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Failure to fail? Practice educators' emotional experiences of assessing failing social work students

journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-08, 13:59 authored by Imogen Taylor, Johanna Finch
The paper explores issues that arise in the assessment of failing social work students in practice learning settings in England. It draws on existing literature on the topic, as well as on a small empirical study. The qualitative methodology is influenced by practitioner-research paradigms. Based on 20 in-depth interviews with practice educators, the research utilised the voice-centred relational method of data analysis which revealed five distinct ‘emotional stories’, explaining why practice assessors found the process of working with a failing student challenging and difficult. These stories include the ‘guilty story’, ‘angry story’, the ‘what is my role story’, the ‘idealised learner story’ and the ‘internalisation of failure so I couldn't always fail them story’. The paper considers the possible adverse impact on the assessment process of these often unacknowledged emotional responses experienced by practice educators, namely, that there is a very real possibility that students are being passed as competent when the evidence may strongly suggest otherwise. The paper offers some ways forward in light of the findings, linking these to the change process underway in social work education in England but suggesting that these have wider relevance to practice assessment in other contexts

History

Publication status

  • Published

Journal

Social Work Education

ISSN

0261-5479

Publisher

Taylor & Francis

Issue

2

Volume

32

Page range

244-258

Department affiliated with

  • Social Work and Social Care Publications

Notes

Published online

Full text available

  • No

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2012-11-30

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