Going to Camp Together: Lighting the Group Work Fire in a New Generation

Abstract

This article describes the structure and process of Group WorkCamp, an experiential training program sponsored by the International Association for Social Work with Groups (IASWG). The purpose of this 3-day event, which offers workshops and activities in a camp environment, is to transmit the skills, culture, and philosophy of social work with groups to students and new professionals. Camp also aims to connect participants to the group work community through interaction with skilled and enthusiastic professionals and educators. Participants live together as a large group and engage in ever-changing small groups. They learn primarily by experiencing group membership in the present moment, reflecting on this experience, and then discussing its implications. As the Chinese proverb says, "Tell me and I will forget. Show me and I will remember. Involve me and I will understand." In the course of this experiential learning process participants develop strong connections with peers and mentors and become familiar with IASWG, a resource for support and stimulation that will be invaluable as they pursue group work practice in an environment likely to isolate them from group work peers. The article ends with a discussion of the implications of this model for group work education, supervision, and practice.

Teaching English as a Foreign Language: A Case Study From Poland

“…The scouting routines help to create a relationship between the students and teachers based on working together and diminishing any barriers that may come from the intersection of the American and Polish cultures. This structure for participation in the daily life of the camp and in the learning process follows the recommended teaching practice by Grossman et al (2009) and is consistent with recommended learning processes in social work (Bergart & Clements 2015).…”

How Group Work Camp Began

“…The model for Group Work Camp has been presented elsewhere in considerable detail (Rosenwald et al, 2013;Bergart & Clements, 2015;Bergart, 2016). It can be described briefly as follows.…”