This article presents data from an exploratory study on class participation and student self-censorship. The impetus for this research is concern that content on multiculturalism and oppression inh...

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/23043864.pdf

Multicultural Content and Class Participation: Do Students Self-Censor?

Social work literature provides analysis and strategies about teaching social work practice and its interrelationship with a diverse society. In this paper, we present a framework to aid instructors' understanding of and response to conflict in the classroom, which is unavoidable. We propose the reflective practitioner paradigm along with the contributions of mindfulness, as useful for social work instructors in examining their practice as educators. We conclude with practice principles that integrate 3 bodies of knowledge: reflective practice, mindfulness, and social work pedagogy on diversity. These principles apply to the individual educator, communication among educators, and social work departments.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/info/23044772

Reflective practice in contemporary social work classrooms

This research examines the impact of the Poverty Simulation Project, an experiential learning modality, on students' understanding of life in poverty. A total of 101 students representing 5 undergraduate majors in the College of Health and Human Services completed measures of critical thinking, understanding of others, and the active learning scales. Results indicate that although students did not change their thinking about the causes of poverty, they changed their perceptions about the difficulties of the daily lives of the poor, increased their ability to analyze life situations, and stimulated their further thinking about poverty. Results demonstrate that social work majors did not differ from other majors in their gains from this experience. Implications for teaching about poverty and the poor, especially as it relates to experiential learning, are discussed.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/08841233.2010.497129

The Effects of Poverty Simulation, an Experiential Learning Modality, on Students' Understanding of Life in Poverty

Social work programs are mandated by the Council on Social Work Education to address issues of difference, privilege, oppression, and discrimination at both the baccalaureate and graduate levels. Teaching courses that address these issues can be difficult, especially when students are resistant to the kinds of analysis and self‐reflection that diversity education requires. While the idea of resistance is discussed at length in the clinical social work and social work education literatures, ideas about addressing and using student resistance in multicultural social work education are not well‐developed. This article suggests that social work educators might benefit from an examination of perspectives on student resistance found in the field of education and, specifically, in the multicultural higher education and teacher training literatures. Four areas that are addressed at length in these literatures are described in this paper: Resistance as a source of information about group process: resistan...

Working with resistance to diversity issues in the classroom: Lessons from teacher training and multicultural education

This article focuses on faculty responses to critical classroom incidents related to race and the importance of faculty being sensitive to issues of racism in order to effectively handle such situations. Data from a national study of 304 graduate and undergraduate level social work faculty are presented. Discussion addresses teaching challenges and approaches for addressing issues of diversity, oppression, and difference when they trigger student conflict and strained classroom interaction.

Facilitating Learning on Diversity: Challenges to the Professor.

Meeting the CSWE standards related to diversity content poses new demands on faculty who frequently face strained classroom interactions and strong student affect. Using critical incident methodology, data from social work professors identified critical events in teaching about oppression that point to policy and teaching recommendations. Results have implications for the use of critical incident debriefing methodology to help faculty increase skill in supporting students through difficult psychological work that is necessary for the development of multicultural competence.

Teaching About Diversity and Oppression

A national study of 304 undergraduate and graduate level social work faculty investigated the relationship between professors' sensitivity to racism and their responses to critical events related to racism that occur in the classroom Findings reveal that social work faculty across all demographic groups tended to have a high sensitivity to racism and a high responsiveness level to three of four critical classroom incidents Some support for the study's hypotheses were found in relation to one vignette The results are discussed based on the concepts of racism of the well-intentioned and bystander behavior

Dorothy Van Soest Dsw

Papers

Teaching About Diversity and Oppression

Sensitivity to Racism and Social Work Professors' Responsiveness to Critical Classroom Events