Social workers engage with many professionals to address complex social problems. This includes leveraging the power of social work to support quality interventions on interprofessional teams. While generalist social workers are prepared to apply multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks and rely on interprofessional collaboration, specialized…

The Grand Challenges for Social Work were introduced by the American Academy for Social Work & Social Welfare in 2016, which are social problems that are interrelated and "exceedingly complex". We discuss the relevance of complexity theory, operationalized by complex adaptive systems (CAS), to the Grand Challenges. CAS moves beyond…

Given tremendous negative societal effects of mass incarceration, the social work profession's investment in the Grand Challenge to Promote Smart Decarceration, and the call for criminal justice transformation, educational content that prepares social work students to engage in smart decarceration efforts is essential. This article presents…

Social work educators prepare students for practice mostly through field education as the signature pedagogy. However, the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted this standard process. It forced quick decision making to various adaptations of, and innovations in, teaching and learning practice readiness for social work. As countries gradually normalize,…

This conceptual article aims to inform social work educators on facilitating critical discourse among social work students by applying reproductive justice, leveraging interdisciplinary practice, and addressing the Social Work Grand Challenges. Reproductive justice tenets provide an interdisciplinary framework that assists in the development of…

Professional interests and social problems demand social work practitioners who can "harness technology for social good." Although the field has acknowledged the need to train social workers to use technology in practice, existing scholarship has tested few models for doing so. This article describes and tests an information and…

Social work has a long history of engaging in advocacy efforts in support of vulnerable and marginalized populations, yet there are those that maintain the profession has lost its way in embracing the provision of direct service at the expense of its historical mission. While the literature abounds in articles on many types of social work advocacy…

The future is unfolding now, framed by unprecedented trends of complex humanitarian contexts. To prepare for this as a profession, social work education faculties need to respond to the current call for the scaling up of well-prepared social work practitioners. The Preparation for Complex Humanitarian Contexts for Pre-Service Social Work Students…

To meet the grand challenge of ending homelessness, social work education programs must prepare students to effectively collaborate with other health-related disciplines. This article presents social work and nursing student perceptions of an innovative interprofessional education activity conducted at a day shelter serving people experiencing…

The authors examine how the profession's adaptation to Flexner's criteria influences the emergence of the neomedical model as the majoritarian paradigm within social work even in the face of a pluralism manifest by the existence of other competing paradigms. One endorses empowerment in social work, and the other embraces societal transformation in…

This field note explores the use of art and creativity in social work field education as an innovative pedagogical method. We highlight the value of incorporating the arts in field instruction courses, such as field seminar, to illuminate both students' and clients' experiences, explore professionalism, and navigate social work practice tensions.…

Social work has a rich tradition of engagement. Throughout its history, social work scholars have taken up questions that link knowledge production to its application in practice. Recently, other higher education fields have expressed interest in engagement. Yet, social work scholars have remained relatively silent about what they have to offer…

Homelessness remains a persistent problem in the United States, calling for continuing engagement to address this issue across the micro-macro social work practice continuum. Social work educators have an imperative to expose the next generation of practitioners to this complex social issue and provide opportunities for students to develop…

Although social work education standards call for graduates to be able to practice in a global environment, it is unknown how schools are working to accomplish that as well as what supports they have and what the aims of this education are. A survey of all U.S. BSW and MSW program directors found they have multiple goals for introducing…

This article introduces an innovative model of social work course development, teaching, and implementation. Using the principles of antioppressive education and community-engaged learning, the authors (a former student and faculty member) codeveloped and subsequently taught a course that explored writing, voice, social justice, and the…