Exploring the Opportunities and Challenges of Social Work Students during the Field Practicum: The case of School of Social Work, Addis Ababa
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Date
2020-10
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The field practicum is the most essential but marginalized part of social work education. This study aimed to explore the existing opportunities and the challenges experienced by social work students during their field practicum in the case of School of Social Work at Addis Ababa University. Qualitative case study method used to carry out the study. Semi structured interview method was used to collect the data. The participants of the study were selected purposively from both the Bachelor of Social Work and the Master of Social Work programs and academic staffs. The finding of the study brought key opportunities such as availability of field agencies, availability of resources, supports of field agencies, social work curriculum and prior knowledge and skills that help social work students to have better field practicum experiences. The findings also indicated that social work students face different challenges that mostly arise from the institutional, personal and client related limitations. Those challenges include poor supports and guidance, lack of resources, lack of awareness, weak collaborations, poor evaluations, lack of commitments, communication barriers and poor application of theories and reports. These challenges come up with some negative outcomes such as developing negative attitudes towards the field practicum, feelings of incompetent, and fragmentation of school- agency relationships, receiving low grades and underdevelopments of the social work profession. The study concluded that social work students experienced with a list of existing opportunities and challenges that might facilitate or hide their practical leanings at school of social work, Addis Ababa University. The findings have implications for social work students, School of Social Work, curriculum developers, field agencies and future researchers.
Key words: Experiences, field practicum, opportunities, challenges
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Keywords
Experiences, field practicum, opportunities, challenges