Virtual, interactive clinics as a pedagogy of choice: preparing social work students for the realities of contemporary practice.
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| Title: | Virtual, interactive clinics as a pedagogy of choice: preparing social work students for the realities of contemporary practice. |
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| Authors: | Vassos, Sevi1 (AUTHOR) sevi.vassos@deakin.edu.au, Hunt, Michelle1 (AUTHOR) |
| Source: | Social Work Education. Jun2026, Vol. 45 Issue 4, p937-943. 7p. |
| Subject Terms: | *Social work education, *Virtual classrooms, *Learning readiness, *Interactive learning, *Educational evaluation |
| Abstract: | In recent decades, a growing number of professions have integrated online simulation approaches into their higher education programs with a view to optimizing graduates' practice readiness. The existing research attests to the value of online simulations as a vehicle for building students' competence and confidence in practice, without the risk of harm to end service users. However, social work as a profession has been relatively tardy in adopting these pedagogies. Although COVID has created an impetus for the accelerated use of online pedagogies globally, the value of online simulations as an alternative to face-to-face teaching approaches remains contested and social work-specific literature on these approaches is still emerging. With a view to contributing to this fledgling area of scholarship, this paper reports on the development of a virtual, interactive clinic as the main platform for preparing Bachelor of Social Work students for practice in the context of placement. After providing an overview of how the Clinic was developed and implemented, the paper articulates the Clinic's purpose, scope and functionality as a learning and assessment platform. The paper concludes with a precis of the key lessons learnt with a view to informing future work in the integration of online simulation-based learning in social work education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| Database: | Education Research Complete |
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| Abstract: | In recent decades, a growing number of professions have integrated online simulation approaches into their higher education programs with a view to optimizing graduates' practice readiness. The existing research attests to the value of online simulations as a vehicle for building students' competence and confidence in practice, without the risk of harm to end service users. However, social work as a profession has been relatively tardy in adopting these pedagogies. Although COVID has created an impetus for the accelerated use of online pedagogies globally, the value of online simulations as an alternative to face-to-face teaching approaches remains contested and social work-specific literature on these approaches is still emerging. With a view to contributing to this fledgling area of scholarship, this paper reports on the development of a virtual, interactive clinic as the main platform for preparing Bachelor of Social Work students for practice in the context of placement. After providing an overview of how the Clinic was developed and implemented, the paper articulates the Clinic's purpose, scope and functionality as a learning and assessment platform. The paper concludes with a precis of the key lessons learnt with a view to informing future work in the integration of online simulation-based learning in social work education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| ISSN: | 02615479 |
| DOI: | 10.1080/02615479.2023.2275655 |
