Rotational Field Placements: Integrative Review and Application to Gerontological Social Work

Abstract

Despite the long held social work tradition of year-long field placements, there is a growing trend among social work programs in the United States to include a rotational field placement (RFP) track, particularly for gerontology students. Through the RFP program, students rotate systematically between multiple placement sites within the academic school year. Inclusion of RFP models represents a decisive break from traditional field practicum models, raising fundamental questions with regards to educational outcomes and student experience. This article provides a comprehensive review of available empirical data on social work RFP programs, summarizing the benefits, risks and problem areas associated with such models as well as model design options and added structural supports social work programs have used to bolster the success of their RFP programs.

Keywords:

• Field Education
• Gerontology
• Rotational Field Placements
• Social Work Education

Acknowledgements

This study was supported, in part, by The John A. Hartford Foundation's Faculty Scholars in Geriatric Social Work Program, administered by the Gerontological Society of America, and by the Department of Justice and Social Inquiry at Arizona State University.

Notes

^[1] Formerly named the Practicum Partnership Program (PPP), the Hartford Foundation-funded programs may also exist under other names, such as the Geriatric Fellowship Program, which serves a small cohort of gerontology-focused MSW fellows through program supports and a rotational field component. For more information on the various Hartford programs, see http://www.hartfordpartnership.org/.

^[2] For more on gero-education competencies, see the Council of Social Work Education's Gero Ed Center: Advanced Gero Social Work Practice Guide—Gero Competencies, available at: http://www.cswe.org/CentersInitiatives/GeroEdCenter/TeachingTools/Competencies/PracticeGuide.aspx).