Learning internationally

The assessment of students on social work programmes takes many forms – written papers, continuous assessment, group-work, presentations, case studies, examinations etc. Increasingly these social work programmes have recognised the importance of diversity and difference in the delivery of training and has tried to ensure that the training offered equips the student to recognise the personal, institutional and structural factors impacting on the experience of the student being trained and the service users with whom they work. From a relatively narrow focus on race and gender 10 – 15 years ago most educational and training providers now focus on the wide range of oppressions people face in a post-modern and postcolonial society – age, sexual orientation, disability, ethnicity and class (more rarely). Even allowing for the continuing lack of attention given to linguistic and national discrimination (against the Welsh, Irish and Scots in the UK) social work’s primary paradigm is one of inclusion and empowerment.