‘FROM BOUNDARY TRANSGRESSIONS TO LIVE

TWITTER SESSIONS’: The challenges and

opportunities of social media for social work education and

practice. Dr Denise Turner, Dept. of Social Work and Social Care,

University of Sussex

“…PROMOTING INCLUSIVITY &INTERACTION TO ENHANCE &TRANSFORM LEARNING…”

“Denise will explore the implications of using social media connections within social work practice, education and research…”

A brief look at fears & dualities in thinking about technology

Young people and their world…messages about digital interaction

Self as Case study!Regulation and social work/social mediaEmbracing the challenges offered by social and

digital media in Social Work education….

“TECHNOLOGY IS NEITHER GOOD OR BAD; NOR IS IT NEUTRAL”Kranzberg, M (1986)

“t is evident from some children’s news that they spend a lot of time interacting with computers and consoles. I have talked to the children about the extensive research carried out on the effects of this over long periods of time. Research shows that such children find it difficult to focus, concentrate and also become withdrawn and preoccupied. This is certainly evident form those children who have spent a lot of time playing computer games over the weekend, as without fail, these children are finding it impossible to concentrate on Mondays at school……..Research has also shown…other symptoms of game addiction are carpel tunnel syndrome, migraines, sleep disturbances. Including sleep apnoea, back problems, eating irregularities and poor personal hygiene…

…..I thought it would be a good idea to explain this research to the children so that they have an informed choice…..

‘It’s not that I want to smash the machines, it’s just that I don’t want the machines to

smash me.’(Winterson, 1993)

THE DOCTORAL EXPERIENCE……..

TWITTER#ESWphd……Weekly Twitter Chat

#TeamTurner

JSWEC 2013 Keynote

Chapter in Social Media and

Social Work Education

SOME IMPLICATIONS OF THIS EXPERIENCE:

Building inclusivity

Reducing Isolation and addressing social justice issues

Encouraging creativity/new ways to think about things…..

VERY OBVIOUS SYNERGIES WITH SOCIAL

WORK…..BUT…..

SOCIAL MEDIA, SOCIAL WORK AND REGULATION…..HCPC: Regulatory body for Social Workers – Focus on Standards – Social Networking sites: “ More & more people are using social networking sites or blogs to communicate with friends and family. Registrant’s , educators and individuals studying to join the professions we regulate sometimes contact us to ask our views on the use of these sites. We recognise that these sites are a useful way of communicating with friends and colleagues. Information placed on social networking sites is within the public domain and can therefore be viewed by other people. We rarely need to take action over a registrant’s use of social networking sites. We would only take action about a registrant using such a site if it raised concerns about their fitness to practice.”

BRITISH ASSOCIATION OF SOCIAL WORKERSSocial Media Policy (2012)

“Social workers should ensure they maintain appropriate professional and

personal boundaries and take responsibility for recognising ethical

dilemmas presented by different types of social media…”

SOCIAL MEDIA ASSOCIATED WITH RISK, CONTROL, PROTECTION……..

HOW SOCIAL WORK ACADEMICS ARE USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO SUPPORT STUDENT LEARNING (Ayres, S & HEA , 2012)

Academics have an important role in ensuring that student social workers, like many professionals, have an appropriate online presence while remaining alive to the potential benefits of engaging through social media for practice educators, service users and carers.’

COLLEGE OF SOCIAL WORK (2013) Process Curriculum: Enhancing the nature of social work education

‘Programmes will use a range of approaches to teaching and learning using both didactic and interactive methods. Some will be delivered face to face, some through e-learning or a combination…in order to fully engage with their course, students will need to understand the rationale for these varied approaches to learning and how they support the development of the qualities and skills expected of social workers.’

HOW DO WE DELIVER THIS?

As academics we have to be prepared to experiment ourselves We have to develop a knowledge of the various digital platforms

available and how students, practitioners and service users are using these

Embrace the opportunities as well as the challenges of social media and use these to develop the profile of our profession or discipline not simply to ‘regulate’ it

To acknowledge that whilst particular sns may fade in popularity this way of communicating is not a passing fad and is here to stay

To welcome what our young people know and can teach us instead of greeting their world with fear and a ‘damage mentality.’

SUSSEX SOCIAL WORK

Use of twitter hash tag within social media awareness training :MA1 programme 2014 -2015

Engagement with nominated Social Work social media Ambassadors

Use of specially designed app to video and assess MA1 students

Special Events - #uscopro and major strand in new Research Centre

CLOSING THOUGHTS………

AND FINALLY……..

CRITICAL REFLECTION:

“The process of continuously reflecting upon our own biases, assumptions and cultural worldviews affect the ways we perceive differences and power dynamics” (Sakamoto & Pitner, 2005)

You teach me to be reflective and make creative use of my self but how can I do this if I cannot engage fully in social media which is part of my self and my interests?

THANKS FOR LISTENING!ANY QUESTIONS?

Mail to : D.M.Turner@sussex.ac.uk Twitter: DeniseT01