Enhancing Learning and Learner Satisfaction Through the Use of WebCT in Social Work Education

Abstract

Emerging technology has produced changes in the ways that social workers learn, practice, and interact. As communication and educational innovations have increasingly involved the use of ever-improving technologies for social work practice, so too has social work education evolved to incorporate these advances in the classroom setting. This article describes and evaluates various aspects of one particular type of web-based learning environment, WebCT, and its incorporation into five face-to-face foundation courses in a bachelor's and master's level social work program. The authors utilized an online survey to assess frequency of access of the web-based course management system and perceptions of the features. Results of this online survey assessing student use and perception of hybrid courses are shared along with implications and recommendations.

Are MOOCs the next trend in social work?: Implications for practice education

“…Beginning efforts used OE as peripheral supplements to face-toface instruction in blended learning models. SWE has used online methodologies including wikis (Allwardt, 2011), WebCT (Aguirre & Mitschke, 2011), videoconferencing (Berger, Stein, & Mullin, 2009), discussion forums (Bye, Smith, & Rallis, 2009), and social media (Kilpeläinen, Päykkönen, & Sankala, 2011). These instructional strategies led to increasing engagement of social work in OE.…”

Multimodal Composition and Social Justice: Videos as a Tool of Advocacy in Social Work Pedagogy

“…Other outcomes are more pragmatic. When students navigate editing software and other emerging technologies, they harness skills that pay dividends in future professional contexts (Aguirre & Mitschke, 2011). Students learn the specific mechanics of the software used for the assignment, such as how to upload a video, select a portion of an interview, and organize the images in sync with the audio; they also gain confidence to try different technologies.…”