Ensuring The Future Of Rural Social Work In Australia
Social work has an important role to play in remote, rural and regional Australia in combating social disadvantage like poorer health, lower education standards, fewer employment opportunities and lower wages. The future of rural social work in Australia can be guaranteed by supporting those wishing to live and work in rural communities through education programs, industry support programs and ongoing professional programs.
Learning to ‘Think on Our Feet’: Producing a New Digital Resource for Teaching Social Work Students about Reflective Decision-making in Child Protection Practice in Australia
This paper outlines an innovative approach to preparing students for practising in situations in which they are facing disclosures of abuse and neglect involving child protection. Funding was made available following a successful grant from The Australian Government (Office of Learning and Teaching) to produce a series of filmed case scenarios in a bachelor of social work degree. The design of the case scenarios draws from Lipsky’s theorising about the use of discretion by human service practitioners and is guided by authentic learning principles. In higher education embedding online digital resources depicting complex decision-making is an underutilised teaching technique rarely included in the social work curriculum. The methodology for the project involved interviewing experienced child protection social workers about their practice to assemble composite case studies. The case studies aimed to demonstrate the application of theory and legal principles in practice to enable students to build confidence in using discretion in their fieldwork placements. Through authentic learning opportunities in the final year of a bachelor of social work degree, the wider intention was to promote resilience and work readiness when students go out to work in rural and remote communities in Australia. The implications for social work education are discussed.
The genus Pseudolithophyllum (Corallinaceae) in the Gulf of Maine
SummaryThis is the third of a series of papers covering the anatomy, morphology, systematics and ecology of the crustose corallines of the Gulf of Maine. Pseudolithophyllum orbiculatum, the only species of this genus in the region, is treated in this paper.