Bringing Social Work Education to the Prairie

Abstract

This article reports on an evaluation of a distance education program that offered all undergraduate social work courses over an interactive television network to four rural sites. Evaluations indicate few differences in satisfaction and student outcomes between the on-campus and distance cohorts. The on-campus and distance-site instructors also report a high level of satisfaction. Furthermore, results of an alumni survey conducted seven years following termination of the program found all graduates licensed to practice social work and 92% of these graduates currently employed as professional social workers. The article concludes with a description of lessons learned from the program.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Myrna Haga

The authors acknowledge Ernest J. Norman, professor emeritus, for his vision and commitment to outreach education and Renee Norman for her assistance with data entry and analysis. The article was submitted to the special section on Distance Education and Technology in Social Work Education.