When field isn’t field anymore: Innovating the undergraduate social work field experience in response to the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction

Field education is considered the signature pedagogy of social work education (Council on Social Work Education, 2015). Due to the substantial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, senior social work students were unable to accrue the typical ‘in-person’ hours. Although every student in the 2020–2021 academic year had been accepted into a placement agency, significant safety concerns and government mandates connected to the COVID-19 pandemic limited students’ ability to accrue on-site field hours. The safety of students was the highest priority, as well as the safety and health of the workers, clients, and communities within the placement agencies. Social work accrediting bodies across the globe supported social work education programs by broadening their acceptance of remote field activity toward the accrual of field hours, approving field activities such as practice simulations, field-related assignments, trainings, and virtual meetings. In response, as the Field Coordinator for a small Social Work Department in a private, Liberal Arts university, I developed and single-handedly ran a remote-based field program to ensure that students accrued the required field hours for accreditation with enriching experiences that are essential to social work education and professional training. Offering flexibility and inclusivity, the new virtual field program provided students accessible options when they were unable to go to field or their placement agency was unable to provide at-home assignments, meeting the diverse and immediate needs of our students.

Key milestones

Every student was accepted into a placement agency during the 2020–2021 academic year, but as expected, significant safety concerns and government mandates connected to the COVID-19 pandemic limited many of the students’ ability to accrue the required field hours. Challenges included: (1) students pulled from field placement due to health and safety concerns and new placements took time to identify, (2) students were in isolation and/or quarantine for several weeks, impacting their accrual of field hours, (3) placement agencies were limited in their ability to offer the full 16-hour weekly requirement, and (4) students starting internship late due to delays in available on-campus housing. In all these situations, students significantly relied on the Virtual Field Program to accrue their required field hours.

The following list outlines the Virtual Field Programming throughout the 2020–2021 academic year:

I am excited to report that 100% of social work seniors completed the needed field education hours required for graduation. All students received strong field evaluations from their agency supervisors in both semesters and 80% of seniors rated their experience with the field program as ‘very good’. An unexpected outcome was the impact it had on students’ emotional care and relationships. Over the course of the academic year, this program drastically reduced the anxiety during times of great stress. A reduction in hours, losing a placement, and experiencing quarantine are all significant stressors. This program offered students peace of mind, serving as a safety-net for the accrual of hours comprised of essential learning and support. In addition, the time spent with students during the skills labs, role-play events, and group supervision provided a relational sense of support and care between participating students and me as the Field Coordinator. A unique closeness was formed among students through participating in these experiences, adding to the strength and resilience of the cohort.

I was excited to see the success of this program throughout the course of the academic year. As a social work educator and field coordinator, I am deeply committed to student achievement through the priority of health and safety. As the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continued, the Virtual Field Program ensured a field experience that cultivated students’ professional development through multiple forms of remote-learning field activities, attending to the essential needs surrounding safety, access, and inclusivity.

Lessons learned and future innovations

In response to the impact of COVID-19, the social work profession has come to the realization that virtual services are greatly needed, making virtual social work skills a new necessity for social work practitioners. Thus, social work field instruction now needs to intentionally prioritize virtual learning experiences to enable students to have the opportunity for professional development that includes the virtual application of social work skills. This highlights the field’s ethical commitment to competence, where social workers continuously develop professional knowledge and skills necessary for fulfilling the needs of those they serve (National Association of Social Workers, 2021).

The Virtual Field Program has proven to be an innovative approach to the social work field experience. This program has established a well-organized plan that successfully managed the challenges of reduced hours, student anxiety, and overall student achievement and learning. I intend to continue and build upon the high impact learning experiences such as skills labs and role-play events, in a virtual format in upcoming years. In addition, with the abundant virtual, at-home learning modules created over the past year, my field program is now equipped to support students in the face of various future challenges. I am deeply grateful that my ultimate goal was achieved – to create a field initiative that delivered remote practice opportunities where students internalized social work core values, ethics, principles and standards, while having the opportunity to develop social work techniques and skills, ultimately preparing them for generalist practice.