LEARNING EXPERIENCE IN SOCIAL WORK

Learning Experience in Social Work

Learning Experience in Social Work

1. Three Learning Log Extracts

A learning log is a place to think out loud on paper—to explore, ask questions, make connections, organize information, dig deeper, and reflect on and assess what one is learning. As you read this book, you may want to keep a learning log to chronicle your reactions to and reflections about this text.

1st Learning Log

On my first day at university, I was a bit terrified on how things would go and how people would perceive me. I did not want to come across in a horrible way in which people would not want to be able to relate to me. As soon as I walked in the room, I automatically had a pre-judgment about people, which is something I need to work on. I learned a little that day about the different type of themes we are going to be studying.

My first Learning Log is about determining what I already know and what they want to learn about social work. Social work teacher made the students understand about a social work topic before they plan activities (Wittenberg 2003, 225). In a 50-minute discussion, the students demonstrated their knowledge of all of the concepts about urban, suburban, and rural communities outlined in the Area, district curriculum guide. Her students had lived in the area for all their young lives and had attended to their environment. Life had provided her students with this knowledge. Had Avery not begun with what do you already know? Discussion, she would have wasted time presenting information and offering her student's activities on concepts they already understood. (Brian 2010, 225)

2nd Learning Log

During one of my first lectures, I found it a bit difficult because they are long and sometimes I could switch of. However, I enjoyed this lecture because I learnt so much. We talked about how social workers are there to bridge the gap, how effective communication is a social worker.

My second log is related to my learning of Assessment and evaluation in social settings. Assessment and evaluation are intricately woven into the learning process; social workers gather data about their community members' study of topics (assessment), and they make judgments about what their community members have learned and need to learn (evaluation) while their community members are engaged in learning (Pamela 2011, 389-412). While community members work, social workers gather evidence to document their community members' learning, skill development, and dispositions toward learning. Using these data, social workers and the community members themselves make judgments about the community members' learning. Note that unlike in past years, it is not just the social worker making judgments about the community members' learning. Child self-evaluation is a critical component of the new assessment and evaluation procedures. Every activity is an opportunity to gather data about the community members. (Barker 2003, 12-15)

3rd Learning Log

One of my lectures today did not go so well because I just was not able to digest enough ...