Instructions
Contact a social service agency/organization/group that is concerned with an issue of interest to you and arrange to interview a social worker who is connected to the agency/organization/group. You must interview a Social Worker, someone who has completed a BSW, an MSW or is a Registered Social Worker (RSW). If there person you interview is not a Social Worker, you will not receive marks for this assignment.
The website www.kcr.ca may be helpful in finding a social agency (for the Kelowna area). Click on “Community Information search” and input key words (like “women” or “disability”) and you will find some local resources. Other communities may have similar sites which you can search for on Google. Also visit the website for the BC College of Social Workers to view a public listing of Registered Social Workers. Finally, if you cannot find a Social Worker to interview, I can send you links to Interviews with Social Workers you can use for this assignment.
Conduct the interview using the Guidelines for Interviewing below.
Summarize your interview and personal reflections in two parts, using the questions below as a guideline. Link what you learned in the interview to course readings and materials. Be sure to use academic writing, grammar, and spelling. Since this is a personal experience essay, you may use first-person language (ie, “I”).
Submit your essay to me via Moodle. Then, post 250 – 500 words on the discussion forum about some key learning you gained from this interview. You might highlight the most interesting things your interviewee shared, or touch on issues you hadn’t considered before. If you choose to discuss areas in which you disagree with your interviewee, please be respectful.
Guidelines for Interviewing
If this is your first interview experience, the following suggestions will provide some direction.
1. When arranging your interview, clarify who you are, the purpose of your request, and the amount of time you anticipate the interview will take. As social workers are notoriously busy, it is recommended that you ask for no more that 30 minutes of this person’s time. I recommend you make contact with a social worker as soon as possible to ensure you have enough time.
2. Offer to e-mail your questions in advance of the meeting. (Sometimes offering to bring coffee or cookies helps, too.)
3. A face-to-face meeting is preferable as this will provide an opportunity for you to "experience" the workplace setting. However, if this is difficult for you and/or the interviewee, a telephone conversation is acceptable. E-mailed correspondence is not acceptable.
4. Be sure to thank your interviewee and to share how her/his input will assist you in your coursework.
Suggested Interview Questions
You may want to use the following questions to help you gather information. You can adapt these questions to suit your personal interviewing style and the interests of your interviewee.
- What is your social work training?
- What would you define as the primary purpose of social work?
- What do you see as the important broader issues that affect the individuals/groups/families you work with? How do you address these issues in your social work practice?
- How do you ensure your social work practice is culturally competent when working with various client groups?
- What do you see as the important broader/structural issues that affect these individuals? How do you address these issues in your social work practice?
- What is an example of a value or ethical dilemma that you might deal with in your practice? How do you deal with ethical dilemmas?
- What theories guide your social work practice?
- What is your definition of social justice and how do you act on this?
- Do you believe Social Work should be engaged in social justice efforts? If so, how?
- What do you see as the challenges facing the profession of social work today?
- What do you do for self-care? Does your workplace support your self-care efforts? If so, how?
Reflection Questions
I recommend you separate the reflections portion of your paper from the main section (above). After your interview when you are writing your paper, consider:
- Is this an area of Social Work you would like to enter?
- What do you think the biggest challenges of this particular job would be for you?
- How do you think your attitude & approach would differ / be similar to that of your interviewee?
- What stood out as particularly interesting about this social worker / job / agency for you?
- Any other personal reflections are welcome as well.