Creative Approaches to Social Work Practice Learning

A guide to enable social work practice educators to be more creative in the teaching, supervision and assessment of students. Practice educators, as social workers, are used to being creative and innovative in their demanding roles in practice.  But often they can struggle to find the time to integrate this creativity in the teaching and learning with students. To support a student’s ability to develop their critical thinking, practice educators need to possess and demonstrate a range of different skills and knowledge around models and strategies of teaching, supervision, and assessment.   This concise guide enables practice educators to be more creative in the teaching, supervision and assessment of students. Containing stand-alone, but inter-linked chapters that each cover an innovative or creative approach in practice education, this book provides accessible material and practice guidance to enable practice educators to cultivate a creative approach to learning.  This includes contemporary and diverse ideas around the teaching, supervision and assessment of social work students who are undertaking their practice learning placements.  Each chapter is written by a qualified practice educator enabling them to draw upon their experiences of effectively supporting the development of students and the building of a learning relationship. The book bridges theory and practice, providing a straightforward and useful resource for practice educators to draw upon, thus supporting their research-mindedness to inform their practice and contribute to their knowledge-base.  Both of which are indicative skills within their expert specialist roles. In short, the book provides a range of creative approaches, demonstrates their application in practice and helps to build a “creative toolbox” to use within practice. 

Table of Contents:
Introduction Ch1 Let's start at the beginning - Claire Skilleter Ch 2 Practice educating in a digital world - Anna Wright Ch 3 Anti-Racist Social Work Practice Education - Garfield Hunt Ch 4 The creative use of timelines: A trauma-sensitive approach for developing students’ critical analysis and reflexivity - Caroline Aldridge Ch 5 Power - Heidi Dix & Aisha Howells Ch 6 The Musician, The Stripper and The Boxing Day Flood: the use of stories in social work - Alison Taylor Ch 7 Exploring professional curiosity - Nora Duckett Ch 8 Getting Creative with Endings - Claire Skilleter Conclusion  

About the Author :
Heidi Dix has been a qualified social worker since 1997. She first worked as a social worker in an adult team for people with learning disabilities, before moving to work in Children and Family Services. Since 2007 she has worked as a manager within Suffolk’s Youth Offending Service where she has facilitated the development of evidence-informed practice. Heidi is also a Lecturer in Social Work at University Campus Suffolk. Her interests include single gender work, effective and participatory ways of engaging young people within the Youth Justice System, practice education, and exploring a relationship based approach within effective practice. Aisha Howells is a Lecturer at the University of Suffolk. She leads a Masters-level Practice Education programme focussed on integrating creative approaches to learning.  Because of her experience and commitment towards practice, she feels passionate about learning that equips practitioners and students in their busy professional lives and helps them to flourish.  

Review :
"...This book provides an excellent tool for practice educators to engage their students creatively, both proactively with all students and reactively where a student needs additional support. The appendices provide multiple activities that have been referred to across the book, so can be used with students by practice educators. Overall, this is an indispensable practical guide for practice educators that moves away from the procedural focus of other practice education books and into practical solutions to develop students’ knowledge and skills on social work placement." "I thoroughly enjoyed this book, which I read as a whole, but equally the chapters are stand alone, to be dipped into again and again, savoured and enjoyed.  The book is accessible, down to earth, yet it is full of theory with interesting references to follow up.  The book contains numerous exciting and creative tools and models to use with social work students on placement as well as in classroom settings. The book certainly “practises what it preaches”, and is beautifully crafted with pictures, poems and images. The book is expertly structured, taking the reader on a wonderful journey that will serve to enthuse and motivate practice educators, and encourages all of us to be creative in our pedagogical practices." "'Creative Approaches to Social Work Practice Learning’ does exactly what is says on the cover. The editors have brought together an interesting, creative and engaging text which explores the different stages of practice learning and how creativity can be built into students learning. The imagery and poems bring the text to life offering students and their practice educators new and exciting ways to deliver teaching and harness learning. The nine chapters together offer readers information on trauma informed learning environments, tools for anti-racist practice, practice education in a digital world and the importance of professional curiosity, to mention a few. The book will be useful addition to the resources for practice education."