ST. AMBROSE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK
WWW.SAU.EDU/MSW
MSW 593 AND 594: EMPOWERMENT CONCENTRATION FIELD INSTRUCTION
LEARNING AGREEMENT
Student
Field Agency
Agency Field Instructor(s)
Agency Mailing Address
Agency Field Instructor Telephone
Agency Field Instructor Email
Faculty Field Liaison
Academic Year
To be completed by the Student in collaboration with the Field Instructor(s) within the first two weeks.
1. Educational Plan (a brief summary statement of your primary practicum learning activities):
2. Planned Schedule for Field Instruction:
3. Supervisory Process and Structure (plans for weekly field instruction and task supervision):
Introduction
Field Instruction is recognized as the signature pedagogy in social work education. In other words, it is the central form of instruction where learners are
socialized to the profession, link theory and practice in context, critically reflect on learning, and demonstrate competency for professional practice. In
keeping with the educational policy and accreditation standards (EPAS, 2008) of the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), St. Ambrose University School
of Social Work has implemented a competency-based curriculum, designed to provide students with knowledge, values, skills, and practice behaviours to
meet core competencies required for professional social work practice. “Field Education is systematically designed, supervised, coordinated, and evaluated
on the basis of criteria by which a student demonstrates the achievement of program competencies” (EPAS, 2008, Section 2.3).
Instructions for Using This Document
This document allows for flexibility based on the opportunities of particular field settings and the individual experiences and abilities of the Student. The
Learning Agreement is completed at the beginning of the fall semester and revised throughout the academic year by completing addendum information with
notification to the Faculty Field Liaison. Development of the Learning Agreement is shared and begins with exploration and identification of the Student’s
learning style, strengths, and educational goals. The development of “Learning Activities” and the “Method and Evidence of Assessment” sections are also a
collaboration with review and feedback by the Faculty Field Liaison. The SAU MSW Knowledge, Skill and Value Indicators for Foundation and Concentration
Practice Behaviors is designed to assist in the development of “Learning Activities” to build competency development.
Evaluation in field education is an ongoing process shared by the Agency Field Instructor(s) and Student. A portion of the weekly educational supervision
hour is spent in evaluating the following areas: the Student’s strengths, progress, educational needs, accomplishments, and areas in need of development. In
addition to this informal and on-going evaluation, the Student’s demonstration of advanced practice competencies is formally evaluated at the end of each
semester. The End of Semester Agency Field Instructor Evaluation is completed by the Agency Field Instructor and shared with the Student prior to the
scheduled evaluation conference with the Faculty Field Liaison.
This Learning Agreement and the related End of Semester Agency Field Instructor Evaluation address both core generalist foundation practice competencies
and empowerment concentration practice competencies to be achieved in the concentration practicum year.* Practice behaviors are associated with each
core and concentration competency as they represent knowledge, values and skills necessary for competency achievement. Additionally, Students complete:
1) a Field Education Log, 2) the Student Reflective Journal; 3) the Student End-of-Semester Self-Evaluation in the fall and spring semesters, and; 4) a
competency self-evaluation (pre-abilities and post-abilities) at the beginning and close of the field education year.
Please utilize the following assessment rubric for all Competency Areas (Benchmark: 3.5)
5
THE STUDENT USES THIS SKILL CONSISTENTLY AND EFFECTIVELY.
4
THE STUDENT DEMONSTRATES EFFECTIVE USE OF THIS PRACTICE SKILL MOST OF THE TIME.
3
THE STUDENT UNDERSTANDS THIS SKILL AND OFFERS EVIDENCE OF APPROPRIATE USE. MORE PRACTICE EXPERIENCE IS REQUIRED.
2
THE STUDENT UNDERSTANDS THE SKILL, BUT SHOWS LITTLE ABILITY TO IMPLEMENT IN PRACTICE.
1
UNACCEPTABLE: THE STUDENT DEMONSTRATES LITTLE UNDERSTANDING OF THIS SKILL OR ITS USE IN PRACTICE.
NA
NOT APPLICABLE, AS THE STUDENT HAS NOT HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO DEMONSTRATE COMPETENCE IN THIS AREA.
* CORE COMPETENCIES AND PRACTICE BEHAVIORS ARE INITIALLY LISTED, WHILE EMPOWERMENT CONCENTRATION COMPETENCIES AND PRACTICE BEHAVIORS
FOLLOW IN ITALICS.
EPAS 2.1.1: Identify as a professional social worker and conduct oneself accordingly.
Social workers serve as representatives of the profession, its mission, and its core values. They know the profession’s history. Social workers commit themselves
to the profession’s enhancement and to their own professional conduct and growth.
Implementing an empowerment approach requires a social worker’s extensive self awareness. This awareness is based on self reflection and information from
clients, colleagues, and supervisors as well as knowledge developed within the social work profession. A praxis process incorporating these sources of
information cycles through phases of reflection, action, and further reflection. This praxis process steers empowerment-focused workers toward accountability to
clients, community, and the social work profession. Continuous self evaluation anchors a social worker’s commitment to life-long learning.
Practice Behaviors
Learning Activities to Support
Competency Development
Method and Evidence of
Assessment
(e.g., direct observation in context,
simulation, case analysis, projects,
recordings, logs, Reflective Journal)
Develops self-awareness
to actualize professional
roles and identities
Engages in professional
development with
supervisors and
colleagues
Contributes to the
development of the social
work profession through
knowledge development
and activism
Continuously evaluates
professional actions using
a praxis process informed
by clients, colleagues,
supervisors, and the
science of the social work
profession
Completion Date
OR indicate if this is an Ongoing Task
EPAS 2.1.2: Apply social work ethical principles to guide professional practice .
Social workers have an obligation to conduct themselves ethically and to engage in ethical decision-making. Social workers are knowledgeable about the value
base of the profession, its ethical standards, and relevant law.
Ethics guide all social work practice. In empowerment-oriented practice, essential areas for ethical analysis emphasize the extent to which the worker-client
relationship encourages empowerment, a worker’s socio-cultural location and its impact on practice, and the ethical implications of all practice decisions and
behaviors. The generalist nature of empowerment practice frequently presents questions to practitioners about who should benefit from the social work
experience - clients, agency, community, and/or society. Empowering practitioners acknowledge and resolve these ethical questions in each practice experience.
Practice
Behaviors
Reconciles
personal/professional
value differences, show
congruence between
personal and professional
values, integrate
professional values in
practice
Applies social work
professional codes of
ethics to practice
Identifies ethical issues
and resolves ethical
dilemmas with effective
decision making
strategies
Resolves ethical dilemmas
inherent in the
empowerment method
Learning Activities to Support
Competency Development
Method and Evidence of
Assessment
(e.g., direct observation in context,
simulation, case analysis, projects,
recordings, logs, Reflective Journal)
Completion Date
OR indicate if this is an Ongoing
Task
EPAS 2.1.3: Apply critical thinking to inform and communicate professional judgments.
Social workers are knowledgeable about the principles of logic, scientific inquiry, and reasoned discernment. They use critical thinking augmented by creativity
and curiosity. Critical thinking also requires the synthesis and communication of relevant information.
Nowhere is critical thinking more important to the empowerment-oriented practitioner than the awareness of oppression and privilege and the implications of a
client’s position within the social order. Empowering practitioners are activists in raising consciousness about power and the impact of power on a client’s
experience.
Practice
Behaviors
Critically evaluates and
integrates sources of
knowledge to guide practice
- research, practice wisdom,
theory
Critically analyzes situations
including context, policy,
social problems, agency
practices, practice models
Communicates effectively
with clients and colleagues,
orally and in writing
Effectively confronts in self
and others the
disempowering attitudes
and behaviors that
contribute to social
injustices, oppression, and
discrimination
Learning Activities to Support
Competency Development
Method and Evidence
for Assessment
(include available resources)
(e.g., direct observation in context,
simulation, case analysis, projects,
recordings, logs, Reflective Journal)
Completion Date
or indicate if this is an Ongoing Task
EPAS 2.1.4: Engage diversity and difference in practice.
Social workers understand how diversity characterizes and shapes the human experience and is critical to the formation of identity. The dimensions of diversity
are understood as the intersectionality of multiple factors including age, class, color, culture, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity and expression,
immigration status, political ideology, race, religion, sex, and sexual orientation. Social workers appreciate that, as a consequence of difference, a person’s life
experiences may include oppression, poverty, marginalization, and alienation as well as privilege, power, and acclaim.
Collaboration with clients and community is essential for implementing an empowerment method. To build collaborative partnerships that respect, invite, and
ensure voice to clients, colleagues, and other stakeholders empowerment-oriented practitioners require relationship abilities and communication expertise. The
relationship skills of any social worker are grounded in a worker’s cultural competence. Empowerment-based practice builds on this cultural competence and
implements a strengths perspective that respects client privileges and expertise. A strengths perspective moves empowering social workers to emphasize the
strengths of diverse clients and view clients as having potential to meet their challenges.
Practice
Behaviors
Appraises the impact of cultural
identity on a person’s
experience of privilege and
oppression
Demonstrates cultural
competence in all aspects of
social work practice
Detects cultural bias and
discrimination in professional
practice with diverse clients
Partners effectively with clients
and others who vary by race,
ethnicity, socio-economic class,
age, gender, sexual orientation,
and physical and cognitive
abilities
Demonstrates cultural
competence in acknowledging
the strengths and inherent
power of diverse client
populations
Learning Activities to Support
Competency Development
Method and Evidence of
Assessment
(include available resources)
(e.g., direct observation in context,
simulation, case analysis, projects,
recordings, logs, Reflective Journal)
Completion Date
or indicate if this is an Ongoing Task
EPAS 2.1.5: Advance human rights and social justice.
Each person, regardless of position in society, has basic human rights, such as freedom, safety, privacy, an adequate standard of living, health care, and
education. Social workers recognize the global interconnections of oppression and are knowledgeable about theories of justice and strategies to promote human
and civil rights. Social work incorporates social justice practices in organizations, institutions, and society to ensure that these basic human rights are distributed
equitably and without prejudice.
As social work professionals, all practitioners commit themselves to advancing human rights and social justice. An empowerment-oriented practitioner frames
this effort in terms of client’s power. One’s sense of power can only endure in an environment that supports it. Empowering practitioners analyze the ways in
which a client’s experience of power is shaped by social and cultural systems, social policy, legislation, agency protocols, and global dynamics. In keeping with the
goal of empowerment, practitioners act on this knowledge to contribute to a socially just society.
Practice
Behaviors
Identifies the inequities in
human rights afforded to
various people
Assesses the forms and
mechanisms maintaining
oppression at individual,
social, and institutional
levels
Engages in practices
advancing human rights and
social justice
Works individually and
collectively to advocate
policies supporting social
justice and protecting
human rights
Learning Activities to Support
Competency Development
Method and Evidence of
Assessment
(include available resources)
(e.g., direct observation in context,
simulation, case analysis, projects,
recordings, logs, Reflective Journal)
Completion Date
OR indicate if this is an Ongoing Task
EPAS 2.1.6: Engage in research-informed practice and practice-informed research.
Social workers utilize practice experience to inform research, employ evidence-based interventions, evaluate their own practice, and use research findings to
improve practice, policy, and social service delivery. Social workers comprehend quantitative and qualitative research and understand scientific and ethical
approaches to building knowledge.
A distinguishing quality of empowerment practice is the use of “evidence” from a client’s perspective in balance with knowledge and evidence generated through
social work research. “What constitutes valid evidence?” is a critical question in the use of evidence to guide social work practice, prompting workers to critically
evaluate new knowledge and its sources for credibility and applicability in each unique practice situation. Empowering workers continuously evaluate their
practices through the lens of new knowledge and by accessing voices from clients, colleagues, and other stakeholders.
Practice
Behaviors
Evaluates practice
experience to improve
practice outcomes
Critically applies evidencebased data to guide practice
Uses qualitative and
quantitative research and
evaluation to improve
service delivery
Tailors evidence-supported
strategies to fit unique client
situations
Designs, implements, and
analyzes program
evaluations that access
stakeholders’ views
Learning Activities to Support
Competency Development
Method and Evidence of
Assessment
(include available resources)
(e.g., direct observation in context,
simulation, case analysis, projects,
recordings, logs, Reflective Journal)
Completion Date
or indicate if this is an Ongoing Task
EPAS 2.1.7: Apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment.
Social workers are knowledgeable about human behavior across the life course; the range of social systems in which people live; and the ways social systems
promote or deter people in maintaining or achieving health and well-being. Social workers apply theories and knowledge from the liberal arts to understand
biological, social, cultural, psychological, and spiritual development.
The profession of social work draws on an understanding of human behavior generated from knowledge in many disciplines. Particularly, social workers are
knowledgeable about social systems and how these systems affect people in maintaining or achieving well-being. Empowerment-based social workers are
selective in their use of social work theory and perspectives, choosing those views that support a client’s perspective and augment the client’s experience of
power.
Practice
Behaviors
Implements an ecosystems
framework to describe client
systems and their
environments
Critically integrates
knowledge of biological,
developmental,
psychological, social,
cultural, and spiritual
influences to understand
human behavior
Effectively applies relevant
theories to fit clients and
practice situations
Critically applies a range of
practice theories, models,
and perspectives within an
empowerment framework
Learning Activities to Support
Competency Development
Method and Evidence of
Assessment
(include available resources)
(e.g., direct observation in context,
simulation, case analysis, projects,
recordings, logs, Reflective Journal)
Completion Date
or indicate if this is an Ongoing Task
EPAS 2.1.8: Engage in policy practice to advance social and economic well-being and to deliver effective social work services.
Social work practitioners understand that policy affects service delivery, and they actively engage in policy practice. Social workers know the history and current
structures of social policies and services; the role of policy in service delivery; and the role of practice in policy development.
All effective social work practitioners actively engage in policy practice. They recognize the role of policy in service delivery and the effects of social policy on a
client’s experience. To implement an empowering process, workers acknowledge the pervasive influence of social policy in every practice endeavor and use this
understanding in their consciousness-raising efforts with clients. Empowering practitioners work individually and collectively to influence service delivery, policy
formulation, and legislative change.
Practice
Behaviors
Explains the development
and structure of social
welfare policy in the United
States
Analyzes the impact of social
policy on service delivery
Participates with clients and
colleagues to advocate
policies that advance social
well-being
Challenges unjust social and
economic policies in all
practice activities
Learning Activities to Support
Competency Development
Method and Evidence of
Assessment
(include available resources)
(e.g., direct observation in context,
simulation, case analysis, projects,
recordings, logs, Reflective Journal)
Completion Date
or indicate if this is an Ongoing Task
EPAS 2.1.9: Respond to and shape an ever-changing professional context.
Social workers are informed, resourceful and proactive in responding to the evolving organizational, community, and societal contexts at all levels of practice.
Social workers recognize that the context of practice is dynamic, and use knowledge and skill to respond proactively.
All social workers acknowledge the evolving organizational, community, and societal contexts using knowledge and skill to respond proactively. Empowermentbased practitioners ensure these efforts are based on cooperation, and they work to ally client and community forces in synchronized efforts toward mutual
goals.
Practice
Behaviors
Assesses the impact of local
and national social, political,
and economic conditions on
the well-being and needs of
clients
Analyzes the impact of the
international context on
social work
Initiates improvements in
service delivery to keep pace
with changing client needs
and social conditions
Initiates cooperative efforts
to develop opportunities and
resources for client within
community contexts
Creates empowering
alliances in organizational,
community, and professional
context.
Learning Activities to Support
Competency Development
Method and Evidence of
Assessment
(include available resources)
(e.g., direct observation in context,
simulation, case analysis, projects,
recordings, logs, Reflective Journal)
Completion Date;
or indicate if this is an Ongoing Task
EPAS 2.1.10: Engage, assess, intervene, and evaluate with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. Professional practice
involves the dynamic and interactive processes of engagement, assessment, intervention, and evaluation at multiple levels. Social workers have the knowledge
and skills to practice with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. Practice knowledge includes identifying, analyzing, and implementing
evidence-based interventions designed to achieve client goals; using research and technological advances; evaluating program outcomes and practice
effectiveness; developing, analyzing, advocating, and providing leadership for policies and services; and promoting social and economic justice.
An empowerment method acts on the dynamic interplay of clients with many systems including social, cultural, and political contexts as well as physical
environments. Even problems encountered at the micro level are recognized to be embedded in a wider system of influence and amenable to changes initiated at
the mezzo- and macro-levels. Empowerment-based practitioners assess systemically, intervene broadly, and evaluate the effects of their efforts throughout the
system of focus. Moreover, empowerment practice requires collaboration with clients and community. As a process, collaborating has powerful benefits for all
involved, elevating subjugated knowledge and activating energy to achieve goals. Such collaboration exemplifies the value stance of an empowering social work
professional actualizing the principles of self-determination, individualization, and acceptance.
Practice
Behaviors
Articulates generalist practice
processes that apply to all
client systems including
individuals, families, groups,
organizations, and communities
Explains how a generalist
practice approach integrates
research, policy, and practice
activities
Infuse practice with an
empowerment perspective
Practices competently and
ethically from an
empowerment social work
perspective
Demonstrates expertise in
empowerment practice
processes at the micro, mezzo,
Learning Activities to Support
Competency Development
Method and Evidence of
Assessment
(include available resources)
(e.g., direct observation in context,
simulation, case analysis, projects,
recordings, logs, Reflective Journal)
Completion Date
or indicate if this is an Ongoing Task
and macro levels
2.1.10 (a) Engagement
Builds relationships that
respect the uniqueness of
clients
Engages clients as partners to
understand situations and
agree on goals
Uses self awareness and
feedback to construct
empowering relationships with
clients
Facilitates client system
participation and cooperation
implement assessment,
intervention, and evaluation
activities
2.1.10 (b) Assessment
Assesses clients in context
noting strengths and
opportunities
Assesses resource capabilities
in the impinging environments
of the client system
Practices cultural
responsiveness by using
assessment tools in ways
sensitive to client diversity
Assesses factors of risk and
resilience that hinder or
promote client system
competence
2.1.10 (c) Intervention
Constructs an achievable plan
of action for client system and
environmental change
Activates client and contextual
resources to initiate and
stabilize change
Uses strength-oriented
empowerment processes that
heighten efficacy, competence,
and political consciousness
Demonstrates practice skills
necessary to achieve change
through integrated clinical and
political social work strategies
2.1.10 (d) Evaluation
Evaluates change efforts to
recognize achievements and
inform continuing actions
Evaluate one’s own practice
effectiveness
Continuously monitors and
measures practice effectiveness
from the client’s perspective
Actively involves clients in all
steps of program evaluation
and practice research