Effectively Teaching Social Work Practice Online: Moving Beyond Can to How

Pandemic, social distancing, and social work education: students’ satisfaction with online education in Vietnam

“…Some studies are consistent with this study's results by stating that social work students reported higher level of satisfaction with face-to-face learning (Siebert et al, 2006;Thyer et al, 1998). On the other hand, some others suggest students were more satisfied with online learning (Forgey & Ortega-Williams, 2016). In addition, some previous studies looking at student learning outcomes, through their log grades and exam scores, report that they found no significant difference in student efficacy (Cummings et al, 2013;Glezakos & Lee, 2001;Kleinpeter & Potts, 2000;Siebert et al, 2006), soft skills, such as crisis intervention skill (Siebert et al, 2006), and critical thinking skill (Huff, 2000).…”

Lessons learned from COVID-19: Being known in online social work classrooms

“…Social work programs have been slow to embrace online learning, especially for undergraduates (Lee et al, 2019; McAllister, 2013). Although existing research indicates that students’ educational outcomes and satisfaction with online and face-to-face courses are comparable, even in practice classes the belief that social work cannot be taught online persists (Forgey and Ortega-Williams, 2016). This belief is fueled by concerns that interpersonal skills and relationships cannot be fully developed in online learning environments (Forgey and Ortega-Williams, 2016).…”

“…Although existing research indicates that students’ educational outcomes and satisfaction with online and face-to-face courses are comparable, even in practice classes the belief that social work cannot be taught online persists (Forgey and Ortega-Williams, 2016). This belief is fueled by concerns that interpersonal skills and relationships cannot be fully developed in online learning environments (Forgey and Ortega-Williams, 2016). More knowledge in this area is critical because social interactions are key to social work students’ success.…”

Transitioning to online teaching: a phenomenological analysis of social work educator perspectives

“…Building on Moore's (2005) seminal work on the perceived effectiveness of online social work education, Levin et al (2018) conducted a study with 376 faculty from US schools of social work comparing levels of perceived effectiveness of online compared to OTG across nine social work competencies. Their findings reveal that despite the growing body of research that reports the effectiveness of online education (Cummings et al, 2015;Forgey & Ortega-Williams, 2016;Phelan, 2015;Wretman & Macy, 2016), faculty continue to perceive online education as being less effective than an OTG modality. These findings raise questions about why these perceptions remain unchanged over the last two decades and correspond to the body of research that suggests faculty perceptions are shaped by institutional resources needed to support online delivery (Maguire, 2009;Wickersham & McElhany, 2010;Wingo et al, 2017), pedagogical alignment with social work practice (East et al, 2014), and translation of 'self' through technology-mediated relationships (Smith, 2015;Spitz, 2019).…”

“…The body of scholarship that has examined online educator perceptions reveals that faculty do not view online education with the same optimism as administrators (Allen & Seaman, 2015;Betts & Heaston, 2014). Social work educators remain skeptical about the efficacy of online social work education (Forgey & Ortega-Williams, 2016;Reamer, 2013).…”