Linda S. Moore

GATEKEEPING: A MODEL FOR SCREENING BACCALAUREATE STUDENTS FOR FIELD EDUCATION

Abstract Historically, social work educators have been gatekeepers for the profession; they have been responsible for determining whether students will become social workers. Given the current issues facing the profession, a need exists to continue emphasizing the gatekeeping role. This article presents an evaluation model that assesses readiness and potential of undergraduate students to enter field education. In addition, the article identifies issues to consider in implementing such a model, including faculty and university support of and student response to the gatekeeping process. Moreover, it evaluates the experiences of one university that has used the model since 1980.

Issues in Gatekeeping

This paper discusses specific gatekeeping issues facing social work educators, both university- and agency-based, and uses case analysis to explain how one undergraduate program handled these issues. The cases highlight procedures used in the gatekeeping process and reflect the difficulty of gatekeeping including many problems that can arise in any educational setting. Focusing on case examples may help educators develop and further refine approaches and strategies for gatekeeping in order to guard the gate to the social work profession.

Women and the Emergence of the NAACP

This article discusses contributions of women to the emergence of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Using network analysis, the author studied affiliations between African American and White women who signed “The Call,” a petition calling for a national conference to obtain civil rights for African Americans. These links led to the origin of one of the most successful organizations in the fight for equality. Their experiences reflect the segregation and conflicts of the era. They also suggest strategies for facing cultural issues today. Teaching about social work history, its legacy of reform, and its commitment to social justice gained from the social movements of the Progressive Era can help social work students, most of whom are women, understand how social change can occur.

Personality Type Preferences of Social Work Students: Enhancing Education through Understanding Personality Variables

Social work education emphasizes the development of self-awareness and the effective use of self One component of self-awareness is the understanding of personality variables and how these variables can affect relationships with others. Social work educators have the responsibility of helping students understand their own personality preferences in order to work effectively with clients of differing personality types. The purpose of this study is to identify the personality type preferences of social work students, as measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, and to determine if there are significant differences between social work students and students in other disciplines. Results of this study reflect significant differences between social work students and students in other disciplines in the Sensing-Intuition and Thinking-Feeling dimensions of personality type. Implications for education and practice and discussed.

Academic Advising: Strengthening Opportunities for Education

This article discusses advising as a responsibility of social work educators, including the CSWE mandate that advisors be knowledgeable about their programs and be able to provide more than simply course selection. It provides a framework for advising and strategies for developing effective advisement programs in social work programs. It also includes discussion about issues faced in universities where advisement is not always rewarded.

The Use of the MBTI as a Self-Awareness Tool in Undergraduate Education

This paper presents a model for using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) as a self-awareness tool in baccalaureate social work education. The model is based on eight years of use in one Social ...

Using Professional Advisory Committees to Achieve Excellence in Social Work Education

Social work programs are mandated by the Council on Social Work Education to develop and maintain ongoing relationships with social work practitioners and others involved in social services and policy making. A Professional Advisory Committee is one way for programs to receive input from community professionals to strengthen the educational goal of preparing competent, effective professionals. To date, there is little literature in social work on program advisory committees. However, higher education and management literature, along with social work literature on task groups, can provide some direction for developing, maintaining, and effectively using a Professional Advisory Committee in social work program development.

Lessons from the Past: Developing Allegiances for the Future

This article analyzes linkages among the 60 Settlement House workers and other white and African-American leaders of the Progressive Era who signed “The Call,” a media statement calling for aid for African Americans in 1908 that eventually led to development of the NAACP. The analysis demonstrates the value of linkage and shared resources for success of social movements during the Progressive Era. This article applies the discussion to issues facing social work today.