Critical reflection workshops and knowledge exchange: findings from a Scottish project

Abstract

In 2013, academics from a Scottish university came together with social work managers and practitioners from two local authorities (LAs) in Scotland to run a knowledge exchange (KE) project co‐sponsored by the Economic and Social Research Council and the LAs. The project's aim was an ambitious one: to contribute to culture change in the children and families' departments in the two partner agencies. The project grew out of an earlier KE venture that had explored ways of engaging better with involuntary service users in social work; it thus both anticipated and reflected wider concerns about services for children that were also demonstrated in Munro's Review of Child Protection. The KE project had three components: training for managers, practitioner research projects and critical reflection workshops. Whether, and to what degree, the KE project changed culture is not the focus of this paper, which is written jointly by academic researchers and practitioners. Instead, one element of the KE project, namely the critical reflection workshops, is discussed. Findings provide strong evidence of the pressures currently experienced by children and families' services in the UK public sector. They also indicate how important good relationships are in building meaningful KE.

Reconceptualising professional knowledge: the changing role of knowledge and evidence in social work practice

“…Knowledge barriers reflect the lack of skills and awareness that practitioners often experience in relation to accessing, understanding and critically evaluating research findings (Mullen and Bellamy, 2008; Formatted: Highlight Commented [lk4]: Reviewer 1 attack on EBP has been modified to reflect that contemporary EBP addresses client values and beliefs Formatted: Highlight Mullen and Streiner, 2004). These findings are similar to those outlined by Peterson et al (2011) and Cree et al (2014) where students reported a similar lack of confidence in relation to their analytical skills but also noted that their limited access to high quality research literature that made the task of locating relevant evidence problematic.…”

“…While it is recognised that some social scientists are working in this way, for example Fazey and Fenwick, there is a need for these approaches to become more common in social work. The work of Cree et al (2014) has demonstrated that a collaborative and participatory approach to knowledge exchange can reap a range of benefits for both practitioners and academics while also retaining a service user perspective. This paper has demonstrated that by adopting a knowledge exchange approach, we not only enrich our research but will generate a hermeneutic circle of knowledge and reflection to ensure that we produce research that is not only relevant, but that pays attention to how professionals learn and apply this learning to their practice.…”

Can a Paradigm Shift from Risk Management to Critical Reflection Improve Child-Inclusive Practice?

“…Based on the data presented here, it is suggested that a critically reflective approach to risk may be more effective at promoting child-inclusive practice and establishing the children's empowered voices as a protective factor for the children's safety and well-being. As with the intended, future path we have adopted for our research, Cree et al [69] (p. 533) suggest that 'the managers who have the courage to support the development of the human face and reflective space of social work build a culture of confidence in practice.' This has direct implications for potentially mitigating the most destructive elements of neoliberalism and transforming practice towards being more child-inclusive.…”

Cultivating child and youth decision‐making: The principles and practices of the ReSPECT approach to professional development

“…Work cultures also need to shift to support practitioners to freely articulate the emotional toll from their practice (Gibbs, 2009). Professional training that includes critical reflection components can support the development of good relationships that support ongoing meaningful knowledge exchange (Cree et al, 2016). This PD program incorporates all these aspects of practice change, to be experienced by professionals as both bespoke and universal.…”