Suchergebnisse

AbstractChild protection work is a complex and difficult area of practice, one that is closely scrutinised and criticised, and impacts on the lives of many children. In Australia, child protection systems are overloaded, and increasing numbers of children and families receive child protection interventions each year. This study explored the views of North Queensland practitioners who work in the child protection field, examining changes and challenges in this field of practice, and their suggestions for the future research that is needed in child protection. The study took place 5 years after the 2013 Queensland Carmody inquiry into child protection intervention, which recommended sweeping changes to the child protection system. Twenty-two practitioners participated in this study. Respondents reported an increase in the complexity of cases, a gap in legislation change/practice frameworks and practice, and the application of trauma-informed practice. They highlighted the intersection of child protection, domestic violence and family law and observed that women and children continue to be exposed to violence because of Family Law Court orders. Respondents identified a number of areas where research is needed.

Field education is central to social work education, facilitating the development of practice skills, professional identity and a professional practice framework. External supervision in social work field education is becoming more prevalent due to economic, social and political changes at a global level and is likely to continue to be a feature of field education. This article provides findings from current Australian qualitative research exploring 'social work student placements with external supervision', focusing on the experiences and views of external field educators. It explores the research findings in light of international social work education research, particularly with reference to experiences and contexts in England, UK. A range of themes emerge from this study, including a focus on supervision, relationships, roles, placement preparation and assessment. Findings suggest that knowledge and understanding of the placement context is a dominant consideration in social workers' reflections on their experience of providing external supervision to social work students. External supervisors apply a range of strategies to build the understanding of the context of the students' experience and the nature of host agency policies, practices and culture. This can lead to an active engagement of students in their learning, but has implications for resourcing.

Social work as a profession, social work practitioners and organisations, as well as social work educators are under strain due to global, economic, social and political changes and workplace pressures. Field education is recognised as pivotal in preparing social work students for professional practice. As social work practitioners, organisations and social work educators are exposed to external and internal pressures, social work practice learning with off-site supervision is becoming more prevalent. This paper reports on research that explored the experiences of key stakeholders in social work practice learning with external or, in other words, off-site supervision. This paper explores the experiences of university liaison persons who provided supported field education arrangements with off-site supervision. A range of themes have emerged, including reflections about bringing the university to the placement experience, creating student centred placement opportunities, the complexity of connecting the various players and the extra support and resources needed to support placements with off-site supervision. Findings suggest that quality learning experiences are about more than modes of supervision, that placements with off-site supervision increase the workload of liaison persons and that clear models and structures need to be developed to support emerging field education models.

Social work education, social work as a profession, social work practitioners and organisations are under strain global, economic, social and political changes and workplace pressures. Globally, the importance place practicum has in preparing social work students for professional practice is acknowledged. Practicum in social work education facilitates the development of practice skills, professional identity and a professional practice framework. As external and internal pressures are increasingly impacting on social work practitioners, organisations and social work education, social work practicums with off-site supervision is becoming more prevalent. At times, practicum with external supervision is considered less desirable than practice learning with 'in house' supervision. This paper reports on research that explored the experiences of key stakeholders in social work practicums with external supervision and in order to develop practice in this area. A qualitative approach guided in–depth interviews with Australian students, field educators/ practice assessors, task supervisors and university liaison persons about their experiences in practicums with external supervision. A range of themes have emerged, including learning about practicing social work, student focused learning, importance of the learning environment and relationships are key to support learning. The discussion highlights that practicums with external supervision like other social work practice learning opportunities are focused on learning about practicing social work, and that a large part of the discussions of the participants was centered on student focused learning rather than whether the supervision was provided internally or externally. While learning about social work practice is not generally missing from practicums with external supervision, participants recognized that practicums with external supervision impact this learning through the relationships, the learning about social work practice and the learning environment.

Social work as a profession, social work practitioners and organisations, as well as social work education are under strain global, economic, social and political changes and workplace pressures. Field education is recognized as pivotal in preparing social work students for professional practice. Field Education facilitates the development of practice skills, professional identity and a professional practice framework. As social work practitioners, organisations and social work education are exposed to external and internal pressure, social work practice learning with off-site supervision is becoming more prevalent. In some countries field education with off-site supervision is considered less desirable than practice learning with 'in house' supervision. This paper report on research that explored the experiences of key stakeholders in social work practice learning with external supervision and develop practice in this area. A qualitative approach guided in–depth interviews with Australian students, field educators/ practice assessors, task supervisors and university liaison persons about their experiences in field education with external supervision. This presentation reports on the experiences of university liaison people who provided support and guidance to students and supervisors in field education arrangements with off-site supervision A range of themes have emerged, including reflections on their support role, the extra support and resources needed to support placements with off-site supervision and the complexity of connecting the various players. Preliminary findings suggest matching of students and supervisors to placement, good placement preparation and working relationships are central to successful placements with off-site supervision.

In social work education practice learning is recognised as central to the degree, facilitating the development of practice skills, professional identity and a professional practice framework. Social work practitioners, organisations and social work education are exposed to global, economic, social and political changes and workplace pressures that impact social work education and practice including the provision of student practice learning. Social Work practice learning with 'external' supervision is becoming more prevalent, but in some countries it is considered less desirable than practice learning with 'in house' supervision. The small body of literature on practice learning with external supervision through the use of practice assessors/external field educators explores the benefits and the complexities of these set-ups, but particularly emphasises the importance of establishing and maintaining the triad relationship of supervisor, on-site and off-site supervisor and the provision of continued support. Equally, literature on external supervision raises concerns about the visibility of students' work when the assessor is external to the organisation. Literature also suggests that students are more positive about practice learning where the social worker is on site. This presentation provides interim findings of my current Australian PhD research into exploring 'Social Work Student Placements with External Supervision'. The aim of the research is to explore the experiences of key stakeholders in social work practice learning with external supervision and develop practice in this area. A qualitative approach guided in –depth interviews with Australian students, field educators/practice assessors, task supervisors and university liaison persons. This presentation reports on the experiences of social workers who provide 'external' supervision and assessment in practice learning. The implications that can be drawn from the data for an International context are considered. A range of themes have emerged, including a focus on supervision, relationships, roles, placement preparation and assessment. Preliminary findings suggest that knowledge and understanding of context is dominant in social workers' reflections on their experience.

Globally, economic, social and political changes are impacting on social work practice, social work practitioners and social work organisations, may require rethinking of approaches to field education. Social Work placements with external supervision are becoming more prevalent, however, are often considered out of the norm. This presentation provides interim findings of my current PhD research into exploring 'Social Work Student Placements with External Supervision'. My research is concerned with exploring the experiences of all key stakeholders in social work field education with external supervision and developing practice in this area. I have conducted interviews with students, external supervisors, task supervisors and liaison people. In my presentation I will focus on the experiences of students in field education with external supervision. Students who participated in this research spoke about their experiences in placements with external supervision, the supervisory relationships, the challenges and opportunities these placements posed and the considered the qualities the key players in these set-ups should bring. Interim reflections suggest that from the students' point of view placement preparation, the matching of students, placements and supervisors, and the relationships between the parties involved need to be considered more carefully in these placement set-ups.

Abstract
Field education is a key curriculum component in social work programmes and students identify their placement as central to their transition to practice. Globally, changes in higher education, increasing the complexity of practice and an increasingly diverse student body, are challenging field education programmes to meet these professional and resource challenges. This article reports on Australian research which surveyed social work field education programmes in relation to staffing, supervision and other developments shaping social work field education. Twenty-four field education coordinators of thirty social work programmes completed the survey and the findings highlighted worrying trends including increasing student to staff ratio, insufficient social worker supervised placements, increased placements with external (off-site) supervision and employment of casual staff to undertake core tasks such as supervision and liaison. The results provide important benchmarking evidence which will resonate with the wider international social work education context.

Abstract
This quantitative study surveyed eighty-two Australian social work students who completed their placement during COVID-19. The delivery of health and welfare services during the pandemic had a significant impact on field education with the result that many placements had to be offered remotely from an organisation. The research was interested in whether this practice learning model can provide quality learning experiences for students by exploring various aspects of the placement experience. Frequency data were generated and the data were analysed using chi-square tests to determine, firstly, if there were any statistically significant relationships between student learning outcomes and model of supervision, supervisor contact, type of e-placement and student demographics. Secondly, the various learning activities were rated against the students' attainment of their placement learning oucomes and their developing confidence, skills and social work identity. Findings highlight that student learning is enhanced when they have opportunities to experience work within an agency setting and when agency staff are involved in supervising and supporting students in e-placements. There were also indications of negative learning outcomes when students are not provided with direct observation opportunities of agency staff and some evidence that e-placements might be more suitable for second placement students.