Field Educator Turnover: A Challenge to the Quality of Field Education

Abstract

Field education is the core of social work education, yet the quality of this programme is threatened by a high turnover of field educators. This retrospective study examines the turnover rate in one Australian social work programme, the characteristics of its supervisors and agencies and establishes a bench-mark for national and international comparative studies. High turnover rates suggest the need to re-examine some of the traditions arid assumptions of field education for social work.