Critical thinking and reflection are core components of all Australian university social work programs and are key skills for both students and graduates in conceptualising practice/field knowledge. This paper aims to explore the challenges international students face with critical thinking and reflection, and how the use of creative strategies…

Using data from the Council on Social Work Education's Annual Survey, this study captures a baseline snapshot of policy practice education in U.S.-based bachelor of social work and master of social work programs. Results indicate that the nature of students' preparation to incorporate policy change into practice depends on which program they…

Professionals in various fields have the opportunity to train in real-life situations before they take on a job by themselves. In program evaluation, however, preservice training usually focuses on coursework oriented to research design and methods. After completing these studies, evaluators go off to conduct evaluations guided primarily by their…

Components of a successful internship program are described in this report, with a focus on internships in middle management. Included are descriptions of program characteristics, pre-internship experiences, pre-internship options, knowledge prerequisites, seminars, funding and district cooperation, student and site matching, placement options,…

Implications from common themes underscore the need to redefine and expand the purposes of professional education and to consider experiential learning programmatically in relation to these purposes. Other implications relating to program design and to how we view and manage the process of learning are summarized. (Author/MLW)

The goal of the study was to evaluate the contribution of field education to the competence of the parish minister. Questionnaires were sent to a sample of 471 1964 graduates of 86 Protestant theological seminaries asking for information about their present position, their experience in field education while in seminary, and their judgment of its…

Describes the development and use of standardized forms found to be effective for evaluating clinical clerkship experiences of pharmacy students. Copies of the Preliminary Questionnaire and the Post-Evaluation Form are included along with the goals of the Washington State University College of Pharmacy Clinical Pharmacy Program. (JT)

Advantages of a full year program of teacher preparation over more traditional approaches include total immersion in a professional sequence, allowance for extended and varied field experiences, and greater flexibility in scheduling programs and activities. (MB)

The Community Learning Center Project, a multicultural training program, is presented as a successful model for the acquisition of culturally relevant social work practice competencies. Cultural pluralism is presented as the underlying framework for the project. The design and model of an evaluation study of the project are described. (Author/MLW)

In a study with 13 social work and counseling interns, field supervisors' ratings of students' field performance were compared to an independent judge's content analysis of performance. Results revealed significant correlations between the evaluations, providing evidence of validity of the supervisors' assessments. Validity may have been enhanced…

Guidelines are presented for implementing field placements in social gerontology courses. After an introduction comparing the focus, objectives, and content of two types of experience--the liberal arts field placement and the human services internship--the paper is divided into three sections. These outline recommendations for the organization,…

This study evaluated the impact of social work field instructor training on student perceptions of the field experience. Students with seminar-trained field instructors (n=30) were more satisfied with faculty field liaison than students with other instructors, and trained instructors demonstrated expected supervisory behavior more often for most…

Reports on a small work group that met to discuss experiences with establishing and conducting dental education programs that had significant affiliation with private practice settings. Five programs in diverse areas were represented. Discussion covered program goals and objectives, support and commitment, practice/practitioner selection,…

A model for planning, monitoring, and evaluating human service internships and field experiences is described. The model is organized around work roles and can easily be adopted for general job evaluation beyond intern placements. Since the curriculum should contain the generalists' skills plus specialized skills representative of defined job…

Four main areas are addressed in this guide for learners and mentors in internship experiences in postsecondary education: (1) career orientation and planning; (2) experiential learning theory; (3) individual learning and development; and (4) program implementation and evaluation. Part One of the text identifies the structure of work in…