Experiential learning in Master of Social Work (MSW) programs can be an instrumental pedagogical method of juxtaposing theoretical knowledge with tangible hands-on approaches, enhancing student experience through incorporating curriculum beyond classroom settings. This paper seeks to employ the use of educational theorist David Kolb's Theory of…

This article critically examines the fulsome embrace of Antiracist, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ADEI) rhetoric by social work institutions in the United States, identifying historic precedents and contemporary implications. We examine theories that captivated the profession in the last half century and the corollary political developments.…

Across the United States, racist, hate-filled rhetoric, attitudes, and behaviors are daily occurrences. Events like officer-involved shootings of unarmed Black men, women, and non-binary individuals, along with the increase in white supremacist and nationalist groups, have cumulatively created a climate of fear and mistrust. This fear and mistrust…

The heart can care but be misled by fine sounding words that obscure harms. Discovering harms is often hard work, for example determining exactly what outcomes clients experience in agencies and how to improve these, what avoidable errors social work educators and practitioners make and how to minimize these, what students actually learn and use…

As the country continues to reckon with the historical and present-day realities of systemic oppression, particularly as it impacts Black individuals and communities, it is critical that human service organizations advance beyond statements condemning forms of anti-Black racism. Institutional efforts to address anti-Black racism must embody…

Feminist identity, which allows those who support feminist ideals to establish themselves as being interested in reducing gender-based oppression, has been connected to increased commitment to collective action. However, feminist stigma and a postfeminist perception may have created ambivalence for many when considering a feminist identity. This…

Principles of diversity and difference are and have historically been, essential to social work education. However, preparing students with the knowledge, awareness, and skills of anti-racist and anti-oppressive practices has been less central in social work education until recently. In June 2022, the Council on Social Work Education issued new…

This paper uses a modest finding from a research study as a window into the world of social work education in Scotland. The study demonstrated that students believed by their classmates to be most dominant (white, straight men) were in fact the most reluctant to speak out. This finding is woven into an examination of a social work pedagogy…

Studies highlight online education's effectiveness; however, few examine theoretical frameworks for guiding pedagogy in online MSW programs. Patriarchal systems create policy and program inequities in higher education, hindering student achievement. Confronting these inequities is essential in designing successful online MSW programs. This…

Drawing from my experiences as an American-Israeli Jewish woman in social work academia, I use this paper to reflect upon the ways in which the Council on Social Work Education's newly-mandated anti-racist and anti-oppressive paradigms are problematic for the future of the social work profession. While it is important for social workers to address…

In this article, I argue that antiracist political activism modeled after the teachings of critical race theory (CRT) and critical social justice theory (CSJ) more generally, is an unethical form of pedagogy and clinical praxis that will likely damage members of society by producing incompetent mental health professionals. If the premises and…

This article addresses the role of imagination in social work education, practice, and research. Following a brief discussion of terms, the author attempts to identify the various contributions of human imagination to social change processes. The second part presents the argument that the cultural structure known as Social Darwinism significantly…

Teaching for diversity and social justice is the teaching of complex abstract ideas about privilege and oppression, such as the social construction of social groups and identity. An effective way to teach this material is with experiential learning, but this approach requires much more than exercises and activities. Courses must be consciously…

Social work students, regardless of their multiple social identities in oppressed and oppressor groups, are called upon to take action against social injustice. This conceptual article introduces the Ally Model of social justice and its alignment with social work values and goals and recommends it to social work educators as a pedagogical tool to…

Social work education programs rely heavily on adjunct instructors, as do most academic institutions. This article adds to existing literature on adjuncts by focusing on the unique issues in social work education, using social work values and ethics as a focus. The benefits and detriments for adjuncts, programs, and students in schools of social…