Dr Jo Finch Senior Lecturer in Social Work University of East London [email protected].

“The PCF – an opportunity for confident decision making in respect of marginal and failing students in practice learning settings?”

Developing Critical Thinking in Practice – The Practice Educators’ Role Conference, University of Bournemouth24th June 2015

Dr Jo FinchSenior Lecturer in Social Work

University of East [email protected]

Outline of Presentation

My own interest in topic Research undertaken Concerns about practice learning and practice education

The aims of the PCF What “gets in the way” of failing students on placements

Confident decision making Some important questions to consider?

Outline of Presentation

Concerns about practice learning and practice education

The aims of the PCF What “gets in the way” of failing students on placements

Confident decision making Some important questions to consider?

BUT FIRST – My Interest in Practice Learning and Failing students

“Horrible” experience assessing a

practice teacher (2002/2003)

1st experience of managing student failing in placement as a new tutor (2002/3) – oppressive PE.

“The straw that broke the camel’s back” – SSD assessment 2001

“Who let that one through?”

For all stakeholders, a painful experience and not always managed “well”.

1) Qualitative study of practice educators experiences of working with failing students and why difficult to fail (Finch, 2010; Finch and Taylor, 2013).

Research Undertaken2) Qualitative study of tutors experiences of working with struggling or failing students in placement (Finch, 2014)

3) Mixed method study of practice assessment panels, including an ethnographic exploration of PAPs, looking at decision making around failing students (Finch, 2013)




Comparative study – UK and Italian practice educators experiences (Finch and Poletti, 2013)

Exploration of how far the concept of projective identification may help us to understand the difficulties in failing social work students in placement. (Finch, Schaub and Dalrymple, 2013)




Comparative study – UK and Italian practice educators experiences (Finch and Poletti, 2013)

Exploration of how far the concept of projective identification may help us to understand the difficulties in failing social work students in placement. (Finch, Schaub and Dalrymple, 2013)

Further theorisation in terms of defences against anxiety thesis - Finch and Schaub in Armstrong and Rustin (eds) 2015

Some Concerns about Practice Learning and Education Long standing concerns about low failure rate in

social work programmes generally and particularly the placement (Hughes and Heycox, 1996; Sharp and Danbury, 1999; Raymond, 2000)

Quality and quantity of placements (Sharp and Danbury, 1999; Kearney, 2003; Skills for Care, 2006),

Social Work Taskforce “Specific concerns have been raised about the . . . robustness and quality of assessment, with some students passing the social work degree who are not competent or suitable to practise on the frontline. (SWTF, 2009, p. 24)

Failure to Fail? (Duffy, 2004, Shapton, 2006, Finch and Taylor, 2012)






BUT!






• Placement failure rates have largely remained consistent across all the different SW qualifications in England (2-3%)•ON their own – failure rates do not tell us much about the challenges and complexities of failing students•May be evidence instead of excellent admission practices

Concerns about Practice Learning and Education Long standing concerns about low failure rate in





• Placement failure rates have largely remained consistent across all the different SW qualifications in England (2-3%)•ON their own – failure rates do not tell us much about the challenges and complexities of failing students•May be evidence instead of excellent admission practices

Concerns about Practice Learning and Education Long standing concerns about low failure rate in





•Failure to Fail not a helpful concept (current political climate!•Very limited evidence there is a failure to fail (often small qualitative studies)•More important to focus on why it is challenging to fail students…•But challenge does not mean PEs do not go on to fail students.

Challenges of running professional courses in universities.

Whose rights take precedence – students or service user rights?

Tutors feeling in the middle. Different assessment regulations (some

universities see placement module like any other module – automatic right to redo unless suitability issues.

Reports of poor social work tutor practice who do not manage placement failure well.

Not only about PEs – HEIs (Finch, 2014)

THE PCF – Brief overview The PCF ‘sets out the profession’s expectations

of what a social worker should be able to do at each stage of their career and professional development’.

Based on the notion of ‘Capability’: ‘An integration of knowledge, skills, personal qualities and understanding used appropriately and effectively – not just in familiar and highly focused specialist contexts but in response to new and changing circumstances’

Provides coherence to standards/requirements and expectations at all levels

Moves away from “tickbox competency approach” to a holistic assessment across the 9 domains.

End of first placementStatements at this level to be used as a

framework to assess whether students have successfully completed their first placement.

By this stage students should demonstrate effective use of knowledge, skills and commitment to core values in social work in a given setting in predominantly less complex situations, with supervision and support; and the capacity to work with people and situations where there may not be simple clear-cut solutions

End of last placement/ qualifying pointStatements at this level are used to assess whether

student has successfully completed their qualification.

By this stage students should have demonstrated the knowledge, skills and values to work with a range of user groups, the ability to undertake a range of tasks at a foundation level and the capacity to work with more complex situations. They must be able to work more autonomously; whilst recognising that the final decision will still rest with their supervisor, they will seek appropriate support and supervision.

These capabilities will have been demonstrated through the last placement together with other work on the qualifying programme.

But! Possible limitations of PCF in terms of assessing practice? That social work, and definitions of what is good

(enough) social work, are heavily contested. That assessing students in practice learning

settings is a very complex task. That assessment frameworks cannot protect us

from the emotional pain of struggling or failing students.

That assessment frameworks can’t always make adequate sense of the complexities

That professional training courses within universities raise unique challenges and complexities.

And that when issues of struggling or failing students emerge – these complexities come to the fore.

But! Possible limitations of PCF in terms of assessing practice? That social work, and definitions of what is good

(enough) social work, are heavily contested. That assessing students in practice learning

settings is a very complex task. That assessment frameworks (whatever they

are) cannot protect us from the emotional pain of struggling or failing students.

That assessment frameworks can’t always make adequate sense of the complexities

That professional training courses within universities raise unique challenges and complexities.

And that when issues of struggling or failing students emerge – these complexities come to the fore.

So why is it “difficult” to fail a student in a practice learning setting? PEs lack of understanding and inappropriate application of the assessment framework (and procedures not being followed correctly or in a timely fashion).

Lack of support from the University Fear of litigation Role strain or role confusion Difficulty in defining “good enough” The emotional pain that the experience can provoke.


Lack of support from the University Fear of litigation Role strain or role confusion Difficulty in defining “good enough”. The emotional pain that the experience can provoke.

GUILT ANGER

PERSECUTION

ANXIETY FRUSTRATION

ISOLATION

IMMOBILISATION



GUILT ANGER

PERSECUTION

ANXIETY FRUSTRATION

ISOLATION

IMMOBILISATION

“I actually felt it was my failing because I wasn’t getting it [evidence] out of her….” (Martha)(Finch, 2010)

“…he [student] took on the role of a child sometimes and puppy dog. I’m the weak one and you're the strong one and it will be in your hands and you’re the supervisor…[it] carried on, the puppy dog eyes”. (Jude) (Finch, 2010)

“it was the first fail, I felt terribly guilty, I felt really…I had sleepless nights, felt quite sick, I felt incredibly guilty….” (Claire) (Finch, 2010)



GUILT ANGER

PERSECUTION

ANXIETY FRUSTRATION

ISOLATION

IMMOBILISATION

“I was really pissed off with him….I felt angry”. (Claire) (Finch, 2010)

“ That was the issue I was struggling with through this whole thing. How much of her failure was my fault?” (Terry) (Finch, 2010)

“…there was a clash for me between the facilitator of learning role and the kind of management roles.” (Lily) (Finch, 2010)

Confident Practice Education….? Explicitly acknowledges and operationalises gate-keeping

function Brings the different “roles” (nurterer, enabler, assessor,

manager) together without internal conflict. Does not internalise students failure as one’s own. Has clear boundaries and expectation about roles

(students, tutor and PE) Recognises that failure is a possibility and is open to the

idea of failure. Makes clear, assessment decisions based on clear

evidence. Operationalises the PCF in a holistic way recognising both

the separateness and the integration of the domains. Reflects on and considers the difficult emotional dynamics

that emerge Can reflect on and these as communication from the

student Can bear a student's pain and distress

Concluding Comments The presentation started off with road signs,

but we “lost” them when discussing the complexities of practice.

Whatever assessment framework we use, teaching and learning relationships are complex and can raise in all of us, difficult emotional responses…

…which come to the fore when issues of failing students emerge and we may lose sight of the road signs”.

Relations between the field and the academy can then often become conflictual….

…and the assessment process becomes obscured.

PCF?SOP

S SETS

HCPC

Threshold

Failure Holistic Holistic Assessment

TCSW

Service Users

Capability

evidence

evidence

PASSPCF?

PCF?

PCF?

FINAL WORDS

Developing robust gate keeping practices really important for all of us involved in social work education.

However painful and challenging, we must fail students if necessary.

Reflecting on the dynamics that emerge in teaching and learning relationships is vital.

The professional capability framework is really important but need to use carefully and recognise its potential, as well as its limitations…

But now under review? (watch this space) Practice education is a highly skilled and complex task.

What are the strengths and limitations of the PCF when assessing struggling or failing students in practice learning settings?

Is it “easier” to fail a student using the PCF rather than a competency model?

Questions for Discussion

Dr Jo Finch Senior Lecturer in Social Work University of East London [email protected].

Documents

Transcript of Dr Jo Finch Senior Lecturer in Social Work University of East London [email protected].