American Social Work Education Research Articles

“We Owe It to Those Who Shall Come After Us”: Considering the Role of Social Work Education in Disrupting Carceral Complicity

Reflecting upon Mary Richmond’s early call for formalized social work training to address the historical struggles of the field, this analysis examines how American social work education has addressed the paradoxes of help and harm present in the field for more than a century. We examine how, under the guise of benevolence and care, social work has exerted social control and contributed to gendered criminalization. We use the term carceral complicity to extend the concept of carceral social work, illustrating how carceral complicity has contributed to women’s criminalization through the embedding, enacting, and invisibilizing of carceral logics in social work. In addition to describing how carceral complicity has been addressed in social work education, we illustrate the gendered nature of carceral complicity, highlighting how women have historically and contemporarily been positioned as both the proprietors and the recipients of carceral complicity. In line with recent scholarship, we suggest that through a transformative approach to social work education we may disrupt carceral complicity and support liberatory futures.

Framing the human rights curriculum in American social work education

ABSTRACT In this paper, the authors take the position that human rights are not a principal discipline of American social work. Rather, within the United States, social work is a profession that makes the fulfillment of human needs its principal focus. The authors offer methods to prepare social work students for rights-based practice, a product of their work in educating social work students in global human rights over the past decade and in undertaking research. The authors consider the importance of the Capability Approach as an overarching framework guiding human rights education in social work. Using the author’s experiences, review of key documents, and two approaches to human rights practice, proactive and reactive ones, to teach relevant content, the authors offer a framework guiding human rights education in American social work. By drawing from documents pertaining to the global human rights movement, the authors examine key ideas, practices, and institutions that constitute the human rights movement internationally. The authors conclude by identifying pedagogical approaches that can assist social work students in learning about human rights practice, theoretically and experientially, with an emphasis on preventing rights violations and on responding effectively during and after these violations occur.

#WhiteSaviorComplex: Confidentiality, Human Dignity, Social Media, and Social Work Study Abroad

ABSTRACT Many American social work education programs now offer study abroad components, which provide significant advantages to students, including cross-cultural exposure, personal and professional development, and preparation for a globalizing profession. However, multiple ethical challenges are presented when North American (often White) students interact with vulnerable populations abroad, including the use of social media. We searched for relevant institutional social media policies and found very little, except those encouraging students to post often while traveling. We offer case studies of potential model policies for both North American based universities and international-based hosting sites. Finally, we argue that study abroad programs in general, and social media policies specifically, must center the dignity, worth, and best interests of vulnerable populations.

Competition in american social work education during times of COVID-19: a midwestern case study

ABSTRACT Competition to attract students for enrollment in American social work degree programs is intense. Program attributes (e.g. minimum grade point average, maximum transfer credits permitted, institutional tuition rate, and rankings) distinguish social work education programs in the United States. Determining which program attributes appeal to potential students could help increase a program’s competitiveness in a crowded education marketplace. The COVID-19 pandemic is further intensifying recruitment of students to BSW programs. This research used a case study approach to compare admission attributes of 21 bachelor of social work programs (BSW) offered at 11 public and 10 private institutions located in one state that could be viewed as representative of American BSW programs. This paper compared attributes that differentiated these undergraduate social work programs, while exploring the potential impact of the pandemic on BSW student recruitment. Implications for social work education are discussed, including lessons learned that may be helpful to BSW faculty and staff responsible for student recruitment activities and related operations. Social work education program administrators and faculty could use this information to review recruitment and application processes and raise awareness of the burgeoning influence of reputational ranking services.

Holistic Competence and Its Assessment

The author examines holistic competence and its assessment as defined in the Council for Social Work Education (CSWE’s)-EPAS 2015. Draft 3 of CSWE’s EPAS 2015 requires the use of a holistic competency model by accredited BSW and MSW social work programs. The model is an efficient way to assess student competence and overall program outcomes. Yet, this model, based on human resource concepts, is largely unfamiliar in the United States and is discussed minimally in the U.S. social work literature. This article details the goals and purposes of the model with linkage to EPAS 2015 language. Examples of methods of holistic assessment are offered to begin further professional discussion in American social work education. The strengths and limitations of this model are also identified.

Response to Crawford (2012): Learning Cautious Pragmatism from American Social Work Education. Commentary on Lessons from American Social Work Education: Caution Ahead (Karger, 2012)

The division of social work programs reported by Fran Crawford (2012) in Western Australia (WA) makes sense in terms of articulation and nonredundancy. This arrangement appears to provide students ...

Learning Cautious Pragmatism from American Social Work Education. Commentary on Lessons from American Social Work Education: Caution Ahead (Karger, 2012)

Learning Cautious Pragmatism from American Social Work Education. Commentary on Lessons from American Social Work Education: Caution Ahead (Karger, 2012)

Response to Hughes (2012): Commentary on Lessons from American Social Work Education: Caution Ahead (Karger, 2012)

Response to Hughes (2012): Commentary on Lessons from American Social Work Education: Caution Ahead (Karger, 2012)

Lessons from American Social Work Education: Caution Ahead

Similar trends are occurring in Australian and US social work education, as universities increasingly adopt a rigid market orientation to tertiary education. This marketisation shapes social work education in manifold ways, including the pressure to increase revenues (and effect greater efficiencies) by expanding the size of social work programs. The unregulated growth in social work programs leads to lowered admission standards, as programs are forced to compete for students. An oversupply of social workers will also drive salaries downwards as supply eclipses demand. These issues are examined in the context of a “big” versus a “small” (fewer but more highly trained social workers) model of social work. Emphasis is placed on the lessons that Australian social work educators can learn from the challenges facing US social work education.

Commentary on Lessons from American Social Work Education: Caution Ahead (Karger, 2012)

Commentary on Lessons from American Social Work Education: Caution Ahead (Karger, 2012)

Reseña histórica del estudiantado de Trabajo Social en la Universidad de Costa Rica (1942-1980)

This argumentative essay traces the historical development of social work students at the University of Costa Rica from 1942 to 1980. From a literature review identifying the associated international context, Latin and country with some of the most crucial features of this population. The aim is to encourage other efforts of this nature in the field of Latin American social work education.

Curricular Blueprinting: The Relevance of American Social Work Education for International Students

This study assesses the relevance of US‐based social work curricula for international students. Both the perceived advantages and disadvantages of international educational training are considered, including the consequences of curricular adaptation. The study utilizes multiple qualitative methods including participant observation, 15 semi‐structured interviews, and text analysis. The majority of international respondents reported intending to work with poverty alleviation and social development. Respondents reported learning some inappropriate skills, intervention strategies, and policies that cannot be appropriately applied across cultures, and which are divorced from local context. Benefits of exchange include discussions of marginalized populations, enculturation into Western values and methods that may be beneficial to future job opportunities, and the enhancement of critical thinking skills to address social problems.

An overview of social work education in the United States: new directions and new opportunities

The social work profession in 2009 is a global profession and given its breadth and scope as a worldwide profession, we should not be surprised by the diversity found in the profession's practices and in its educational programmes. This paper outlines current issues, emerging trends in the United States for social work education, and presents a broad overview of the 2008 Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards, the Council on Social Work Education's policy that creates the framework for American social work education. What is presented is only an illustration of one nation, among more than 190 world-wide, as it defines the social work profession and its education for professional practice. The extent to which the experiences in the United States influence social work practice elsewhere in the global community is left to those local professionals or national professional associations to craft a culturally relevant profession that promotes human well-being.

International experiences of American social work educators

Abstract This article proffers an expose of the characteristics and contributions of social work ‘internationalists’. The impact of faculty international experiences on the curricula of social work programmes, with particular reference to the implications for American social work education, constitute the main plank of the analysis.

The Diffusion of American Social Work Education to India: Problems and Issues

The Diffusion of American Social Work Education to India: Problems and Issues