Practical training for social work students: Harnessing theoretical knowledge and practical experience

The ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences offers two practical training courses/sessions for social work students in order to introduce them to practical work in different fields of interest whilst studying. The practical... [ view full abstract ]

The ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences offers two practical training courses/sessions for social work students in order to introduce them to practical work in different fields of interest whilst studying. The practical training takes place in either Switzerland or abroad. Students are accompanied in close cooperation with qualified professionals. The latter are trained for their supporting role and meet students for close exchanges on several occasions during practical training.

This presentation aims at giving an introduction into the aim and design of practical training modules at ZHAW. It also outlines the experiences of the supporting professional and the students at the interface and (limited) translatability of theoretical knowledge and practical experience. In this context it is discussed to which time, under which conditions and with what kind of preparation and follow-up work the practical training becomes a sustainable and lasting experience. The presenter seeks to answer the question of how the students must be supported in order to gain from the experiences, embed them and reflect them within the theoretical knowledge.
Conditions for harnessing theoretical knowledge and practical experience are preparation, company and reflection based on a trustful relationship between the student and the supporting professional. The aim for the student is to become an expert of his or her own learning. Observation, naming, description, acting and justification have to be reflectively interpreted in their particular orientation framework (see Bohnsack 1997). This is trained not only during practical work but also during studying social work in general.

In the “unique arena” of child and youth care activities (see principle two of Prof. Dr. Shlomo Romi’s presentation in this symposium), implicit and explicit knowledge are both considered to be resources to accomplish everyday work. Different training models in the field of social work (e.g. ISIBINDI project in South Africa) show how these resources can be gainful in order to reach superior goals. Concurrently, ongoing research in which the presenter is involved shows that implicit everyday knowledge without explicit translation into the “Lebenswelt” of clients leads to an imbalance in power. This can be the case when e.g. everyday knowledge determines the process of decision making. It then becomes “expert knowledge” that is no longer accessible to the client.

The experiences and impressions of the students will be illustrated in citations from the evaluation of the practical trainings. Additionally, interviews with professionals (e.g. director of residential care home) will be shown. It appears that the answer to the question concerning competencies of child and youth care workers differ from one perspective and/or cultural background to another. At the same time it is conspicuous that there are similarities and continuities over time. An ongoing study on biographical trajectories after residential care, in which the presenter is also involved, shows that (former) children in residential care in the 1960s as well as today point out the importance of the willingness of the employees at the residential care home to form relationships and personal exchanges on an eye to eye level.