ABSTRACT The discipline of social work operates within a persistent ontological tension between defending universal human rights and respecting local cultures. Traditionally managed through cultural competence, this approach risks reducing deeply structural problems—such as poverty and institutional racism—into static cultural codes, inadvertently reproducing an Orientalist binary that obscures structural violence in Western democracies. To revitalize social work’s foundational commitment to social justice and genuine solidarity, this conceptual article proposes a paradigm shift toward a dual framework: cultural humility as an ethical stance and structural competency as an analytical mandate. Drawing on ethnographic sensibility, the paper explores how practitioners can interpret client resistance not as cultural deficits, but as rational survival strategies forged under institutional duress. Furthermore, the neoliberal bureaucratization of the Turkish welfare system is examined as an analytical illustration of global audit cultures to highlight the limitations of purely theoretical education. Bridging theoretical critique and concrete pedagogical action, the article presents actionable mechanisms for curricular restructuring, including structural vulnerability assessments, mobile supervision (walking classrooms), university-community legal coalitions, and explicit ECTS integration. Ultimately, these pedagogical interventions equip future practitioners to actively dismantle systemic barriers rather than merely manage cultural symptoms.

ABSTRACT To date, the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) has not developed specific accreditation standards for online courses or programs, positing that the methods of delivery do not matter in a competency-based model of education. However, CSWE has maintained standards that dictate the number of faculty and practicum hours required for accreditation, indicating that there are some standards that transcend competency outcomes given their importance. Some other professions have specific accreditation standards for online offerings. This article summarizes accreditation standards and empirical research findings that have implications for accreditation standards that would enhance the quality and equity of online social work education. Online social work education would benefit from quality control by CSWE as social work continues to realize unprecedented growth in this delivery model.

ABSTRACT Academic identity influences disciplinary contributions and professional development of individuals within those disciplines. Little is known about academic identity within the social work discipline. This paper presents the results of a modified systematic international literature review to investigate academic identity in social work, nursing and allied care professions. Papers (138) were initially retrieved for screening, 40 met the final inclusion criteria for review. Limited social work academic identity literature was identified, with only four papers specifically focused on social work. Results highlighted numerous barriers to establishing a distinct academic identity, with a multitude of challenges in transition from practice to academia and its dual identities of practitioner and scholar. The process of academic socialization requires adequate institutional preparation, collegial support, sense of community and relationality, and not least time. We discuss four key themes from this literature (1) temporality and dynamic nature of developing academic identity in the academy, (2) role of professional work culture and communities of practice, (3) legitimacy, visibility and dichotomies of professional, disciplinary and academic knowledge and skills and (4) strategic imperatives for supporting transitions for the helping professions. The implications for social work academic identity development, social work education and social work knowledge are discussed.

ABSTRACT Mental health recovery has transitioned from a biomedical model focused on symptom resolution and premorbid functioning to a recovery-oriented paradigm that prioritises rights, collaboration, and personal definitions of wellness. This qualitative descriptive study explored social work undergraduates’ perceptions of mental health, their interactions with people living with mental health conditions, and their conceptualisation of recovery. Guided by a subjectivist epistemology, the study addressed critiques of the biomedical model for overlooking cultural and individual perspectives. Seventeen participants, recruited through convenience and snowball sampling from October 2022 to September 2023, participated in semistructured interviews. The data were analysed thematically using Braun and Clarke’s framework. The overarching theme, “Demystifying Mental Health: Understanding, Perception, and the Journey to Healing”, was supported by four themes that reflected students’ growing awareness of empathy, resilience, and the multifaceted nature of recovery. Findings revealed a strong clinical orientation in students’ views of recovery, with less emphasis on holistic, person-centred approaches. The authors recommend integrating personal recovery concepts into curricula, expanding experiential learning opportunities, and promoting interdisciplinary collaboration. These findings offer key implications for curriculum development, preparing future social workers to deliver culturally sensitive, recovery-oriented mental health care in diverse sociocultural contexts in Singapore. IMPLICATIONS Integrating Western and Asian notions of clinical and personal recovery in Singapore’s social work education fosters person-centred practice and prevents depersonalised views of mental health users. Structured field practicum and community-based engagement enhance undergraduates’ hands-on experience and deepen their understanding of recovery-oriented, person-centred mental health care. Experiential tools like role-plays, simulations, and AI learning enhance empathy and active listening, and bridge undergraduates’ theory–practice gap. Universities can partner with mental health professionals and individuals with lived experience through guest lectures, joint projects, and interdisciplinary teaching.

The mission of the social work profession is to combat all forms of inequality and to ensure social justice when working with individuals, families, groups and society. For the realization of such a mission, the content and quality of the educational curriculum is important. In addition to a strong theoretical foundation, it is essential for social work education programs to adopt new learning models that foster global competence and professional capability, particularly those emphasizing practice-oriented learning. One such learning model is the service-learning model. In this review study, the service-learning model was evaluated in the context of social work practice with the community in order to prioritize community engagement in higher education. The study showed that the intersectionality of the service-learning model with community social work practice is important to strengthen students’ knowledge, skills, and value base in the context of the field, institution, and target populations in which community service is prioritized. Understanding this intersectionality can contribute to a more integrated relationship between theory and practice, and foster internationalization, sustainability, and solidarity in higher education. Therefore, supporting the employment of social workers who are competent in these practices in universities may be an important starting point for community service in social work education.

INTRODUCTION: Social work discourse regarding artificial intelligence (AI) in practice, research, and education has proliferated over the last 5 years, reflecting both excitement over its potential and ambivalence about its ethical challenges. However, the extent to which social work is fully engaging with the structure of AI and its enormous impacts on the environment, labour, and distribution of power remains unclear. METHODS: An integrative review of social work literature from 2020–2024 was conducted to address two research questions: 1) What is the nature of the social work discourse related to AI? 2) To what extent is the discourse addressing the structural aspects of AI? Integrative review is a methodology used to summarise empirical/theoretical/gray literature to provide a comprehensive understanding of a phenomenon and assess current themes, tensions, and gaps. FINDINGS: The literature overwhelmingly touted AI’s potential benefits for social work practice, research, and education. Discussions of ethical challenges, which often lacked depth and detail, narrowly focused on the downstream impacts of AI. The literature was almost entirely devoid of structural perspectives on AI. CONCLUSION: Findings suggest that social workers tend to view AI as an area of computation rather than a vast political, financial, and social system that impacts the experiences, opportunities, and lived environments of social workers and clients. Social workers will be better positioned to use AI responsibly and influence its development if they engage with AI from a structural perspective, committed to sustainability and justice.

ABSTRACT The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into social work education continues to have some resistance. Through a cross-sectional survey of social work instructors, we explore attitudes, barriers to, and characteristics of AI adoption, while addressing the unique ethical and professional considerations specific to social work education. Overall, our findings suggest a readiness paradox where high familiarity with AI coexists with moderate confidence in adaptation, creating thoughtful innovation while preserving core professional values. More specifically, the findings indicate that AI adoption in social work education is individually motivated, driven primarily by specific pedagogical or scholarly benefits; is policy influenced, shaped more by the clarity and perceived helpfulness of institutional guidance than by its mere existence; and is not socially driven, with adoption largely unaffected by perceived peer norms or visible professional trends. These findings reflect a landscape of isolated innovators rather than a coordinated movement, underscoring the need for strategies that can scale adoption. To move beyond scattered experimentation, institutions should prioritize creating opportunities for visibility, peer learning, and community-building, such as faculty showcases, peer-led workshops, and communities of practice, while also providing clear, supportive, and actionable policies.

ABSTRACT Social work education has had to reassess its approach to online teaching and technology in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and the consequential normalizing of working from home and flexible work arrangements in some industries. However, despite the potential benefits offered by online placement modalities, there remains deeply held skepticism and concerns about the quality of online learning experiences Utilizing principles of cooperative inquiry, this article examines social work students’ experiences of online placements by drawing from a collaborative model known as the ‘Supporting Placement through online Access and Community Engagement’ (SPACE) Project. Despite students’ initial perceptions of online learning experiences being inferior to face-to-face placement, no significant difference in their capacity to demonstrate the required learning outcomes was found between the two modalities. Students reported that a well-structured placement program, student-informed learning goals, access to good supervision, flexible work arrangements, and focus on creating a diverse peer community were enablers of good placement outcomes, irrespective of whether placement was offered online or face-to-face. The flexibility offered by online placements was seen as positive for those who would otherwise face barriers to participation owing to childcare, work, mental health, or other familial and cultural commitments.

ABSTRACT This article explores how homogenising views of equality and the lack of academic research on LGBTQI+ issues in Finnish social work contributes to the invisibility of gender and sexuality topics in social work education. It discusses the Finnish historical context of LGBTQI+ legislation and the struggle for legal equality. The article considers Finnish social work research on LGBTQI+ issues highlighting the shortcomings of social work practice knowledge with these communities. Through a multidimensional survey of master’s-level social work students across five Finnish universities, the study explores students’ attitudes, knowledge, and perceived readiness to work with LGBTQI+ service users. The findings show that students report positive attitudes toward LGBTQI+ people, but they also indicate significant gaps in knowledge, especially regarding structural discrimination and the specific needs of gender and sexual minorities. These gaps were more pronounced among heterosexual students, suggesting that personal identity may play a greater role than formal education in shaping awareness of LGBTQI+ issues. The findings of the limited survey imply the need for more explicit inclusion of LGBTQI+ perspectives in social work curricula, which require further research and pedagogical strategies that promote critical reflection, intersectional analysis, and LGBTQI+ affirmative practice.

ABSTRACT This research study examined the experiences of racialized social workers in Canada through semi-structured interviews with five participants. Grounded theory analysis revealed six themes: participants’ experience with racism; bearing the burden: professional and personal responsibility; progress, regression, and stagnation: addressing racism; participants’ personal response to racism; participants’ experiences reporting racism; and identity, role and resilience in social work. Across all themes, participants described pervasive racism. The findings highlight the emotional labor of racialized practitioners who must advocate for racialized clients, shoulder microaggressions, and challenge racism without organizational support. Implications for social work and policy include the need for culturally responsive leadership, formal reporting mechanisms, and anti-racism training developed by racialized professionals. Future researchers should expand the sample size and compare experiences across settings. The findings from this study reinforce the importance of an anti-racist frameworks in social work education and practice.

Abstract This article examines how arts-based, rights-oriented social work can foster voice, dignity, and inclusion with migrants in Spain. Drawing on decolonial theory and an a/r/tographic approach, we designed a collaborative program in reception settings with 57 adult migrants. Visual and performative artifacts—self-portraits, cultural “subway-map” cartographies, photo-narratives, a red-threads performance, and a floor installation—were treated as primary data. A constructivist grounded-theory strategy guided analysis using a formal–symbolic–contextual matrix (composition/color/materiality; metaphors and chronotopes; production/audience). Findings show measurable learning in visual literacy and creative–expressive and social competences, alongside increased agency in public spaces. Participants co-curated what to share, reframing dominant narratives of mobility through collective meaning-making and community pedagogy. The study details a practical rights-based toolkit for social work: layered, accessible consent; anonymity and takedown options for images/QR content; safety briefings for public actions; member checking across stages; and co-curation to prevent aesthetic paternalism. We argue that arts-based practice, read through a decolonial lens, moves beyond using art as a mere method and functions as education within the arts that advances human rights in research, practice, and social work education. Implications are offered for curriculum, frontline practice, and community advocacy.

Institutional Analysis of the Organizational Expansion and Transformation of Social Work Education in Taiwan: The Influence of the Professional Social Worker Act in 1997

ABSTRACT The Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) states that accredited schools of social work have an obligation to teach their students critical thinking skills. Yet, CSWE doesn’t clearly define critical thinking but leaves this to at-large members of the profession to figure out. What I do in this paper is describe a philosophy inspired conception of critical thinking. That conception regards critical thinking as reasoning involved in the construction and evaluation of arguments. I next discuss how this conception influences the way I teach an elective on race and public policy that my school offers. I do all this in the hope that the paper can contribute to a discussion in the profession regarding both what critical thinking involves, as well as how our courses might be designed to facilitate the development of this important skill.

Community development is one of the widely practiced methods of social work profession for provision of social welfare services in the Pakistan soon after its inception in 1947. Historically, community development services have been rendered through various government departments as well as NGOs in Pakistan. Till date, a huge population of Pakistan is unable to access essentials of life, that is why community development method is widely practiced here for fulfillment of unmet needs of communities. The current study sets out to assess the compatibility of course contents of community development in terms of multiple skills learned during BS/M. A social work education and what they lack to fulfil requirements of the job market. Qualitative research method was adopted to achieve study objectives. Using an interview protocol, community development practitioners with at least 2 years of experience were recruited for in-depth interview. The responses were recorded using pen and paper method and the data was analyzed using thematic analysis technique. The findings revealed that certain basic skills such as communication, community mobilization and cultural competence are part of social work curriculum. However, other necessary skills such as project management, community-based conflict resolution, organizational development tool, identification of community resources and need assessment, asset mapping and data collection were not directly part of the curriculum and social work graduate faced hurdles in job hunting and sustaining them. Furthermore, dispensation of multiple roles and responsibilities such as community capacity building, advocacy and lobbying are expected from the community development practitioners in the job market which requires a specialized set of skills which social work graduates lack. The study concludes that curriculum of community development should be revised and modified in line with job market requirements. The study findings would be useful for social work academia and HEC curriculum revision committee for revising course contents of community development according to job market requirements.

As part of a seminar on social history, philosophy, and ethics, dual students of Social Work and Early Childhood Education (IU Ulm, WS 24/25) explored the foundations of professional ethics. The seminar began by examining observed differences between students’ own ethical orientations in practice and the emphasis of relevant position papers, such as the RECKAHNER REFLECTIONS and the BERLIN DECLARATION of the DBSH. To capture the professional ethical frameworks of experienced practitioners, students distributed an open-ended questionnaire on ethical questions and routine practices at their field placements. A total of 36 completed questionnaires were returned from early childhood education and social work settings. Through thematic analysis, key values, their implementation in practice, and potential discrepancies be- tween guiding principles and everyday routines were identified. The findings indicate both widely shared ethical orientations (e.g., respect, empathy, self-determination) and differences in ethical priorities depending on the field of practice. The survey results were further discussed in the seminar and concluded with an Open Space session aimed at fostering professional ethical practice.

ABSTRACT This paper reports on core competencies needed by social work students to work in sexual health settings (e.g. physical/reproductive aspects) and/or sexuality wellness, broader aspects inclusive of emotional, mental, relational, sexual justice, pleasure, and overall satisfaction. Whilst social work sexuality-focused placements provide opportunities for students to become familiar with sexuality issues, we argue that, prior to placement, students should be prepared with a sexuality-informed practice lens. The mixed methods study draws from data collected from participants working in 41 Australian sexual health agencies. Descriptive analysis of surveys and inductive analysis of the focus groups resulted in three overarching themes: (1) sexuality is part of holistic social work practice; (2) generalized social work education should increase student sexuality knowledge, skills, and comfort or confidence; and (3) core competencies required for social workers in sexual health settings. Finally, implications are presented.

ABSTRACT Artificial intelligence (AI), particularly generative AI and large language models (LLMs), are reshaping the landscape of social work practice. Schools of social work are only beginning to respond to these changes. This article presents findings from an interdisciplinary summer school course designed to promote AI literacy among social work students. The curriculum combined a range of interactive learning experiences with time for ethical reflection, and a developmental experience of creating domain-specific CustomGPTs. In order to understand student’s acquisition of AI knowledge and skills, we used an AI literacy measure called the ‘Scale for the assessment of non-experts’ AI literacy’ (SNAIL). We assessed changes in AI literacy through pre- and post-course self-assessments based on the SNAIL questionnaire. The results show statistically significant and potentially meaningful gains in AI literacy. The responses suggest that the course helped increase AI knowledge, enabling students to shift from hesitant observers to confident users of and thinkers about AI tools. This study contributes to the emerging field of AI literacy in social work by offering a model for interdisciplinary teaching on generative AI content.

ABSTRACT The social work profession experiences elevated stress and burnout rates, yet self-care and resilience building remain underdeveloped areas in professional training. This paper explores the integration of Sophrology, a structured mind-body practice, into social work education to promote students’ self-awareness, emotion regulation and wellbeing. Drawing from two of the authors’ lived experiences and a small pilot project, the paper reports on three workshops delivered to social work students in England. The findings suggest improvements in participants’ perceived ability to manage wellbeing, emotions and readiness for practice post-workshop. Qualitative feedback highlighted the accessibility and practicality of the techniques, their ease of use in daily life and their relevance to professional practice. While limited in scale, these findings suggest Sophrology’s potential as an innovative, cost-effective approach to enhance wellbeing and resilience among social work students. The authors recommend further research to evaluate its effectiveness on a larger scale.

ABSTRACT This article discusses a university—court teaching partnership that enables social work students to have a direct face-to-face experience of being present in court hearings, focusing on the Treatment Intervention Court in South Australia. Student experiences and perspectives were gathered through an anonymous online survey and thematically analysed. Five key themes found in the survey data were A real-life experience of attending court hearings; Learning about legal formalities; Social work roles within court settings; Ethical challenges of practice in court-ordered drug treatment programs; and Being supported in their learning. This university—court partnership maximises students' experiential learning of court processes, which is at the forefront of students being prepared for the social work profession. IMPLICATIONS Collaborative partnerships between universities and courts strengthen social work education by enabling students to develop practical insights into the procedural and relational dynamics of legal systems. Immersive learning experiences within court environments deepen students’ comprehension of social work’s role in legal contexts and promote critical reflection on the implementation of therapeutic jurisprudence and court-ordered interventions.

Eco-social work positions climate change as a core planetary boundary breach. It demands urgent attention from social work, as a profession which centralises social justice within its theory and practice. This article argues that social works’ engagement with climate change needs to be contextualised within broader societal narratives that shape experiences of climate disengagement. Conceptual tools, including societal climate management strategies and climate denial as disavow, are drawn on to illustrate the complexity of climate ambivalence and disengagement. They provide important opportunities to better understand experiences of climate disengagement, including their implications for social work practice.