Historical Perspectives on Rural Social Work: Implications for Curriculum Development

Abstract

Curriculum development must proceed from criteria that validate the inclusion or exclusion of a given content. The lack of a single focus for rural practice has heightened the difficulty of determining which content must be included in training efforts. In spite of this practice diffusion, the history of the rural field renders a number of suggestions for social work program development. This historiographic essay delineates the status of social work practice and education in rural communities from its inception in 1908 to the present day, and suggests the implications of the historical data for the development of educational programs for the rural field.