More information on written Communication

 

Cree & Macaulay (2000) set down the following different kinds of communication in practice learning:

Agency records: these will need to be written and structured according to agency conventions and styles of writing. These may be typed straight onto a computer database.

Agency reports: again, these are likely to follow a specific format set in advance.

Academic assignments / practice studies / practice reports / portfolios: the format for these will be set by the university at which the student is studying, and will be broadly derived from the standards for social work education. All universities place a high value on the integration of theory and practice, and will expect students to demonstrate that their practice is informed by best, up-to-date research evidence.

Parker (2004: 117) offers the following simple advice on preparing and writing the self-evaluation report:

  • Gather evidence, using a wide range of sources
  • Use interim reports to monitor development in practice
  • Follow guidance given by the university and agency
  • Check that the evidence meets the guidelines set by the university
  • Write simply and clearly

Working agreements/learning agreements: again, the format for these will vary from university to university, but they will all cover roughly the same kind of material, and this will include:

  • Names and contact details
  • Details of student's background and learning needs
  • Details of learning opportunities
  • Practice teaching arrangements
  • Expected periods of leave during the practice learning experience
  • Practical arrangements (hours of work, study time, accommodation etc)
  • Methods of assessment to be used
  • Signatures (adapted from Doel et al 1996)

Supervision notes: these may be recorded jointly, with the practice teacher and student taking turns to write, or they may be kept solely by the student. They are likely to include a record of decisions taken in relation to service user contact, and an identification of learning needs and evidence for self-assessment. Parker (2004: 84) offers a useful example of written supervision notes.

Process recordings: these invite students to write a verbatim report of an interview, and at the same time, write down their observations and feelings alongside this account. The process recording is sometimes presented in the form of three columns: the first is what happened (the interaction); the second is thoughts and the third feelings.

Critical incident analysis: here a student describes one specific incident or scenario in depth, giving a highly detailed account of what took place. Any incident can be chosen, because any event or interaction is potentially significant for students as learners.

One framework for a critical incident is as follows (in Cree & Macaulay 2000:141):

Identify an incident for reflection and make brief notes on the following:

  1. Describe the event - what happened, where and when, who was involved.
  2. Put this event in its context e.g. what had happened previously, what you had achieved/tried to achieve and your relationships with those involved.
  3. What was your role in the event e.g. as participant, observer, co-worker?
  4. What was the purpose and focus of your intervention at this point?
  5. What did you think and feel at the time about what you were doing?
  6. Did it remind you of any previous experience or learning?
  7. As you look back, what do you think and feel about the outcome?
  8. What have you learned e.g. about yourself, relationships with others, the social work task, organisational policies and procedures?
  9. Are there things which you might do differently in future? What help might you need to achieve this?
  10. What issues out of this reflection will you take to supervision?