Online and face-to-face role-play simulations in promoting social work students’ argumentative problem solving

Abstract

This paper reports on a teaching experiment in which social work students (n=38) practiced problem solving through argumentative tasks. A teaching experiment was carried out at a Mikkeli University of Applied Sciences in Finland in connection with a course concerning preventative work against alcohol- and drug abuse. This quasi- experimental study investigated whether role-play simulation conducted either online (15 students) or face-to-face (14 students) improved students’ problem solving on social issues. As a pre-test, the students wrote an essay after having watched a dramatization of problematic cases on elderly people’s use of alcohol. The students also attended lectures (30 x 45 min) on the effect of substance abuse and preventive work, and after the role-play simulation they wrote another essay (post-test). Nine controls wrote an essay without participating in the role-play simulation. Lastly, the students filled out feedback questionnaires.

Building Social Science Simulations for College Students Using VR Headsets

“…Using simulation within college courses has occurred for years. Examples include role plays (Vapalahti, Marttunen, & Laurinen, 2013), gamification of lessons, and any educational experience that attempts to mirror a real-world situation for students. As Bogo, Rawlings, Katz, and Logie (2014) put it in their book on simulation, these types of experiences, if designed carefully, can provide students "excellent training opportunities for developing holistic competence" (p. 100).…”

Facilitating social work role plays in online courses: The use of video conferencing

“…Some empirical studies have compared the efficacy of online role plays to face-to-face role plays with little difference found in student learning outcomes for acquiring problemsolving skills related to alcohol use (Vapalahti, Marttunen, & Laurinen, 2013). On the other hand, regarding the learning setting, students in other studies prefered face-to-face experiences (Holmes & Kozlowski, 2015).…”