SIMULATION TRAINING FOR
NEWLY HIRED CHILDREN
SOCIAL WORKERS
PRESENTED BY
HARKMORE LEE, MSW
DIRECTOR
CENTER ON CHILD WELFARE
CAL. STATE UNIV., LOS ANGELES
Los Angeles
County
Depar tment of
Children and
Family Ser vices
(DCF S)
In par tner ship
with
the Univer sity
Consor tium for
Children and
Families
(UCCF)
TODAY’S AGENDA
I. The “Sim Team”
II. Brief History & Defining Simulation
III. Key Elements of Simulation Training Program:
a) Focus on mission, preparation, and
demonstration
b) Direction and support from Agency and Schools
of Social Work (SSW) Leadership
c) Curriculum Design and Development
d) Implementation and Logistics
e) Research and Evaluation
f) Lessons Learned
I) INTRODUCING “THE SIM TEAM”
 Univer sity Consor tium for Children and Families (UCCF )
 Cal State, L.A. - Harkmore Lee, MSW
 Cal State, Long Beach - James Ferreira, MSW
 UCLA - Heidi Staples, MSW
 USC - Donna Toulmin, JD
 Trainers from all 4 UCCF Partners, e.g. Monica McCurdy, Lilli Miles, Alberto
Reynoso, Monica Malin, Ana Sufuentes
 Los Angeles County Depar tment of Children and Family Ser vices (DCF S) –
Training Section
 Beth Minor
 Michele Brienze
 Training Section staff, e.g. Edmarine Edwards, Janae Mankowski
 Los Angeles Of fice of County Counsel
 Tamera Pruitt
 Law Enforcement Consultant
 Warren Ondatje
II) BRIEF HISTORY
2013:
 March – Physical design of “residential simulation lab” developed at
Cal State LA . Discuss with DCFS staf f on potential use.
 July - Aug:
 Construction of Residential Simulation Lab “mock up” at Cal State LA
 DCFS and UCCF trainers observe LE simulations
 Simulation scenarios created; roles defined and rehearsed.
 Aug. 29th – First simulation for new trainees @ CSULA’s RSL
 Sept–Dec:
 Simulations are being fully incorporated into academy trainings
 Other partners, such as County Counsel, PHNs are brought in.
 Attention from media
 CSULB begins to create its own simulation environment
II) BRIEF HISTORY
2014:
 Jan-March
 LA County Board of Supervisors & Blue Ribbon Commission Reports
 Cal State LA’s Residential Sim Lab undergoes renovation and upgrade.
 UCLA begins to create its own simulation environment.
 April to Present:
 Cal State LA develops and tests evaluation instruments for simulations.
Will design and coordinate evaluation for all sims.
 USC plans to replicate CSULA’s Residential Sim Lab at their training
center.
 Plans to expand use of simulations to train current CSWs and SCSWs
(2,500+ people) over the next two years.
WHAT IS SIMULATION?
 “Simulation is a technique, not a technology, to replace
or amplify real experiences with guided experiences,
often immersive in nature, that evoke or replicate
substantial aspects of the real world in a fully
interactive fashion” (Gaba, 2007)

“A method of instruction whereby an artificial or
hypothetical experience that engages the learner in an
activity reflecting real-life conditions but without the risktaking consequences of an actual situation is created.”
(Bastable, 2008).
SIMULATION IN ACTION @
THE RESIDENTIAL SIM LAB AT CAL STATE LA
 February 15, 2015 – NBC-4 Los Angeles
 http://www.nbclosangeles.com/video/#!/on -air/as-seenon/DCFS-Incorporates-Hands-On-Training/245718261
IN GENERAL, SIMULATIONS…
…are designed specifically to promote
critical thinking, decision making, analysis
and problem solving in a safe, controlled
and realistic environment.
…provide a bridge from theory to practice.
…offer trainees the opportunity to prepare
and practice their knowledge and skills,
while also receiving constructive and
supportive feedback from training faculty.
…can help increase confidence and
competency
KEY ELEMENTS OF
SIMULATION TRAINING
PROGRAM
A) FOCUS ON MISSION, PREPARATION, AND
DEMONSTRATION
CHILD SAFETY, PERMANENCY, WELL-BEING
INCREASE T.O.L. OF CRITICAL SKILLS AND
COMPETENCIES
CORE PRACTICE MODEL
B) DIRECTION AND SUPPORT FROM AGENCY &
UNIVERSIT Y SSW LEADERSHIP
PUSH TO INNOVATE
NO MORE “DOING BUSINESS AS USUAL”
COLLABORATION, COLLABORATION
C) CURRICULUM DESIGN AND DEVELOPEMENT
 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORKS (KOLB, BANDURA)
 THEMES, LEARNING OBJECTIVES, FACT PATTERNS
 SCAFFOLDING AND SEQUENCED LEARNING
 MULTI-DISCIPLINARY TRAINING TEAMS
CRITICAL LEARNING COMPONENTS
 BASELINE SKILLS AND STANDARDS
 SAFE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
 READINESS
 PEER LEARNING
 TRANSFER OF SKILL-BASED LEARNING
D) IMPLEMENTATION AND LOGISTICS
 BUILDING SIMULATION LAB / SETS
 “ACTORS” = TRAINERS, SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS
 FACILITATOR’S GUIDEBOOK FOR EACH SIMULATION
 PREPPING AND SCHEDULING
CONSTRUCTION OF 528 SQ.FT, 1 BED,
1 BA APT. INSIDE A CLASSROOM (CSULA)
CONSTRUCTION OF 528 SQ.FT, 1 BED,
1 BA APT. INSIDE A CLASSROOM (CSULA)
Residential Sim Lab Construction Costs:
a) Initial Mock-up (Aug. 2013; 3 weeks) = $2,000
(materials, staff labor, props donated)
b) Lab Renovation & Upgrade (Jan. 2014; 6 weeks)
= $18,900 (labor, materials to bring up to
building code + creation of storage/prop room.
Props donated)
c) Installation of AV/Recording/Sounds Effects
Equipment for “Closed Set” (Fall 2014) = $ TBD
USE OF PARTITIONS IN TRAINING ROOM
TO CREATE SIM AREAS (CSULB)
USE OF PARTITIONS IN TRAINING ROOM
TO CREATE SIM AREAS (UCLA)
E) RESEARCH AND EVALUATION
 HOW DO YOU KNOW IF SIMULATIONS WORK?
 EXPLORING RESEARCH AND EVALUATION METHODS
USED IN OTHER PROFESSIONS WHO USE SIMULATION
(E.G. MEDICAL/NURSING, LE, MILITARY)
 WORK OF MARION BOGO AND MARY RAWLINGS WITH
OSCEs (Objective Structured Clinical Examination )
 EFFECTIVE EVALUATION METHODS AND RESULTS =>
SUSTAINABILITY OF SUPPORT
F) LESSONS LEARNED
 FLEXIBLE LEARNING IS POSSIBLE WITHIN A
STANDARDIZED FORMAT
 LESS IS MORE
 KEEP TRAINERS REFRESHED
 AFTER NEARLY ONE YEAR, PROGRAM IS BOTH
EVOLVING BUT “MATURING”
Q&A
“TELL ME,
AND I WILL FORGET.
SHOW ME,
AND I MAY REMEMBER.
INVOLVE ME,
AND I WILL UNDERSTAND.”
Confucius,
450 BC
BIBLIOGRAPHY
 B a n d u r a , A . ( 1 977 ) . S e l f - ef fi c ac y : To w a r d a u n i f y i n g t h e o r y o f b e h av i o r a l c h a n g e .
P s yc h o l o g i c a l R ev i ew , 8 4 ,1 91 - 21 5 .
 B a s t a b l e , S . B . ( 2 0 0 8 ) . N u r s e a s e d u c a to r ( 3 e d . ) . S u d b ur y, M a s s a c h us et t s : J o n e s
a n d B a r t l et t .
 B o g o , M . , Re g e h r, C . , K a t z , E . , L o g i e , C . , Tu f fo r d , L . , & L i t va c k , A . ( 2 01 2 ) . E v a l ua t in g
a n o b j e c t i ve s t r uc t ur e d c l i ni c a l ex a m i n a t i o n ( O S C E ) a d a p te d f o r s o c i a l w o r k .
R e s e a r c h o n S o c i a l Wo r k P r a c t i c e , 2 2 ( 4 ) , 4 2 8 - 4 3 6 .
 G a b a , D . ( 2 0 07 ) . T h e f u t ur e v i s i o n o f s i m ula t i o n i n h e a l t h c a r e . Q u a l i t y & S a f e t y i n
H e a l t h c a r e , 1 3 ( S up p 1 ) , i 2 - i 10 .
 Ko l b , D . A . ( 1 976 ). T h e L e a r n i n g S t y l e I nve n to r y: Te c h n i c a l M a n u a l , B o s to n , M a . :
M c B e r.
 Ko l b D . A . ( 1 9 8 4 ). E x p e r i e n t i a l L e a r n i n g ex p e r i e n c e a s a s o u r c e o f l e a r n i n g a n d
d eve l o p m e n t , N ew J e r s ey : P r e n t i c e H a l l .
 To ku m a t s u , G o r d o n ( r e p o r te r ) . ( 2 01 4 , Fe b r u a r y 1 5 ) . " D C FS I n c o r p o r a te s H a n d s - o n
Tr a i ni n g . " 6 : 3 0 N ew s ( te l ev i s i o n n ew s c a s t ) . L o s A n g e l es , C A : K N B C - C h a n n e l 4 .
Ret r i eve d f r o m h t t p : / / w w w.n b c l o s a n g e l e s . c o m/ o n - ai r / a s - s e e n - o n / D C F S - I nc o r p o r a te s H a n d s - O n -Tr a i ni n g _ L o s - A n g e l e s - 24 571 8 2 61 . h t m l? a k m o b il e = o & n m s = y