Quality and Comparability in Distance Field Education

Abstract

This article compares MSW field instruction at one local and two distance campus locations. The authors describe four “Action Steps” to design, implement, and evaluate the program with a focus on quality and comparability across sites. Data from students following their first-year field placement in 1995-96 are presented, including their perceptions of local and home-campus program resources, program responsiveness to local agency structures and culture, and program responses to confidentiality issues, a key issue in the comparatively smaller distance sites. The article concludes with suggestions for future development of field instruction in distance education programs.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

JoAnn P. McFall

The authors express their thanks to Dave Bercham for assistance with data analysis; to Bob Church, Marilyn Flynn, and Rena Harold for their comments on earlier drafts of the manuscript; and to three anonymous reviewers. The research on which this article is based was supported by the vice provost for university outreach at Michigan State University. The article was submitted to the special section on Distance Education and Technology in Social Work Education.