Social Work Education

1
Social Work Education Practice Placement in
Cyprus
INTERCOLLEGE SOCIAL WORK PROGRAMME

• Dr. C. Panayiotopoulos
• Mrs. D. Cochliou

panagiotopoulos.c_at_unic.ac.cy cochliou.d_at_unic.ac.cy
2
Outline

• Current situation
• Some problems
• Implications
• SW Placement Levels
• Social care organisations used for SW placement
• Student Supervision
• Practice Supervisors Role
• Suggestions for improvement

3
Current Situation

• Social Work Education Training
• Education was provided till 2001 solely from SW
  Departments in Greece
• Since 2001 a new SW programme was developed which
  was covering educational needs in Cyprus for
  social workers
• In 2005 a second programme is established,
  offered in two languages

4
Current Situation

• All programmes are based on the educational
  programme offered in Greece however
• Social Work Education in Cyprus is offered only
  by private tertiary Educational Institutions

5
Some Problems

• Teaching staff was not full based in Cyprus so
  there were gaps in the educational provision
• Practitioners who hold a Masters are not being
  used in teaching due to the official guidelines
• Supervision was mainly provided by other
  professionals due to the lack of social workers
  who work in NGOs
• This is an issue that needs attention as there is
  a law in force (since 2005) who allows only
  Social Workers with a undergraduate degree in SW
  to register as a Social Worker

6
Implications

• Students were receiving inadequate supervision in
  their practice placement
• There is not an official body that supervises
  students field work so there are many examples
  of bad practice
• A potential danger of having future professionals
  who have received inadequate training as far as
  their practicum concerns

7
Implications

• Current social workers in non-governmental
  organisations have no previous experience in
  supervision (either to provide or receive)
• In Social Welfare Services supervision is scarce
  due to increased workload

8
SW Placement Levels

• 1? Level 4? Semester - 2 days per week
• Understanding of key theoretical concepts which
  inform social work practice
• Can produce a clear, concise accurately
  presented written report
• 2? Level 5? Semester - 3 days
• Beginning ability to apply social work theories
  and methods
• Demonstrates a beginning ability to analyse,
  evaluate reflect on practice
• 3? Level 6? Semester - 4 days
• Ability to select, apply and sustain appropriate
  social work methods and demonstrate explicit use
  of same
• Demonstrates an extended repertoire of skills
  integral to their practice

9
Social Care Organisations used for SW Placements

• Students are placed only in organisations which
  employ a qualified SW
• Examples
• Social Welfare Services
• CYTA
• Home for Mentally Retard Persons
• Home for Elder People
• The Cyprus Institute of Neurology
• Genetics
• KENTHEA
• Local Authorities

10
Student Supervision

• Students should have weekly protected supervision
  of 1½ hours with their practice supervisor
• Supplemented by ongoing supervision as required
  with the university supervisor
• Supervision is viewed as a shared responsibility
  between the student practice supervisor

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Practice Supervisors Role

• To help the student make links between theory to
  practice
• To facilitate an understanding of the practice
  context to consider how this knowledge impacts
  on their work with service users carers
• Help the student in supervision to revise
  relevant theory link it to their practice the
  placement setting. Make suggestions as to
  relevant reading material

12
Practice Supervisors Role

• Delegate tasks, read feedback on any work
  requested to achieve the learning standards
• Give continuous feedback to the student on their
  progress encourage reflection analysis of
  their practice
• Work closely with the University supervisor in
  identifying the learning needs of the student,
  assessing monitoring

13
The truth behind the scenes

• The support provided by practice supervisors is
  variable
• Usually are too busy to perform their role
  complete all the tasks
• Lack of training on supervision
• Their workload is overwhelming because their
  agencies are usually running with less personnel
• There is not an established supervision system
  for professionals
• As a result students do not receive professional
  supervision

14
Suggestions for improvement

• Develop training sessions to educated social work
  practitioners how to provide supervision to
  students
• Develop an agency policy model on supervision for
  Cypriot social services
• Establish links of collaboration networking
  with universities abroad for practice placement
• Support the local association of social workers
  to re-establish social workers role in the
  Cypriot welfare system

15
Thank you!!!
16
Social Work Education Practice Placement in
Cyprus
INTERCOLLEGE SOCIAL WORK PROGRAMME

• Dr. C. Panayiotopoulos
• Mrs. D. Cochliou

panagiotopoulos.c_at_unic.ac.cy cochliou.d_at_unic.ac.
cy