Bringing Business, Community and University into Partnership: Innovation in Field Education
Keywords:
Field education, Community, Private sector, philanthropy, social work studentsAbstract
In the current Australian context, social work field educators face a two-fold challenge – an increased demand for supervised field education placements, given the growth of social work programs and the student numbers within them, and a diminishing capacity for agencies to provide them. Innovative responses are needed to ensure that, not only are placements provided, but that they are of a high quality in terms of learning opportunities for students. This article describes an approach to field education that brought business, the community and the University into a new partnership. A new placement model initiated by our Faculty's Engagement Team was developed in collaboration with the Department of Social Work, a philanthropic group (the Hobsons Bay Community Fund), business groups and two local councils. This less-familiar territory of private sector collaboration enabled students to develop their social work skills in unanticipated ways. This article highlights the ways in which an innovative practice model and learning opportunities have provided insights into engagement in new areas of partnership.
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