Evaluating the Impact on Practice of Online Child Protection Education at Master’s level

Abstract

Social workers, who have a key role in safeguarding children, need opportunities to develop and maintain skills, knowledge and attributes that will equip them to practise safely and effectively. Post-qualifying education and training opportunities are increasingly being delivered online, and this paper reports on an experience within one University, which began to deliver online postgraduate modules in child protection in 2007. Some key challenges for the lecturers were in creating an online climate of trust and respect with appreciation of differing perspectives, promoting skills of critical analysis and ensuring that theory was related to practice. While end-of-module evaluations indicated that students perceived the learning to be effective and relevant, however, there was no measure of the extent to which practice had been influenced by this learning. Funding received in 2013 supported a project that enabled evaluation of the impact on practice, both during the period of study and following completion of the modules. All individuals who had completed one or more relevant modules were invited to complete a questionnaire, and some were given follow up telephone interviews. Results indicate that many students felt initially anxious about embarking on the course of study, and in some cases ill prepared to embark on online learning at Master’s level. Despite this, however, there was a positive impact on practice that was immediate and, in many cases sustained, although students perceived that this was not always recognised in the workplace. The findings suggest that online learning can be effective in influencing practice but that lecturers must continue to strive to find strategies to help students to overcome difficulties such as isolation, lack of confidence and workload pressures. There is also a need for further research exploring crucial aspects such as managers’ perspectives regarding the impact on practice and the value to an organisation of Master’s level study.

Keywords:

• Social work
• education
• e-learning
• practice knowledge
• decision-making
• impact

Acknowledgement

The author thanks the reviewers for their constructive and helpful comments.

Funding

The author acknowledges the support provided by a Teaching Fellow Grant from Edinburgh Napier University [grant number TF1143].