Re-Imagining Digital and New Media Literacies in Social Work Education: A Critical Framework for Overcoming #FakeNews, Divisiveness, and Injustice

Social unrest and division within the United States has become more visible and magnified since the 2016 election of former President Trump. This unrest has been amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic and white supremist attacks across the country. Throughout this era, information has been perpetuated through systemic and cultural networks promoting pseudoscience, #fakenews, misinformation, and explicit marginalization of racial, gender, ethnic, and cultural minorities. During this time, social work practitioners and educators have struggled to counter misinformation in classrooms and practice contexts. This paper proposes a newly re-imagined framework for addressing misinformation and civil discourse in social work education through the adoption and infusion of digital and new media literacies from within a critical theory driven epistemological framework. Recommendations are provided for incorporating tools, skills, and competencies throughout the curriculum in a more meaningful way that will help the profession combat misinformation, promote civil discourse, and utilize best practices in a digitally augmented society. Only then will the social work profession be able to meet the current and future challenges and opportunities that will undoubtedly accompany the expansion of digital technologies throughout our society. © 2022 Authors.

Social Work Students’ Self-Efficacy Toward Direct Practice Skills in Field Education Using Virtual Simulations and Scripted Role Plays

Simulations with professional actors and scripted role plays with peers are effective methods to increase direct practice skills. However, little is known about how simulations or scripted role plays conducted virtually can influence social work students' practice self-efficacy. MSW students enrolled in field seminar courses across two universities were invited to participate in an exploratory, repeated measures assessment utilizing the Counselor Activity Self-Efficacy Scales (CASES). One university (n=100) implemented the use of standardized clients, played by professional actors within field seminar;the other university (n=61) implemented scripted, peer-led role plays. Significant differences were found in pre/post scores among MSW students that participated in simulated client experiences within their field seminar. Simulations and scripted peer role plays may need to be more integrated into social work curricula when opportunities for in-person direct practice skill development are limited due to hybrid or fully remote field placements. Applied learning in social work education must be re-envisioned so programs can prepare MSW students to be effective practitioners in today’s rapidly changing environment. © 2022 Authors,.

Beyond COVID-19: what’s next for skill assessment practices in social work education?

Due to COVID-19, many higher education institutions abruptly transitioned to virtual instruction. For social work programs in the United States, this included supervised field education learning experiences. This shift allowed little time to adapt assessment outcome procedures. Considered the signature pedagogy in social work education, field enables students to integrate knowledge and practice skills in real practice situations. Multi-dimensional methods are used to assess this integration of classroom and field curricula. Program assessment methods can differ across social work education programs. Educational disruptions due to COVID-19 suggest a need to reimagine skill assessment in social work education. Due to the pandemic’s impact on skill assessment practices, this article discusses the ethical and implementation issues that should be considered in relation to field and classroom education. Adaptations to assessment practices to ensure evidence of student learning outcomes are explored. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Social Work Education is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)