

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Using Technology to Evaluate a Web-Based Clinical Social Work Research Course

Advances in Social Work ◽

10.18060/56 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 77-90

Author(s):

Zvi Gellis

Keyword(s):

Social Work ◽

Design Research ◽

Clinical Social Work ◽

Qualitative Interviews ◽

Work Practice ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Single Subject ◽

Web Based ◽

Learning And Teaching ◽

Clinical Social Work Practice

This article reports on a clinical research methods course taught online to a total of 90 off-campus MSW students in the fall of 1999, 2000, and 2001. The course was taught in a mid-size public university in a CSWE-accredited School of Social Work. The purpose of the course was to teach single subject design research skills for the evaluation of clinical social work practice. The student experience of the online course was assessed using qualitative interviews that add a deeper, textured understanding of the various facets of online instruction from the learner's perspective. Important dimensions for social work instruction in online courseware were delineated. A collaborative learning and teaching framework is presented for those social work educators interested in implementing web-based courses.

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Effectively Teaching Social Work Practice Online: Moving Beyond Can to How

Advances in Social Work ◽

10.18060/20877 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

pp. 59-77 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Mary Ann Forgey ◽

Anna Ortega-Williams

Keyword(s):

Social Work ◽

Learning Environment ◽

Student Perceptions ◽

Teaching Strategies ◽

Teaching Effectiveness ◽

Work Practice ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Face To Face ◽

Generalist Practice

Schools of social work are increasingly developing online courses and programs. While the majority of research comparing online and face–to-face courses has found equivalent outcomes, skepticism still exists, particularly about the ability to teach practice courses effectively online. This study adds to the growing body of research within social work that specifically examines the comparative effectiveness of online and face-to-face practice courses. Using an anonymous survey, 23 face-to-face and 12 online students enrolled in two separate sections of social work generalist practice rated the quality of the learning environment, the extent to which the course objectives were met, and the effectiveness of the teaching strategies from the students’ perspective. In addition, scores on assignment rubrics and student course evaluations were also compared. Results indicate no significant differences in learning outcomes as measured by assignment rubric scores, student perceptions of the extent to which learning objectives were met, the quality of the learning environment, and the effectiveness of five of the six teaching strategies used. We recommend that research moves beyond determining if online practice courses are as effective as face-to-face courses, and instead focus on a closer examination of the factors responsible for teaching effectiveness.

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When You Come to a Fork in the Road, Take It: Teaching Social Work Practice Using Blended Learning

Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology / La revue canadienne de l’apprentissage et de la technologie ◽

10.21432/t26c79 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 37 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Catherine De Boer ◽

Sandra Loucks Campbell ◽

Angela Hovey

Keyword(s):

Social Work ◽

Blended Learning ◽

Teaching Practice ◽

Work Practice ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Degree Program ◽

Web Based ◽

The Road ◽

Learning Platform ◽

Part Time

The debates surrounding the effectiveness of teaching social work online highlight the challenges of adequately preparing students for face-to-face practice by way of web-based technologies. The purpose of this paper is twofold. Firstly, to briefly describe how a particular School of Social Work when designing its part-time undergraduate degree program (BSW), arrived at a fork in the road and instead of choosing between the paths of in-class or online course delivery, the School decided to offer the entire degree using a blended learning platform. Secondly, to compare the development and implementation of three specific practice courses within the part-time degree program (interviewing and assessment, social work theory, and a practicum integration seminar) each of which was offered using blended learning. This paper contributes to the debate about the value of using web-based components when teaching social work practice and will be helpful to educators from within many disciplines, who are wishing to critique their own development processes when designing and teaching practice courses using blended learning.

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The Acquisition of Social Work Interviewing Skills in a Web-based and Classroom Instructional Environment: Preliminary Findings

Advances in Social Work ◽

10.18060/58 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 91-104 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Phillip Ouellette ◽

Valerie Chang

Keyword(s):

Social Work ◽

Skill Acquisition ◽

Learning Experience ◽

Work Practice ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Online Environment ◽

Background Characteristics ◽

Instructional Environment ◽

Web Based ◽

Interviewing Skills

Little is known regarding the learning of social work practice skills in a Web-based online environment, most especially, social work interviewing skills. This article presents a review of the research methodology used to initiate a study to explore the similarities and differences of two groups of students who were taught interviewing skills in a classroom-based teaching environment with those taught in a Web-based instructional environment during the same 15-week period. Students’ background characteristics and their perceptions of their learning experience and skill acquisition are reported as preliminary findings.

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Toward Building a Culture of Strengths in U.S. MSW Programs

Advances in Social Work ◽

10.18060/230 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 211-229

Author(s):

Linda Plitt Donaldson ◽

Barbara P. Early ◽

Min-Ling Wang

Keyword(s):

Social Work ◽

Exploratory Study ◽

Medical Model ◽

Work Practice ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Curriculum Content ◽

Web Based ◽

Macro Practice ◽

Qualitative Responses ◽

Dominant Paradigm

Social work has embraced the strengths perspective as a vital part of micro, mezzo, and macro practice. Yet the authors’ experience suggests that the medical model of deficits, disease, and disorder remains the dominant paradigm. This exploratory study sought to determine how and to what extent strengths-based practice is integrated into the MSW practice curriculum. Forty-four (44) of 181 programs responded to a 12-item web-based survey. Quantitative and qualitative responses indicate an almost universal awareness of and attention to integrating strengths-based content. However, a smaller number of programs appear to be looking beyond curriculum content towards the creation of a broader culture of strengths. Even so, challenges remain toward overcoming a pathological orientation in social work practice curricula.

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Utilising a Virtual Community to practice Community Work theory during COVID-19 lockdown in South Africa

The Journal of Practice Teaching and Learning ◽

10.1921/jpts.v17i3.1456 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 17 (3) ◽

pp. 138-142

Author(s):

Elmien Claassens

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Social Work ◽

Virtual Community ◽

Work Practice ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Online Environment ◽

Practical Application ◽

Community Work ◽

Face To Face ◽

Practice Community

In this practice note, I highlight the challenges social work practice lecturers overcame during a national lockdown midst the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa whilst converting face to face teaching on community work to the online environment. I discuss how a fictitious virtual community was created, enabling students to apply the theoretical knowledge on community work from the practice module. I share the practical application on how students were able to ‘do’ community work in a virtual community and what we as a team of social work practice educators learned as a result.

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