Teaching Social Work Research Through Practicum: What the Students Learned

Abstract

Social work research is ati essential component of a doctoral education. Students' perspectives need to be considered when determining how social work research is taught. Students enrolled in a social work doctoral program conducted a single case study that took a retrospective look at the student experience in a two-semester research practicum at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. A description of the research practicum course was drawn from key contact interviews and course materials. A review of archived records located 17 practicum publications and presentations. Cohort members' reflections on the research practicum course were analyzed using thematic content analysis. The case study informs the future design of doctoral research practicum courses and the socialization of social work educators and researchers.Learning how to design research projects and write up the results is essential in doctoral education. The perspective of the doctoral students themselves is key to the debate on the central position of research in training the next generation of social workers. We conducted a single case study in an attempt to understand the experiences of the students who participated in a 2009 research practicum course in a social work doctoral program at

Prerequisites of Improving Professional Training of Social Workers

“…To identify the educational needs and professional expectations and to study the level of proficiency and skills, a survey of 234 respondents was conducted [8]: employers (heads of social service organizations), students of the faculty of retraining and vocational training of the Kemerovo State University (future social workers and specialists working in social protection organizations). As the methods of research, a questionnaire survey and a content analysis of the specialists' professional standards in the social sphere were used.…”

Transforming Social Work Field Education

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